8800 GT v 9600 GT

Hi People :rolleyes:

I know that this subject is being stretched many times in different forums, but if I can give my opinion wether to go for the 8800 GT or the 9600 GT ...

I was all for the 8800 until I got some more info and I have decided now for the 9600 one. The reason being is the big advantage in lower power consumption but only a little difference in performance.

The 9600 GT one is a monster: idle 31°C / load 48°C
The gainward 8800 GT withe same cooler: 60°C on load....


http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/b...k/9600gtoc.jpg
(big thank you to my friend pvhk who has both cards)

Even neddless to buy a third part cooler ! :)

no offence mate, but my overclocked msi 8800gt scores 2500 more if we take out the cpu test, so if thats "not much difference" then...:surrender:

If I was to go by the numbers at the Firingsquad, the difference between the power consumption of the 9600GT and the 8800GT, both at stock, should be quite similar (13W both on idle and load). The difference is considerably under load at Tech Report which shows a difference of 33W - but it still wouldn't explain the difference your friend experienced.

From a performance point of view, the 8800GT is faster by about 10-15% depending on the title (at a quick glance of the numbers from the Firingsquad). Going by the Firingsquad's estimate on power consumption, the 8800GT is more 'efficient' (more fps per watt), but going by the Tech Report, the 9600GT is more efficient. Overall though, it shouldn't make a lot of difference.

So I am a bit at a loss why there would be a temperature difference exceeding 20% in your friend's PC. I still think that they are very close from a bang for buck perspective. Personally, I want to see some passively cooled 9600GT and compare them to the passively cooled 8800GT - even though the 9600GT is cooler, it's not meaningful to me unless it's near silent.

One thing to remember is the cooler on the card, a better cooler can dissapate the heat faster and maintain a lower working tempture.
Yes power consumption effects heat but so does the cooling.

Oh dear ... :surrender: ... back to square one ... :confused: