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ATI Radeon 9700 Pro worth the price?

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  • ATI Radeon 9700 Pro worth the price?

    Oh man the 9700 Pro is 299.99 .

    Is it really worth it, or should I just get the less expensive nVidia GeForce 4 Ti 4800?

  • #2
    Bro,

    The 9700 Pro is worth every penny, I, fortunately, got it for a steal because it was an opened box at Best Buys for $239. If you were smart, I wasn't because I was willing to pay in the $350 range, you would wait until ATI released there TOP DOG: 9800 256 meg card because it should bring the 9700 Pro cost down. Then again, maybe not... Just a suggestion. I, personally have been using ATI produces since directx 4 generation, 16 meg vid cards and I have always been beyond satisfied. I'm not an expert on this though, seek opinions of Suicide, Darth, and RDR, they will guide you in the right direction.:D

    -Hawks :cheers:

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    • #3
      Here in Australia at over $600aus it ain't in my books and I'd rather pay $240aus for a trusty GF4 Ti4200 VIVO.

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      • #4
        In Responce to Hawks:
        Yeah, but the 9800 Pro 256 meg is going to be unbelievably expeeeeeeeeeennnnnsiive. I am guessing about 450.
        Thank you for your input, though. I think I will end up going with the 9700 Pro. It seems to be an all around better card.

        In Responce to Wiggo:
        Thats nice, I live in the US.

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        • #5
          I would bet dimes to dollars that the 9800 256 won't be able to be touch under $499.00 :eek: Now that is a serious dent in the old pocketbook....:(

          -Hawks

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          • #6
            the 9800 256mb looks to be around 400 right now what i would like to know is whether if they will release an al in wonder version? that will i expect be 450 up, if it gets relesed at all.

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            • #7
              If you're looking for all-out performance, then go for the Radeon 9700 Pro board. While the GeForce4 Ti series isn't a bad setup, they are blown away by the sheer horsepower in the ATI powered cards.

              Something else to consider is that the Radeon card you're looking at is fully DirectX 9 compatible whereas the Ti card is only DirectX 8.1, so you'll already be a generation back with the nVidia board. And while the GeForceFX board are DirectX 9, they haven't been released for public consumption in any quantities even close to market demand, so again the ATI would be the best bet.

              I used to be a very firm believer in the power of the nVidia line, but since getting a 9700 Pro and running it, the differences are simply amazing. Not only is the speed far better, but the quality of the graphics is in a whole new world.

              Just my two cents worth. :)

              BTW... the comments above concerning the release of the Radeon 9800 boards was still in reference to your desire to purchase the 9700 Pro. When the newer technologies are released, it is common for the prices of the older models to drop; so you would in essence be getting your desired 9700 Pro board for even less. ;)
              Old age and treachery will overcome youth and skill
              My Toys

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              • #8
                Originally posted by Darthtanion
                I used to be a very firm believer in the power of the nVidia line, but since getting a 9700 Pro and running it, the differences are simply amazing. Not only is the speed far better, but the quality of the graphics is in a whole new world.
                Amen to that brother, Testify! I had the same experience here...my Sapphire 9700 Pro is worth the $660 AUD I paid for it and more :)

                Being able to play any game at 1600x1200x32 with EVERYTHING set to max and 2x AA (or more) and just admire the graphics quality is worth the price. I've not had a single glitch in any of the games I run (Mafia, America's Army, UT2003, SOFII, The Thing, Wolfenstein, Morrowind, etc. etc.) because ATi's 3.2 Catalysts have resolved any doubt that ATi has poor driver support.
                My Machine

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                • #9
                  Hey Guys,

                  For those of you who are considering buying and for those who already have the 9700 Pro, you can softmod it into a 9800 Pro.
                  http://forum.ces3d.com/viewtopic.php?t=36 I did this and had awesome success!!!:D It put me well into the 17k's on 3DMARK2001 SE http://service.futuremark.com/servle...jectId=6251740 :thumb:
                  So, that's another thing going in favor of the 9700 Pro.

                  -Hawks

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                  • #10
                    be carful with those mods..:eek: :eek: :eek:

                    :cheers:

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                    • #11
                      That's a neat trick, although I'm not too keen on overclocking or modding my 9700 Pro yet...there's no need to be honest.

                      Just remember that the 9800 Pro is a hardware tweaked version of the 9700 Pro, so even at the same clock speeds the 9800 Pro will perform 5-10% (or more) better than the 9700 Pro at high resolutions.

                      Therefore a softmod might give a boost, but you haven't turned your 9700 Pro into a 9800 Pro :)
                      My Machine

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                      • #12
                        I've forced the 9800 drivers on my 9700Pro - I got a minor boost in FPS in most games & 3Dmark - less than 5%

                        the next set of Catalyst drivers (ver3.3) are supposed to include a few optimazations that will make this mod redundant

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                        • #13
                          Hey RDR, Pers, and Tweak,

                          What should I have anit-aliasing and anisotropic settings under the ATI control panel set at for best result on 3DMARK2001? Anyone know? Or know a thread that discusses it?

                          -Hawks

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                          • #14
                            check out www.pricewatch.com .....it has the best prices around.
                            last time i found 2 radeon 9700 pro's for $418 but the special seems to have gone. but it still has good prices:).

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                            • #15
                              Originally posted by Hawks
                              Hey RDR, Pers, and Tweak,

                              What should I have anit-aliasing and anisotropic settings under the ATI control panel set at for best result on 3DMARK2001? Anyone know? Or know a thread that discusses it?

                              -Hawks
                              if you set it to application preference - & run 3DMark at the default settings - you'll get results you can compare online

                              ....for games you should be able to run at at least 2XAA & 4XAF & still get decent framerates

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