MAINSTREAM Doom3: Video and Audio
Video
AGP Overclocking Recommendation: eVGA 256MB GeForce 6800 GTPrice: $389 shipped
If you take a close look at our Doom 3 Graphics shootout, you will see that the nVidia 6800 cards emerged as the best video cards for Doom 3 with current video drivers. There was also an undercurrent in those results, and that was the emergence of the 6800 GT as the video card value to beat. What makes the 6800 GT so good?
The 6800 GT is unique in sporting 16 pipelines just like the 6800 Ultra. In fact, the only real difference that we can find between the 6800 GT and the more expensive 6800 Ultra is the clock speed. Just so this is clear, the ATI X800 PRO costs about the same as the 6800 GT, but the ATI X800 PRO is handicapped by 12 pipes instead of the 16 used on the X800XT. In other words, an overclocked X800 PRO is still not equivalent to an X800 XT.
The two 6800 GT that we tested both reached 6800 Ultra clock speeds pretty handily, so if you want 6800 Ultra performance, you may well get it with a 6800 GT overclocked to 6800 ultra speeds. As was mentioned in the Doom 3 graphics review, however, Doom 3 eats graphics cards for lunch. Overclocks that seem fine on other games often fail in Doom 3 - the game is that demanding. In the end, though, at least you have a shot at the best 6800 performance in overclocking a 6800 GT. You can also buy 6800 GT cards more easily, which is more than we can say for 6800 Ultras, which are very difficult to find.
The 6800 GT is clocked at 350MHz with memory at 1.0GHz; the 6800 Ultra clocks the GPU at 400MHz, and the memory at 1.1GHz. Both have 256MB of DDR3 memory and 16 pipelines. The easiest way to try your hand at overclocking a 6800 GT to Ultra levels is with a widely-available utility called Coolbits, which adds Clock Frequencies to the advanced tab of the nVidia properties. Coolbits even offers a Test and Optimal Settings button, so you can check to see if your 6800 GT can support 400HMHz and 1.1GHz speeds.
Sound Card
Recommendation: On-Board Realtek ALC658 AudioPrice: $0
In looking at sound options, AnandTech found the on-board sound was very satisfying for Doom 3 play with the typical powered 5.1 speakers used on computers. The recommended MSI K8N Neo uses the same top Realtek ALC850 audio codec tested in the Doom 3 audio tests. Therefore, we stuck with the on-board sound for the Mainstream Doom 3 system.
The Realtek ALC850 supports up to 8-channel audio and fully supports the latest AC 97 2.3 specifications. More information on the features and specifications of the ALC850 is available at http://www.realtek.com.tw/products/products1-2.aspx?modelid=2003101.
Listed below is part of our RealTime pricing engine, which lists the lowest prices available on ATI video cards from many different reputable vendors:
If you cannot find the lowest prices on the products that we've recommended on this page, it's because we don't list some of them in our RealTime pricing engine. Until we do, we suggest that you do an independent search online at the various vendors' web sites. Just pick and choose where you want to buy your products by looking for a vendor located under the "Vendor" heading.
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Wesley Fink - Sunday, August 8, 2004 - link
#29 and #30 -For $750 (after you added the value motherboard you forgot) you have:
1) A Video Card that is half as fast as the $998 Value System when playing Doom 3
2) A CPU that is 40% slower than the $998 Value system in Doom 3
3) A 17" Monitor instead of a 19" Monitor
4) NO CD or DVD at all
So for $250 savings (25%) you end up with a system that is a cumulative 60% slower than our Doom 3 Value System when playing Doom - with a smaller monitor and NO CD/DVD. That doesn't sound like value to me.
Did you not see the CPU charts for Doom 3 that show the Athlon XP at the bottom of perfromance charts? http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?... I also wish it were not so, but wishing will not change the performance we actually measured.
pliers - Sunday, August 8, 2004 - link
#29 link130 you also forgot to include a dvd or cdrw combo.link130 - Sunday, August 8, 2004 - link
oops, add $55 for a shuttle nforce2 ultra mboardlink130 - Sunday, August 8, 2004 - link
I agree with Avalon on the value pc. $1000 is ridiculous. For $1000 I can almost build a socket 939 3500+ system.This is My VALUE PC that can play doom3 at 10x7 high quality no problems
Total cost including shipping:
$690 - As built below
If I choose a 6800 instead of the 9800pro then just add $90 to run the game extremely well. Which is still FAR below the cost of $1000.
Bought mostly from newegg:
AMD AXP-M 2400+ @ 2.4ghz 1.7v - $77
Thermalright ALX-800 Heatsink + 80mm Fan - $21
Samsung 512mb 400mhz @ 2-3-3-7 - $83
WD 80gb 7200rpm 8mb IDE - $60
Powercolor 9800 Pro - $200
Thermaltake 420w PSU - $41
Logitech 640z 5.1 Speakers - $55
Aluminum ATX Case with 2 Fans - $35
XDS 17in X-Flat Monitor -$115
as you see, all my parts are good quality yet extremely cheap
link130 - Sunday, August 8, 2004 - link
Avalon - Sunday, August 8, 2004 - link
My mistake with the raptor drive. No need to point it out three times. I know perfectly well how to read, it's just a matter of remembering an older article.#26 - I can play it VERY well. Don't tell me I have to go buy a new $1000 system to play the game well, when my cheaper old rig does that already.
SKiller - Sunday, August 8, 2004 - link
#20 The guide is for people who want their system to play D3 *well*. When you fork over the money for a whole new system just so you can play 1 game (and maybe future games with eqivalent or greater requirements), you don't want it to play just OK. You want that system to play it *well*. Anything less would be a big waste of money. If you can't sepnd $1K on such a system, then you can't play it *well*, you *may* be able to play it OK, but then this guide is not for you.Embryo - Sunday, August 8, 2004 - link
LOL!pliers - Sunday, August 8, 2004 - link
#21 avalon if you had read the article correctly about raptor hds it was about using raptor hds in a raid-0 configuration on a desktop system not about using a single raptor hd on a desktop system. You must be reading this article wrong also [quote] We also used a 74GB 10,000RPM SATA hard drive for the fastest boot and Doom 3 load you can get short of high-end SCSI, plus a 250GB Hitachi with quiet fluid bearings to store the games, downloads, images, and add-ons that a hard-core gamer will accumulate. [/quote] Yes there is a mention of a raptor hd and another hd but just having two hard drives in a system doesnt qualify them as a raid-0 setup.ps: And if the main goal was just to be able to play doom3 im sure a review of a system with a 1.5ghz cpu, 384MB ram, a gefore 3, and a ata66 hd from 3-4 years ago could be mentioned but who wants to go out and buy that as your new "value" doom3 system?
Wesley Fink - Sunday, August 8, 2004 - link
The 6800 was selected for the Value System because it costs $278 vs. $200 for a 9800 PRO. That $78 buys you DOUBLE the performance at 1024x768 medium res in high quality - 80.1FPS vs.42.6. The 6800 also provides PLAYABLE frame rates at High res - something the 9800 PRO can not do.The two lowest priced cards to generate PLAYABLE (above 30FPS) rates at the low 640x480 resolution were the 9600XT and the 5700 Ultra. These cards are about 50% to 65% the price at $140 to $180. While they are playable at low res, moving to 1024x768 they drop to a barely playable 25.5 FPS - about 1/4 the performance of the 6800. If you need to save $100 to $140 on the value system price you could choose a 9600XT or 5700 Ultra and still play Doom 3 at 640x480 or 800x600 at playable rates.
In the end this is a Doom 3 Buyers Guide. We could try to sugar-coat the facts but would you really want us to? For a more traditional Value System you need to look at our Entry Level Buyers Guide.