The cards layout and appearance is almost identical to that of the 9800XT except that the X800XT's heatsink is smaller and it doesn't contact any of the DDR3 memory modules.  The power connector (the purple plug) is a standard 4-pin Molex connector and the retail package includes a "Y" cord so you won't cut yourself short of power connectors inside your PC. The yellow connector is a composite video-input which can be connected to a video-capture port but the package did not come with the necessary cable to utilize it.

     These are the accessories that will come bundled with the retail XTASY X800XT, starting from left to right. The "Y" Molex power cable and the DVI adapter are pretty standard features. Not only does the X800XT providing composite and super-video inputs and outputs, but also supplies a High Definition Television "HDTV" outputs as well! We all know the second DVI connector can be used with the adapter to also create a dual-monitor display system. ATI has had multi-monitor support built into the stock Catalyst drivers since the Radeon 9100 series was released.

     Installation is about as straight forward as any other expansion card with the exception that you have to remember to give the video card a power source. The supplied "Y" cord is more than long enough to reach both the cord and the nearest available hot power lead. Driver installation lead to a few frustrations, but this not something that can be blamed on VisionTek or the XTASY video card itself. With two previous ATI cards (9800 Pro, and 9800XT) I've had similar issues where the driver wants to lock the refresh rate of the monitor to 60Hz. This can be very painful to look at and even more frustrating to release. Depending on which Catalyst version you are using will dictate excatly WHERE in the maze of menu's you find the settings, but you need to double check that the DCC information is set correctly. What I do DISABLE the option to "Use DCC Information Automaticly" and also Disable the "Override Refresh Rate" menu options. After that, it all depends on what maximum resolution and refresh rates you define which should be mirrored by your monitors capabilities.