Need help choosing a video card for a computer, lots of CAD/CAM

[kumanchu]

Well, i'm putting together a computer and would like to know what kind of video card would be good for this type of application. I was thinking of going with a GeForce MX but I am worried about the image quality. I am not sure as to where the instructions go from AutoCAD and such. That is why i was trying to decide whether or not i should get either a radeon based card or a g400, the primary OS will be Windows 2k and i would really like your input. The monitor that would be used with this would either be the iiYama Vision Mast Pro 450 or the Mitsubishi 900U. I would also appreciate any input you could give me as far as monitors go too.


Thanks all!!

 

[grillmasterP]

FOr CAD I would get a 16mb G400 or maybe a used g200 - most of these New Cards are intended for Gamers

 

[Chapamania]

Can try using ELSA GLoria II Quaddro SDR Card if using professional. The performance is better than Oxygen GVX-1, and cheaper than it too. It mainly used for 3D Max program and professional CAM-CAD Applications definitely won't hang. It roughyly cost about $1200. If u opt for a cheaper card, u can go for Voodoo5 for graphic acceleration.

 

[kumanchu]

hmmm interesting, now if i could only scrounge up an extra grand!!! but because this is for a friend of mine, and we is both poor poor college students, and i know nothing about cad i need this advice. also forgot to mention earlier that i think that around 200 is the MAX she could go for a vid card...

bumpity bump!

 

[Sunner]

MX easy.
The Radeon's drivers for Win2K arent that grand, while nVidia's are excellent.
The G400's and G200's have to hardware T&L, something that can really help with stuff such as CAD.

Just make sure you research which one to get, since 2D quality varies between different brands, I know Asus' cards usually have good 2D quality, as did Canopus, though they're pretty much out of the GFX card market, unfortunately.

 

[PG]

Forget Matrox. Nvidia cards are much more powerful. Here is a quote from Anandtech after testing the G450: "For 3D performance, that includes gaming performance as well as high end 3D rendering, CAD, etc... the GeForce2 MX is a clearly superior solution to the Matrox G450. The G450, which will begin shipping this month, provides performance below that of cards that began shipping over a year ago. The GeForce2 MX, on the other hand, with its powerful T&L unit that can truly come in hand in professional OpenGL applications does nothing but offer the best performance possible at that price."

See these pages for more info:
[L]http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1315&p=11[/L]
[L]http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1117&p=17[/L]

As you can see on the Pro/E benchmark chart the T&L engine on the Geforce cards is something you should really go for. It cut the Pro/E benchmark times in half compared to a TNT2 ultra. And in this comparison Anandtech used only Geforce SDR cards. DDR cards would perform much better, but are also much more expensive. The Geforce2 MX is the best value. It is cheap but yet has the T&L engine. It would make a huge difference for CAD applications. And you can't really complain about Nvidia's win2k drivers. They are pretty good.

PG

 

[kumanchu]

thanks everyone!! i think i'm going to get the geforce2 MX. I appreciate everyone's input!

 

[Doomguy]

You wont be disappointed with the mx's performance. Its great.