Catalyst 3.8's MUCH better than 4.6's??

dantesparda · Jul 3, 2004, 05:55 PM

Anyone else notice this?? Or am I doing something funny? But I have used drivercleaner to purge my system, and tried installing both of the above drivers, but I DEFINITELY get much better image quality (i.e. proper anti-aliasing, bump mapping, better textures, better AF, better framerates etc) when I go back to the 3.8's

It can't be anything wrong with my system as I am using drivercleaner each time. So what gives? Are ATI deliberately downgrading quality to increase performance with each driver release? Or is this something unique to me?

Also I can't actually get proper anti-aliasing with the new 4.6's or any 4 series driver. I am using Powerstrip so it should work ok. Anyone else get this problem or is my system strange?

BUT I DON'T CARE BECAUSE MY SYSTEM ROCKS WITH 3.8's!!!! Far-Cry I love you, you are the most beautiful game I have ever played. YUM!

Dante

WINXP SP1
Pentium4 3GHz HT
DELL Dimension 8300
ATI Radeon 9800 Pro
Audigy2
Iiyama HM903DT

RVachon · Jul 3, 2004, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by dantesparda

BUT I DON'T CARE BECAUSE MY SYSTEM ROCKS WITH 3.8's!!!!

Alrighty then..so why bother asking?

dantesparda · Jul 4, 2004, 07:09 AM

BECAUSE I am interested to know if I am the only 1 who has this 'problem'! If not, then I think it is bad that ATI are reducing the visual quality of the drivers, as people who haven't seen the 3.8's won't realise what they are missing.

dantesparda · Jul 4, 2004, 07:13 AM

Catalyst 3.8 is BEST!!! 4.6 rubbish image quality??
Anyone else notice this?? Or am I doing something funny? But I have used drivercleaner to purge my system, and tried installing both of the above drivers, but I DEFINITELY get much better image quality (i.e. proper anti-aliasing, bump mapping, better textures, better AF, better framerates etc) when I go back to the 3.8's

It can't be anything wrong with my system as I am using drivercleaner each time. So what gives? Are ATI deliberately downgrading quality to increase performance with each driver release? Or is this something unique to me?

Also I can't actually get proper anti-aliasing with the new 4.6's or any 4 series driver. I am using Powerstrip so it should work ok. Anyone else get this problem or is my system strange?

BUT AT LEAST MY SYSTEM ROCKS WITH 3.8's!!!! Far-Cry I love you, you are the most beautiful game I have ever played. YUM!

Dante

WINXP SP1
Pentium4 3GHz HT
DELL Dimension 8300
ATI Radeon 9800 Pro
Audigy2
Iiyama HM903DT

**MIG-31** · Jul 4, 2004, 07:18 AM

aint this a pointless post. as you have here already

Chaos · Jul 4, 2004, 08:43 AM

Threads merged!

~~BMG_Cya=-~~ · Jul 4, 2004, 11:01 AM

Jeez lighten the f*** up people....Some people spend too much time reading forums I guess...get too
particular...picky a**. Get a grip or a life or get off.

Anyway...with regard to the original post. I have noticed this as well, especially with the 4.XXX series
drivers. I can look at 2D screenshots of 3D games I have made over the last 2 years, and the IQ
has gone down in some cases...and in some games. (F1 Challenge in particular)

I think though most or the majority of the problem is DX release related. Meaning DX 8.1...is
different from DX 9.0...9.0...9.0b...etc. ATI has had to adapt their driver strengths and weaknesses
to each different popular game, or the latest DX release.

Best thing is to find the driver that works best with the games or apps you use and like most,
and enjoy.

DyceFreak · Jul 4, 2004, 04:40 PM

ive noticed this with AA, I thought maybe my eyes were getting more sensitive to the edgies, but this post is making me think otherwise. Hmm now im seriously considering going back to the 3.8s, maybe even the 3.7s

riles9262 · Jul 4, 2004, 05:46 PM

IQ has been the same for me since the pre-catalyst days

No_Style · Jul 4, 2004, 06:04 PM

Ok so the IQ is up in the past? How about the bug fixes? Or the slight performance increases along the way? Omega Drivers have been known for good IQ with the latest drivers. Why not try those?

I've always used the latest Catalysts because of my belief that ATI continues to fine tune and re-balance everything. One release, I may gain like 5 FPS or so, but my IQ is slightly down.. and vice versa for the other. They constantly change slightly

To sum up, in my opinion there's no such thing as one driver is better than the other on a specific area. I like balance and to me as a whole, the 4.6s are BETTER than 3.8s.

But don't get me wrong, some people just want pure performance while others just want IQ....and well all the power to them.

To prove my point further..

Just read the Release Notes

3.8 Release Notes
4.6 Release Notes

You will notice the list of non AA/AF game bugs resolved and unresolved is much longer on the 3.8. Game bugs used to plague ATI Drivers a lot more and now with the latest release, there are hardly any. One of the biggest improvements is the bug fixes list for AA and AF implementation for a variety of games.

DyceFreak · Jul 4, 2004, 06:08 PM

thanks for making me think strait again no_style, I guess im happy with the 4.6's and I guess ill just patiently wait for the 4.7's like I always do.

No_Style · Jul 4, 2004, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by DyceFreak
thanks for making me think strait again no_style, I guess im happy with the 4.6's and I guess ill just patiently wait for the 4.7's like I always do.

Hey no problem, dude

It's quirky indeed. The mind plays tricks on you when you want nothing but better. But hey you may be right. But, a few lil extra jaggies won't hurt. We all know that Far Cry is a beautiful game. But don't make it into an interactive gallery. It's a game and should be enjoyed as that