GeForce2 Ultra CPU Scaling Guide by Dean April 28, 2001

Page 1: Introduction & Test System Page 2: Quake III Fastest Page 3: Quake III High Quality Page 4: MDK2 16-bit Page 5: MDK2 32-bit Page 6: 3DMark2000 16-bit, 32-bit Page 7: 3DMark2001, Final Words

3DMark2000 16-bit

640X480 and 800X600 seem to be too light for the GeForce2 Ultra. In fact, I'd even say it's CPU limited at that resolution. The Athlon 850, Duron 850 and Duron 600 appear to lack enough power to push the Ultra. Notice the performance difference from 640X480 to 800X600 is very small, about less than 200 3DMarks. The Athlon 1.13GHz does provide good enough CPU power to give a significant difference. From 800X600 to 1024X768, the performance difference starts to be clearer. The Athlon 1.13GHz suffers the biggest performance hit but at least we know the Ultra is not being limited by the Athlon 1.13GHz.

32-bit tests shows the same scenarion. All of them take a massive performance hit when the resolution is upped to 1024X768.

3DMark2001 and Conclusion

GeForce2 MX CPU Scaling Guide by Dean April 23, 2001

Page 1: Introduction & Test System Page 2: Quake III Fastest Page 3: Quake III High Quality Page 4: MDK2 16-bit Page 5: MDK2 32-bit Page 6: 3DMark2000 16-bit, 32-bit Page 7: 3DMark2001, Final Words

3DMark2001

The Athlon 1.13GHz leaves the pack behind by a good and significant margin. All the rest seem to be limiting the performance of the GeForce2 Ultra.

Final Words

Now you have it. This performance test only shows that the GeForce2 Ultra can make any system shine. It is the system however that might not let the GeForce2 Ultra shine. Why? Because the GeForce2 Ultra needs a high end cpu in order for it to perform at the optimum level. Using a 800-900MHz processor would be nice but that's not quite enough to realize the real potential of the GeForce2 Ultra.

You wouldn't really spend all your money on a video card. A GeForce2 Ultra still costs quite a big amount but if you're able and willing to spend a big amount, don't go cheap on your processor just because you already have the GeForce2 Ultra. I won't recommend anything lower than a 1GHz processor to be paired with the GeForce2 Ultra. Of course, playing at 1024X768 wouldn't seem too logical so I recommend playing higher than that. High end systems are made up of high end components. Maybe a 19" monitor would seem pretty good already for the GeForce2 Ultra.

This is just a preview of the GeForce2 Ultra. The review is yet to come. Come back next time.

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