Do we have a final verdict on the 2D of the GF4 cards?

[Sunner]

Do we?

Is the situation the same as with previous GF cards, a few good brands, the rest junk?
I have a LeadTek GF3 @ 250/250, and 2D is quite good, but still not as good as I want it.

I'd love to have a G550, but I need my games as well as the good 2D, so Matrox is out of the picture.

As for the 8500, my current card should be equal to ro faster than the 8500, and if Im gonna shell out a load of cash, I want an upgrade in every department.
And before you start pointing me to Best Buy deals and such, I live in Sweden, and an 8500 is like $300 here.

So, that leaves the GF4, the 3D is clearly supperior to the GF3, but what about the 2D?

I have an Eizo 21" F931, and I'd love to run with perfect clarity at 1600x1200x32@100 Hz, something my GF3 cant quite achieve.

 

[Bats]

did you get the Leadtek THD version of the geforce 3? What the did as of recent was make special versions of the geforce 3s (well specifically the ti 200 and 500) that have superior 2d quality due to using non reference parts etc.. rivaling matrox we're talking about.. mine works beautifully.. supposedly they were supposed to make this the standard for all future cards, so their geforce 4 models should follow the same trend..


Bats

 

[Sunner]

Yup, I have the TDH version, but the 2D, while very good, isn't good enough.

 

[Rand]

<<
So, that leaves the GF4, the 3D is clearly supperior to the GF3, but what about the 2D?
>>



Performance wise, yes... in terms of visual quality the GF4 will attain identical visual quality to the GF3 assuming their rendering the same scene with identical settings.

As for the GF4's 2D, as always.... there are the good and there are the bad.
Even the best of them are still slightly below the level of ATi though.
For 2D in an nVidia board I'd look towards VisionTek, or Gainward... with LeadTek a close second.
I'm not even going to comment upon the LeadTek = Matrox 2D, as that's been pretty much proven about a dozen times that is utter and complete BS. :disgust:

VisionTek or Gainward might be good for you, but if your LeadTek card isnt adequate for your needs that I'm rather doubting they'll be viable for your needs either as the difference really isnt very substantial.

 

[Sunner]

Why can't Matrox just come out with a card that has decent 3D, as well as their famous 2D.

Heck I'd shell out $500 for a card with Matrox 2D and nVidia 3D anyday

 

[Ganryu]

I just got a Visiontek 4600 card and I am disappointed with the analog 2d quality. Its pretty blurry at 60-85 Hz at 1600x1200. I am replacing a Leadtek Ti500, which was decent but not perfect, but I need the nView feature. I am running a Sony E500 21" CRT and Dell 2000FP 20" LCD both at 1600x1200. I really wish there were a 3d card with decent 2d quality!

 

[Daovonnaex]

The PNY Verto series will do 100hz, an 8500 does 85hz. The 2D of any GF4 card is virtually the same as the GF3 cards, but can be brought to quality which is nearly as good as the 8500 by performing the low pass filter mod.

 

[rbV5]

<< 8500 does 85hz >>



8500 supports 1600X1200@120mhz if your monitor supports it.

 

[artemedes]

I am picky about 2d and have crappy OEM computers and monitors at work. So i see a big difference in 2d everyday with the different
computers I work on. At home I have 2 computers hooked to a kvm switch to a samsung 955df. I know it is not the best monitor
but it blows away what i have at work.

Long ago I tried a TNT card and had to take it back cause the 2d was so crappy. Now I have a matrox g450 and a PNY ti4400 hooked up
and I can't tell the difference. If I set up both desktops to look the same and someone switched em without me knowing which was which
I could not tell the difference. That is how good the 2d on my gf4 is. Previously I had a radeon Le in this computer and it is as good as that.

I grant that I might not be able to tell because of my monitor, but I don't think the bad 2d really applies any longer. I only say this because
PNY is supposed to be the bottem of the barrel, so if it is this good.....

(My friends PNY ti4600 looks great too). I

 

[AA0]

<< I really wish there were a 3d card with decent 2d quality! >>



Its called the radeon 8500. You didn't have to wait for nview to use those monitors.

 

[kendogg]

<<

<< I really wish there were a 3d card with decent 2d quality! >>



Its called the radeon 8500. You didn't have to wait for nview to use those monitors. >>



ATi drivers sux deez nutz

 

[AA0]

have you actually used them? I doubt it, otherwise you wouldn't be saying such stupid things.

Of course, from what you typed, your level of understanding the english language is obviously questionable.

 

[Daovonnaex]

<<

<< 8500 does 85hz >>



8500 supports 1600X1200@120mhz if your monitor supports it. >>

I was referring to maximum resolution.

 

[kendogg]

<< have you actually used them? I doubt it, otherwise you wouldn't be saying such stupid things.

Of course, from what you typed, your level of understanding the english language is obviously questionable. >>



mi englizh learned en esl clazz plz dun't mock mi understanding of englizh smartiazz.. onCe egain Ati sux deeeeez nuTz

 

[Willoughbyva]

Well, I went from an Leadtek gf2mx to an ati aiw 7500 and the 2d is a lot better on the 7500. I am not much of a gammer, so I did'nt need the 8500. Then again these are just consumer grade products. I never had the money to try some of the high end/pro cards from ATI or Nvidia. Maybe some of the pro cards would be more of what you are looking for. It is just a shame to spend all that money on a video card. How are the older model cards of this catigoery (sp)? Are the good 3d performers and are they cheaper now?


Will

 

[merlocka]

mi englizh learned en esl clazz plz dun't mock mi understanding of englizh smartiazz.. onCe egain Ati sux deeeeez nuTz

lol

Even the best of them are still slightly below the level of ATi though.

Which cards have you compared? and on which monitors?

I've played with a bit of A-B comparison of the following cards using both my Viewsonic G790 and a Sony G520. The G520 was easy since it has dual inputs.

The only ATI card I had when I was comparing was a Radeon LE. Not sure if the LE's have poorer quality than the "real" ATI cards, but it was at best equal to Gainward GF3. After playing with colors to try and match them, it was pretty much a wash. Text clarity was about equal at 1600. This is 2D comparison only, I couldn't find a good way to compare 3D quality because it's mainly a trade-off between quality and performance. I need to get a new Matrox card to see if there is really such a difference between it's quality and ATI / nVidia.


edit - just ordered a 16MB G400 from Alan Computech for $38+sh... I smell an ATI vs Gainward vs Matrox 2D posting coming real soon

 

[Rand]

<<
Which cards have you compared? and on which monitors? >>



You name it, I've tried it and sold it at some point in time. lol
Well... that's an exaggeration of course as there are a huge number of varieties of nVidia graphics board for any given GPU.
I used to work for a place that custom built PC's, perhaps unsurprisingly many customers wanted a PC that could handle intensive games... through that I've had the opportunity to test quite a variety of graphics cards from most of the mainstream vendors, and occasionally I got to dabble in the high end stuff like 3DLabs, FireGL etc.
Though I'm not employed there anymore I still maintain close ties to the owner and that gives me the benefit of testing out hardware on occasion, and of course doing review online leads to the occasional product sample from the manufacturers for testing.

Opinions will vary of course depending on whom you ask, personally 2D tends to be very improtant to me..... I do an awful lot of work computers and I have a rather unfortunate tendency to get wicked headache if I'm working on a PC for any length of time that has less then ideal 2D visual quality.

 

[gunf1ghter]

<< I am picky about 2d and have crappy OEM computers and monitors at work. So i see a big difference in 2d everyday with the different
computers I work on. At home I have 2 computers hooked to a kvm switch to a samsung 955df. I know it is not the best monitor
but it blows away what i have at work. >>



I have the same monitor... it is VERY good... but keep in mind that the frequency limitations of the monitor will limit you substantially... 1280X1024 at only 75hz is not so hot.

The monitor also has a problem with convergence towards the right and left side of the screen so you will not get a perfect picture no matter which vid card you have.

Having said all of that I still get a very good image on it with my Elsa GF3.