MSI NX8600GT Twin Turbo Review

[MikeC]

In his review debut, Andrew Scott, aka six_storm, checks out the MSI NX8600GT Twin Turbo graphics card. This variant of the GeForce 8600 GT features two vBIOS chips one of which sets the core, shader, and memory clock speeds a bit higher.

http://www.nvnews.net/reviews/msi_nx8600gt_twin_turbo/images/msi_nx8600gt_tt.jpg

He compares performance to the GeForce 7600 GT, which was a mid-range GPU in the last generation.These gamers either don't bother to upgrade or they just don't have the dough to shell out for a newer graphics card. If you happen to fall into the second category, I feel for you, but guess what? I was in the same boat! The good news is that there is hope for those with smaller wallets.

Check it out here - http://www.nvnews.net/reviews/msi_nx8600gt_twin_turbo/index.shtml

[ENU291]

I just finished reading the entire review. Awesome work there Six! I'm actually impressed. Good job :thumbsup: So what's up next for the newest NVNEWS hardware review member?

[six_storm]

I just finished reading the entire review. Awesome work there Six! I'm actually impressed. Good job :thumbsup: So what's up next for the newest NVNEWS hardware review member?

Thanks! I really appreciate it. It was a little more work than I thought it would take but I did do things kinda the hard way lol. MikeC is supposed to be sending me a MSI mobo this week so look out for that review in about two weeks. Hope that I can give good, honest and straight up reviews, and give back to NVNews. NVNews is my home on the net!

[mcolbourn]

That was a great review Six well done that man. I look forward to your next review.

[six_storm]

That was a great review Six well done that man. I look forward to your next review.

Much thanks! I've enjoyed reviewing hardware.

[Tr1cK]

GJ ex-macboy!

[six_storm]

GJ ex-macboy!
:D

Thanks tr1ck!

[methimpikehoses]

I was wondering if you could try jamming it into your mac somehow and see what happens.

Nice review though... I wish my GTX had a turbo button.

[six_storm]

I was wondering if you could try jamming it into your mac somehow and see what happens.

Nice review though... I wish my GTX had a turbo button.

Jamming it into my Mac? Hmmm . . . apparently my Mac only likes ATI cards so yeah . . . :( . I wish Apple would've put more NVIDIA cards into their stuff.

I guess I can say some things about the card now outside the review. The Twin Turbo button was a nice feature that makes the card unique from the other 8600GTs out there. However, it does max itself out at the Twin Turbo clock speeds. Anything higher than that and it just hits a wall. But remember though, it's a budget card. It would be interesting to see a GTX or even a GTS card with a TT button on it. :D

[evox]

good review, however, I have a major complain, you didn't use any modern games for testing? games like Battlefield 2/2142, Oblivion, GRAW, Lost Planet etc were missing from the review. please elaborate :)

Keep up the good work!

[Nitz Walsh]

good review, however, I have a major complain, you didn't use any modern games for testing? games like Battlefield 2/2142, Oblivion, GRAW, Lost Planet etc were missing from the review. please elaborate :)

Keep up the good work!
Yeah, I would have liked to see more modern games. Doom3 and HL2? Why? How about Bioshock at least? Considering the 8600GT doesn't really go that much beyond the 7600GT in older titles and is primarily concerned with shader power, the games chosen were an odd choice.

[Tr1cK]

Getting a 404 on the clock speed image when clicked.

Also, I have been thinking of how gimmicky the whole turbo button deal is. It reminds me of the pre-pentium days of turbo buttons on the case and how some cases even had preset LCD displays that would show you the speed. Did anyone ever run without turbo on? I know it was for compatibility purposes, but I always loved running fast. :) So what real purpose does it serve on the video card?

[six_storm]

good review, however, I have a major complain, you didn't use any modern games for testing? games like Battlefield 2/2142, Oblivion, GRAW, Lost Planet etc were missing from the review. please elaborate :)

Keep up the good work!

Well, since I was basically getting my feet wet reviewing, I choose some classics like Half Life 2, CS:S, Far Cry and Doom 3. I do not own any PC games since I sold them all two years ago (when I got my iMac). If you didn't notice, I used demos lol. The next time I do a review, hopefully my library will be a little more updated with stuff like Episode 2, Crysis, UT3 and CoD4. Keep an eye out for them!

Getting a 404 on the clock speed image when clicked.

Talk to MikeC about that one. :D

Also, I have been thinking of how gimmicky the whole turbo button deal is. It reminds me of the pre-pentium days of turbo buttons on the case and how some cases even had preset LCD displays that would show you the speed. Did anyone ever run without turbo on? I know it was for compatibility purposes, but I always loved running fast. So what real purpose does it serve on the video card?

I believe that this card is not only for those with small wallets, but for those who don't want to dive into the big pool of overclocking. It's almost a "safe" way of overclocking the video card. Make sense? All the user has to do is turn the PC off, wait 10 seconds, push the Twin Turbo button and power the PC back on. How hard is that? :D But yeah, I haven't seen a "Turbo" button since the days of Pentium 1's. LOLLERSKATES!!!!!11111

[evox]

Well, since I was basically getting my feet wet reviewing, I choose some classics like Half Life 2, CS:S, Far Cry and Doom 3. I do not own any PC games since I sold them all two years ago (when I got my iMac). If you didn't notice, I used demos lol. The next time I do a review, hopefully my library will be a little more updated with stuff like Episode 2, Crysis, UT3 and CoD4. Keep an eye out for them!
great :) looking forward :thumbsup:

[six_storm]

great :) looking forward :thumbsup:

Thanks!

Now that we have the Orange Box, CoD4 Demo and the UT3 demo, I'll be able to benchmark with more recent and upcoming games. We will have to see about UT3 demo though. From what I hear so far, it's a little sluggish on some really decent rigs.

[slaWter]

Good work!! Thanks.

[six_storm]

Thanks bro! :D