3DMark 2001SE
Benchmarking begins with the de facto Direct3D benchmark 3DMark 2001SE build 330. Whilst we're eagerly awaiting the newest incarnation of this GPU basher, the consistency of this benchmark has made it an excellent tool for evaluating cards.
First, 1024x768x32.
I'll re-iterate that the Radeon 9700 (non-Pro) is simply a downclocked R9700 Pro from its native 320/610 core/memory clocks to 275/540. As both cards share the base architecture, the results obtained by our pseudo Radeon 9700 should correlate well with a pukka card.
Even at this system-limited resolution, the Radeons do well against nVidia's offerings. The gaps should grow once we raise the resolution bar. So, without further ado, let's see 1280x1024x32.
And now 1600x1200x32.
The greater horsepower of the Radeons prevails here. The Ti 4800-SE, due to its faster native clocks, squeezes ahead of the Ti 4200 8x card. It has to be said that the Ti 4800-SE and R9700 (non-Pro) cost roughly the same. It's a little disarming to see the Ti 4800-SE lose out by around 20% at 1600x1200x32.
