This card just appeared today on Sapphire's website. It's been rumored for quite a while, but this is the first retail card I've seen. I'm guessing since it's from Sapphire that these are reference card specs. But it's possible this card is some kind of unique combination of an X1950 XTX and an X1950 Pro. Sapphire's website lists the card as only having 36 shader processors, but that doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. I'll keep this page updated.

No way! I thought it would be like the x1900xt? Damnit this means the x1900xt new version is gonna go up on newegg! Gotta go buy it now!

Why are votings enabled evn though this card is'nt released?

Because the card has shown up on a retail manufacturers website. So as far as I'm concerned it has been released. If I find out that Sapphire simply made an error, I'll change it.

That is the fastest GDDR3 I have ever seen.

So an X1900XT with 12 shader pipelines less and seriously overclocked memory.. So its better than the X1900GT because it has more textures and according to Mike, the X1900XT's shader power is "overkill" so this card is actually BETTER than the X1900XT. If there are no pictures, what we can assume is that it has a very big cooler. 900Mhz is the highest that ive seen anyone get on Air cooling.

Me too.*Shock and awe*

It's GDDR4. And yeah track, with the faster memory, and not so many fewer pipes, this card may very well be a little faster than the x1900xt.

If this card had 48 shader pipelines then it would be the new X1900XT, just like the X1950XTX is the new X1900XTX, however here they FINALLY did what they were supposed to do - they changed more than just clock speeds on the XT! This means that the X2K series will be bad to us. Maybe the X1900XT was a mistake..
But yeh, u may be right, if infact there is no need for 48 shders.. ever, because once games that do use that ammount of shaders come, then the texture fill rate or anything else will not be enough.

256MB? This is beetween the X1900XT and the X1950XTX.

Track you are 100% right most games now need more texture operations then shader operations, Why do you think the 7900gtx beats out the 1900xtx even though logically it should be opposite.

Holy Shit!
Mike, is it really 48 shader pipelines? This means that ATI is still my friend! And that the legacy of the "XT" lives on as the same exact card, but for a lower price. This is the X1950XTX, but at a much lower cost (or at least I hope). Best card on earth... Just one thing, its still 256MB??

@ Dave, the X1900XT and the 7900GTX perform very similar. From this u can assume that a game, when played with an X1900XT is not getting enough texture love, and when played with the 7900GTX is not getting enough shader love. I think that games today require a lot of shader power and so while the X1900XT dosent do as well in the texture department, it has enough shaders to boost it's performance up over the 7900GTX in games like Call of Duty 2.

100% True. The shaders compensate for lack of textures, But i still think textures are more important.

Pixel shader processors can't really compensate for lack of texture mapping units. It's more like in most games the X1900XT is limited by texture processing long before it's limited by shader processing. The overall result is, games with heavy use of pixel shaders are faster on the x1900xt vs the 7900gtx. The only downside is most of the x1900xt's 48 shader pipes sit there idle since the texture units are the bottleneck.

But isn't ATI right that there are more shaders than textures in games? I mean they couldnt have done that without proof.

Oh, and about the X1950XT. I'm willing to bet that it has a 256MB version and a 512MB version.

It looks like a decent card, but the specs are a bit strange at the moment. I know it's listed here as GDDR4, but on all 3 of the retail cards, the memory is listed as GDDR3, which would just be a highly overclocked 1900XT. The fans on all of them also look like the "noisy" 1900XT stock coolers. Hopefully there will be Arctic mods, IceQ3s, and so on.

So, get a 1900XT now or wait an indefinite period of time for this? I'm also not sure what will happen to 1900XT prices when this comes out in a month or two(?). The 1950 Pro availability/real-world pricing doesn't exactly inspire confidence for a <300 1950XT. Yes, I know it's only been a week for the Pro, but still.

@ dave, hundreds have had this arguement, and the conclusion usually reached, is that the R580 is better equipped to deal with future games. recent history indicates that textures arnt getting too complex, where as newer games are becoming more shader intensive at an alarming rate.

but yeah, if they price this card nicly (like say the X1900XT 256mb), ill pickup one of em when i see it.

@MrWizard, Thank you!
@Mike, Thank you aswell. And Mike What do you think will be comparable on the nvidia side to this card?

Should i get this card over the 7900gtx for bf2? And does bf2 require more Shader or Texture operations?

@David, this card should be comparable to a 7950GX2.

Really? With all that ram it should be able to go Toe-to-Toe with a 7950gx2? Damn I gotta get me some of that gddr4. Also Mike do you think Nvidia will release a 7950gtx for the desktop?

The X1950XT is NOT comparable to the 7950 GX2. There is no way it can beat it, when the 7950 GX2 has over twice the texture fill and memory bandwidth. here: http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?id=2020&cid=3&pg=5

Wait, this card has already been rleased?

I'm trying to find it for my friends system noone has it.

This card cant be more powerfull than the X1900XT and have less RAM. This is crazy.

Yes it can track, Dont be brainwashed by bestbuy where they say"The fx5200 has 256mb ram so it's more powerfull then the 1300pro" It's not the mem size that counts its the mem speed.

@ David: You are totally crazy. Obviously a Voodoo 3 with 4096MB of RAM is FAR better than anything out today.

No i'm not! I'm being serious bestbuy ripped me off like that and when i returned the card they told me no refunds! Do you know how many leftover 5200's there are in the world? ALot every big retailer i go to has atleast a few in stock at all times.(I wonder where they get them anyway?)

If i could, i would destroy all FX 5200s on earth, starting with mine.. except that my sister needs it to run ICQ. (she dosen't game because she is an idiot)

And thats the whole reason why u come onto this site! So that no one can ever trick u again. May Bush bless this site.

I seem to have found this card on a couple of non-retail sellers, but no actuall retail ones. I will keep looking.

I found it! http://www.microdirect.co.uk/ProductInfo.aspx?ProductID=15436

Good Job track! But i also want an x1950pro agp see if you can find it.

I did the conversion to dollars and it costs 300$ Thats a nice price.

The X1900XT 256MB costs 380$ where i live. The X1950XT, wich is already here(!) costs 420$. So if the X1900XT costs 250$ in the US, then the X1950XT should cost around 270$
Since prices in the UK are higher, it would make sense that u saw it for 300$

Nah i think it be higher maybe 290$?

It should be pretty much the same price as the X1900XT, just like the X1950XTX was priced at abt 30$ higher than the X1900XTX.

Sapphire X1950XT on the Egg for $270.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102067

Thank you! But its too late I already got my 8800gts and I can't wait to test it out!

@David: Hows the card. Im thinking of getting the GTS (if i find out that its better than an X1900XT, wich my CPU).

Lemme explain how nice it is Bf2,Hl2,And cod2 which used to choke on low graphics on my old 6800 agp now fly! But the bad part is That i'm borrowing it from my friend who could'nt get it to work in his pc I told him "I would gladly test it for defects" ;) I had to give it back :( But mines coming tomorrow so yay!

Thats me above.

This card looks great, I've been looking inito this one as well as a few others (7950GT). This seems to perform better than most of its counterparts in the same price range. Only problem is the memory. Would the lack of memory on this card (256MB) limit its ability to be a great card (for its price), or would something like the 7950GT outperform it in the long run because of overclocking and its higher memory capacity (512MB)? Thanks.

I bought this card for 329.99 CAD. The performance is great and it doesn't seem that noisy! Driver support isn't too good right now though. Only the drivers from the cd work.

review
http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?cid=1&id=2122

ok this card is pissing me off. theres no reason to go make an X1950XT 256mb if its the EXACT SAME CARD as the X1900XT 256mb. there WAS a hard launch date for the X1900XT 256mb. Sapphire maintains that the X1900XT 256 and X1950XT 256mb are differant cards. the ONLY conclusion i can come to is that the X1950XT 256mb has 256mb of GDDR 4, contrarty to this site, newegg, sapphire, and everyone else in the world (bring em on, i can take em). Mike, lemme ask you something, why would they have an R580 on a card w/ GDDR3. that was the whole point of the in "R580 ", it allowed compatabillity for GDDR4.

so heres how they stack:
X1900XT 256MB = R580@ 624MHz, 256MB GDDR3@ 725MHz
X1900XT 512MB = R580@ 625MHz, 512MB GDDR3@ 725MHz
X1900XTX = R580@ 650MHz, 512MB GDDR3@ 775MHz
X1950XT 256MB = R580 @ 625MHz, 256MB GDDR4@ 900MHz
X1950XTX = R580 @ 650MHz, 512MB GDDR4@ 1GHz

you know marketings made a bad choice, when even the enthusiasts are confused.

I bought a sapphire one and it's really not that noisy. I'd say Moderate.

Plz guys Tell what better overall GForce 7950GT or Ati X1950XT ?

X1950XT is WAY better!

@MrWizard6600: The X1950XT does have faster memory. It has 90ns GDDR3, wich can be clocked at over 1,050Mhz unlike the X1900XT, of wich it's memory is 110ns GDDR3 and stops at 850Mhz.

Hey all,

just found out about this website, and i have X1950XT and im very happy with it. all my games running maxed out with 1440x900 and very high FPS :D

does it have DDR 3 or DDR 4 memory ? thanks

This is one of the best bang-for-your-buck cards on the market right now, since it can hit 650/2000mhz speeds. If you get the newegg POWERCOLOR with 512MB, you get a super silent card with XTX speeds for half the money.

@Adam: It has 90ns GDDR3 wich can reach near GDDR4 speeds.

@ Track

Thanks :D i tryed to overclock my card and computer crashs, randomly i need better power unit :P i only got 450watts :D

works fine and fast without overclock anyhow

Still undecided as to get this or a 320 mb 8800...

I have a 500watt PSU would that be enough for this?.....

Wattage @ 12V rail is the matter.If u got 30A or more on 12V rails u r safe.BTW 8800GTS is gr8 than this.

@ XCexVe

Well yea i know that but i mean for the price....I mean all i play is Counterstrike source... No need for DX10 Lol

Help me choose Between:
MSI NX8600GTS-T2D256E-OC GeForce 8600GTS 256MB
and
SAPPHIRE 100186L Radeon X1950XT 256MB

1950XT all the way. The 8600gts isn't powerful enough to be able to play anything in DX10 decent anyway.

and choosing between:
SAPPHIRE 100186L Radeon X1950XT 256MB
or
SAPPHIRE 100210L Radeon HD 2600XT 256MB

I just got this card, and didnt realize that my mobo (AsRock 4Coredual-VSTA) is only a x4 Pci-e slot, and this card pwnes! I cant wait till i can get a proper board to run this baby to its full power...

X1950 XT vs. 2600XT----->X1950 XT is the winner
B/c it is much faster clock & performance. Besides at this point no game is DX10 ONLY! So you can still play it. Better buy to go x1950XT and wait until we get a REAL choice of a mid-level DX10 game. One that isn't crippled like 2600XT!

@XCexVe or anyone that may know:
How do you do you determine the "Wattage @ 12V rail" on a PC? Is there a tool(software) that does this, or do i have to go get my screwdriver? Thx.

Watts on a rail? You want to be looking for amps. If your PSU has dual 12 volt rails, 18 amps on each is fine. If you only have one rail, no less then 30 amps on that one rail. Do find the amps on a rail, check the side of your PSU for " 12v "

I Have SAPPHIRE 100186L Radeon X1950XT 256MB
Why in the Catalyst Appears this..?
Memory Clock 594 Mhz
Core Clock 500 Mhz
and I see here:
Memory Clock 1800 Mhz
Core Clock 625 Mhz
WHY I HAVE A LOWER CORE AND MEMORY CLOCK SPEEDS..??

2D mode?

This vs 2x 8600 gt?

2d mode. Use ATITool to get rid of that. This would own sli 8600gts.

Looks aweful quiet here...but I need help. My x1950xt also comes up as 500/600 (see Shinlazer above) and only ATITool gets rid of it...but why? If it's supposed to be 625/800 in the specs, I feel cheated to have to use some 3rd party tool to correct it?!? Also, my research led me to this as a single-card upgrade from 2x7800gt in SLI...but AquaMark3 and 3DMark06 both show it as a dog compared to it. Did I choose that badly?!? Thanks in advance.

No man.

This 500/600 is in 2D mode (Windows). When you run a 3D aplication, like a game, the clocks increases to 625/900 automatically.

Sorry for my bad english.

PS: I have a Sapphire Radeon X1950XT too, and i love this card.

I have been using this card since install on a new build last 8/18/07....I like the card and especially now since DX10 seems to be sort of a bust, I think this card was a great deal.Crysis looks great on my machine. The fan is kind of loud, but running the fan at 65% keeps it cool (40 C )
and isnt too loud...100% sounds like a vacuum cleaner though..I can't see spending $300.00 for a 8800 GT with this card going for $130.00.