yes when it comes to a crossfire setup ATI does have a slight edge...benchmark figures are starting to come in and rumours are that 2 3850's can equal the performance of a GTX

Im really comtemplating getting a 3850 for the price performance ratio...I know a 8800GT kinda beats it still easily but Im not sure if its performance (3850) will get better with better drivers latter on. My point is its performance could improve with better drivers?

Hmmmm dilema I hope this card wont have an availability problem...but compared to sucky 8600GTS this is much more better from ATI...shame on you NVIDIA...and the price of a 8800GT is probably slightly inflated due to stock problems etc...and NVIDIA has been overpricing their cards...but interesting to see if the 8800GT price drops just a tad bit and it could be a really interesting price war between the two...

The benchmark shouldnt be comparing it to a 8800GT...thats not what it goes up against...the HD3850 outperforms the 8600GTS hand down.

These ATI card dont blow away NVIDIA's top of the line offering yet but they are on the right direction...These cards suck less power and go cooler...

You do the math...less power, less heat, lower price = crossfire heaven not forgetting drivers are yet to be fully optimised yet...so have patience...they'll get there.

it is not considered as a high end enthusiast level card...like a 2900XT..it is considered to be a performance/mainstream level card...but check the benchmark and you will see it gives even the 2900XT something to think about.

I cant speak for hd2600xt but i can say the HD3850 is quite impressive for what you pay for...Granted i still play at very low resolution but i play Crysis at a customised mix of high and very high settings....

I have a HD3850...what is this AA issue you guys are talking about...I have WiC(AA 2X) and Total War Kingdoms(AA 4X) with AA on with no such artefacts..

yeah...most of the major titles as far as i know i dont see any problem...hey its not like nfsps is that great anyway...okay i know its an unwarranted attack on it but what can i say...what do the guys in the nfsps tech forum say about this?

i get that lag...thats not due to the graphic card...notice the crytek logo goes smooth?,,possibly a codec issue with these other movies and the main menu...1GB ram is also possible a limiting factor...

dude that is another similarity between you and me...i was using a 7600GS...NVIDIA...could it be when uninstall the previous NVIDIA driver something extra got deleted? because i cant find anyone else with ATI with the same problem...there must be something different between that movies and the crytek logo movie...need to do more searching as ATI doesnt seem to have the solution...btw Im using XP???you too???yes i have a HD3850 too...

yeah i know...i did that too...but i still cant figure it out...


No the problem we are facing doesnt deal with the game engine itself...its stuttering intro movies...specifically the EA, Intel, NVIDIA intro and the main menu...the odd thing is the crytek logo goes smoothly..

We had no problem with these movies using NVIDIA before this...im quite sure its a software thing...either something screwed up in the driver...or a codec went missing...I have no problem with any other games intro movies..

Dude...same problem...Quite a few XP users have this problem...something about an Error 'data.size ()!=3...

There is a work around this:
http://forums.amd.com/game/messageview.cfm...1&enterthread=y

wait HD3970? or HD3870?

the one ATI released is called HD3800 series with 70 being the equivalent of the XT and 50 equivalent of a pro.

yeah a bunch of us got this problem...Im afraid there is no solution to it...you can install the driver and ATI CC manually...

well...its hard to say....i cant point to hardware incompatibility simply because the installer fails...its an installer issue...the card runs fine...and its not just the HD3800 series...

Quite a few people report 7.11 giving this error...but 7.10 works fine...again points to a software issue...reminder not everyone gets this...just some people...

Installing 7.11 manually:
http://forums.amd.com/game/messageview.cfm...1&enterthread=y

On the BF2 issue i cant help you much...not familiar with that game...make sure you got all the latest patch for it...

This post has been edited by frags: Nov 29 2007, 10:20 PM

I would like to see that review...was he reviewing it in crossfire?... they cant hide the truth for long...hehe

Your're comparing a 3850 with a 1000 buck card? 8800GTS has 320bit memory pipeline! Of course it wont outperform a 8800GTS...different category...But it clearly outperforms a 8600GTS which is around the same price range...

At the same price range...nothing by NVIDIA beats the 3850...8800GT is about 300 bucks more expensive...

This post has been edited by frags: Dec 2 2007, 03:36 PM

Depends on what type of 1950 you are talking about...HD3850 does beat a 1950pro...XT not very sure...

take a look at this benchy:
http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/amd_rv...eview/page5.asp


Okay Confirmed a HD3850 performs better than even a X1950XTX:
http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3151&p=9


Whether this increase of performance warrants an upgrade from a 1950XTX is up to your personal opinion and whether you'll be going the DX10 route anytime soon...

This post has been edited by frags: Dec 2 2007, 05:00 PM

If you can afford the HD3870 then go for it...It can handle higher resolution better than the HD3850.

Well...if you can afford a better card than i would say always go for the better card...As for future proofing it...well you know we all cant predict the future...

The life span of a particular technology depends on the consumers tolerance levels(lower details) and the extent of exponential improvement of technology...like this year is perhaps one of the biggest leaps in graphic card technology(software and hardware)..My 7600GS lasted(for me) for only a year compared to the famous Riva TNT2 in the past which lasted longer for me...

Go for the 3870...it will serve you well..just make sure you have the requirement for it okay? Its a dual slot solution make sure got space in your PC...

None at all...noise was pretty quiete and temperature is low without any fancy cooling(stock version sapphire)...this card uses less power and ultimately generates less heat...

IMHO absolutely no point to get a commercial cooling solution if you are not going to overclock...

This post has been edited by frags: Dec 4 2007, 12:13 AM