Testing:
The tests to be run include one synthetic benchmark and four video games played while frame rate data was recorded by FRAPS 2.9.3. The 256MB ASUS EAH3850 TOP HD3850, 256MB HIS IceQ HD2600 Pro Turbo, and the 256MB HIS IceQ X1300XT Turbo were run through the following:
» Futuremark 3DMark06 1.1.0
» Company of Heroes - Opposing Fronts
» Half Life 2: Episode 2
» F.E.A.R. Extraction Point
» Day of Defeat: Source
3DMark06 and F.E.A.R were run at 1280x1024 since they lacked wide screen support, and the other three games were all run at 1440x900 to take advantage of the 19" widescreen LCD monitor connected to the test system.
FRAPS was allowed to gather data over a 180 second span in each game, and the average FPS value was recorded. This game sequence was repeated on each card three times, and the average of the three average frame rate values was then recorded in the charts provided. The test system was rebooted before switching games, but the three runs of each game on any one card were conducted without a reboot.
3DMark06:
3DMark06 is the latest video benchmark in Futuremark's series. The results, presented in unitless "Marks", are shown below and provide a general sense of a system's overall gaming prowess. Settings for 3DMark06 were: 1280x1024, No AA, and optimal filtering. (higher is better).
Despite some of the hardware specifications being quite similar, the scores show that there really is no comparison between the ASUS EAH3850 and the other two cards. The ASUS card cracks the 10000 Mark plateau, while the other two come in at about 1/3 to 1/4 the total. Right off the bat we can see that the EAH3850 provides an incredible upgrade from these legacy Radeon PCI Express cards.
Company of Heroes - Opposing Fronts:
Since ASUS included a full copy of this game with the card, I figured I might as well use it as part of the review. I had played the demo a few months ago, and so far the game has met my expectations. The results shown below are much closer than 3DMark06 may have suggested, but the EAH3850 does best the competition with ease.
The main thing to remember on this game is that it supports DirectX 10, but the X1300XT card does not. While the framerates weren't astronomical on any card, the detail and effects in Company of Heroes (COH) can really stress a graphics card, and they looked particularly incredible on the EAH3850.
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