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Tyan Tachyon G9800Pro-M Review

Read inside for our review on Tyan’s latest graphics card based on ATI’s 9800Pro VPU. We compare it against three other cards, the 9800XT, 9600XT and 9500Pro using realworld gameplay evaluation.

Introduction:

Tyan’s line of video cards has always offered a unique solution paving their own way when it comes to design. When ATI partnered up with 3rd party manufacturers allowing them to design their own cards around ATI’s VPUs, this let creativity run wild with manufacturers. They were able to take the base ATI VPU and surround it with their own ideas. Tyan took that opportunity and not only deviated from the reference design forming their own PCB but also decided to add one very important component that appeals to the enthusiast crowd.

That component would be the hardware monitoring feature built into certain Tyan video cards. The software that controls this hardware feature is known as the Tyan Graphics Monitor or TGM for short. You will find this feature in the Tyan Tachyon G9200 all the way up to the G9800Pro-M we are review here today. It is noteworthy to mention there are two versions from Tyan based on ATI’s 9800Pro VPU, The Tachyon G9800Pro and the G9800Pro-M. The difference is that the G9800Pro has the reference ATI PCB design with no hardware monitoring. This is the same red PCB you will find on the made by ATI 9800Pro’s. The Tachyon 9800Pro-M is the "tricked out" version. It comes complete with a blue custom PCB design, hardware monitoring and a unique HSF design.

Tachyon G9800Pro-M:

On the front of the Tyan box is a label letting you know that this card uses the Tyan Graphics Monitor. If you don’t see this label on a Tyan box then that video card does not utilize the software. The front of the box also lists vital information about the video card:

. ATI Radeon 9800Pro VPU

. 380MHz core, 680MHz DDR memory

. 128-bit gaming up to 2048x1536

. Full DirectX 9.0 and latest OpenGL support

. Hydravision multi-monitor support

The back and sides of the box give a more detailed look at the features included on this card such as SMARTSHADER 2.1 and SMOOTHVISION 2.1 along with HyperZ III+ and a 400MHz RAMDAC. The full contents inside the box are also listed on the side of the box.

There is a complete user’s guide which goes over not only installing the card but also how to use the software such as the ATI control panel. It even goes as far as to give descriptions on each setting in the control panel and explains exactly what the features mean such as Mip-Map Detail and the various settings included with SMOOTHVISION such as Anti-Aliasing and Anisotropic filtering. There is even an acronym index at the very back for those that need to know what a certain acronym stands for.

The Tyan Graphics Monitor user’s guide is very short and to the point. Unfortunately the version explained in the manual is TGM Version 2.2, and the latest version available from Tyan is currently 3.2.

As you can see Tyan’s signature design is shown once again in the G9800Pro-M. The blue PCB is back with unique HSF that covers the core, RAM modules and the back as well. In the third picture you can see where the two heatsinks meet up in the back that does come in contact for heat transfer between them.

At the rear of the card is where the good stuff happens. This is where Tyan’s engineering has combined with ATI’s design to really make a unique video card. The first thing you will notice is that this card sports a floppy power connector. Every other Radeon 9800Pro from ATI or other manufacturers sport a Molex power connector. With a floppy connector being used this helps increase the space available in that area to add the special things that make this card what it is. You will see the speaker planted right there, which allows a warning beep if the fan speed dips too low or the card gets too hot. In the second picture above you can see the Winbond hardware monitoring chip.