System setup and notes
Hardware and Software
Test Platforms
| Systems | Athlon 64 S939 PCI-Express System | |
| Processor | AMD Athlon 64 4000+ | |
| Mainboard | ABIT AX8 K8T890 | |
| Memory | 1GByte (2x512MB) Corsair XMS3200 XL | Memory timings | 2-2-2-5 1T @ DDR400 |
| Graphics Card #1 | SAPPHIRE X800 GT Hybrid 256MB PCIe (475/980) | |
| Graphics Card #2 | ATI Radeon X700 Pro 256MB PCIe (425/865) | Graphics Card #3 | Galaxy GeForce 6600 GT 128MB PCIe (525/1050) | Disk Drive | 160GB Western Digtal 160JB IDE |
| BIOS Version | BIOS 10 - 14th February 2005 | |
| Operating System | Windows XP Professional SP2 | |
| Mainboard Software | VIA Hyperion Pro v4.55 | |
Software
ATI CATALYST 5.7 for ATI-based cards
NVIDIA ForceWare 77.72 for NVIDIA-based cards
Futuremark 3DMark05 Build 1.2.0 - AA and AF set via application
DOOM 3 v1.1 (1282) Timedemo 1 - AA and AF set via application
Far Cry v1.3 - custom HEXUS benchmark - AA and AF set via application
Half-Life 2 - custom HEXUS benchmark - AA and AF set via application
Chronicles Of Riddick - Escape from Butcher Bay - custom HEXUS benchmark - AA and AF set via control panel
Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory - custom HEXUS benchmark
Notes
We'll be taking a look at SAPPHIRE's X800 GT 256MB performance against the GPU it effectively replaces as ATI's midrange champion, the X700 Pro. No comparison would be complete without an offering from NVIDIA, and it's absolutely no surprise that it's the GeForce 6600 GT, with Galaxy supplying the sample which was clocked in at 525MHz core and 1050MHz RAM, just above default levels.
