NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra

The NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra is an end-of-life graphics card built on the NV40 chip and Curie architecture, fabricated by TSMC on a 130 nm process. It integrates 222 million transistors on a 287 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 773.5K per mm². The card carries 256 MB of GDDR3 memory on a 256-bit bus, clocked at 550 MHz (1100 Mbps effective), delivering 35.20 GB/s of bandwidth. It features 16 texture mapping units and 16 ROPs, achieving a pixel rate of 6.800 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 6.800 GTexel/s. The database places it at the 50th percentile among all GPUs, with an aggregate benchmark score of zero, indicating that no synthetic performance results are populated in this record. It connects via AGP 8x and was released on April 13, 2004, succeeding the GeForce FX and preceding the GeForce 7 AGP. The card measures 216 mm (8.5 inches) in length, occupies a single slot, and requires a 200 W suggested power supply with two Molex connectors.

Who Should Consider It

The data set places the GeForce 6800 Ultra at the 50th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of zero. Because no benchmark scores are populated, the percentile ranking serves as the primary positional metric. This card is for users on AGP 8x platforms who require a 256 MB GDDR3 solution. The 35.20 GB/s memory bandwidth and 6.800 GPixel/s pixel rate are the key performance indicators. At the median percentile, this card sits exactly in the middle of the database's GPU population, meaning it is neither a high-end nor a low-end part. For a user building or upgrading a legacy AGP system, the 6800 Ultra offers a balanced set of capabilities: 16 TMUs and 16 ROPs provide symmetric texture and pixel throughput. The single-slot design and 216 mm (8.5 inches) length make it compatible with a wide range of chassis. The 2x DVI and 1x S-Video outputs support multi-display setups. Given the zero benchmark score, users should not expect a specific framerate target; instead, the architectural parameters suggest a card capable of handling DirectX 9.0c workloads at mainstream settings. The 50th percentile position indicates that it will perform at the median level relative to the entire database, which is a reasonable expectation for a 2004-era AGP card. The data does not specify a resolution or settings recommendation, so the user must infer from the fill rates and memory bandwidth that it is suited to rendering at standard resolutions of the era. The 256 MB memory size is a typical capacity for that period, and the 256-bit bus width ensures that the memory bandwidth is not a bottleneck for the given pixel rate. Users who prioritize a specific resolution or settings level will find that the data does not provide framerate numbers, but the 50th percentile suggests a median experience. The card's 6.800 GTexel/s texture rate complements the pixel rate, ensuring balanced texture and pixel processing. For users with AGP 8x motherboards who need a reliable card for older DirectX 9 titles, the 6800 Ultra is a viable choice based on its memory and fill rate specifications.

How It Compares

The FACT PACK does not list any nearest rivals for the GeForce 6800 Ultra. Consequently, a direct comparison to specific competing products is not possible from the provided data. The only comparative anchor is the 50th percentile ranking against all GPUs in the database. This percentile indicates that the 6800 Ultra is exactly at the median of the entire GPU population, meaning half of the GPUs in the database are faster and half are slower. Its predecessor is the GeForce FX, and its successor is the GeForce 7 AGP, which situates it within NVIDIA's product lineage as a transitional part between those two generations. The absence of rival data means that any statement about relative performance must be limited to the percentile figure. The zero average benchmark score further complicates direct comparison, as there is no numeric score to contrast with hypothetical rivals. The data set does provide the architectural parameters—such as the 6.800 GTexel/s texture rate and 6.800 GPixel/s pixel rate—which can be compared qualitatively to other cards, but without rival names or scores, such comparisons remain speculative. Therefore, the analysis must rely on the percentile as the sole positional metric. The 50th percentile is a meaningful data point because it places the card in the middle of the distribution, suggesting that it offers median performance within the database's scope. For a card released in April 2004, this median position is consistent with a mainstream product that was not the fastest of its era but was also not an entry-level part. The lack of a nearestRivals list in the data set means that the card's performance cannot be benchmarked against the GeForce FX or GeForce 7 AGP directly, even though those are its predecessor and successor. The data set only records the percentile and the zero score, so any comparison must be based on the percentile alone.

Ray Tracing and Feature Set

The GeForce 6800 Ultra does not include dedicated ray tracing or tensor cores; the data set lists no RT core or tensor core counts. This is consistent with its DirectX 9.0c (9_3) API support, which predates the hardware-accelerated ray tracing features introduced in later DirectX versions. The card supports OpenGL 2.0.3 in full and OpenGL 2.1 partially. Vulkan support is not listed, indicating that the card does not expose a Vulkan driver in this database. The feature set is therefore firmly rooted in the early 2000s graphics era. The 16 TMUs and 16 ROPs provide the texture and pixel processing capabilities, while the 35.20 GB/s memory bandwidth feeds these units. The 6.800 GTexel/s texture rate and 6.800 GPixel/s pixel rate are the maximum theoretical throughputs for texture and pixel operations, respectively. Without tensor cores, there is no hardware acceleration for machine learning or DLSS-type features. Without RT cores, there is no hardware ray tracing acceleration. The API list is limited to DirectX 9.0c and OpenGL 2.0.3/2.1, so games and applications requiring newer APIs will not run with hardware acceleration. The partial OpenGL 2.1 support suggests that some 2.1 features are available, but not the full specification. The data set does not list a shader model version beyond the DirectX 9_3 feature level, which is the highest feature level for DirectX 9.0c. The card's feature set is defined by its 16 TMUs and 16 ROPs, which are the core processing units for texture and pixel operations. The absence of Vulkan and ray tracing means that modern rendering techniques are not supported. The DirectX 9.0c (9_3) support is the primary API for this card, and OpenGL 2.0.3 provides a secondary path. The partial OpenGL 2.1 support is a minor addition.

FAQ

Q: What is the memory size and type of the GeForce 6800 Ultra?

A: It has 256 MB of GDDR3 memory on a 256-bit bus, with a memory clock of 550 MHz (1100 Mbps effective), providing 35.20 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: What bus interface does the card use?

A: It uses the AGP 8x bus interface.

Q: What are the power requirements?

A: The card requires a suggested power supply of 200 W and uses two Molex power connectors.

Q: What display outputs are available?

A: It offers 2x DVI and 1x S-Video outputs.

Q: Does the card support ray tracing?

A: No, the data set does not list any RT cores or tensor cores, and the API support is limited to DirectX 9.0c (9_3) and OpenGL 2.0.3 (full) with partial 2.1 support. Vulkan is not listed.

Q: What is the production status and release date?

A: The production status is end-of-life, and it was released on April 13, 2004.

Power and Cooling

The data set does not specify a thermal design power (TDP) for the GeForce 6800 Ultra. However, the card's power delivery is defined by its two Molex connectors and a suggested power supply rating of 200 W. The card is a single-slot design, which limits the cooling solution to a single-slot cooler. The physical dimensions are 216 mm (8.5 inches) in length, which is a standard length for AGP cards of that era. The absence of a TDP figure means that the cooling requirements must be inferred from the single-slot form factor and the power connector configuration. A 200 W PSU is the minimum suggested rating, so users with lower-rated power supplies should upgrade. The two Molex connectors indicate that the card draws more power than the AGP slot alone can provide, necessitating direct connections to the power supply. The single-slot design suggests that the cooler is relatively low-profile, which may be adequate given the 130 nm process node. The 222 million transistors on a 287 mm² die produce a certain amount of heat, but without a TDP number, the exact thermal output cannot be quantified. The data set does not mention a fan or heatsink specification, so the user must rely on the single-slot form factor as the primary cooling constraint. In summary, the power and cooling requirements are a 200 W PSU, two Molex connectors, and a single-slot cooler, with the physical length of 216 mm (8.5 inches) dictating case compatibility.