3DMark06 Advanced Performance
3DMark06 Advanced is the latest version in this popular 3DMark series of gaming benchmarks from Futuremark, and is the first to showcase new HDR/SM3.0 and SM2.0 graphics tests, as well as offering dual core tailored CPU tests. The Feature tests have also been enhanced for the newest 3D support, and to provide reliable measurements for game hardware of today, and tomorrow. This is one very serious game test, which punishes cards that do not support HDR/SM3.0 or SM2.0, and really puts video hardware to the next-generation test.
3DMark06 Advanced is a mix of high-end performance and features testing and this is another benchmark that highlights both pure performance and a SM3.0 architecture. The ASUS EAX1950PRO 256MB performed right up to expectations, posting scores in excess of both the GeForce 7900 GS and GeForce 7900 GT 256MB cards, but still not able to outpace the GeForce 7950 GT 512MB. This is how the ASUS EAX1950PRO 256MB placed in the majority of SM3.0-enabled benchmarks, and it's nice to see that level of consistency extend to 3DMark06.
3DMark06 Advanced AA and AF Performance
The overall rankings stay the same once the higher-end AA/AF detail settings are enabled, and the ASUS EAX1950PRO 256MB remains in its familiar position between the GeForce 7900 GT 256MB and GeForce 7950 GT 512MB cards.
3DMark06 Advanced Fill Rate and SM2.0/3.0/HDR Performance
The next part of our 3DMark06 Advanced testing utilizes the Feature Test portion of the benchmark (at the standard 1280x1024 resolution), and concentrates on the Fill Rate and Vertex and Pixel Shader performance. We also present the SM2.0 and SM3.0/HDR results here as well. The first chart shows the cards ranked by Fill Rate performance, with the number displayed representing MTexels/second, while the second chart has the cards ranked by Vertex and Pixel Shader performance, with the number displayed representing MVertices/second.
The Fill Rate benchmark tests isolate the architecture of the Radeon X1900 Pro GPU found in the ASUS EAX1950PRO 256MB card, and highlights why this is not a powerhouse with older or non-SM3.0 games. Without the benefit of its extra shaders, pure fill rate numbers are quite low, with the 12-pipe ASUS EAX1950PRO 256MB posting a multi-texture score just ahead of the GeForce 7600 GT and behind the 16-pipe Radeon X1800 XL.
3DMark06 Advanced Vertex and Pixel Shader Performance
The 3DMark06 Advanced Pixel and Vertex Shader benchmark results (displayed as MVertices/second) start to tell us why the ASUS EAX1950PRO 256MB is such a powerful gaming card. The Pixel Shader testing shows the ASUS card ahead of the GeForce 7900 GS, while the holding the top position in Vertex Shader: Complex benchmarking.
3DMark06 Advanced SM2.0 & SM3.0/HDR Performance
The SM2.0 & SM3.0/HDR testing gives us another piece of the puzzle, and the ASUS EAX1950PRO 256MB outpaces the GeForce 790 GT in the SM2.0 tests, while equaling the GeForce 7950 GT in HDR/SM3.0 benchmarking.
