GF3Ti200 or GF4 Ti4200?

[Actaeon]

I'm debating to get either a GF3Ti200 (Gainward Golden Sample, OC to Ti500 Speeds. 140 bucks), or wait for GF4 Ti4200 (around 200 bucks, and wait a month).

Speed wise, i assume they will be the same.

But is there any features on the GF4Ti4200 that makes it worth waiting a month for, plus the 60 Dollar difference?

My new CPU setup I've come up with is Athlon XP1800.

Comments?

Thanks

 

[tazdevl]

Ummm... fairly wrong on your Ti200 and 4200 comparison. The 4200 is architecturally different, will probably clock over a Ti4400 and near Ti 4600 speeds, and it will last you quite a bit longer than a Ti200 based card. The 4200 will be much faster.

Is it worth the extra $60 bucks? Definitely.

 

[Actaeon]

Assume i'd probally want a golden sample, and a brand name for guaranteed OCing.
I'd probally go with a Gainward which should be around 225-250 bucks.

Still worth it?

 

[tenoc]

You've tolerated your MX this long, can't hurt to wait one more month!

I know the feeling, but you might as well wait to see the actual pricing.
It could be lower than expected for the Ti4200.

 

[John]

<< Speed wise, i assume they will be the same. >>



Actually the ti4200 is the faster card, and offers more features.

 

[tazdevl]

Linky to a Ti4200 reference card review.

The Ti4200 is actually faster than the Ti500 in most benchmarks.

If you buy Gainward, don't buy it for the "Golden Sample". The enhanced mode or guaranteed OC is a pretty meager overclock that most other cards will do. Buy it for the features and improved RF filtering which improves 2D. I'd recommend either Gainward, Leadtek or Visiontek in that order.

 

[Actaeon]

Tenoc:

Hehe, yeah, i'm getting tired of this MX, I've had it a little over a year or so, and ready to toss it out. I got it because my old CPU was a Celeron 300a OCed at 450. Anything faster would be a waste.

The MX is the first thing that needs to go. Then i thought about it, and realized a new CPU would be nice too. My New card won't be utilizing all that potential without a faster CPU. Then came in mind, a new motherboard. Then another bright idea came up, DDR Setup! Then i realized I had to pay for the RAM too! And Honestly, I've been thinking of getting a nice case for my computer. But! I'm out of money now, so I'll stick to performance for now, looks for later.

When things jump to another eh? I'm just anxious to finally upgrade my computer, since I've never ever actually had a "Top of the line" Computer (If you would call this top of the line, I just mean, an actual good computer for its time period.). And Since I finally got a job, and have the money now....


John:

Yeah, I figured my conclusion based upon price, it was cheaper than a Ti500, and more expensive than a Ti200. I figure it'd be inbetween the two. and I could easily OC the Ti200 to Ti500 Speeds, and get a faster Videocard.


Tazdevl:

Thanks for your continued input. I'm not just getting it for the Golden Sample Feature, its just a good bonus, I'd like to be sure that the Card OCs to a certain speed. I just hear alot of good stuff about Gainward cards. There 2d is supposedly better than most, good looking cards (nice red dye), and the fact that they have had VERY good cards in the past, as of late, the GF3Ti200. The only bad thing i hear about them is there Tech/RMA/Customer support.



Thanks everyone! More input is always welcome.

 

[Actaeon]

Also, I'd like to hear Input on my new system setup (I hope to be at least)

Current

Mobo: Abit KT-7A Socket A VIA KT133A SDRAM
CPU: AMD Athlon 1.13 GHZ
Videocard: Nvidia Geforce 2 MX 32 Meg
Ram: 512 MB of Generic SDR Ram

Soon to be: (Hopefully)

Mobo: Abit KG-7 Socket A AMD761DDR
CPU: AMD Athlon XP 1800+ (1.53 GHZ) - Going to Cost me $215 as CPU/Mobo Combo
Fan : ThermalTake Volcano 7 Plus (Has optional fan settings, incase too loud) - Going to cost me 45 Bucks.
Videocard: Nvidia Geforce 4 Ti4200 - Going to Cost me about 200-225Bucks.
Ram: 512 MB of Generic DDR Ram - Going to cost 115 Bucks.

Shipping all together is about 40 bucks for all of it

Total Cost:
$615-640

I have questions about the Motherboard too, Is that Mobo any good? I hear alot of people like it on buyer reviews, anyone with any experience with this kind of setup? Any special notes worth mentioning about any of this?

I'm somewhat on a Budget, about 650 Bucks tops.

Thanks once again!

 

[BFG10K]

Speed wise, i assume they will be the same.

Nope. The Ti4200 will hammer the Ti200 when both cards are at stocks speeds and assuming you manage to reach Ti500 levels with your Ti200, the Ti4200 will still be faster.

 

[Mavrick007]

If you can get the 1800+ w/ Abit KG-7 as a combo for that deal, I would get it. It's a great board, one of the fastest for the AMD760/761 chipsets.

 

[Tom]

Since you asked for comments..
The Athlon system you are contemplating will be great, but you do realize that you could get a retail P4 Northwood 1.6a and an MSI 645 Ultra(red board, btw) for about $200? Assuming you can overclock it to 2.1g, which most do with no trouble, it would be considerably cheaper(it comes with a nice HSF), faster, cooler, and quieter.

If you don't like overclocking the Athlon 1800 would be faster.


As far as the video cards, by the time the 4200 comes out the ti200 will probably be hard to find and/or cheaper than it is now. At the prices you mention I would get the 4200, but if the ti200 price drops to $80 or so it would be a hard choice, if the ti200 is fast enough for the games you like to play.

 

[Killrose]

Looking at some of the preveiw numbers being posted around the net, I would definately wait and go for the G4 4200. In fact I feel sorry for anyone who bought a Ti500 or 4600. The 4200 should be quite the deal even if it's $179 for an OEM.

 

[tazdevl]

Don't listen to the fool that mentioned the P4. The Athlon XP 1800 will most likely OC over 1.7GHZ (2100-2200) which will beat a 1.6a oc'd. Someone hasn't been paying attention to AMD's PR rating. It's there for a reason and has been proven with empirical data in every P4/XP comparison. Hell, a 1800 @ stock speed will pretty much hold it's own against a 2GHZ P4.

Heatsink is a good one... be sure to put a decent fan on it. If you are going to use the fan with the thermal sensor... be sure to move the sensor so it reads the heat of the heatsink, not the air surrounding it.

Motherboard wise... I'd recommend a KR7A 133 instead of the KT7.

I'd recommend getting Crucial memory... or Corsair or Kingmax (in that order). Getting generic no-name memory, you run into issues with compatibility and quality control. Also if you plan to OC @ some point in the future... the better the quality, the higher the overclock= is the rule of thumb.

Gainward does a bit more with their RF filtering, hence the improved 2D.

 

[Actaeon]

BFG10K:
Yeah, I realized that now, I figured the price would determine performance, I guess not.


Dead Parrot Sketch:

Nice point, But i rather not go with Intel, I just don't like there high prices incase i ever want to upgrade my CPU again.


Mavrick007:

Yeah, I read alot of reader Reviews, and even AnandTechs review, they all seem to like it. I think its a pretty good deal at $215 If you're interested in the Link, let me know, i'll be willing to post where I got these prices from.


Killrose:

Yeah, I just saw HardOCP's review of it, all i can say is wow! It stomps the Ti500, and runs just as fast as the Ti4600 When the Ti4200 Is OCed.

Tazdevl:

Will getting "generic" ram actually stop me from OCing higher? The reason why I don't like brandname RAM is because its getting expensive.

As for those brandnames you said, Do you mean Kingsmax? Or Kingston? I've never seen Kingsmax.

I found some Kingston for 122 Bucks. I could get that instead. Is Kingston any good? What about Mircon? I saw that for cheap too.



Thanks everyone Once again!

 

[tenoc]

Crucial is Micron. I just got 2 sticks of Micron to go with 2 of Crucial.
i.e. Two of one in primary rig, the other two in secondary, 512mb in each.
No difference. Both rigs fsb@138, only slight o/c.

Kingmax is also good and 256mb DDR333 runs about U$ 85 according to pricewatch.com.