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MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB OC Edition Video Card

We take the highly overclocked GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB video card from MSI and run it through our Vista gaming tests including Lost Planet DX10 performance. The 640 MB 8800 GTS and 2900 XT are the cards to beat. Which is the best value under $400?

Introduction:

Microstar International (MSI) was founded in 1986 as a computer motherboard manufacturer. Since then, their product lineup has expanded to include barebones PCs, video cards, rackmount servers, networking equipment, and notebooks, among others. Since 2001, MSI has been expanding their manufacturing and distributing base into mainland China. Between their video card and motherboard manufacturing facilities, their annual productivity is estimated at over 27 million parts. They are an equal-opportunity video card manufacturer, producing video cards with both ATI and NVIDIA GPUs, and motherboards for both AMD and Intel CPUs.

For this evaluation, we are focusing on one of their new video cards: the MSI NX8800 GTS T2D320E HD OC, featuring an NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS GPU and 350 MB of GDDR3.

NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB

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 320 MB version of the GeForce 8800 GTS was launched on February 12th, 2007. The only difference in this model was the reduction of the memory capacity being cut in half to 320 MB from 640 MB. Everything else stays exactly the same: the clock speed of the GPU (500 MHz), the clock speed of the memory (1.6 GHz)and the memory bus (320-bit) 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.

MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB HD OC Edition

In most respects, the MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB OC Edition is a bog-standard NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS with 320 MB of memory. It has the same cooler design, the same PCB design, and the same IO bracket as every other reference designed GeForce 8800 GTS video card out there. In fact, the only aspect of this video card that makes it special is the clock speed. The standard NVIDIA reference design calls for a 500 MHz GPU clock, and a 1.6 GHZ DDR (800 MHz actual) memory clock. The GPU on the MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB OC Edition is overclocked to 575 MHz, and the memory to 1.7 GHz DDR (850 MHz actual). As factory overclocked GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB video cards go, this MSI video card has above average clock speeds, as well as an above average price.

The packaging of the MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB OC Edition is typical for MSI. It features a young woman in a fantasy role-playing setting, and plenty of little icons and markers to tell the consumer what is in the box, as well as some of the features and capabilities of the video card. A sticker affixed to the upper right hand corner of the box indicates that the contained video card is the "OC Edition", which means this video card is overclocked from the factory. Another sticker on the front of the box states that the full version of THQ's hit real-time-strategy game "Company of Heroes" is included within the box. Including a full-version game, especially one as relatively recent and high-profile as Company of Heroes, is a move that we wish more video card vendors would make; kudos to MSI for including it.

The complete model number (NX8800GTS-T2D320E-HD-OC), serial number, and brief description of the video card and included bundle is found on a small white sticker on the side of the box. The back of the box is also standard for MSI, containing very little useful information, and the usual (or unusual, depending on your perspective) "MSI Exclusive Yellow DVI" information indicating the uniqueness of a yellow DVI port, though this video card doesn’t actually have yellow ones.

Physically, there is very little to distinguish the MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB OC Edition from other NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB video cards. The only physical difference is literally the stickers affixed to the cooler shroud, the fan, and the backside of the PCB. The same character that graces the front of the outer packaging is also features on the sticker on the black, translucent plastic heat-sink shroud. The fan, of course, has a small MSI logo sticker. Just like every other GeForce 8800 GTS we've seen, this video card requires the use of a single 6-pin auxiliary power connector.

The business-end of the MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB video card features a pair of Dual-Link DVI-I connectors and the standard NVIDIA HDTV output port. Unlike other MSI video cards, the DVI ports on this video card are not yellow. This is likely due to the fact that Flextronics is still manufacturing GeForce 8800 GTS video cards, and they are not using yellow DVI ports. MSI does, however, include a pair of yellow rubber covers that can be used to protect the unused DVI ports on this video card. The “HD” in the product model name depicts the presence of HDCP capability. This video card has a built in HDCP ROM chip so that you can watch movies protected by HDCP encryption. The back of this video card is not, as is usual, interesting. There are a lot of surface mount components and several stickers, but nothing worth looking at for any length of time.

The bundle supplied with the MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB OC Edition is fair. It comes with all of the cables a person might need to install this video card, including an HDTV output dongle, a 2x Molex to single 6-pin auxiliary power adaptor, and a pair of DVI to VGA adaptors. There are 2 included quick-installation guides. As to why there are two, nobody knows but MSI, perhaps an error in our packaging. On the software side, the MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB OC Edition comes with the standard driver CD, as well as the full-version, 2-disc edition of THQ's Company of Heroes. It is a very popular game, and a DirectX 10 patch was issued for it recently, allowing Windows Vista users with a DirectX 10 video card (like this one) to experience this strategy game with DX10 support.

Price and Comparison

For this evaluation, we are comparing the MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB OC Edition with two video cards. First, we want to see if the relatively high factory overclock on this video can bridge the performance gap between the GeForce 8800 GTS with 320 MB of memory, and the 640 MB version. For that, we are comparing this video card with a reference speed NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS 640 MB video card. Second, we wanted to know how the MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB OC Edition compared with the ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT in Windows Vista with DirectX 10. Therefore, that video card will be included in this evaluation and we will use Lost Planet DX10.

The MSI NX8800 GTS 320 MB OC Edition can be purchased from Newegg for $309.99 USD. A good video card with an NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS and 640 MB of memory can be bought for $379.99 USD with a $30 rebate making it $349.99. Finally, the ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT can be had for $389.99 USD. As you may have noticed, both of our comparison video cards carry a significant price premium. We will find out if the extra cost is actually warranted.