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If the Grass Test is painfully slow, then our Tree Test really kicks you where it hurts the most. Even at 1024 x 768 with default settings, these cards can't even pass the 30 fps minimum mark. Enable AA / AF or HDR / AF, and we drop another 10 fps to a 20 fps minimum. Forget about using higher resolutions. Oblivion is really, to put it bluntly, frame rate hell. If there is a reason to buy an SLI or Crossfire setup, this game is most probably be one of them. If you can't tolerate such low frame rates with AA and AF, you'll likely want to turn them off to have a more comfortable frame rate In this regard, the Radeon X1900XTX is the better buy. On both the Grass and Tree Test, the Radeon X1900XTX is faster at default settings than the GeForce 7900GTX.

Of course, this is really disappointing. You don't buy a USD 500 - 600 graphics card to play 1024 x 768 without AA and AF (and HDR). But this is the truth - with these settings, Oblivion really makes the GeForce 7900GTX and Radeon X1900XTX behave pretty much like a low end card (of the future). For the time being, you can scale back on some of the graphical features, which is more 'affordable' than buying an SLI / Crossfire setup or waiting for the next refresh. This is why we recommend a lower setting for gameplay. Then why chose these very high settings? Simply because we want to push this graphics cards to the limit, to see how they stand up to the tremendous load which we should be seeing in future games. Oblivion really opens up everyone eyes, literally.

Conclusion:

In the first part of this article, we've shown you that the Radeon X1900 series is generally more efficient than the GeForce 7900 (and of course, the 7800 for that matter). In pre DirectX 9 games, where effective fillrate is more important, the Radeon X1900 lost less frame rates with a less steep decline as we move to higher resolutions. Nominal frame rates are generally still higher on the GeForce 7900GTX, but we're talking a minimum fps of 50 - 90 fps with AA and AF, so you'll definitely won't be seeing any lag on both cards (though you might still notice a drop).

In current DirectX 9 games, the two cards are generally equal to each other. Some games are faster on the Radeon X1900, some on the GeForce 7900GTX. The difference is usually 5 - 10 %, with nominal, minimum frame rates still above 30 fps at 1280 x 960 / 1024 with AA and AF. Some games are even playable at 1600 x 1200, though we don't really recommend it. Just like before, the Radeon X1900 series also has a less steep decline in performance than the GeForce 7900GTX.

Now, we're beginning to see games with next generation graphics. The three games we've chosen here are just a few games that was made with next generation graphics in mind. Much like it was a few years ago when early DirectX 9 games came, we're beginning to see the true value of these DirectX 9 graphics cards. Thankfully, NVIDIA is much more wiser with a hell lot better design in the form of the GeForce 7 series. ATI has also made good on their promise to deliver SM 3.0 from top to bottom with the X1K series.

With graphics cards' prices almost reaching stratospheric proportions, gamers want more value from their card. This means not just high frame rates for current and old games, but games coming out in a year or two. We tried to address this concern in this two part article and the answer, while disappointing, is not unexpected. Both the GeForce 7900GTX and the Radeon X1900XTX won't be able to offer you high enough settings with max out graphical settings. But then again, is not really realistic to expect such a thing. You will have to compromise at some point, either running without AA / AF, HDR / AF or lower resolutions.

That is already happening with Oblivion, which is undoubtedly, the most demanding game today. While not all games will behave like Oblivion (thankfully), it offered a glimpse of where games are going, graphically. It also offered a glimpse of how todays card cope with the tremendous graphical splendor the game has. Consider these factors: HDR is noticeably faster on the Radeon X1900 than the GeForce 7900 in Oblivion. AA and AF performance between the two are generally the same, and traditionally, ATI has the better AA implementation. If you chose to run with high enough settings but without AA / AF or HDR / AF, the Radeon X1900 is slightly faster as well.

If we had to make a choice between the two, we prefer the Radeon X1900 series. And not just because of Oblivion. It offer less steep drop in frame rate, loses less frame rate with AA and AF, even with higher resolutions (1280 x 1024 and 1600 x 1200). Aliasing wise, ATI have always had the more effective implementation and the Radeon X1900 series is no different. Then there's High Dynamic Range rendering. Out of the three HDR enabled title in our benchmark suite (Serious Sam II, Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion), the Radeon X1900XTX we tested is as fast or faster with HDR rendering than the GeForce 7900GTX in SC: Chaos Theory and Oblivion. The Radeon X1900XTX (and all Radeon X1K series) are also capable of HDR with AA, something the GeForce 7 / 6 are unable to do. While there is a performance penalty of enabling HDR with AA, the nominal frame rates are still high enough for comfortable gameplay (in Serious Sam II).

It's not all perfect for the Radeon X1900. If you're very particular about noise, you'll most likely be horrified with the reference cooling solution. Thankfully, there's a lot of third party solution that does a good job without making so much noise. The ASUS EAX1800XT TOP is such a card, though up till now we haven't heard any news of a X1900XTX version. Then there's the drivers - Catalyst Control Center still irks us and quite probably, most users too. Unfortunately, ATI has made up their mind not to support the old control panel anymore, so either you put up with it or use the various modified Catalyst. If you don't want to put up with either problem, the GeForce 7900GTX is probably the better option, not to mention you can get it slightly cheaper (maybe). Concerning longevity, it looks like users are on the whim of NVIDIA driver developers and their ability to fix and optmize their drivers for the newest games.

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