![[H]ardOCP](/images/blank.gif){kind=small}
- Date:
- Wednesday, April 19, 2006
- Author:
- Brent Justice
- Editor:
- Tim Daniel
- Google +1
MSI High-End Video Card Comparison
Today we show you three high-end MSI video cards. NVIDIA versus ATI! We get to the bottom of the real gaming experience in Oblivion and others then take a dive into Widescreen gaming.
MSI RX1800XT-VT2D512E:
Just like the RX1900XTX, the model name RX1800XT-VT2D512E tells us all about the card. From it, we can see that this is MSI’s ATI Radeon X1800 XT (RX1800XT)-based video card with Video In and Video Out (V), TV-Out (T), and 2 DVI connectors (2D) with 512MB of RAM (512) on the PCI-Express bus (E).
The Radeon X1800 XT was the GPU released just prior to the X1900 XTX. The features are exactly the same between the X1800 XT and X1900 XTX: they both support Shader Model 3.0, they both allow FP16 HDR with AA, and both have 2/4/6X levels of AA with Adaptive AA and a special High Quality Anisotropic filtering option. Where they differ is that the X1900 XTX has 48 pixel shading units while the X1800 XT has only 16. So if you read our X1000 technology preview, this applies to both the X1800 XT and X1900 XTX. You can also check out our original X1800 XT evaluation for more information specific to the X1800 XT.
It is important to note that the X1800 XT is still in production; while the X1900 XTX is newer and faster, ATI is still very much putting the X1800 XT out in the market and add-in-board manufactures like MSI are selling them. I think you will see in this evaluation that even though the X1900 XTX has more shader processes, the X1800 XT still holds its own in games.
Just like the RX1900XTX, MSI makes it easy for you to catch the key features of this video card with just a glance at the front of the box. You will find it has 512MB of GDDR3, supports Video In/Out, HDTV, and is PCI-Express. The packaging is exactly the same on all these cards; slide the box out and you’ll find the card pushed down in foam with no other protection.
The design and layout matches not only the reference design but also the RX1900XTX perfectly. It looks like the exact same heat sink and fan unit, and the size of the card is the same. Upon first glance, you really can’t tell which one is the X1800 XT and which one is the X1900 XTX.
If you look just under the heat sink on the video card (middle of the screenshot), you will see the Rage Theater chip. This is what makes the Video In and Out possible on the RX1900 XTX and RX1800 XT.
Power is handled through the PCI-Express power connector. The heat sink is just like that seen on the RX1900XTX: there is a big old honking piece of copper in the center with aluminum over the RAM. Dual DVI ports are standard with TV Out, Video Out, and Video In.
The bundle includes HDTV and composite and S-video cables along with a splitter that allows In and Out cables to be connected for video. Dual DVI to VGA connectors are in the box as well as a PCI-Express power cable.
For the RX1800XT, MSI has included the full version of Colin McRae Rally 2005 full version.