New Video Card

BaconTheoryBaconTheory Join Date: 2003-09-06 Member: 20615Members
edited February 2005 in Off-Topic
<div class="IPBDescription">B-Day Money!!</div> OK, so Sunday is my birthday, for which you should all remember to make a "Happy B-day" thread. Anyhow, I'm most likely going to get a lot of money for my birthday, and I have a little bit of spending money right now, but I want to save some for a cruise that I'm going on in March. Before you say "OMG D00d, get a 6800!! R0x0r!!!", I don't have THAT kind of money. I said I was going to get a lot, but I didn't say I was getting rich quick. I'm not one to know much about video cards, so that's why I need your guys' help. All I know is that more video memory, a higher clock speed and 256-bit graphics are better things. Beyond that, I have no clue. I was thinking maybe a 9800 Pro or one of the new budget 6 series Nvidia cards. Any thoughts?

EDIT: Right now I'm running a GeForce 5200.
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Comments

  • ZigZig ...I am Captain Planet&#33; Join Date: 2002-10-23 Member: 1576Members
    edited February 2005
    spring for a nice x800. it's treating me great, and if you want to play current games, well.. it's giving me between 30 and 70 fps in HL2 at full settings and 1280 x 1024 resolution in huge outdoor areas, and between 70 and 130 indoors.. couldn't ask for more, for the price. jumping from x800 pro and the like, towards XL and XT, though... is a big gap.
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  • BaconTheoryBaconTheory Join Date: 2003-09-06 Member: 20615Members
    edited February 2005
    Do you happen to know what an X800 would run me?

    EDIT: Just checked, a AGP 8X would run me about $400 giver or take.
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  • Invader_ScootInvader_Scoot Join Date: 2003-10-13 Member: 21669Members, Constellation, Reinforced - Shadow
    Personally I do also find the X800 XT the best o' the best, unless you really want to go for the extremes in price. It gives really nice hl2 performance, and people always think you're lieing whenever you say you have one. <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /><!--endemo-->
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  • Marik_SteeleMarik_Steele To rule in hell... Join Date: 2002-11-20 Member: 9466Members
    edited February 2005
    Do not spend more than $200 on any retail-boxed card slower than a 9800 Pro. $200 could buy you a 9800 pro from a store like Best Buy -- As of sometime during the summer last year.

    If you're looking at things near the 9800 pro in terms of performance, use this info as a baseline to know whether you're getting ripped off.
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  • DruBoDruBo Back In Beige Join Date: 2002-02-06 Member: 172Members, NS1 Playtester
    It's too bad that there aren't many AGP cards left. Look for the nVidia 6600GT. AGP version tends to go for about $200. The Radeon 9800 Pro costs about the same, and performance-wise they're roughly equal. Get whichever one you think looks cooler.
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  • BaconTheoryBaconTheory Join Date: 2003-09-06 Member: 20615Members
    edited February 2005
    I was looking around on Newegg and they do have a Rosewill 9800 Pro 256mb DDR, 256-bit for about $269. On the other hand, I could get a X800 for $30 more.
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  • Marik_SteeleMarik_Steele To rule in hell... Join Date: 2002-11-20 Member: 9466Members
    edited February 2005
    <!--QuoteBegin-Skidzor+Feb 18 2005, 05:15 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Skidzor @ Feb 18 2005, 05:15 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> I was looking around on Newegg and they do have a Rosewill 9800 Pro 256mb DDR, 256-bit for about $269. On the other hand, I could get a X800 for $30 more. <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
    To clarify my last post, I speak of the Made By ATI (not just powered by ATI) 9800 Pro with 128 megs of RAM. I have read more than one 9800 modding guide that says if you plan on upping the RAM or clockspeed and don't increase both, the one left behind will cause enough of a bottleneck that the boost from the other won't be worth the risk...so the usefullness of 256 megs of ram on a 9800 is dubious. (Unless The 256-bit factor comes into play in a way I'm unaware of).
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  • DruBoDruBo Back In Beige Join Date: 2002-02-06 Member: 172Members, NS1 Playtester
    128 megs of texture memory is plenty for an AGP card anyway.
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  • SvenpaSvenpa Wait, what? Join Date: 2004-01-03 Member: 25012Members, Constellation
    Get one of those 6800 LE they're about the speeds of a 9800 pro/xt but with the new tech in it (i guess?) and the price is quite same.
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  • MulletMullet Join Date: 2003-04-28 Member: 15910Members, Constellation
    edited February 2005
    The GeForce 6600 outperforms every other card in it's price range ($180-230 I think). I'd go for that.

    I have the BFG 6800 GT OC <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->

    P.S. I'd talk to Talesin if I were you <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
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  • IsamilIsamil Join Date: 2003-11-25 Member: 23552Members, Constellation
    9800 pro serves me well, I'm not sure how good the 6600 GT is.
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  • MulletMullet Join Date: 2003-04-28 Member: 15910Members, Constellation
    edited February 2005
    <img src='http://images.anandtech.com/graphs/6600gt%20review_09070410954/4403.png' border='0' alt='user posted image' /><img src='http://images.anandtech.com/graphs/6600gt%20review_09070410954/4391.png' border='0' alt='user posted image' />
    <img src='http://images.anandtech.com/graphs/6600gt%20review_09070410954/4407.png' border='0' alt='user posted image' /><img src='http://images.anandtech.com/graphs/6600gt%20review_09070410954/4410.png' border='0' alt='user posted image' />

    There are some stress test pics. I didn't check to see if it was PCIe or AGP, but either way it seems to compete with the 9800xt and sometimes even the 6800. (Sorry for so many pics)

    Performance and quality wise, I'd say the 6600 might come out in the lead by a bit. But I could be wrong..
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  • DruBoDruBo Back In Beige Join Date: 2002-02-06 Member: 172Members, NS1 Playtester
    6600 GT AGP and PCI-E performance is equal.
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  • BelgarionBelgarion Join Date: 2002-07-19 Member: 973Members
    remember this - ATi hardware is optimized for DX games, while nVidia hardware is optimized for OGL games. So if you plan on playing Doom3 a lot, you're probably better off with an nVidia selection. However, if you're playing just about anything else more often, ATi is more suitable. Also, a friend of mine was looking into buying an X800, and i found that the difference in performance for an X800 Pro vs XT is about a 50% increase in speed for the XT.
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  • CommunistWithAGunCommunistWithAGun Local Propaganda Guy Join Date: 2003-04-30 Member: 15953Members
    <!--QuoteBegin-Belgarion+Feb 18 2005, 10:49 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Belgarion @ Feb 18 2005, 10:49 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> remember this - ATi hardware is optimized for DX games, while nVidia hardware is optimized for OGL games. So if you plan on playing Doom3 a lot, you're probably better off with an nVidia selection. However, if you're playing just about anything else more often, ATi is more suitable. Also, a friend of mine was looking into buying an X800, and i found that the difference in performance for an X800 Pro vs XT is about a 50% increase in speed for the XT. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
    Truth!



    (more like... never-on-aim-garion) if that makes sense....which it does to me...damn liqour.
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  • 0blique0blique Join Date: 2003-05-18 Member: 16477Members
    How much money are you planning on spending on the video card anyway?
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  • Har_Har_the_PirateHar_Har_the_Pirate Join Date: 2003-08-10 Member: 19388Members, Constellation
    i got a 6600 agp gt and it runs great, the only game i get slow downs on is RTW with the SPQR mod (and have 5000 men on screen at once) and just about all graphics turned up. The slow down problem has more to do with my processor than the video card, (amd 2000 xp)
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