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Originally Posted by MetalMilitia
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Second, the core speed on the Sapphire is about 140MHz slower.
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uhh, slower than what? That card has the standard 9800pro core and memory frequencies and the 256bit memory interface (as opposed to some saphire cards which only have a 128bit interface).
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Chipset/Core Speed: ATI RADEON 9800 PRO/380MHz
vs.
Chipset/Core Speed: ATI RADEON 9600XT/525MHz
That's the GPU clock speed.
But I don't know enough about graphics to say that this clock speed really matters. I'm glad you pointed out the difference in memory buses tho. The 9600 only has a 128 bit memory bus, so if I understand correctly, it can process 128 bits faster than the 9800 can process 256 bits. Since it's not at least twice as fast, then the 9800 actually has the higher throughput by a little bit.
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Third, I don't see anything that indicates dual head support on there
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Well you can actually see on the card the other monitor plug. To use two monitors you simply plug an adaptor into the DVI port on the card and it converts it to a standard monitor connection.
I have almost exactly the same card (but made by Connect3D) and would highly recomend it.
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Yeah, but will that enable multiple desktops or just the same output on two screens? I'm glad someone else is weighing in on this though cuz my knowledge of hardware is certainly not expert level.
Also, I don't know enough about the brands, but getting an actual ATI card vs. a knock-off makes a difference. I know I haven't been thrilled with my Chaintech card, and wish I'd spend the 40 extra bucks to get a more recognized brand. If Saphire has a good rep tho, I'd prolly change my recommendation to that.