The XFX 260GTX graphics card comes pre-overclocked compared with a generic Nvidia 260GTX model. We were curious to find out the overclocking margins of this card, which can be found with a trial-error testing procedure. We used the latest RivaTuner software and raised up the core/memory/shader frequencies until we got an error- free nine (9) round Crysis benchmark.

Please note that we had to manually rise up the fan RPMs by 50% in order to achieve the following results. In addition, we noticed that the card is running very hot (~50 degrees Celsius in the outer shell) so adding an extra fan could further increase overclocking.

We managed to increase the core's frequency by 60MHz - which is quite good, the memory gain was 146MHz and the Shaders were clocked 97MHz higher. These gains in the operation frequencies may be low but remember that we are talking about a factory overclocked model here.

- Final Words

Summarizing the test results we can safely say that this card will really give you a significantly higher performance especially if you are currently on a 8xxx series solution. The latest game titles, like Crysis or Crysis Warhead are much playble at either DirectX 9 or DirectX 10 modes, provided that you have "properly" adjusted the quality modes.

You can enjoy DX9 gaming in "full quality" mode by using the resolution of 1280x1024. If this resolution is not enough for you, then you'd better add a second XFX 260GTX graphic card or simply lower the visual details. With some "older" games like HL2 Episode 2 or Company Of Heroes, the performance is superb, overpassing even an Nvidia 8800GTS 512MB SLI setup.

The overclocking procedure through the Riva Tuner is simple, although you will possibly need to manually increase the rotation of the GPU fan to handle the heat.

As a last word we can say that the XFX 260GTX is suggested to to anyone who needs a speed jump over a previous generation graphics card and at the same time, have a future-proof product. Adding an extra or even two XFX 260GTX cards would surely will keep you busy for a long time before jumping to another platform.