GeForce 9800 GX2 vs Radeon HD 6970

Place in performance ranking	502	832
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-Effectiveness Evaluation	1.06	0.09
Architecture	Terascale 2 (2009−2015)	Tesla (2006−2010)
GPU code name	Cayman	G92
Market segment	Desktop	Desktop
Design	reference	no data
Release date	14 December 2010 (13 years ago)	18 March 2008 (16 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$369	$599
Current price	$189 (0.5x MSRP)	$140 (0.2x MSRP)

Cost-Effectiveness Evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

HD 6970 has 1078% better value for money than 9800 GX2.

Detailed Specifications

General performance parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. These parameters indirectly speak of performance, but for precise assessment you have to consider their benchmark and gaming test results. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.

Pipelines / CUDA cores	1536	128
CUDA cores	no data	256 (128 per GPU)
Core clock speed	no data	600 MHz
Boost clock speed	880 MHz	no data
Number of transistors	2,640 million	754 million
Manufacturing process technology	40 nm	65 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	550 Watt	197 Watt
Maximum GPU temperature	no data	105 °C
Texture fill rate	84.48	76.8 billion/sec
Floating-point performance	2,703.4 gflops	2x 384.0 gflops

Form Factor & Compatibility

Information on compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For desktop graphics cards it's interface and bus (motherboard compatibility), additional power connectors (power supply compatibility).

Bus support	PCIe 2.0 x16	no data
Interface	PCIe 2.0 x16	PCIe 2.0 x16
Length	267 mm	10.5" (26.7 cm)
Height	no data	2-slot
Width	2-slot	2-slot
Supplementary power connectors	1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin	6-pin & 8-pin
SLI options	no data	+

Memory type	DDR5	GDDR3
Maximum RAM amount	2 GB	512 MB
Memory bus width	256 Bit	512 Bit
Memory clock speed	1375 MHz	1000 MHz
Memory bandwidth	no data	128 (64 per GPU)

Connectivity and Outputs

Types and number of video connectors present on the reviewed GPUs. As a rule, data in this section is precise only for desktop reference ones (so-called Founders Edition for NVIDIA chips). OEM manufacturers may change the number and type of output ports, while for notebook cards availability of certain video outputs ports depends on the laptop model rather than on the card itself.

Display Connectors	2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort	HDMIDual Link DVI
Multi monitor support	no data	+
Eyefinity	1	no data
HDMI	+	+
Maximum VGA resolution	no data	2048x1536
DisplayPort support	-	no data
Audio input for HDMI	no data	S/PDIF

Supported Technologies

Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.

AppAcceleration	-	no data
CrossFire	1	no data
Enduro	-	no data
HD3D	-	no data
PowerTune	-	no data
TrueAudio	-	no data
ZeroCore	-	no data

API Compatibility

List of supported graphics and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX	DirectX® 11	11.1 (10_0)
Shader Model	5.0	4.0
OpenGL	4.4	2.1
OpenCL	1.2	1.1
Vulkan	no data	N/A
Mantle	-	no data
CUDA	no data	+

Synthetic benchmark performance

Non-gaming benchmark performance comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.

Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance score. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

HD 6970 7.33
+256%

9800 GX2 2.06

Radeon HD 6970 outperforms GeForce 9800 GX2 by 256% based on our aggregated benchmark results.

Passmark

This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark, part of Passmark PerformanceTest suite. It gives the graphics card a thorough evaluation under various types of load, providing four separate benchmarks for Direct3D versions 9, 10, 11 and 12 (the last being done in 4K resolution if possible), and few more tests engaging DirectCompute capabilities.

Benchmark coverage: 25%

HD 6970 2836
+256%

9800 GX2 797

Radeon HD 6970 outperforms GeForce 9800 GX2 by 256% in Passmark.

Gaming performance

Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077

12−14

+300%

3−4
−300%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	14−16 +275%	4−5 −275%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	9−10 +350%	2−3 −350%
Battlefield 5	24−27 +300%	6−7 −300%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	21−24 +320%	5−6 −320%
Cyberpunk 2077	12−14 +300%	3−4 −300%
Far Cry 5	16−18 +325%	4−5 −325%
Far Cry New Dawn	18−20 +260%	5−6 −260%
Forza Horizon 4	24−27 +257%	7−8 −257%
Hitman 3	18−20 +260%	5−6 −260%
Horizon Zero Dawn	14−16 +367%	3−4 −367%
Red Dead Redemption 2	12−14 +333%	3−4 −333%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	16−18 +300%	4−5 −300%
Watch Dogs: Legion	12−14 +300%	3−4 −300%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	14−16 +275%	4−5 −275%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	9−10 +350%	2−3 −350%
Battlefield 5	24−27 +300%	6−7 −300%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	21−24 +320%	5−6 −320%
Cyberpunk 2077	12−14 +300%	3−4 −300%
Far Cry 5	16−18 +325%	4−5 −325%
Far Cry New Dawn	18−20 +260%	5−6 −260%
Forza Horizon 4	24−27 +257%	7−8 −257%
Hitman 3	18−20 +260%	5−6 −260%
Horizon Zero Dawn	14−16 +367%	3−4 −367%
Metro Exodus	10−12 +267%	3−4 −267%
Red Dead Redemption 2	12−14 +333%	3−4 −333%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	16−18 +300%	4−5 −300%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	14−16 +275%	4−5 −275%
Watch Dogs: Legion	12−14 +300%	3−4 −300%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	14−16 +275%	4−5 −275%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	9−10 +350%	2−3 −350%
Battlefield 5	24−27 +300%	6−7 −300%
Cyberpunk 2077	12−14 +300%	3−4 −300%
Far Cry 5	16−18 +325%	4−5 −325%
Far Cry New Dawn	18−20 +260%	5−6 −260%
Forza Horizon 4	24−27 +257%	7−8 −257%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	14−16 +275%	4−5 −275%
Watch Dogs: Legion	12−14 +300%	3−4 −300%

1440p
High Preset

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	10−12 +267%	3−4 −267%
Hitman 3	12−14 +300%	3−4 −300%
Horizon Zero Dawn	12−14 +333%	3−4 −333%
Metro Exodus	5−6 +400%	1−2 −400%
Red Dead Redemption 2	5−6 +400%	1−2 −400%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	10−11 +400%	2−3 −400%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	6−7 +500%	1−2 −500%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	2−3	0−1
Battlefield 5	8−9 +300%	2−3 −300%
Cyberpunk 2077	3−4	0−1
Far Cry 5	10−12 +267%	3−4 −267%
Far Cry New Dawn	10−11 +400%	2−3 −400%
Forza Horizon 4	12−14 +300%	3−4 −300%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	7−8 +600%	1−2 −600%
Watch Dogs: Legion	2−3	0−1

4K
High Preset

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	5−6 +400%	1−2 −400%
Hitman 3	7−8 +600%	1−2 −600%
Horizon Zero Dawn	8−9 +300%	2−3 −300%
Metro Exodus	1−2	0−1
Red Dead Redemption 2	4−5 +300%	1−2 −300%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	3−4	0−1
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	4−5 +300%	1−2 −300%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	4−5 +300%	1−2 −300%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	3−4	0−1
Battlefield 5	4−5 +300%	1−2 −300%
Cyberpunk 2077	1−2	0−1
Far Cry 5	6−7 +500%	1−2 −500%
Far Cry New Dawn	9−10 +350%	2−3 −350%
Forza Horizon 4	8−9 +300%	2−3 −300%
Watch Dogs: Legion	2−3	0−1

Pros & Cons Summary

Performance score	7.33	2.06
Recency	14 December 2010	18 March 2008
Cost	$369	$599
Maximum RAM amount	2 GB	512 MB
Chip lithography	40 nm	65 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	550 Watt	197 Watt