Riva TNT2

RIVA TNT2 was NVIDIA's final major pre-GeForce desktop family, with many full, Ultra, Pro, M64, and Vanta variants.

FahrenheitRIVA TNT2 SeriesDesktopSDR1999NVIDIA

Key Metrics

Architecture
Fahrenheit
Launch Date
1999-03-15
Memory
16 MB or 32 MB depending on board SDRAM
Memory Bandwidth
About 2.4 GB/s on standard TNT2
TDP/TBP
Not consistently specified in public board data
Interface
AGP 4x, AGP 2x, or PCI depending on board
Process Node
TSMC 250 nm class
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Why It Mattered

RIVA TNT2 showed how NVIDIA could scale one graphics family across performance and OEM price points shortly before GeForce 256 introduced hardware transform and lighting.

Collector Relevance

TNT2 Ultra and unusual partner cards are more desirable than plain M64 or Vanta boards. Record variant, memory bus, chip markings, memory chips, cooler, BIOS, and whether the board is AGP or PCI.

Used-Market Caution

Do not buy by the TNT2 name alone. Confirm full TNT2, Ultra, Pro, 64-bit M64, or Vanta, then check fan condition, memory errors, AGP compatibility, and driver support for the intended OS.

Known Issues

Variant confusion is the main issue. Standard TNT2, Ultra, Pro, M64, and Vanta cards differ substantially, especially in memory bus width.

Known Failure Points

Small fans, dried thermal pads, memory artifacts, and wrong variant identification are common. Some listings use TNT2 for M64 or Vanta cards that perform well below full TNT2 boards.

Driver and Platform Notes

Windows 9x Detonator era drivers are the normal target. Windows 2000 and XP support depends on legacy driver branch and exact board.

Only legacy driver stacks are relevant. No practical modern accelerated Linux target.

Windows 98 is the most natural target. Windows 2000 and XP can work with legacy drivers on some boards.

Reviews1 review

Board-partner, reference-card, article, and video reviews that cover this GPU.

Related GPUs

Back to RIVA TNT2 Series

Next in series: Riva TNT2 M64
Sources

Sources reviewed: 2026-08-13

This entry is still being source-checked.

Source Status

Source review pending. Treat narrative notes as incomplete until listed sources are reviewed.

Pending source review topics:

  • why it mattered
  • launch context
  • performance context
  • competitive context
  • driver and platform notes
  • variant notes
Data confidence and source status

Partial entry. Core specifications may be present, but history, variant notes, known issues, and source review may be incomplete.

  • Verified: core specifications and historical notes have been reviewed against listed sources.
  • Partial: core specifications may be present, but history, variant notes, known issues, and source review may be incomplete.
  • Imported: spec-only imported entry pending editorial source review.
  • Needs source review: narrative notes are incomplete until reviewed.

Primary / manufacturer sources

  1. DOS Days RIVA TNT2 SeriesTNT2, TNT2 Ultra, TNT2 Pro, M64, Vanta, and Vanta LT family contextOpen source
  2. Archived NVIDIA TNT2 product pageNVIDIA product positioning archiveOpen source
  3. NVIDIA Windows XP/2000 91.47 driver pageNVIDIA support list and legacy support boundary for several GeForce2 and TNT2-era productsOpen source
  4. NVIDIA Windows NT supported products pageNVIDIA legacy driver support note for TNT2, Vanta, GeForce 256, GeForce2 GTS/Pro/Ultra, and Quadro2Open source
  5. NVIDIA 3D Graphics Processor Sets New Standard for PC MarketOfficial March 15, 1999 RIVA TNT2 announcementOpen source

Other sources

  1. Creative 3D Blaster RIVA TNT2 Ultra datasheetBoard-level TNT2 Ultra performance and cooler contextOpen source

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