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Best Low profile AGP card?

H

Hikari

Senior member
Doesn't seem to be many options in this case, unfortunately. It looks like it is either Radeon 9600SE or Geforce FX5700LE as the best performing options?

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-140-054&depa=0
http://www.gameve.com/gve/Store/ProductDetails.aspx?sku=VC-CHAIN-040

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=320858

Prices are similar, but the 9600SE seem out of stock in quite a few places. It would be running Neverwinter Nights, and is in a 2.8GHz Prescott system if that helps.

Thanks 🙂
 
I'm sure either one of those cards would perform about the same, so either card would be fine. I'd say go for whichever card is cheaper.
 
I thought they were fairly close, it has just been hard to find any good benchmarks to compare. I've also seen some 5700LE that have 128bit instead of 64bit memory. How much of a difference does it matter in cards like these?

TIA 🙂
 
9600SE is being replaced by the slower 9550SE. Hurry!

You cannot have 128-bit memory in LP form factor, because you can't position RAM chips above the main chip, only to the right of it. Trying to place eight chips there would make the traces too long (and too uneven in length) for reasonable speeds. There are a couple of 9200SE cards that do this though. Yes they're slow.

But indeed you need to be careful: Some 9600SE/9550SE cards use a full profile PCB nonetheless (just with the extra four RAM chips missing), so don't draw the SE==LP conclusion. Look carefully at what you buy!
 
Thanks. 🙂

Yeah I've seen a lot more 9550SEs out there. 🙁 As for LP and 128bit, there is a Jaton low profile 5700 that has 128bit memory in it, but it costs like $90 instead of the $75 or so that the other boards go for...so not sure.

Don't worry, I've been careful to only search for 'low profile'... certainly don't want to have to send something back. 🙂
Originally posted by: Peter
9600SE is being replaced by the slower 9550SE. Hurry!

You cannot have 128-bit memory in LP form factor, because you can't position RAM chips above the main chip, only to the right of it. Trying to place eight chips there would make the traces too long (and too uneven in length) for reasonable speeds. There are a couple of 9200SE cards that do this though. Yes they're slow.

But indeed you need to be careful: Some 9600SE/9550SE cards use a full profile PCB nonetheless (just with the extra four RAM chips missing), so don't draw the SE==LP conclusion. Look carefully at what you buy!
Click to expand...

 
A Ti4200/4400/4600 would be fine, but I've no seen them in low profile AGP.

As for DX9, if you look at Tom's Graphic Card comparision III, the 5700LE isn't any slower in DX9. Anyway, I'd just be playing NWN (Neverwinter Nights)...

Still, I may get a 9600SE, as the 5700LE cards seem to cost a bit more. 🙁
 
Originally posted by: Peter
You cannot have 128-bit memory in LP form factor, because you can't position RAM chips above the main chip, only to the right of it. Trying to place eight chips there would make the traces too long (and too uneven in length) for reasonable speeds.
Click to expand...

Haven't I bonked you on the nose for that before? 😛

😉 Token exceptions aside, I would go for that Jaton 5700LE with 128-bit memory - If that is truly 128-bit and not a printing error. The "FX might be teh sux0r" at DX9, but a poor core with 128-bit memory will outpace the better core neutered by 64-bit. 😛

- M4H
 
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