3D Performance: 3DMark2001 SE

To evaluate SiS 672FX’s 3D performance we installed a very low-end video card on SiS 672FX reference board: GeForce 6200 TurboCache with 64 MB and 64-bit interface (from XFX).

We also installed a high-end video card, an overclocked GeForce 8800 GTS from MSI, on it and compared its performance to a high-end motherboard with the same video card installed, MSI P35 Platinum. The goal here was to see if by installing a high-end video card the reviewed board achieved the same performance level of a high-end motherboard.

We ran several programs, as you will see on the next pages. The amount of RAM memory the chipset “steals” from the main RAM memory to be used as video memory was left on the motherboard default value, which was 128 MB for the reviewed motherboard.

The first one, 3DMark2001 SE, measures 3D performance by making DirectX 8.1 simulations, and the results you can see below (we ran it using its default configuration). All the listed video cards were installed on SiS 672FX reference board.

On 3DMark2001 SE the on-board video produced by Intel G33 Express was 346% faster than the one produced by SiS 672FX. Here our GeForce 6200 TurboCache with 64-bit memory interface and 64 MB was 340.93% faster than SiS 672FX.

When we installed our overclocked GeForce 8800 GTS on the reviewed board it didn’t achieve the same performance level of MSI P35 Platinum – this motherboard from MSI was 4.16% faster. This means that by installing a “real” video card on this motherboard it WON’T achieve the same performance level of a high-end or even a mainstream motherboard without on-board video.