FiringSquad: Home of the Hardcore Gamer - Games, Hardware, Reviews and NewsSubmit your own or view users' CPU overclocking results!

  
 Home   News   THE MATRIX   Deals   Hardware   Games   Features   Media   Products   Forums   FS China 
AddThis Social Bookmark Button

Home : Hardware : Video Cards : ABIT RADEON 9800 XT Review
» Join the Greatest Gaming Community NOW! (It's free)

Already a member? Login
 


Random Gallery >> 
Click to view high-res Image!
Silent Hunter: Wolves of the Pacific Review Screenshots [74] (4)


AMD Game Review Writing Contest Rules! (12) by FS-Lyle
The Bland Addiction: World of Warcraft (17) by Discobiscuits
Biostar Contest ~ Gotcha (0) by gotcha_r
Far Cry (PC) Review by exe3 (4) by exe3
The Witcher Review, The Polish RPG that could. (6) by McStu
World in Conflict (PC) Review (6) by Kessandra
Sins of a Solar Empire Beta Review [Prelim 2] (5) by Itchyeyes
Pt1t Results for Biostar contest (4) by Pt1t
C&C:Renegade Review, wrist-slittingly good! (8) by McStu
Beyond Good and Evil (prelim 2) (5) by exe3

More Blogs >>




ABIT RADEON 9800 XT Review
January 29, 2004   Brandon Sandman Bell > [View My Other Articles]
Product Info | +User Review | Article Images(16) | Image Gallery | Comments | Forum Thread
Board analysis


ABIT RADEON 9800 XT Review [ The ABIT 9800 XT card @ 1024 x 768 ] > View Full-Size in another window.
The ABIT 9800 XT card

ABIT RADEON 9800 XT Review [ Back of the card @ 1024 x 768 ] > View Full-Size in another window.
Back of the card


Board design

As we just stated, ABIT’s initial RADEON 9800 XT offering is based entirely on ATI’s reference design, right down to the copper cooling unit. This is a pretty popular strategy for board manufacturers to employ – stick with the reference design for your first generation graphics card in order to bring the product to market more quickly. Often these boards are made directly by ATI themselves (via PC Partner/Sapphire) and then sold to the board partner. This allows the board partner to cash in on the new product announcement as soon as it's available.

Once the board partner has had enough time to develop something unique, this product is produced and marketed as a second-generation card. These are the cards that come with added features such as more robust cooling, video input, or components that operate at faster clock speeds. It’s these features that give these second generation cards a buzz of their own.

ABIT RADEON 9800 XT Review [ Capacitors, VRMs @ 1024 x 768 ] > View Full-Size in another window.
Capacitors, VRMs


While some of you may be disappointed with the fact that ABIT is relying on ATI’s reference design, don’t be. ATI has incorporated a number of improvements in the 9800 XT. The power circuitry has been completely overhauled with an emphasis on reliable operation at higher clock speeds and to take more heat.

ABIT RADEON 9800 XT Review [ Air enters the duct here @ 1024 x 768 ] > View Full-Size in another window.
Air enters the duct here

ABIT RADEON 9800 XT Review [ And exits here @ 1024 x 768 ] > View Full-Size in another window.
And exits here

ABIT RADEON 9800 XT Review [ Another shot of the copper cooler @ 1024 x 768 ] > View Full-Size in another window.
Another shot of the copper cooler


The cooler itself is composed entirely of copper, a first for an ATI graphics card. The heatsink takes up an enormous amount of real estate in order to increase surface area and thus pull more heat off the graphics core. A large fan collects nearby air which is then passed through a duct before exiting out the sides of the card. And while the fan is large, it spins at lower RPMs than most fans; making up for the lower rotational speed by having longer fins.

In operation the fan is surprisingly quiet, and like GeForce FX, it operates dynamically. As the graphics core’s temperature increases, the fan cranks up the RPMs (two modes are available). It’s all totally invisible to the end user -- we wouldn’t be surprised if some card owners didn’t even realize it. The fan is located offset of the graphics core for longevity (heat rising up from the graphics core can potentially shorten the life of the fan’s ball bearings) and to increase the effectiveness of the ducting system.

ABIT RADEON 9800 XT Review [ 9800 XT back plate @ 1024 x 768 ] > View Full-Size in another window.
9800 XT back plate


All ABIT does is slap their sticker on the card’s fan and duct, box it all up, and sell it to the consumer. We have a very strong suspicion that this card was produced in the same factory as our Built By ATI RADEON 9800 XT card we received last year.

Packaging

ABIT’s RADEON 9800 XT comes with everything you’d expect from a typical graphics card. You’ve got the obligatory DVI adapter, power adapter cable, and S-Video and composite cables. The soft stuff included with the card is also standard fare. ABIT bundles a copy of PowerDVD 5 along with the driver CD, and, of course, a redeemable coupon for a free copy of Half-Life 2 (once it’s released).




Back! ABIT’s partnership with ATI/NVIDIA     How we tested Next!
Blog + Share: Digg Del.icio.us Reddit SU furl • More: AddThis Social Bookmark Button
Send This Article to a Friend!  
Table of Contents
  Print Entire Article  

MATRIX CONTENT » RANDOM MEDIA BLOG More Blogs >>
No ratings yet
» Please rate this
I am an AMD AgentRead this Media-Blog entry!» Fury - The PvP Exclusive MMO? (2)
by imoish (3) Talk with this user on their Shout Box (My other blogs) Posted 10 months ago

Sponsored Links
:
[GO]


 Latest Headlines
Update - Biostar $2,500 Overclocking Contest (7)
G94-based GeForce 9600 GSO coming soon? (1)
Early verdict: Catalyst 8.10 is going to rock! (3)
Crysis Wars free trial weekend (2)
Will DS owners upgrade to the DSi? (11)
Today's News >>
Today's Siteseeing >>


 Table of Contents


 Quick Fact
Besides motherboards and video cards, ABIT also manufactures speakers.

Car Finance  Advertising  Mortgage  Mortgage  Bad Credit Mortgages
FiringSquad is powered by... Back to Top Site MapContact UsAdvertise With Us Privacy StatementAbout Us  
News RSSSiteseeing RSSArticle RSS   © 1998-2008 FS Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved