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Sapphire X800 Series Roundup
[Abstract]
Sapphire's Radeon SistersIt is not too often that we get a whole posse of hot aliens of the female persuasion dropping in on our labs. Well, we don't actually remember any or at least we don't ...
[Content] PCDigitalMobileGame
The Step Sister
And now we come to the red-headed stepsister of the bunch, the Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO2 256MB. So why do we say that? Unlike the other Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO cards, there is something different about the GTO2. The tell tale sign is that out of all the Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO cards, only the GTO2 needs a separate Molex power connector. The typical Radeon X800 GTO including all the Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO cards are supposed to have only 12 pipelines. However, for the Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO2, you can actually unlock it to 16 pipelines with a relatively simple mod. This simply involves changing the original BIOS with a modified BIOS that has the extra pipelines enabled. Before we delve into how you can mod the Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO2 256MB and unlock its hidden potential, let's just have a look at the card.
A single slot cooler is good enough for the Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO2 256MB. |
A Molex power connector is needed for this card, unlike the other Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO cards we have seen. |
The standard I/O connectors are found at the backplate of the Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO2. |
The original locked Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO2 256MB is clocked at the reference speeds of 400/980MHz and at its default settings, its performance should be similar to the other Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO cards. This will change dramatically after unlocking the pipelines. You can also try overclocking it after unlocking to get performance approaching the 16 pipelines Radeon X850 XT Platinum Edition. The package for the GTO2 was exactly the same as the normal Sapphire Radeon X800 GTO card. The usual accessories were complemented by the TriXX Overclocking utility, a useful DVD playback application and a single game from the Sapphire Select DVD scheme. Below is the list of items in case you have been keeping count:
DVI-to-VGA adaptor
9-pin mini-DIN to Composite converter
9-pin mini-DIN to Component converter
Composite extension cable
S-Video extension cable
User Manual
Driver CD
Sapphire Select DVD (Choose one of the following games: Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30, Richard Burns Rally, Tony Hawk's Underground 2)
TriXX Overclocking Utility
CyberLink Power DVD 6.0
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