Budgest Choice Graphics Card

[Stokes]

I recently decided to go with the Hyundai L90D+ / 19-Inch, for the price and quality I can get from them. Being that I'm building a new computer I'm looking to spend around $300 for the best video card I can get for the price. SM3 doesn't mean anything to me and the system will have a 3200+ venice. From my understanding it's best to go with actual brand like ATI or Nvidia and not companies who change something like Sapphire or just put a bundle together with it. Maybe I'm way wrong in thinking that, but it just seems to me that maybe what I'm getting from them isn't as good as what I would get from ATI.

Being that I will overclock my cpu, it probably would be very feasable to overclock this video card as well and maybe put a new cooler on the gpu? could use more information on that as well. I'm really open to many ideas, I've read all about the X800 XL and the 6800's.

The use would be for games such as Guild Wars, Battlefield Vietnam, other mmorpg and I'm also interested in RTS. I need something thats going to do the job for me and how much performance I can squeeze out of it more from O/C.

Thanks.

 

[Pete]

AGP or PCIe?

AGP, look for a 6800GT, as I know of one model that's $300 at NewEgg, and a couple more at $330. (IMO, it's worth paying an extra $30 if it means a quieter cooler.) I don't think there's a comparable card in this price range.

PCIe, the X800XL has dipped to as low as ~$250 at MonarchPC. I believe 6800GTs are still much more expensive on this platform--as much as $100 more, AFAIK. As the two cards are about the same speed, I don't think the 6800GT's SM3 featureset (which means extra effects in some current and more future games) is worth that much more money. I would get the XL and simply save the extra money for an upgrade to an SM3 card down the line. If you have an SLI-capable MB and a studly power supply, you may want to pay the extra for a 6800GT just for the option to add another GT down the line for SLI action.

From what I've read (there's another thread on this very subject somewhere on the first page in the Video forum), a 6800GT core should have more OCing headroom than an XL. I'm guessing RAM will OC the same for either card, as they probably both pack 2.0ns GDDR3 (both stock clocked at 1GHz effective).

 

[Praytus]

Nvidia doesn't directly make their own cards, and for the price the X800 XL is very hard to pass up. Its not the best overclocker, but 130$ or so cheaper then a similiarily performing 6800GT makes it a better buy imo.

 

[Stokes]

Pete -

were you referring to this:

http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant...ct_Code=190527&Category_Code=ATI-PCI-E

My biggest thought is that this is the lowest priced avaliable, with the next just from ATI is at $290 from newegg. There is roughly a $40 dollar difference here and I must ask, by going with the one noted am I losing some quality or something? What exactly are they doing to make this a Connect3D x800xl?

And as far as putting a new fan on it, any suggestions? I don't know how loud these things are.

 

[Pete]

That's the one, Stokes. I dunno, I think either XbitLabs or Digit-Life had a write-up on Connect3D a while back, and maybe Beyond3D provided some background one in a more recent review. I think they focus more on European markets. I don't think they make their own cards; it's more likely they rebrand someone else's (like BFG does), possibly Sapphire cards. My only hesitation would be the fan; I think initial XL reviews showed it to be a bit noisy, though there may have been a quieter revision. Maybe NeoSeeker will provide a review of the card?

It's listed as OEM, tho, which probably means a one year warranty. You go with ATI, you get three years and known good service (in my and others' experience). $290 brings you closer to a 6800GT, though. I would advise paying maybe 10% more for SM3, but $60 more is too much, IMO--and over your budget.

As for a new fan, I'm not really sure. The Arctic Coolers were the best, but there were a couple recent threads here grumbling about quality, and I think their new coolers are more expensive than the $15 VGA Silencers that were so popular with 9700s and 9800s. OTOH, I've read reviews of the Zalman that don't show it to be that effective, and it ultimately doesn't expel heat from the case. I have no easy answer, but I guess I'd still lean toward AC. Futzing with your warranty is your call.

 

[aatf510]

Originally posted by: Stokes
I recently decided to go with the Hyundai L90D+ / 19-Inch, for the price and quality I can get from them. Being that I'm building a new computer I'm looking to spend around $300 for the best video card I can get for the price. SM3 doesn't mean anything to me and the system will have a 3200+ venice. From my understanding it's best to go with actual brand like ATI or Nvidia and not companies who change something like Sapphire or just put a bundle together with it. Maybe I'm way wrong in thinking that, but it just seems to me that maybe what I'm getting from them isn't as good as what I would get from ATI.

Being that I will overclock my cpu, it probably would be very feasable to overclock this video card as well and maybe put a new cooler on the gpu? could use more information on that as well. I'm really open to many ideas, I've read all about the X800 XL and the 6800's.

The use would be for games such as Guild Wars, Battlefield Vietnam, other mmorpg and I'm also interested in RTS. I need something thats going to do the job for me and how much performance I can squeeze out of it more from O/C.

Thanks.

Acutally it's werid that you think that way because Sapphire actually make the ATI's cards that ATI sell. I now have a Sapphire x800xt pe in my rig, and there is no way you can tell that it's from Sapphire because the brand "Sapphire" isn't written anywhere on the card. It's 100% like the card that you would get from ATI directly.
In addition, Nvidia do not make any video cards at all.

 

[Stokes]

So by going with this Connect3D card, there will be no performance difference between this and a true ATI? Anyone vouch for that?

 

[fierydemise]

There will be no performance difference but the extra money for the ATI card will probobly get you better service.

 

[aatf510]

Originally posted by: fierydemise
There will be no performance difference but the extra money for the ATI card will probobly get you better service.

Right. Nowadays almost every vendor makes the card according the ATI's reference board, therefore there will be zero performance difference. But it's true that ATI usually has a longer warrenty period.