The G550 is here !!!

[Novdid]

Well, I´m very disappointed in Matrox, in the sence that they didn´t implement a 128 bit memory interface, but then again if you have a (or two) very good monitor(s) what other choices are there really???

[xortam]

I like the G550 for what it offers the HTPC user. These users don't care so much for 3D gaming performance but they do want image quality, T&R flexibility, DVD playback performance, and monitor/TV support. I know that this card will really interest those users who were currently looking at the Geforce2 MX.

[JK]

mdhome wrote:
"However, before people start complaining, they should look at the majority of pc's hitting the retail sector. Most of them seem to come with a Geforce 2 MX. "

Yes but retailers are now starting to switch to the faster Geforce2 GTS or even to that new Kyro-thingy. When g550 will hit the shelves you will be able to get Creatives Geforce2 GTS at a LOWER price.

Oh but hey of course.. I forgot that new ownage head-feature.. Oh man.. Low-bandwith business users? Where? On Mars maybe?

Duh.
JK

[J1NG]

You know, the page at aandtech said that the t&l unit was disabled via software. Knowing Matrox's tricks, wouldn't they have some way of "re-enabling" the t&l unit for anything else written into their drivers already?

J1NG

[This message has been edited by J1NG (edited 19 June 2001).]

[mdhome]

JK, I agree with you totally, the specs suck. However GF2 are still reasonably expensive in the UK as are/were the Radeons. And the only Kyro II I have seen was priced at £129 (for a budget card all I can say is ouch).
I am still not sure what 128bit DDR memory would do to improve the G550. I was under the impression that the G400/G450 was fillrate limited and not memory bandwidth limited.

As an aside, if this card is priced less than £100 I will probably buy one. The only issue will be, which of my machines does it go in. Does it replace the radeon or my G400. I am hoping it is fast enough in games like CS to replace the Radeon (my main machine) so I can do my development across 2 arge monitors.

regards MD

[Hati]

Another review at
http://www.3dcenter.de/artikel/2001/06-19a.php3
but still no detailled specs.
I hope Matrox gives more infos soon.

[AD]

There's one thing we all seem to be forgetting.. they did say didnt they that any card they produce in the immediate future would be business driven and not "gamer" driven.. all I see here is *first time in my opinion* I have seen a melding of what was deemed (to the consumer) Gamer only technology, that being 3D acceleration.. being used for ONCE as a business feature.. just like DH etc...(although they tried turning that around to a gamer feature, somewhat failing I think)

yeah they are behind gamer wise...(and maybe HeadCasting™ is a little wacky) but im sure when Matrox actually want's to kill the gamer market they will.. (as they have for the business sector I think)


two cents

[Nuno]

mdhome: The G450 was mainly bandwidth limited, althought it hasn´t that much fill rate. It´s the same core as the G400 and it performs noticeably slower, due to memory constraints. 64-DDR is not equal to 128-SDR, it´s slower, it has more overhead.

Assuming the G550 is running at the same speed as the G450 (it´s probably running faster) it has at least 2 times more fillrate than the G400, because it has 1 more texture unit in each pipeline. So pairing it with the same old 64-bit bus is awfully crippling the chip performance at everything greaterthan 800x600x32.

I must say I´m very disapointed also and not regretting to have got a KyroII. I´m waiting eagerly for the Dx8 monster they hinted to be realeasing next year but as for this G550, I´ll pass.

Matrox’s HeadCasting Technology - That´s a joke. Honestly. It´s useless. People who do videoconferencing with business or educational purposes (Like in telemedicine)have broadband connections. What´s the point of having a 3dmodel of your head opening and closing the mouth? Ridiculous.

Vertex shaders in hardware: Cool, but honestly it´s the DX8 feature easier to be done by any half-decent cpu.

Matrix pallete skinning: Usefull only for that 3d head thingy and *disabled* in games? LOL.

If they had redesigned memory interface to 128bit DDR it would be a very very cool card. They could charge like $150 for it instead, it could have like Ge-Force2 pro performance and be a very competitive product. It would be a heck of a competitor for Geforce´s 2 and KyroII´s, as it would merge a nice business card (wich GF and Kyro aren´t) with a very decent gaming card, at a competitive price.

I can´t think of a reason why they kept the chip pin compatible with the G450. That´s a smar thing to do if third-partners assemble the boards, but as they do it themselves...

[mdhome]

Nuno
Thanks for the explanation. What a pisser. However, I was also under the impression that one of the Matrox reps mentioned that there was going to be 128bit ddr version. Shame that there isnt, because I cant now see the purpose of this card, they (potentially) treble its 3d speed and kill it off with low bandwidth.
Oh well Lets wait for the Benchmarks to see how well this performs


regards MD

[SteveC]

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size="2">Originally posted by Heiney:
I think Anandtech's final words pretty much sum up my feelings about his card. It took them 2 years to develop this?

Must have a grand total of 20 engineers over there......

</font>

They have a grand total of something like 400 engineers... 400 engineers working for 2 years can not equal a G550...


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Cheers,
Steve

"Life is what we make of it, yet most of us just fake"

[drzaius]

well if matrox did very well with the G450 (i assume they did) then this card is just the next generation of that, so it should sell just as well, even if the comsumer doesn't have a need for the head casting stuff.

if you think about it, the G550 costs about the same as a G450 and has better support for dualhead and better 2d, aren't those the reasons why you would buy either the G450 or G550?

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Slow people are easy to pass, it's people who drive fast that are hard.

[rylan]

Maybe Matrox is just playing a really big joke on us all? Yeah, thats it.. yeah.. heh..

How weak can you get... that headcasting thing is a friggin joke. If you're doing video conferencing, you've already got lots of bandiwdth. You also need the card on both ends to work, and need to send in pics and crap.. not worth the effort to see a lips moving. rofl.. pathetic

64-bit ddr.. pathetic again. This card looks like its nothing but the same G400 based core with a couple more additions since the G450.

I'd be surprised if it is faster than an overclocked G400MAX.

And I think its funny how people are saying that 'at least its an upgrade if its around GF2MX speed'.. lol.. MX is low end 3D now.. almost obsolote in terms of 3D performance.. you've got GF3 and Radeon DDR.
Upgrading to the G550 from a G400 because 'at least its faster' is probably like saying 'I think I'll upgrade to a P200 because its faster than my 486'.

[[GDI]Raptor]

Here is the link on Matrox's site

http://www.matrox.com/mga/products/mill_g550/home.cfm

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- [GDI]Raptor

[Illusion[Spirit]]

Seem annoyed Rylan

and Ive gotta admit, so am I

A new card that is prolly outperformed by nVidias 1 year old budget option (and lets face it, nVidias budget cards are invariably rubbish) is pretty feeble.

The fact is that the oposition is similarly priced and far superior.....unless you want duel head....

[This message has been edited by Illusion[Spirit] (edited 19 June 2001).]

[[GDI]Raptor]

More stoff from MAtrox's site!

http://www.matrox.com/mga/archive_st...84&pageref=517

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- [GDI]Raptor