Differences in Geforce 6-series lineup, am I right here?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Anonymous Joe
  • Start date Start date
A

Anonymous Joe

Been trying to figure out what's what, and have decided than economically
only a 6600GT, 6800LE, or 6800 is feasible.

They are all priced about the same, with the 6800LE being about the
cheapest. Is it really as simple as the more expensive one is the best
logic?

From what I can tell:

6600GT = 8 pixel pipelines; 128-bit RAM; 500MHz core; 1GHz RAM (DDR)
6800LE = 8 pixel pipelines; 256-bit RAM; 320MHz core; 700MHz RAM (DDR)
6800 = 12 pixel pipelines; 256-bit RAM; 325MHz core; 700MHz RAM (DDR)

OK, I can tell the 6800 is obviously the best, but how would one score up
the 6600GT v 6800LE battle?

A 6600GT is like a 6800LE, but at 500MHz instead of 320, and with RAM that
is effectivley only 500MHz (DDR), due to the 6800LE's increased path width.
A 6800LE is like a 6600GT, but with a slower core and faster RAM (1.4GHz
(DDR) equivelant due to decreased path width).

So, is a 6600GT being limited by bandwidth? Would a 6600GT at 320MHz core
be limited by bandwidth or would that not be a factor anymore?

If you think of the 6800 as a 6600GT, then it would be one that is 488MHz
core/1400MHz RAM (DDR). If this is faster, which it is, then it means that
at about the same core speed, it is faster because it has 400MHz more RAM
speed. This, then means a 6600GT benefits from increase memory bandwidth.
Thus a 6800LE is a piece of crap, as it increases the bandwidth and then
decreases the core so it can not benefit from the memory bandwidth.

Clearly, then, the pecking order is:

1) 6800 - $269 AGP
2) 6600GT - $240 AGP ($185 PCI Express x16)
3) 6800LE (VE sometimes?) - $253

all 128MB parts. (If you have PCI Express x16, though, you have no choice
but the 6600GT or ATi :)
 
Been trying to figure out what's what, and have decided than economically
only a 6600GT, 6800LE, or 6800 is feasible.

They are all priced about the same, with the 6800LE being about the
cheapest. Is it really as simple as the more expensive one is the best
logic?
Click to expand...
1) 6800 - $269 AGP
2) 6600GT - $240 AGP ($185 PCI Express x16)
3) 6800LE (VE sometimes?) - $253
Click to expand...

My guess is that you probably won't notice a huge difference between
the 6600GT and the 6800LE, but that the 6600GT is probably the faster
of the two. I did a quick search for some comparisons, and while
there wasn't much that turned up, most seemed to point to the 6600GT
being about 5% faster on average than the 6800LE. On the other hand,
given the pricing you've got there, the 6800 seems like the natural
choice to me, as it's definitely faster than the other two and not
much different in price.

Of course, if you can wait a few weeks, the prices of the 6600GT
should come down a fair bit, pretty much on-par with the PCI-Express
models. The 6600GT AGP only JUST came out a week and a half ago, so
it's still got that first-on-the-block pricing structure.
 
Back
Top