ati/softmod question - plz answer fast

[cujo]

i have the option of getting a 9500 non-pro for 200 bucks or i can get a 9800 non pro for 365. (ignore the price numbers just look at the differential) if i get the 9500 then what are the chances of the softmod working? i mean what are the chances of my card having faulty pipelines? afterall if the softmod works then i can just overclock the card and get a 9700pro out of it right? if so then it's worth it. i just don't want to get stuck with a dud.

also, non-pro 9800 is easily overclockable to a pro right? or are there other differences?

also, would the hsf on a non-pro take an overclock that would up it to a pro? or would that need to be changed? (important cause it means more money)

if it's of any consequence both cards are sapphires. does anyone have a sapphire 9800nonpro? if so what was the stock hsf?

[MrMarbles]

the chance of modding is less than %50
dont know about 9800 but from what Ive heard they are very overclockable.

[cujo]

thx for the info. i've got about 15mins to make my decision. won't be getting the 9500 for sure but checking to make sure that the 9800 sapphire is not flawed or something. it is an oem version i am getting but the only difference is that i don't get any bundled games or an svideo cable apparently. hopefully the fan or hs is not crappy.

[cujo]

i've ordered it. crossing my fingers...

[IR1]

Sapphire and ATI's cards are identicle. Sapphire makes a lot of ATI's cards. They are the same cards they just go in a different box. Though some of Sapphires have a different heatsink... they arnt crap. But plenty people would put AS3 on instead of that pad which helps.

[Albuquerque]

Yes, the softmod is never a guarantee by any means, you're considered lucky if it works. If you don't want to sweat that sort of odds, then you did the right thing in ordering the 9800. And yes, most of the time, the non-pro cards can overclock pretty close (or maybe even just a touch further) than the Pro cards. Usually what ends up bottlenecking first is the memory speed...

[cujo]

great, thanks for the replies. yea i don't even think my 9800 will come in a box as it's oem.

anyway, how do i take the hsf off to put as3 on? on my old gf3 it was pretty stuck on. is there an easy way?

[TheNamelessOne]

Well I just got my sapphire 9800 oem today :) The heatsink is attached with pushpins. Should be pretty easy to remove with pliers. Not to steal your thread but the memory is samsung 300mhz max frequency. Anyone know how far this memory usually goes?