6600 GT AGP Issue

[dudeperson33]

I've done some snooping, and it seems that the Nvidia Geforce 6600 GT is the best mid-range video card for the money at this point. I have an AGP bus, and luckily an AGP version of this card has recently come out. However, my AGP bus only has max 4x speed, instead of the 8x that seems to be required for the 6600 GT AGP. Two questions - do they make this card for AGP 4x, and if not, what is the next best card I can buy for under $250? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

 

[Rhin0]

it will just run at 4x probably

but your slot needs to be compliant with that, need to make sure the card will physically fit in that AGP slot

 

[dudeperson33]

Well...according to everest the slot itself is 4x max. Does this mean an 8x graphics card will not fit into it?
(Sorry, I'm still new to this stuff.)

Cheers

 

[impemonk]

I think you'll be fine. I mean the 6800 requires at least a mobo with at least a 2x AGP slot.

 

[dudeperson33]

Yeah? I wasn't able to find that spec...but I'll take your word for it. I have two BestBuy giftcards, each for $25, and from them it costs $250. So $200 for a 6600 GT AGP. Good deal?

 

[Xionide]

No just buy one from newegg or Mwave. They will cost a little more than 200 but atleast you wont be eating money. You might be able to pull off one of the 6800oc deals when they come back in stock. But the thing is the 6800 has a non working video processor. But if you dont care the much about video and more into gaming than go for the 6800.

 

[dudeperson33]

i found one on newegg - refurbished and $198. How's that?

 

[dudeperson33]

hmmm....wait one minute....do they make a card with the graphics capabilities of the 6600GT, but without the dual DVI? Maybe that would be cheaper...anybody know?

 

[dudeperson33]

and one last question, if i may - do you think i need any special software for this card? (my previous card is an Nvidia GeForce 4 MX 420.) many thanks, and cheers.

 

[Zardnok]

Originally posted by: dudeperson33
and one last question, if i may - do you think i need any special software for this card? (my previous card is an Nvidia GeForce 4 MX 420.) many thanks, and cheers.

You just need the drivers for the card as far as I know. I recommend uninstalling all video drivers on machine now and reinstalling the latest Nvidia drivers when changing the card up.

hmmm....wait one minute....do they make a card with the graphics capabilities of the 6600GT, but without the dual DVI? Maybe that would be cheaper...anybody know?

AFAIK, there is no other price vs performance card to compete with the 6600gt. The Radeon 9800pro comes close, but the 6600gt smokes it in the end. If you want to spend a bit more cash, the 6800nu is the way to go.

i found one on newegg - refurbished and $198. How's that?

I have never had much luck with refurbished products. I like to overclock and tinker with things though, so you may get lucky.

However, my AGP bus only has max 4x speed, instead of the 8x that seems to be required for the 6600 GT AGP. Two questions - do they make this card for AGP 4x, and if not, what is the next best card I can buy for under $250?

You will have no problems running an 8X AGP card in your 4X slot. They are physically the same size. The only thing you sacrifice is 1-2% in performance. As for best card for the money, I would go with the BFG 6800oc from BestBuy when they put them back on for $250. It will smoke the 6600gt.

One other question for you though, what is the rest of your system? Considering you have 4X AGP, I assume your machine is a bit older and as such, you may be CPU limited with whatever card you decide to go with.

 

[dudeperson33]

i have a 2.26 GHz Pentium IV...but guess what....the only reason I decided to get a new card was because I wanted to play Half-Life 2 at an enjoyable level. However, my old Nvidia Geforce MX 420, amazingly, can handle medium settings without much noticeable sacrifice in frame rates. So, I think I'm gonna hold off on a new card, or at least wait till the prices go down. I'll probably get a nice one when I get a new PC. But, I wouldn't have been able to decide anything without you guys. Thanks a lot.
Cheers