Which GeForce2 PRO is the best? [Archive]

AnakiMana

07-10-2001, 11:59 AM

I'm in the market for a new video card and have decided I like the GF2Pro. But which one is the best? The 2 biggest factors for me are price and overclockability/performance.

Any ideas? Can you find any reviews comparing them all?

Thanks,
AnakiMana

camaro

07-10-2001, 03:43 PM

Just ordered MSI one for $156.20 w shipping. Supposed to be good. I like the prices of PROs now. Very nice. Got my MX for $114 a year ago.

NDC

07-11-2001, 12:14 AM

As you may already know, all of the GTS pro based cards have the same core speed on the GPU. What you should pay close attention to is the memory speed. You will see that prices vary depending on the quality and speed of the memory on the card...

JayMan

07-11-2001, 12:34 AM

I have a prophet II PRO from hercules. I'm very happy with it. Comes with 5ns memory (400Mhz stock), i usually run my mem at about 450Mhz no worries http://www.sysopt.com/forum/redface.gif) Also run the gpu at about 230Mhz no worries.

JayMan

NDD

07-11-2001, 01:31 AM

Check GeForce2 Pro from www.leadtek.com.tw (http://www.leadtek.com.tw)
I have their GTS, it uses huge heatsink which does it's work quite well. PRO comes with even bigger now.

Best Regards ...

NDC

07-11-2001, 02:00 AM

Here's what I use for my system...

Suma Platinum SE Geforce 2 GTS 64MB (NOT PRO)
It's got 200Mhz Core and 5.5ns 400Mhz memory stock. It's got the same specs as the GTS Pro as you can see. And a beefy heatsink to go with it! http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

Suma Platinum SE Geforce 2 GTS 64MB (http://www.tomshardware.com/graphic/00q3/000816/suma-02.html)

Hellmund

07-11-2001, 07:21 AM

The SUMA card also looks awesome, it's got a Black PCB with a bright golden HS. Have a look if Gainward has a PRO card, or GTS, they seem to like putting the Fastest memory they can on a board.

NDC

07-11-2001, 09:18 AM

Yeah, you're right. It has black PCB, not green as shown in the picture in the link I posted above. Personally, I think they make quality, high performance video cards. They haven't made it big into the US market, but we should be seeing more of them some time soon...

AnakiMana

07-11-2001, 04:52 PM

Can anyone tell me what memory rating the MSI Starforce 831 has? 5ns? 5.5? 6ns?

I'm putting together a little comparison and can't find that number for the MSI card.

AnakiMana

Dputiger

07-12-2001, 01:21 AM

Actually, I've used a Starforce 8831 and a 8815 Pro from MSI (the two cards are absolutely identical, except that the Starforce uses smaller RAM chips).

The 8815 Pro OCced to 230/444

The Starforce OCCed to 230/450.

Nice cards, both of them. I've never had a single problem, and the TV out is an added plus.

Hellmund

07-12-2001, 05:34 AM

I think it was 5.5ns. Not sure I'll look it up for ya and post back in 2 minutes.

Hellmund

07-12-2001, 05:35 AM

No it's actually 5ns http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

AnakiMana

07-12-2001, 09:44 AM

Well, I've pretty much decided on the Inno3D card. It has 5ns memory, and one review I read said that they overclocked it to 220/480! It's $155 on Pricewatch at OCIE.com.

One of the cheapest PROs on Pricewatch is by PowerColor. Does anyone know anything about that card? I couldn't find reviews anywhere and their site kinda sucks. I don't trust anybody's vid card until I see a review. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

Thanks,
AnakiMana

eagle1

07-12-2001, 10:00 AM

I think you should stay with the Inno3d card. I mean, you should buy from a trusting company and a trusting brand. I haven't heard anything about PowerColor either! And it is better to spend a little more money and be with a better brand (just to ensure you quality and support).!

AnakiMana

07-12-2001, 10:33 AM

Yeah, you're right. I just read about OCIE on ResellerRatings.com and there's no way I'm ordering from them!!! But I liked the price.... http://www.sysopt.com/forum/frown.gif Time to start researching again.

eagle1

07-12-2001, 10:38 AM

I think you should check the prices on 2 of my favorite shops in the net...

http://www.mwave.com
http://www.newegg.com

These guys are good and sell good stuff and if you check in Resseller Ratings, they do quite good. I have ordered everything from mobos to cables and everything always goers without a hitch .. Ohh.. and they offer some of the best prices on the net.!

eagle1

07-12-2001, 10:52 AM

Look at some of their cards and prices:

GUILLEMOT KYRO2 3D PROPHET 4500 64MB VGA WITH TV OUT (White box) $129.00
ATI RADEON 32MB AGP DDR (Retail) (*While Supplies Last!) Detail Specs $134.00
HERCULES KYRO2 3D PROPHET 4500 64MB VGA WITHOUT TV OUT (RETAIL) Detail Specs $135.00
LEADTEK WINFAST GEFORCE 2 GTS PRO 32MB 4XAGP POWERED BY NVIDIA *W/TV OUT 5.5 NS Detail Specs $139.00
GIGABYTE GEFORCE2 PRO 32MB 4.0 DDR W/TV OUT(GV-GF2010DT-32) Detail Specs $139.00
MSI GEFORCE2 PRO GTS 64MB DDR WITH TV OUT MS-8831-020 $152.00 YES

benchristian

07-12-2001, 10:26 PM

camaro - sorry to hear that you already ordered the MSI geforce pro...i got one a while back and now i can't keep my case closed because the vid card overheats http://www.sysopt.com/forum/frown.gif oh well....I'm gonna have water cooling for the cpu and video in about a month anyhow...

[This message has been edited by benchristian (edited 07-12-2001).]

AnakiMana

07-13-2001, 12:22 AM

Thanks eagle1.
My problem is that I want a GeForce2 PRO with 64mb, and 5.0ns RAM. So far from what I've seen, only the Inno3D & PowerColor flavors offer that. Is there some models I've missed?

AnakiMana

Hellmund

07-13-2001, 05:00 AM

Winfast, CardEXpert and Gainward all have 5ns PROs.

benchristian: Did you overclock the card? how hot is the ambient temperature where you live, never heard of a standard MSI Starforce card overheating http://www.sysopt.com/forum/frown.gif

batmeat

07-13-2001, 07:29 AM

All GeForce 2 Pro's use the same Nvidia reference design. They all perform about the same. O/C is the difference. I use the Leadtek version and right out of the box I can O/C it to 225/475 with no jitters/snowball effects or anything.

eagle1

07-13-2001, 07:41 AM

I think Leadtek has made a lot of great video cards lately and all of them seems to overclock well.!

AnakiMana: Sorry for not noting about the 5ns requirements.!! But I'm sure there are alot of great PRO cards out there that even without the 5ns memory chips still perform better at normal specs and overclock well.!

Hellmund

07-13-2001, 08:07 AM

They may use the reference design and o/cing does make a difference but RAM bandwidth is what contrains all the Geforce range of cards and 6ns-5ns is more than you think. Also for the amount of money GF2 PRO's cost you want the fastest most reliable one to get you moneys worth.

AnakiMana

07-13-2001, 10:06 AM

Leadtek has two different versions of their PRO cards. The older one has 5.0ns memory, and looks like the standard PRO card (200core/400mem). I couldn't find any of these for sale. Then they have their newer, enhanced model that boasts slower 5.5ns memory and runs at 200/366. I'm confused by this! I know they have neat little LEDs on the card, but why did they slow it down?

Hey batmeat, which version do you have? I'm
wondering how high those new enhanced models can go!

Anyway, I ordered the Inno3D card yesterday from Amamax.com (one of the listed distributors on Inno3D's website). It cost me $163 for the OEM card. The only thing that bothers me is that I couldn't get a retail version from anyone! So I doubt I'll get any software (besides the drivers) with it.

So, now I'm curious... if you've got a GeForce2 PRO, can you post your CORE/MEMORY settings? It'd be a good testamony!

AnakiMana

AnakiMana

07-13-2001, 02:04 PM

Ok everyone... here is my list of GeForce2 PRO cards & memory speeds (http://www.sysopt.com/forum/Forum4/HTML/005518.html) .

AnakiMana
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JayMan

07-13-2001, 04:43 PM

Hercules Prophet II PRO has 64MB of 5ns memory.

Thats what i have and i can't complain about the card.

Oh, and as for PowerColor, i have heard of them, and use them. I have 2 voodoo2's ("evilKING") made by powercolor, they are very good cards, and i still use them now in SLI for glide support with older games. They are a taiwanese company so probably not very popular in the US, but from my understanding is pretty good in asia. But i still this the Hercules Prophet II PRO is the way to go. Or is ya got the extra $$$ go the Ultra (it actually comes stock with a modified thermaltake blorb, modified so it doesn't block the 1st pci slot. And yes the blorb on it is made by thermaltake not just a cheapo copy)

JayMan

hawkeye177

07-13-2001, 04:54 PM

Do they have DDR memory or regular memory?

Dputiger

07-14-2001, 01:15 AM

My MSI cards were both 5 ns models and had reasonable OC power. OCcing really is luck of the draw--a 10% OC (what I got) is quite nice. Card is also cheap at www.axiontech.com--only (http://www.axiontech.com--only) $150!

camaro

07-17-2001, 01:31 PM

Just got mine MSI Starforce PRO 8831 from computerHQ. It does have 5ns mem. It's got no memsinks and just a fan on the gpu. Is that right? I'm not going to overclock cause the last one died that way. I don't think I need to anyway. It's a PRO and it's got plenty muscle. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

Dputiger

07-17-2001, 01:36 PM

Sounds right to me--enjoy the card!

Hellmund

07-18-2001, 08:32 AM

I've used powercolor and can't complain, had an M64 which would take AGPX4 at 93mhz 1:1 with my old celeron 400. It's overclocked quite well too. IT's stock was only like 100/110 and I had it at 160/180 with an oversize socket370 HS/F.

AnakiMana

07-18-2001, 10:28 AM

Right... I would expect the Powercolor card to work... but does it overclock as well as the others? Does it come with good software? Are there any quirks or downsides to their PRO card?

I've used one of their Voodoo3 2000 based cards, which I thought was cool cuz they boasted speeds of a 3000 and costed less than 3Dfx's cards. But I still haven't heard anything about them... I don't trust them yet.

AnakiMana