• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Anyone still using a HD 2900XT or Pro?

qubit

Overclocked quantum bit
Joined
Dec 6, 2007
Messages
17,866 (3.00/day)
Location
Quantum Well UK
System Name Quantumville™
Processor Intel Core i7-2700K @ 4GHz
Motherboard Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3
Cooling Noctua NH-D14
Memory 16GB (2 x 8GB Corsair Vengeance Black DDR3 PC3-12800 C9 1600MHz)
Video Card(s) MSI RTX 2080 SUPER Gaming X Trio
Storage Samsung 850 Pro 256GB | WD Black 4TB | WD Blue 6TB
Display(s) ASUS ROG Strix XG27UQR (4K, 144Hz, G-SYNC compatible) | Asus MG28UQ (4K, 60Hz, FreeSync compatible)
Case Cooler Master HAF 922
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty PCIe
Power Supply Corsair AX1600i
Mouse Microsoft Intellimouse Pro - Black Shadow
Keyboard Yes
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
Just wondering, because they could have been so good, but turned out to be such unfortunate lemons... and I bought one, hehe*. Very noisy, power hungry, hot-running and crucially, performance no match for its prime competitor the 8800 GTX. lol :laugh: Even in 2D mode, the fan kept spinning up annoyingly until I hacked the BIOS profile. :wtf:

Even better, anyone still got these in Crossfire?!

What about a 2900GT? As it's a crippled version, this one has to be the worst of the bunch right? It's got all the negative qualities of it's big brothers, with none of the performance.

Much better cards are now available from ATI & nvidia for a fraction of the cost, so there's no reason to hang on to them that I can see.

Incredibly, Scan are still selling all three variants at the full retail price that they came out with. Despair over this, here.

I'm now using a Leadtek 9800 GX2 that I got at a bargain price recently and I'm loving it.

*2900Pro 1GB BIOS flashed to XT.
 
Joined
Nov 22, 2008
Messages
3,779 (0.67/day)
Location
Latin America, Uruguay
System Name The Lizard v2.4
Processor Intel Celeron G1840 (for the time being
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-H81-S2PH
Cooling Intel Stock Fan
Memory 16GB Kingston HyperX 1600
Video Card(s) MSI Gaming GTX 750Ti (For the time being)
Storage 500GB Samsung F1, 160GB Maxtor "Older than god"
Display(s) AOC 28' LCD
Case Coolermaster N200
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply Antec VP500P
Software Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Benchmark Scores No crashes in the last 24 minutes.
Just wondering, because they could have been so good, but turned out to be such unfortunate lemons... and I bought one, hehe*. Very noisy, power hungry, hot-running and crucially, performance no match for its prime competitor the 8800 GTX. lol :laugh: Even in 2D mode, the fan kept spinning up annoyingly until I hacked the BIOS profile. :wtf:

Even better, anyone still got these in Crossfire?!

What about a 2900GT? As it's a crippled version, this one has to be the worst of the bunch right? It's got all the negative qualities of it's big brothers, with none of the performance.

Much better cards are now available from ATI & nvidia for a fraction of the cost, so there's no reason to hang on to them that I can see.

Incredibly, Scan are still selling all three variants at the full retail price that they came out with. Despair over this, here.

I'm now using a Leadtek 9800 GX2 that I got at a bargain price recently and I'm loving it.

*2900Pro 1GB BIOS flashed to XT.


dont know but if anyone still using them they should take a look to newegg and put a hat of "hi, i am a moron who throw energy through the window"
 
Joined
Apr 3, 2008
Messages
3,051 (0.52/day)
Location
Pontaic Michigan
System Name The Netbook
Processor Intel Atom n270
Memory 1GB DDR2 533mhz
Video Card(s) Intel G945
Storage 250GB
Display(s) 10.1" LCD
Software Microsoft Windows 7 Starter x86
I'm pretty sure that Chicken Patty was still using a 2900XT up until just recently.
 

cdawall

where the hell are my stars
Joined
Jul 23, 2006
Messages
27,680 (4.29/day)
Location
Houston
System Name All the cores
Processor 2990WX
Motherboard Asrock X399M
Cooling CPU-XSPC RayStorm Neo, 2x240mm+360mm, D5PWM+140mL, GPU-2x360mm, 2xbyski, D4+D5+100mL
Memory 4x16GB G.Skill 3600
Video Card(s) (2) EVGA SC BLACK 1080Ti's
Storage 2x Samsung SM951 512GB, Samsung PM961 512GB
Display(s) Dell UP2414Q 3840X2160@60hz
Case Caselabs Mercury S5+pedestal
Audio Device(s) Fischer HA-02->Fischer FA-002W High edition/FA-003/Jubilate/FA-011 depending on my mood
Power Supply Seasonic Prime 1200w
Mouse Thermaltake Theron, Steam controller
Keyboard Keychron K8
Software W10P
they were very good cards in there time they just used a ton of juice to run
 

newtekie1

Semi-Retired Folder
Joined
Nov 22, 2005
Messages
28,472 (4.25/day)
Location
Indiana, USA
Processor Intel Core i7 10850K@5.2GHz
Motherboard AsRock Z470 Taichi
Cooling Corsair H115i Pro w/ Noctua NF-A14 Fans
Memory 32GB DDR4-3600
Video Card(s) RTX 2070 Super
Storage 500GB SX8200 Pro + 8TB with 1TB SSD Cache
Display(s) Acer Nitro VG280K 4K 28"
Case Fractal Design Define S
Audio Device(s) Onboard is good enough for me
Power Supply eVGA SuperNOVA 1000w G3
Software Windows 10 Pro x64
The HD2900 time was a real rough time for ATi, and they were making a lot of the same mistakes nVidia is making right now in terms of naming cards. It was a real confusing time for buyers trying to pick an ATi card.

They started with the 2900XT 1GB and 2900Pro 1GB. The 2900Pro 1GB being just an underclocked 2900XT, which could easily be flashed to an XT. This was probably the only postive of the era.

Then they released the 2900GT, which was a crippled 2900Pro with only a 256-bit bus and 240 SPs. Then there were some 2900GTs with 512-bit bus and 240 SPs.

Then came the 2900Pro with only a 256-bit bus but the full 320 SPs, yet still it performed worse than the 512-bit 2900GTs.

So in the end you have a line-up that looked like this:

2900XT(320SPs/512-bit)
2900Pro(320SPs/512-bit)
2900GT(240SPs/512-bit)
2900Pro(320SPs/256-bit)
2900GT(240SPs/256-bit)
 

Wile E

Power User
Joined
Oct 1, 2006
Messages
24,318 (3.81/day)
System Name The ClusterF**k
Processor 980X @ 4Ghz
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5 BIOS F12
Cooling MCR-320, DDC-1 pump w/Bitspower res top (1/2" fittings), Koolance CPU-360
Memory 3x2GB Mushkin Redlines 1600Mhz 6-8-6-24 1T
Video Card(s) Evga GTX 580
Storage Corsair Neutron GTX 240GB, 2xSeagate 320GB RAID0; 2xSeagate 3TB; 2xSamsung 2TB; Samsung 1.5TB
Display(s) HP LP2475w 24" 1920x1200 IPS
Case Technofront Bench Station
Audio Device(s) Auzentech X-Fi Forte into Onkyo SR606 and Polk TSi200's + RM6750
Power Supply ENERMAX Galaxy EVO EGX1250EWT 1250W
Software Win7 Ultimate N x64, OSX 10.8.4
I still have a 2900XT floating around that I use as a backup now. I'm primarily a benchmark junkie, so it was a great card for that. They weren't so good at gaming at stock clocks, but a little OCing went a long way on them. They came alive with good cooling. Mine is gaming stable at 925/1000 with water cooling.
 

r9

Joined
Jul 28, 2008
Messages
3,300 (0.58/day)
System Name Primary|Secondary|Poweredge r410|Dell XPS|SteamDeck
Processor i7 11700k|i7 9700k|2 x E5620 |i5 5500U|Zen 2 4c/8t
Memory 32GB DDR4|16GB DDR4|16GB DDR4|32GB ECC DDR3|8GB DDR4|16GB LPDDR5
Video Card(s) RX 7800xt|RX 6700xt |On-Board|On-Board|8 RDNA 2 CUs
Storage 2TB m.2|512GB SSD+1TB SSD|2x256GBSSD 2x2TBGB|256GB sata|512GB nvme
Display(s) 50" 4k TV | Dell 27" |22" |3.3"|7"
VR HMD Samsung Odyssey+ | Oculus Quest 2
Software Windows 11 Pro|Windows 10 Pro|Windows 10 Home| Server 2012 r2|Windows 10 Pro
Very interesting system specs I must say. 2000$ graphics cards One raptor and every thing else including CRT monitor 50% :D.
 
Joined
Apr 3, 2008
Messages
3,051 (0.52/day)
Location
Pontaic Michigan
System Name The Netbook
Processor Intel Atom n270
Memory 1GB DDR2 533mhz
Video Card(s) Intel G945
Storage 250GB
Display(s) 10.1" LCD
Software Microsoft Windows 7 Starter x86

qubit

Overclocked quantum bit
Joined
Dec 6, 2007
Messages
17,866 (3.00/day)
Location
Quantum Well UK
System Name Quantumville™
Processor Intel Core i7-2700K @ 4GHz
Motherboard Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3
Cooling Noctua NH-D14
Memory 16GB (2 x 8GB Corsair Vengeance Black DDR3 PC3-12800 C9 1600MHz)
Video Card(s) MSI RTX 2080 SUPER Gaming X Trio
Storage Samsung 850 Pro 256GB | WD Black 4TB | WD Blue 6TB
Display(s) ASUS ROG Strix XG27UQR (4K, 144Hz, G-SYNC compatible) | Asus MG28UQ (4K, 60Hz, FreeSync compatible)
Case Cooler Master HAF 922
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty PCIe
Power Supply Corsair AX1600i
Mouse Microsoft Intellimouse Pro - Black Shadow
Keyboard Yes
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
Oh yeah, forgot about them

The HD2900 time was a real rough time for ATi, and they were making a lot of the same mistakes nVidia is making right now in terms of naming cards. It was a real confusing time for buyers trying to pick an ATi card.

They started with the 2900XT 1GB and 2900Pro 1GB. The 2900Pro 1GB being just an underclocked 2900XT, which could easily be flashed to an XT. This was probably the only postive of the era.

Then they released the 2900GT, which was a crippled 2900Pro with only a 256-bit bus and 240 SPs. Then there were some 2900GTs with 512-bit bus and 240 SPs.

Then came the 2900Pro with only a 256-bit bus but the full 320 SPs, yet still it performed worse than the 512-bit 2900GTs.

So in the end you have a line-up that looked like this:

2900XT(320SPs/512-bit)
2900Pro(320SPs/512-bit)
2900GT(240SPs/512-bit)
2900Pro(320SPs/256-bit)
2900GT(240SPs/256-bit)

Yes that's right, I forgot about all those other variants. I just remembered the Pro model I had, the XT and the GT now being sold by Scan. Seems like confuddling the buyer is standard practice when your products suck. :(
 

qubit

Overclocked quantum bit
Joined
Dec 6, 2007
Messages
17,866 (3.00/day)
Location
Quantum Well UK
System Name Quantumville™
Processor Intel Core i7-2700K @ 4GHz
Motherboard Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3
Cooling Noctua NH-D14
Memory 16GB (2 x 8GB Corsair Vengeance Black DDR3 PC3-12800 C9 1600MHz)
Video Card(s) MSI RTX 2080 SUPER Gaming X Trio
Storage Samsung 850 Pro 256GB | WD Black 4TB | WD Blue 6TB
Display(s) ASUS ROG Strix XG27UQR (4K, 144Hz, G-SYNC compatible) | Asus MG28UQ (4K, 60Hz, FreeSync compatible)
Case Cooler Master HAF 922
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty PCIe
Power Supply Corsair AX1600i
Mouse Microsoft Intellimouse Pro - Black Shadow
Keyboard Yes
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
8800 GTX beater?

I still have a 2900XT floating around that I use as a backup now. I'm primarily a benchmark junkie, so it was a great card for that. They weren't so good at gaming at stock clocks, but a little OCing went a long way on them. They came alive with good cooling. Mine is gaming stable at 925/1000 with water cooling.

Could it beat its nemesis, the 8800 GTX running at stock, with those clocks? The heat output must be terrific at those speeds...
 
Joined
Jul 24, 2007
Messages
239 (0.04/day)
Yeah, I am using them and they work just fine. Noisy only when I am running a 3d app or game but otherwise super quiet. Power consumption in my system is pretty low at idle overall considering my electric bill is pretty low. (My room air conditioner in the summer draws a lot more power.)

Since I am not going to be buying anything computer related in all of 2009, I will be sticking with these cards until 2010. The only games that I can not max out are Crysis and Crysis Warhead and I play at 1920 x 1200.

Nope, I actually think they are quite good cards for what I paid for them. (I bought them both used.) I do not game like I used too either so I see little point in replacing them at this time.
 
Joined
Jul 24, 2007
Messages
239 (0.04/day)
Could it beat its nemesis, the 8800 GTX running at stock, with those clocks? The heat output must be terrific at those speeds...

No, I find that the heat output is actually the same as the 4850 and 4870 series which I did try out. (I returned them because I could not justify the money I spent on them.) Well, when the 6000 series ATI cards come out, maybe I will upgrade then but what is the point if I do not game like I used too.

Oh, I have 2 x 2900 Sapphire 512 bit Pro's flashed to XT's and they are good.
 

qubit

Overclocked quantum bit
Joined
Dec 6, 2007
Messages
17,866 (3.00/day)
Location
Quantum Well UK
System Name Quantumville™
Processor Intel Core i7-2700K @ 4GHz
Motherboard Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3
Cooling Noctua NH-D14
Memory 16GB (2 x 8GB Corsair Vengeance Black DDR3 PC3-12800 C9 1600MHz)
Video Card(s) MSI RTX 2080 SUPER Gaming X Trio
Storage Samsung 850 Pro 256GB | WD Black 4TB | WD Blue 6TB
Display(s) ASUS ROG Strix XG27UQR (4K, 144Hz, G-SYNC compatible) | Asus MG28UQ (4K, 60Hz, FreeSync compatible)
Case Cooler Master HAF 922
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty PCIe
Power Supply Corsair AX1600i
Mouse Microsoft Intellimouse Pro - Black Shadow
Keyboard Yes
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
Since I am not going to be buying anything computer related in all of 2009, I will be sticking with these cards until 2010. The only games that I can not max out are Crysis and Crysis Warhead and I play at 1920 x 1200.

I still don't think any card can max out Crysis satisfactorily at high resolutions, so that's no shame on the 2900. Seems like saving your money in recession-hit 2009 is a good idea...:)
 

qubit

Overclocked quantum bit
Joined
Dec 6, 2007
Messages
17,866 (3.00/day)
Location
Quantum Well UK
System Name Quantumville™
Processor Intel Core i7-2700K @ 4GHz
Motherboard Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3
Cooling Noctua NH-D14
Memory 16GB (2 x 8GB Corsair Vengeance Black DDR3 PC3-12800 C9 1600MHz)
Video Card(s) MSI RTX 2080 SUPER Gaming X Trio
Storage Samsung 850 Pro 256GB | WD Black 4TB | WD Blue 6TB
Display(s) ASUS ROG Strix XG27UQR (4K, 144Hz, G-SYNC compatible) | Asus MG28UQ (4K, 60Hz, FreeSync compatible)
Case Cooler Master HAF 922
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty PCIe
Power Supply Corsair AX1600i
Mouse Microsoft Intellimouse Pro - Black Shadow
Keyboard Yes
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
No, I find that the heat output is actually the same as the 4850 and 4870 series which I did try out....

..............

Oh, I have 2 x 2900 Sapphire 512 bit Pro's flashed to XT's and they are good.

I bought a 4870 a while back and yes, while I agree that it has the same heat output - idles at 80C fer chrissake! - at least it delivers performance in spades and quietly too, justifying this.

In fairness, I should say that all the high performance cards get pretty hot and the 9800 GX2 I'm running now is no exception.

Don't you find that the 2900 will spin up its fan audibly even in 2D mode every couple of minutes? Drove me bonkers until I hacked the BIOS and just made the thing run hotter to keep me sane.

I like the fire design on the 2900 as well.
 

Rebo&Zooty

New Member
Joined
May 17, 2008
Messages
490 (0.08/day)
the sad part is now a 4650 or 4670 with decent cooling can match or outpace them, specly when u turn AA and AF on ;)
 
Joined
Jul 24, 2007
Messages
239 (0.04/day)
I bought a 4870 a while back and yes, while I agree that it has the same heat output - idles at 80C fer chrissake! - at least it delivers performance in spades and quietly too, justifying this.

In fairness, I should say that all the high performance cards get pretty hot and the 9800 GX2 I'm running now is no exception.

Don't you find that the 2900 will spin up its fan audibly even in 2D mode every couple of minutes? Drove me bonkers until I hacked the BIOS and just made the thing run hotter to keep me sane.

I like the fire design on the 2900 as well.

Nope, I have not noticed the fan spinning up that I can tell. It just sticks at 31% according to what rivatuner reports at least when in 2D mode.
 
Joined
Jul 24, 2007
Messages
239 (0.04/day)
the sad part is now a 4650 or 4670 with decent cooling can match or outpace them, specly when u turn AA and AF on ;)

At first, I was thinking no way but then I was considering crossfire. At 1280 res, probably, but not really at the 1920 x 1200 res I play at otherwise it would have been worth picking up that 4670. (128 bit memory bus kind of kills it in hi res situations.)

Good point though.
 

qubit

Overclocked quantum bit
Joined
Dec 6, 2007
Messages
17,866 (3.00/day)
Location
Quantum Well UK
System Name Quantumville™
Processor Intel Core i7-2700K @ 4GHz
Motherboard Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3
Cooling Noctua NH-D14
Memory 16GB (2 x 8GB Corsair Vengeance Black DDR3 PC3-12800 C9 1600MHz)
Video Card(s) MSI RTX 2080 SUPER Gaming X Trio
Storage Samsung 850 Pro 256GB | WD Black 4TB | WD Blue 6TB
Display(s) ASUS ROG Strix XG27UQR (4K, 144Hz, G-SYNC compatible) | Asus MG28UQ (4K, 60Hz, FreeSync compatible)
Case Cooler Master HAF 922
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty PCIe
Power Supply Corsair AX1600i
Mouse Microsoft Intellimouse Pro - Black Shadow
Keyboard Yes
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
Nope, I have not noticed the fan spinning up that I can tell. It just sticks at 31% according to what rivatuner reports at least when in 2D mode.

I wonder if the different brands program the BIOS a little differently? Mine is a Sapphire and was a 1GB Pro as sold.

Mine would regularly spin up to 31% in 2D mode and then go down to 25%. Overall, it stayed at the higher setting for about 70% of the time. Also, I should say that my PC sits on my desk on my right and with the side cover permanently off, making issues like this more noticeable.
 

Rebo&Zooty

New Member
Joined
May 17, 2008
Messages
490 (0.08/day)
if ur gonna game at those res's, you should be running 4870 1gb or 2x4670's or a couple 4830's, corse if u dont play games that are that demanding probbly isnt an issue ;)
 
Joined
Jul 24, 2007
Messages
239 (0.04/day)
if ur gonna game at those res's, you should be running 4870 1gb or 2x4670's or a couple 4830's, corse if u dont play games that are that demanding probbly isnt an issue ;)

Yep, the only games that lag are crysis and crysis warhead. Oblivion, UT3, Gears of War, the original Stalker and other such games work great all maxed out. (4 x AA, 8 x AF, everything else on max.)
 
Joined
Jul 24, 2007
Messages
239 (0.04/day)
I wonder if the different brands program the BIOS a little differently? Mine is a Sapphire and was a 1GB Pro as sold.

Mine would regularly spin up to 31% in 2D mode and then go down to 25%. Overall, it stayed at the higher setting for about 70% of the time. Also, I should say that my PC sits on my desk on my right and with the side cover permanently off, making issues like this more noticeable.

Yeah, mine are in a Centurion 5 case all buttoned up. That is why they usually sound hushed to me except when I am gaming.
 
Joined
Jun 19, 2008
Messages
1,555 (0.27/day)
Location
Shepparton, Victoria, Australia
System Name Toaster!
Processor Intel Core i7 10700KF @ 3.8/5.1GHZ
Motherboard ASUS Prime Z490-P Motherboard
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 CPU cooler.
Memory G.Skill Trident Z RGB 64GB (4x16GB) 3600MHz CL16 DDR4
Video Card(s) ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3090 OC 24GB
Storage Samsung 970 PRO M.2 NVMe SSD 1TB
Display(s) Asus ROG PG43UQ 4K UHD 144Hz G-Sync HDR 43in + 2 x ASUS VG258Q FHD 144Hz Freesync 25in Monitor
Case Corsair Obsidian 900D
Audio Device(s) EPOS Sennheiser GSX 1000 V2 amplifier + EPOS Gaming GSP 601 Headset
Power Supply Corsair AX1000 Titanium Modular
Mouse Razer Deathadder
Keyboard Corsair K70.
Software ALL HAIL WINDOWS 10.
Benchmark Scores Old system: http://www.3dmark.com/fs/6805248
A 1950xtx has similar problems to the 2900xt/pro... My friend has a 1950xtx and it always runs hot and takes a 850w powersupply to run his whole system... I burnt my hand on his card... I dont see why you'd use these type of cards
 

newtekie1

Semi-Retired Folder
Joined
Nov 22, 2005
Messages
28,472 (4.25/day)
Location
Indiana, USA
Processor Intel Core i7 10850K@5.2GHz
Motherboard AsRock Z470 Taichi
Cooling Corsair H115i Pro w/ Noctua NF-A14 Fans
Memory 32GB DDR4-3600
Video Card(s) RTX 2070 Super
Storage 500GB SX8200 Pro + 8TB with 1TB SSD Cache
Display(s) Acer Nitro VG280K 4K 28"
Case Fractal Design Define S
Audio Device(s) Onboard is good enough for me
Power Supply eVGA SuperNOVA 1000w G3
Software Windows 10 Pro x64
Seems like confuddling the buyer is standard practice when your products suck. :(

Except nVidia's products far from suck in the current situation. Hell, nVidia's generation old product outperforms all but the very top ATi card from the current generation...I would hardly consider that sucking.:laugh:
 

Rebo&Zooty

New Member
Joined
May 17, 2008
Messages
490 (0.08/day)
A 1950xtx has similar problems to the 2900xt/pro... My friend has a 1950xtx and it always runs hot and takes a 850w powersupply to run his whole system... I burnt my hand on his card... I dont see why you'd use these type of cards

must be a bad one, even with the stock cooler my x1900xtx runs at reasonable temps and ran for over a year on a 350watt enermax psu(along with an overclocked cpu and the works)

maby buy a better brand of psu ;)

my 400watt fortron can power anything i toss at it, other then MABY a gtx280 or 4800x2.
 
Top