Best Video Card Under $100?

[kycompgamer]

I just ordered the following from Newegg:
Case - RAIDMAX ATX-868WGP Green Steel Gaming Case Computer Case 420W Power Supply - Retail
Mobo - ASUS M2A-VM AM2 AMD 690G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
CPU - AMD Athlon 64 X2 4000+ Brisbane 2.1GHz Socket AM2 65W Processor Model ADO4000DDBOX - Retail
Memory - CORSAIR ValueSelect 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Desktop Memory Model VS2GBKIT667D2 - Retail
Video Card - ?
Hard Drive - 200 gig IDE for about a month will buy 1 or 2 SATA drives after buying my video card
DVD-RW - Asus IDE I already have but will be replacing with a SATA DVD-rom and DVD-RW in a month or two.

I am wanting a PCI Express video card to replace the 256 meg PCI card I had to run in my Compaq I had. This is my first computer build although I've had a hand in building many. What's the best bang for the buck under $100. I'd rather stick around $75. I am a gamer but not in the gamer sense of alot of people. I mostly play sports games, Madden 08 and the like. I don't do too much of the fighting or war type games. Thanks in advance for any and all help and any tips or hints would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Doclife]

X1950 Pro 256MB for $83 after $50 MIR at Circuit City.

http://www.circuitcity.com/ccd...+pro&searchSection=All

 

[XBoxLPU]

Originally posted by: Doclife
X1950 Pro 256MB for $83 after $50 MIR at Circuit City.

http://www.circuitcity.com/ccd...+pro&searchSection=All

Nice deal

If you can find a used 7900GT with pencil mod (voltage raised to 1.4V to obtain 7900GTX speeds) you will be good to go too..

 

[Denithor]

Originally posted by: XBoxLPU
If you can find a used 7900GT with pencil mod (voltage raised to 1.4V to obtain 7900GTX speeds) you will be good to go too..

That's an iffy mod, go for the x1950 pro instead, guaranteed best new-card performance in sub-$100 price range right there. The only thing to watch is your power supply may not be up to the task of running your rig properly. Raidmax is not known for building good quality power supplies and you would not like to see a puff of smoke rising from your newly assembled system. The Antec Earthwatts line is great, as are the units from Corsair and Fortron.

 

[kycompgamer]

From my reading online it is looking like the X1950 Pro is the way to go. Thanks for the heads up on the PSU. I'll put that on the list of things I need to get.

 

[Cheex]

Here is a decent candidate:
Leadtek PX8600GT 256MB Standard GeForce 8600GT

 

[XBoxLPU]

Originally posted by: Denithor

Originally posted by: XBoxLPU
If you can find a used 7900GT with pencil mod (voltage raised to 1.4V to obtain 7900GTX speeds) you will be good to go too..

That's an iffy mod.

An iffy mod? The 7900GT and 7900GTX share the same core though the 7900GT is limited to 1.2V default. Slap on an aftermarket HSF (aka Zalman VF900) and you are set to hit 7900GTX speeds with ease. I just bought a used 7900GT with the mod for $90 shipped