Best video card under $300.00

[Xenos]

Gentlemen/ladies

Which is the best video card $300.00 can buy to run on my system (below) together with an LG 24 inch monitor?

 

[nitromullet]

Hands down fastest card for under $300.00 is the 9800GX2.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814130338

As far as the 'best' card, it's probably debatable between the GTX 260, HD 4870, and 9800GX2.

 

[taltamir]

are you asking bang for the buck? raw speed?
nitromullet gave you the raw speed champions...

If you have an SLI board you can get two 9800GT for 110$ each, or if Xfire two 4850 for 150$ each.
If you want single card then the 9800GX2... if you want single GPU then the GTX260 and HD4870 are the fastest. (although the 9800GT and the 4850 are much cheaper and only a little slower offering better performance/$).

 

[OCGuy]

Originally posted by: nitromullet
Hands down fastest card for under $300.00 is the 9800GX2.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814130338

/thread.

 

[Tempered81]

Originally posted by: nitromullet
As far as the 'best' card, it's probably debatable between the GTX 260, HD 4870, and 9800GX2.

Yah this one^

Also, Crossfire 4850's and SLI 8800/9600 GT's are pretty hot.

 

[sourthings]

Originally posted by: nitromullet
Hands down fastest card for under $300.00 is the 9800GX2.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814130338

As far as the 'best' card, it's probably debatable between the GTX 260, HD 4870, and 9800GX2.

Yeah this card. So long as it's scaling and you're not gaming at 2560x1600, it's faster than the $500 GTX 280. :beer:

 

[nitromullet]

Originally posted by: jaredpace

Originally posted by: nitromullet
As far as the 'best' card, it's probably debatable between the GTX 260, HD 4870, and 9800GX2.

Yah this one^

Also, Crossfire 4850's and SLI 8800/9600 GT's are pretty hot.

Yeah, those Crossfire and SLI could be options, but I left them out of my recommendations because:

4850 CF: I can't find these for $150 or less before MIR, and I'm working under the assumption that the OP has a somewhat hard limit of $300. So, $350 + shipping/tax with a rebate 6-8 weeks later doesn't really cut it. The OP's mother board is also dual 8x PCIe IIRC, so this might be a point against Crossfire as well. If $300 isn't a hard cap, then 4850 CF should be considered, but I'd recommend some research into whether or not the 8x PCIe is going to be a factor.

SLI'ed anything: The OP has a D975XBX2, so SLI is out.

 

[bryanW1995]

best card for under $300 is the 1gb 4870. btw, I wouldn't consider a 9800gx2 at this point. anybody still remember that 7950gx2 was faster than 8800gtx in many titles for the first few months?

 

[Cookie Monster]

The 9800GX2 is based on a similar architecture as the G200 where as the 7950GX2 was based on old gen i.e it was already showing a lot of weaknesses especially in shader heavy modern titles where the G80 really stretched its legs. (contrary to the fact that the 7950GX2s were faster in older games). Therefore i doubt that the HD4870 will pull ahead of the 9800GX2 seeing as the sandwich card is faster in benchmarks against the GTX280 in modern and old titles. Only does it suffer defeat when scaling is horrible or when it runs out of framebuffer.

 

[nitromullet]

Cookie Monster has it right.

The comparison between GTX 280 vs. 9800GX2 and 8800GTX vs. 7950GX2 is not even close.

 

[LOUISSSSS]

Originally posted by: bryanW1995
best card for under $300 is the 1gb 4870. btw, I wouldn't consider a 9800gx2 at this point. anybody still remember that 7950gx2 was faster than 8800gtx in many titles for the first few months?

QFT, best card under $300 is the 4870. and remember the 7950GX2? remember how nvidia only supported its drivers for the first few months then gave up on it; screwing its customers? 9800gx2 = repeat. Then again, nvidia never really releases new drivers, maybe twice a year. (i'm talking about official drivers) not some half-assed betas or leaks

 

[Cookie Monster]

Im sure you know the difference between WHQL and beta drivers right? making statements like "half-assed" is rather unnecessary.

Unlike the 7950GX2, nVIDIA was replacing their entire lineup with G8x derivatives. It was logical to think that support for the 7 series weren't going to last long, especially for the high end. But as of now, its alot different. G8x/9x derivatives which share the similiar architectural traits aren't going to be replaced by G2xx in the mid/low range til maybe later next year (since the 55nm refreshes of the 9 series are acting as a filler for now). Support for the 8/9 series will still be strong til nVIDIA sees the need to release its newer mid range parts. Since 9800GX2s are basically two 8800GTs/9800GTs in SLI, i still think driver support will be there.