New Radeon Cards Announced: World Yawns
The new high-end Radeon card was announced yesterday, the X850 (the XT-PE is the fastest version), and it's the weakest respin I've ever seen. It's supposed to replace the X800 XT-PE.But wait. 850 is 50 faster than 800, right? That's what the marketing guys thought after six beers, anyway.
Clock speed increases are minimal compared to the X800 XT-PE. It's also a PCI-Express only part for now. It's the same fab process (130nm low-k). The biggest difference, really, is the fan, which now requires an open slot next to the graphics card because of its size.
That's actually more important than it first seems. Even now, the X800 XT-PE parts are extremely rare. I got one, but it was ridiculously difficult. The manufacturing yield for this part, which includes both 16 enabled pipelines and high clock speeds, has been very low. The X800, with only 12 enabled pipelines and lower clockspeeds, in contrast, are now readily available (and they're excellent cards in their own right). The new fan will enable ATI to increase their yield because it could significantly lower operating temperatures under load.
If you don't think a fan makes a difference, consider this. With the default fan installed with my X800 XT-PE, the temp at idle is around 39c. Under load, the temp could exceed 70c during extended Half-Life 2 sessions. Hot.
I replaced the default fan/heatsink combo with the ATI Silencer 4 from www.arctic-cooling.com. The fan blades are larger (enabling it to push more air at lower RPM's, which means it's quieter), and the heatsink is huge (a frame around the graphics card, basically). It also requires a free open slot because of its size. After installation, though, it lowered the temperature of the graphics card when under load by 15c!
That's why the larger cooling solution is going to increase their yield. It should enable previously borderline parts to run within the temperature spec.
Essentially, I could easily overclock my card to match the clockspeeds of the X850 XT-PE and still be running at lower temperatures than I was with the default clock speeds and fan. That's what I meant when I said it was the weakest respin I'd ever seen.
So that's the new card for you. Enjoy the really nice fan and thanks for coming.
Oh, and if any of you decide to order the ATI Silencer 4, be sure that it's compatible with your motherboard. There are a few boards it won't work with because of its dimensions. Check their website for a list of compatible boards.
<< Home