typically a regular 6800 can be soft modded to a GT or an ultra or both?

I know no 2 cards are alike but was wondering what to expect from typical results.

Thanks

The answer so far seems to be mostly no. The 6800nu has only 12 pipes, as opposed to the 16 in the GT and the Ultra versions. The newest rivatuner over at guru3d.com has an option to unlock those extra 4 pipelines, but the results are not encouraging. Not many people have had success with the mod (A poll there shows something like 5 people having success, with ~150 failing.) Some people have also tried flashing their bios with a 6800GT or ultra bios. (Using a bios editor to lower the RAM speed to a value that a 6800nu can use) Again, not many people have had success, and with this method, it seems that you are not able to re-lock those 4 pipelines if it doesn't work, ruining your card.

Thanks for the info Lejend. At least taking up the GT is a solid option.

Tovas said:

Thanks for the info Lejend. At least taking up the GT is a solid option.

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Indeed thats what most of us run here

The Softmod is deffinately worth trying. Is the new Rivatuner actually out yet?

What exactly are the benefits of unlocking the pipes on a 6800nu?

Droban said:

The Softmod is deffinately worth trying. Is the new Rivatuner actually out yet?

What exactly are the benefits of unlocking the pipes on a 6800nu?

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No, its not out yet as far as I know. Unlocking the remaining pipes would increase performance greatly. Almost like the 9500 ---> 9700 softmod.

Sentential said:

No, its not out yet as far as I know. Unlocking the remaining pipes would increase performance greatly. Almost like the 9500 ---> 9700 softmod.

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Yes it is out. Here's the link:
http://downloads.guru3d.com/download.php?det=163

And here's a thread that shows you how to check if you are one of the lucky ones with a soft modable 6800nu:
http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?threadid=105221

You people with your fancy shmancy GT's might not have payed all that close of attention to the new release of RivaTuner, but us poor saps with our NU's sure did. My nu is not softmodable, but nevertheless, I am quite happy with it.

Being able to unlock those 4 extra pipes would give a nive performance boost.

Lejend said:

Yes it is out. Here's the link:
http://downloads.guru3d.com/download.php?det=163

And here's a thread that shows you how to check if you are one of the lucky ones with a soft modable 6800nu:
http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?threadid=105221

You people with your fancy shmancy GT's might not have payed all that close of attention to the new release of RivaTuner, but us poor saps with our NU's sure did. My nu is not softmodable, but nevertheless, I am quite happy with it.

Being able to unlock those 4 extra pipes would give a nive performance boost.

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Great link. Im sure alot of people will be glad to know this.

all 6800s are not created equal...

so whats the best brand to get?

Tovas said:

all 6800s are not created equal...

so whats the best brand to get?

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Gainward (Golden Samples) makes the best 6800s. From the NU to the Ultra. Theirs are head and shoulders above the others.