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Best REALLY CHEAP video card? (~$45)

K

karmasalad

Senior member
As the title says, I'm looking for a really cheap video card that will be going into a system with a Duron 1.2GHz, 256MB SDRAM, and 17" Trinitron CRT.

The order of importance in choosing a card:
1. Price (the cheaper the better)
2. 2D sharpness (Photoshop and web development)
3. Gaming (WC3, CS, SimWhatever.. I don't game a lot and I generally like to play strat/sim games)
4. possible VCD/DVD playback (don't have a DVD-ROM yet)
5. Linux compatibility (might want to dual boot)

From NewEgg, I found the following options (prices include shipping):

$39.50 - Radeon 32MB SDR
$40.50 - Radeon 7000VE 32MB DDR w/ TV-out
$44.50 - Radeon 7000 64MB SDR w/ TV-out
$48.50 - Radeon 7000 64MB DDR w/ TV-out
$50.00 - Radeon LE 32MB DDR
$52.00 - Radeon 7200 64MB SDR
$52.00 - Visiontek Xtasy 5632 GF2 GTS-V 32MB DDR
$55.50 - Radeon 7500 64MB SDR
$59.00 - Radeon 7500 LE 64MB DDR
$59.00 - Gainward GF2 MX400 64MB SDRAM

Of the above, which is the best one that meets my *needs* without breaking my already broken budget? 🙂 Like I know Radeon 7500 is probably the best one, but if I don't need all that power, I'd rather save my money for other things. As a point of comparison, I'm currently using a 64MB DDR Radeon VIVO in my main rig that more than meets my needs.

Also, a couple of questions:
1. What's the difference between Powered by and Built by ATI?
2. Is it better to have 32MB DDR or 64MB SDR?

Thanks a lot guys! 🙂
 
Can I vote on GTS-V? 😉

it can easily run at PRO speed w/ out additonal cooling. (newegg model w/ 5ns ram)
if you have steady hand, mod it to Quadro2 PRO. (I must have mod at least 10 of gts series.) 😕


 
Originally posted by: TimeKeeper
Can I vote on GTS-V? 😉

it can easily run at PRO speed w/ out additonal cooling. (newegg model w/ 5ns ram)
if you have steady hand, mod it to Quadro2 PRO. (I must have mod at least 10 of gts series.) 😕
Click to expand...

I second that, I would run it at pro speed and not worry about moding it.
 
Forget any SDRAM Card, they aren't that fast. So that leaves the following:

$40.50 - Radeon 7000VE 32MB DDR w/ TV-out
$48.50 - Radeon 7000 64MB DDR w/ TV-out
$50.00 - Radeon LE 32MB DDR
$59.00 - Radeon 7500 LE 64MB DDR
$52.00 - Visiontek Xtasy 5632 GF2 GTS-V 32MB DDR

First off, Do not go a nVidia card if 2D/TV-Out Qualityis involved. nVidia's TV-Out/2D IQ certainly sucked in the GF2 era and hasn't even gotten a lot better now withy the GF4's.

Forget the R7000 DDR's (has no T&L, and while it uses DDR, it in reality has only a 64-bit bus width and thus bandwidth is no better than SDRAM), so that leaves the bottom 3. The Fastest card listed is the R7500 DDR, it would be great, I have 1 myself, great card, performance for the most part equal to a GF4 MX 440> But, its a tad expensive for you prolly. The Radeon LE is a great card, and with a registry hack and an overlock, performs on par with a old Radeon DDR. The GF2 GTS-V is good, but the R7500 DDR would likely top it even if the GTS-V is overclocked to GF2 Pro speeds, plus the R7500 will have much better 2D.

All the ATi cards will have equal 2D IQ, Equal DVD Decoding, its gaming performance where they will vary. Personally, I'd get whatever suits you out of the cards. I would go for either the R7500 LE DDR or the Radeon LE. Do not get a Radeon 7000/Radeon VE, and 2D IQ sucks on nVidia cards. The cheapest option is the Radeon SDR, and that while would not be able to beat in performance the Radeon LE DDR, it would have same 2D Image Qualtiy and DVD Decoding, while being $10-20 cheaper. Get the Radeon SDR if $10-20 is going to be well used somewhere else, or if u have an extra $10-20, get the Radeon LE DDR or R7500LE DDR for better gaming performance.

Hope this helps. PM or email me if u have any more questions
 
Thanks for all the great info so far. It looks it's come down to either the GF2-GTS or the Radeon LE 32. I think I'm leaning towards the Radeon as it has better DVD playback and 2D quality.

A question about the 2D on nVidia cards: Why is it so bad? And is it really that discernable in everyday usage? To me, 2D quality seems like such a basic feature that I'm amazed that nVidia has such a poor reputation with it.

Gonna wait for a few more people to chime in before I make the final decision. Thanks again!
 
I'd agree with Athlon4All; if you're choice is between one ATi and one nVidia card I'd say choose between the Radeon 7500 LE and GF2 GTS-V. With the Radeons the difference between the LE and 7500 LE is double the memory, TV-out, DVI support, plus Hydravision (dual monitor) support. For $9 that's a no-brainer to ditch the regular LE.

As for nVidia's 2D quality it depends on three factors: 1) the particular card, 2) the particular monitor, and 3) the user's sensitivity to 2D quality. Some people say it's not an issue, others say nVidia's 2D is poor. If all you've used is Matrox cards, you'll be real sensitive to it. I had an original Radeon, an Elsa GF2 GTS and a Voodoo5 the last time I tried to decide on a video card. When I tried all three with a NEC FD Trinitron monitor, the Radeon and Voodoo5 had the best 2D; the GF2 was noticeably inferior. I did the RF filter mod on the GF2 and the 2D quality became just as good as the Radeon. If the RF filter mod hadn't worked, the GF2's 2D bothered me enough that I would have thrown out the card.

Looking at your requirements, it's close but I'd give the edge to the Radeon 7500.
 
Originally posted by: karmasalad
Thanks for all the great info so far. It looks it's come down to either the GF2-GTS or the Radeon LE 32. I think I'm leaning towards the Radeon as it has better DVD playback and 2D quality.

A question about the 2D on nVidia cards: Why is it so bad? And is it really that discernable in everyday usage? To me, 2D quality seems like such a basic feature that I'm amazed that nVidia has such a poor reputation with it.

Gonna wait for a few more people to chime in before I make the final decision. Thanks again!
Click to expand...

There isn't anything wrong with the 2D output on most NVidia cards. A few of the cheaper cards use inferior quality RAMDAC chips, however, so the 2D output on those cards can look fuzzy at higher resolutions. Not all Nvidia cards are created equally, so you should always read the reviews before purchasing one of the cheaper brand name cards.
 
Does it matter that the Radeon 7500 LE is listed as Powered by ATI as opposed to Built by ATI? Some user comments at Newegg seem to indicate that Powered by ATI cards cannot use ATI's regular drivers? What's the difference?
 
i'd try a kyro2, i put one of those in my parents system, and its pretty quick, i'd have to say its comparable to a 7500

pricewatch.com says about $45
 
For Gaming, Linux comp, and price, the GF2 GTS is your card. As far as VCD/DVD playback is concerned, I have been through a ton of ATI cards (NVidia does not have hardware DVD decoder) and the playback is less than impressive.

Your best bet is to go with a software DVD player and not run a bunch of programs while your whatchin yer movie.

I the quality is not to your liking then instead of again being dissapointed by an ATI card I would suggest getting a real Hardware DVD decoder like a Hollywood plus or something. That way the movie will look great AND the TV out will be quality as well.

As for 2D image quality... I'm am reminded of the saying... fast, cheap, good, pick two.
 
Originally posted by: karmasalad
Does it matter that the Radeon 7500 LE is listed as Powered by ATI as opposed to Built by ATI? Some user comments at Newegg seem to indicate that Powered by ATI cards cannot use ATI's regular drivers? What's the difference?
Click to expand...
In order to not end up like 3dfx, ATI is getting going away from verticle production model.

They, like nvidia, are now selling just the video processors to companies who want to make video cards out of them. These "Powered by ATI" cards can, like some nvidia cards, be put together with different hardware and so creating a driver issue.

Considering the fact that they are already having a hard enough time in this area, I have stayed with the "built by ATI" cards.
 
Seeing as the 7500 is a "PBA" rather than "BBA", I'd go with the GTS-V.
nVidia's Linux drivers are very good, definately the best of any consumer card, and really, with a 17" monitor, you're not gonna notice the 2D quality anyways, even if it sucks.
Come to think of it, VisionTek has a pretty good reputation for 2D quality, so I dont think that will be a problem at all.
 
FWIW, I upgraded my wife's ATI RageII with the Visiontek GTS-V. Gaming was not the issue, she's never played a game on her computer; she needed more 2D speed to manipulate image files. She noticed a huge increase in speed, but didn't notice any difference in image quality (monitor=19" Trinitron).
 
Your real choices are the GTS-V, the 7500Le, and the Kyro2. I would probably lean towards the 7500Le but they are all good cards with pluses and minus'. The powered by Ati cards do have drivers out on Ati's site.
 
I do have to mention that, although you're looking for around $45, you could get a Radeon 8500LE or 9000 which is not only smokin' fast but also has all the DX8.1 features you could ever need. Those cards can be found around $70 if you look.
Then you wouldn't need to replace your video card for a good, long time. Certainly worth the extra $25 in my books.
 
Originally posted by: karmasalad
As the title says, I'm looking for a really cheap video card that will be going into a system with a Duron 1.2GHz, 256MB SDRAM, and 17" Trinitron CRT.

The order of importance in choosing a card:
1. Price (the cheaper the better)
2. 2D sharpness (Photoshop and web development)
3. Gaming (WC3, CS, SimWhatever.. I don't game a lot and I generally like to play strat/sim games)
4. possible VCD/DVD playback (don't have a DVD-ROM yet)
5. Linux compatibility (might want to dual boot)
Click to expand...

A Geforce 2 GTS 32mb DDR is what I have.

1. got it used in the FS/FT for $40 😛
2. I run 1280x960 as my desktop res, this is a Creative Labs card, maybe another one would be better, but I immediately noticed it's not as sharp as my Voodoo 5 5500. However my eyes have adjusted and I have no problem with it now. You should be cautious if you run an even higher desktop resolution for your Photoshop and webdev work.
3. My brother has a Geforce 2 GTS 32mb DDR as well (Elsa). He has no problems with WC3 at 1024x768, 32 bit color, everything on/max. His cpu is a 1.1ghz thunderbird. I can happily say the same, but I'm using an XP1900+ for a cpu.
4. Playback generally isn't an issue, I've preferred and have been using software playback (PowerDVD) without problems in regards to motion or image quality in movies.
5. I've run at least a couple of distros with A GF2GTS before. I might have only had trouble getting support for it when it was brand new. It's probably supported by every current distribution now that GF2s have been out for a while.
 
Just a question. Not sure if I recommended the right card.

My sis wants a new computer (2 GHz P4, 512 DDR) and wanted her son to be able to game on it. At first the guy just spec'd some no name card so I suggested a Radeon. He came back suggesting a Radeon 7000, so I then suggested a 9000 (non-Pro) or perhaps an 8500LE.

Then I started looking around. It seems the plain-Jane 9000 isn't as common as I would have thought. Are they going to have problems finding it?

What are the real world differences between the 8500 and 9000 models anyway? I've seen some posts about it, and the gist I've seen to have gotten is that the 64 MB 9000 non-pro (these are all DDR right?) is probably the slowest in the 8500/9000 series, but faster than the 7500 for only a bit more money. Is this correct?
 
Thanks to everyone for all the great and very helpful replies.

I decided on the Visiontek and just placed my order through Newegg (woohoo!). I didn't like the idea of getting an ATI card not manufactured by ATI itself, which were the only options on the Radeon 7500LE.

This is not going into my main pc, so I decided to take a chance on the 2D quality and go with nVidia. I think that fact and nVidia's Linux compatibility were the primary deciding factors. With the $40 I saved over getting something more expensive like the 8500LE, I'll probably end up picking up a Lite-On DVD or an APC UPS.

Or maybe I'll actually put it in the bank and save some money for once! 😉

Thanks again, guys!
 
What are the real world differences between the 8500 and 9000 models anyway? I've seen some posts about it, and the gist I've seen to have gotten is that the 64 MB 9000 non-pro (these are all DDR right?) is probably the slowest in the 8500/9000 series, but faster than the 7500 for only a bit more money. Is this correct?
Click to expand...
The Radeon 9000 is based around the RV250 core. This core shares much with the R200 core used in the 8500 series, but there are 3 main differences, both good and bad:

1. The Radeon 9000 (Pro) can process only 1 texel per pixel per clock in each of its 4 Pixel Rendering Pipelines. So, where as the R200 core has 4 pixel pipelines with 2 texels per pipeline per clock, the RV250 can only do 1 texel per pipeline per clock.
2. The RV250 core features the vastly upgraded Triangle Setup engine featured in the R300 core. It is unclear how mich performance this gives, but it does help compensate for the performance loss from point 1.
3. The RV250 features ATi's FULLSTREAM technology which has to do with increasing the quality of video streams. Someone else can explain this better than I

Oh and of course there's the core/mem differences (R8500LE has 250/250, R8500 has 275/275, R9000 Pro has 270/275, R9000 has 250/250) The bottom line is that the R9000 Pro for the most part does trail the 8500LE by 20-40% in Q3 Engine Based games, and by 10% in most UT 2003 benchmarks. I would look at Anand's R9000 Pro review for performance. There is certainly a performance loss by going the R9000 Pro, and I would certainly take a R8500 over a R9000, but its not terrible performance from a R9000, and it even tho its slower than an 8500, it totally blows away the current competition (ie MX460, MX440, and the old Radeon 7500).
 
Originally posted by: karmasalad
Thanks to everyone for all the great and very helpful replies.

I decided on the Visiontek and just placed my order through Newegg (woohoo!). I didn't like the idea of getting an ATI card not manufactured by ATI itself, which were the only options on the Radeon 7500LE.
This is not going into my main pc, so I decided to take a chance on the 2D quality and go with nVidia. I think that fact and nVidia's Linux compatibility were the primary deciding factors. With the $40 I saved over getting something more expensive like the 8500LE, I'll probably end up picking up a Lite-On DVD or an APC UPS.
Click to expand...

I really would have gone for a little more "oomph". For a measely $30 or so, the Radeon 8500LE or 9000 (even from a 3rd party like Sapphire) would provide a LOT more horsepower for the future, and provide better 2D & DVD right away. I'm not saying you made a BAD choice, but you'll feel the itch to upgrade an awful lot sooner with a GTS-V.
Good thing it's not your main machine... maybe it won't be a big deal for you. 🙂

 
Wait for Trident's BladeXP4 - T2 / T3 they should be around the 40 - 60 mark and, according to Trident 'about' 80% of a Ti4600 performance rate, ah so it's a Ti4200 then? Plus it has all the full support for DX 8.1 like Radeon 8500/9000 plus its coming out in about a month or two, - just wait for Anand's review..... then again, save up another 30 and find a GF3 Ti200!
 
I don't know what to think about nVidia's poor 2D reputation. My GTS-V is tack sharp at 1280x960, which is what I run on my 17" monitor. However, I run my office PC at 1600x1200 and the integrated Intel video chip just wasn't up to task; an add-on Matrox Millenium II did the trick.
 
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