$50-$100 Replacement for X1800 XT?

[picachux]

I have a A8N-E that uses a PCIe x16 slot. I have a x1800 XT I am looking to replace.

 

[postmortemIA]

$110, $80 after MIR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814130332
8800GS by EVGA

 

[bob4432]

i was just in the same boat as you and went w/ a asus 3850 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814121219

the card is silent and idles @ 34C in my 80F+ computer room. i used the ati ccc to let it get its own o/c settings and it came up w/ 758/998, so just about what a 3870 is, plus @ idle the rig uses ~25W less power according to my kill-a-watt than it did w/ the x1800xt and about 10W less @ full power, plus you get company of heroes - an excellent game

 

[Sylvanas]

Originally posted by: bob4432
i was just in the same boat as you and went w/ a asus 3850 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814121219

the card is silent and idles @ 34C in my 80F+ computer room. i used the ati ccc to let it get its own o/c settings and it came up w/ 758/998, so just about what a 3870 is, plus @ idle the rig uses ~25W less power according to my kill-a-watt than it did w/ the x1800xt and about 10W less @ full power, plus you get company of heroes - an excellent game

This would be the best option at $100 price point (after MIR). Both my 3850's have clocked very well so you'd basically have a 3870 for less $ and thats a good deal .

 

[picachux]

Unfortunately those are above my price limit. I'm looking to spend $100 max including shipping and all. Budget is thin with these damn CA gas prices. =-X

 

[Sylvanas]

Originally posted by: picachux
Unfortunately those are above my price limit. I'm looking to spend $100 max including shipping and all. Budget is thin with these damn CA gas prices. =-X

In that case the best option would probably be a 8600GTS for $90 from Newegg.

 

[Denithor]

Naw, your best option is the EVGA 8800GS for $110 shipped with a $30 MIR (total cost after rebate is $80). This card will blow away the 8600GTS and is equivalent to the 3850 in performance.

And if you need a new powersupply, there's a combo with this card for the excellent Antec Earthwatts 500W model for $20 no rebates & free shipping. You're not going to find a better deal than this for $100 total.

 

[BurnItDwn]

If you can afford to break 100 only to spend less once you get your rebate, the 8800GS is actually an upgrade in terms of performance. It is also cooler and quieter.

If you can't go over 100 at all (even though there is a rebate to bring the final price below 100, then I think the 8600GTS that Sylvanas listed is a good option. As an added bonus, it comes with a $30 mail in rebate Which makes the final price (after paying for shipping and getting rebate back) only $68.

That said, the gaming performance is lackluster. You will get a much quieter and cooler card, but you will also get a slower card.
If you are willing to take a performance hit, you may want to just consider using ATItool to underclock your x1800xt by 10-15%. It may make all the difference you want and it won't cost you anything.

I am an X1800XT owner and I've been wanting to replace mine for some time. The noise and heat don't bother me (it's in an antec p180 which helps to keep the noise down, and I've got decent airflow, also it's in my basement rec room so it's not like I have to hear it when I sleep. My issue is that the card is artifacting when it gets above 70C. I dropped the clocks by 5% and increased the fan speed and the artifacting is 90% reduced. I'm paying off some CC debt that I accumulated during my overlap from when I bought my new house and sold my old townhouse, so I still have a bit of waiting to do, but my balance is 5K less than it was over the winter, so I'm not doing too terrible.