ASUS Radeon 9600XT/TVD

Image Quality

Halo

The below screen shot was taken through FRAPS from Halo at 1024×768 with NoAA/NoAF.

Call of Duty

The below screen shot was taken through FRAPS from Call of Duty at 1024×768 with 2xAA/8xAF.

Both screenshots show that image quality is not a problem for this 9600XT. I was specifically impressed by the lack of jagged edges in the Call of Duty shot.

Overclocking

To find the max of this video card, I used the Rage3D Tweak for overclocking. By first finding max of the core (default is 500MHz) with the memory (default 600 MHz DDR) not overclocked, the core maxed out at 562.5 MHz. Then resetting the core to default, I found the max of the memory to be 355.5 (711 MHz DDR). After having those milestones, I found the stable max of both the memory and the core to be 558/353.25 MHz Core/Memory.

A 58MHz overclock on the core and a 106.5 MHz overclock on the memory is the best overclock we have received on a 9600XT-based video card so far! Kudos to ASUS for getting the memory used on their card to run past its spec of 700 MHz DDR! The Samsung IC’s used on this card are model number K4D263238E-GC2A. This seems to be a popular module to use on today’s graphics cards because this is the same IC used on both the HIS card in this review and our S3 Deltachrome S8.

At the max overclock, we received a 3dMark2001SE score of 13,197 (12,380 at default speeds), in Halo we received 28.55 FPS (26.60 at default speeds), and in UT2003 we received 74.17 FPS (74.06 at default speeds).

Conclusion

Justin West’s Thoughts

I must say, overall, I was very impressed with this card! This is one of the best 9600XT solutions I have reviewed to date! ASUS has put together a very well-rounded card that would suit everyone in the mid-range price point for quite some time to come. Let me briefly go over why I say this.

First of all, the ASUS technologies included with this card are impressive for a video card package! The GameFace Technology, Video Security, VIVO, and Smart Doctor are all features that help make this card stand out in front of the others.

Next, this card performed right on par with the HIS 9600XT Turbo, which has 50 additional MHz on the memory than the ASUS A9600XT/TVD. In about half of our tests, it seemed like there was no difference at all.

Finally, this card is the overclocking champion so far for 9600XT-based solutions. I was finally able to get the memory to stably overclock to a speed above its rated speed! This is something that seems to be hard to do with most graphics cards I have tested.

Legit Bottom Line

The ASUS A9600XT/TVD video card has proven itself as one of the best all-around solutions for an affordable price range that would suit just about anyone’s needs. It is for this reason that I have decided to award the ASUS A9600XT/TVD the Legit Reviews Editor’s Choice Award!