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- Date:
- Wednesday, February 28, 2007
- Author:
- Mark Warner
- Editor:
- Brent Justice
- Google +1
EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB Superclocked
EVGA has entered the arena of affordable DirectX 10 capable video cards with their e-GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB Superclocked video card. Does the extra clock speed make a real-world difference? We test it with today's hottest games and find out!
Introduction
Most computer hardware enthusiasts and gamers are familiar with EVGA. They are an add-in-board partner for video cards based on NVIDIA GPUs in North America. EVGA also manufactures motherboards, and has models based on NVIDIA's nForce 680i chipset for Intel Socket 775 processors, and NVIDIA's nForce 590 chipset for AMD Socket AM2 processors. They are one of the few manufacturers offering lifetime warranties on video cards, and they are currently the only company offering a step up program on video cards. This allows customers to upgrade and exchange a video card at a significant discount if the upgrade is done within 90 days of the original purchase.
NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS GPU
Launched on November 8, 2006, the GeForce 8800 series of Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) rocked the very foundation of design, engineering and performance in graphics. The initial GeForce 8800 GTS GPU came with 640 MB of GDDR3 on a 320-bit bus, clocked at 1.6 GHz, boasting a whopping 64 GB/sec of local memory bandwidth. The GPU itself is clocked at 500 MHz, and has 96 stream processors running at 1.2 GHz.
The new 320 MB version of the GeForce 8800 GTS was launched on February 12th, 2007. The only difference in this model was the reduction of cutting the memory capacity in half to 320 MB from 640 MB. Everything else stays exactly the same; the clock speed of the GPU, the clock speed of the memory and the memory bus are exactly the same as the 640 MB GeForce 8800 GTS.
The GeForce 8800 GTS GPU supports dual-link DVI and HDTV output. It requires just a single 6-pin auxiliary power connector. NVIDIA recommends a minimum of a 400 watt power supply to operate a GeForce 8800 GTS, with at least 26 amps on the +12v power rail. That is a bare minimum; however, users with many peripheral devices, drives, or expansion cards will want to invest in a stronger power supply.
EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB Superclocked
Today, we are evaluating the EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB Superclocked (SC) video card. It comes out of the box from EVGA with the GPU core frequency clocked at 576 MHz, the stream processors clocked at 1.35 GHz and the memory clocked at 1.7 GHz DDR (850 MHz actual). The EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB Superclocked utilizes 1.1ns GDDR3 memory. At 1.1ns we have a theoretical maximum attainable frequency of 900 MHz, so there is room for overclocking.
That is 76 MHz faster than the reference core clock speed of 500 MHz and 150 MHz faster than the reference stream processor clock speed. The memory is clocked 50 MHz (100 MHz DDR) faster than reference frequencies. This brings the memory bandwidth up to 68 GB/sec from the reference bandwidth of 64 GB/sec.
This is the fastest GeForce 8800 GTS we have ever tested out of the box. It bests the BFGTech GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB OC video card. The EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTS 320MB Superclock sports a 25 MHz faster core clock compared to the BFGTech video card and 50 MHz faster stream processor clock and a 50 MHz (100 MHz DDR) faster memory clock frequency.
The box that this video card comes in is standard EVGA fare. Instead of romanticized pictures of warrior, soldiers, and monsters, EVGA's packaging is understated and business-like. The front of the box is informative. All of the primary information (PCI-Express bus, 320 MB GDDR3 memory, HDCP support) is displayed in large clear lettering. The bottom left corner shows that this video card is eligible for EVGA's 90-day step up program. This video card is built for Windows Vista, now all we need are better drivers.
The side of the box displays the system requirements to be able to run this video card, including power supply requirements. EVGA recommends a 400 watt power supply with a minimum of 26 amps on the +12v rail. Our Corsair HX620W power supply had no problems with this video card in normal operation and with overclocking.
The back of the box lists what you will get in the box and has a window which allows the customer to compare the serial number on the card with the serial number on the box. This, again, is standard for EVGA, as well as some other vendors and is a great feature to make sure you are buying what you think you are.
The EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB SC video cards bears a striking resemblance to the BFGTech GeForce 8800 GTS OC 320 MB. It has the same color PCB (green), the same color PCI bracket (titanium black), and the same cooler design (NVIDIA reference). Only the stickers on the back and the design on the front of the cooler make them appear different from each other. The cooler is a large affair, stretching nearly the entire length of the video card. It is the standard reference design cooling device used on the GeForce 8800 GTS with 640 MB. The fan is large and spins slowly, quietly pushing air along the heat-sink and out of the vent on the PCI expansion bracket.
The back of this video card is rather uninteresting. Except for the unusually high number of stickers on the back and the many screws to hold the cooler on, there is not much to see. Unlike the GeForce 8800 GTX, the EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB Superclocked (and other GeForce 8800 GTS based video cards) have one SLI bridge connector.
This video card has a pair of Dual-Link DVI connectors, each of which is capable of driving a monitor at 2560x1600. There is also a TV/HDTV output port.
The bundle with the EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB SC is adequate and does come with a full version game, Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. Unfortunately that offer only lasts until March 31st, in which the game will no longer be included in the package, so beware. EVGA is working on future bundle plans with this video card so likely there will be a game bundled in the future, but what that game will be is not yet known. The bundle also includes a driver CD, a quick-start guide, a pair of EVGA stickers for your case, and a small folder to put it all in. Cable-wise, it comes with a pair of DVI to VGA adaptors, a Molex to 6-pin auxiliary power adaptor, and S-Video cable, and an HDTV output dongle.
Price and Comparison
The EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB Superclocked video card has a MSRP of $319.99 USD but can be found for less at online e-tailers. Here it is at Newegg for $299.99 USD. For our comparison, we picked the closest competition price wise which is the ATI Radeon X1950 XT 256 MB video card. You can also switch back to our BFGTech GeForce 8800 GTS 320MB OC evaluation to compare performance with to see if the higher clock speeds of this video card make any difference.