8600 GTS 512, and PCI-E power Y connector.

[masterchief3k]

So i heard on tiger direct that if you don't use the included cable (IE, you have a PCI-E 6 pin built into your PSU) it will fry your card and mobo. How is that true? Is it even true?

My EA380w has a PCI-E cable. Wouldn't it work just fine instead of the extra clutter of the Y-splitter?

[Methious]

Provided your power supply is in good working order the PCI-E power connector built into it will work just fine. Since the PCI-E connector is designed specifically for the card it'll work better and help to spread the load on the PSU.

Who ever gave out that bogus info doesn't know what their talking about.

They may have fried a card with a bad PSU but if it fried with the PCI-E it'd probably fry with the dongle.

[Miker]

With that card you need to use the provided adapter.

Something about the faster 256 mem bus.3

[masterchief3k]

The y-splitter increasing the bus speed is complete BS, on the XFX site it says it has 256 bit... My power supply is in my sig, and it's great, it has active PFC, 80+ efficiency, plenty of watts, 34A combined rails, i just don't know if i should use the splitter or the included on my PSU connector, i guess i will try and see, but i am not a risk taker, myself being somewhat of a technician and A+ certified says that the y-splitter is BS. besides, i have 6 free molex connectors, and how would that help split the load on the PSU if they run all on the same set of wires?????

[Miker]

Trust me, XFX Modded the GPU to run at 256bus not 128bus and it needs 2x molex to run.

[Methious]

Some of the models require the y splitter, I didn't think about it until I looked at the GTS portion of the thread in the title.

It's supposed to be some thing about the 256 mem bus speed.

Check with the manufacturers web site and support team and do what they recommend.

[masterchief3k]

Yeah oops i just yelled at XFX in my ticket about that...

Um, okay, on newegg i saw that to activate the 256 bit ringbus, the +5v will be used as well as the +12v rail. (in which case is why the adapter is needed.)

Hmm, cool. and only in the 512 mb version. we will see how it performs...brian said really earlier today that the tracking number would be added shortly, but does shortly mean a day? has it been shipped yet? i'm kind of impatient...

[Miker]

That is a great replacement for a 7900GT.

[trueg50]

You'll be fine.

The worst that will happen if you leave it unplugged is that it will emit a loud screech, don't worry it is the board speaker (I think that model has it, my 8800GT does). At worse it will show a screen yelling at you for not installing it.

I think what your friend was referring to was that if you had a really crappy PSU and you overloaded it then there is a chance, however you seem to have a fine PSU.

The motherboard PCI-E slot provides 75 watts of power, not enough for the 8600GTS (90 Watts I think) so you need to use the 6 pin PCI-E power connector that supplies another 75 watts.

When you install it could you post here (and on OCN too) a GPU-Z screenshot?

I have heard that it is not the memory bus that they increased to 256 bit. Though doubling the # of modules could do it, I really have not heard of any companies changing cards bus width. Lots of rumors as to an 8700 with 256, but nothing on 8600GTS 's.

If it is 128, then no it is a bit of a decrease in performance from your 7900 GT, synthetic wise, sure the 8600GTS is better, but actual performance wise it is a decrease.

GPU-Z has an area for "Bus Width" on the right side.

[masterchief3k]

I'll do that, Trueg50.

In fact i have GPU-Z here. Just waiting on my card to come.;-)

If it was 128 bit i don't think i would bother returning it again, i am getting a deal, i'm getting a card worth $125-$140 for only $80.99. i have also seen videos of the same graphics card and framerates on crysis were very smooth, comparable even to the 8800 GTS. Of course they had better CPU's and double the ram than me, but i like that.

[Miker]

No way a 8600 is almost as fast as a 8800.

[masterchief3k]

the youtube video made it seem like it. it wasn't even a "256 bit" 8600 GTS.

[trueg50]

No way a 8600 is almost as fast as a 8800.

Perhaps in synthetics it can match an 8800, but those don't count for squat these days.

If it did have a 256bit memory bus then it might be an interesting performer, but there is no way 32 low clocked shaders can match even the 96 of a lonely 8800GTS 320.

I used to have an 8600GTS (EVGA) and it was a very underwhelming card. I couldn't do nearly the performance that many review sites claimed, heck I couldn't play FEAR at decent settings (high and light AA/AF at 1280x1024). I am glad I didn't pay for it, because it was in no way a $150 upgrade from my 7600GT, I am very lucky and glad that my Step-up date allowed me to step-up to an 8800GT.

[masterchief3k]

True. It really depends on your system. It will be monday or tuesday when i get my card back, then i will get to see the 8600 GTS perform. If i can get me than 30 FPS in the smoke demo, i will be somewhat happy. If i can run fear combat at maximum 1024x768 and get more than 26 FPS, i will be convinced. ;-)