Please Help me find 2 cards!!!

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MyCulito

Member
Oct 5, 2001
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Just bought a Gateway GT4010 at a great price and would like to turn it into a full Media Center.

It has the following specs:
AMD 64 3500+
nForce 430/410 motherboard
1GB PC3200 DDR
Available pciExpress x16 slot

I have 2 questions:

1.) What x16 video card should I get that can play all the latest games and will support Windows Vista in the future? (No more than $100-$300).

2.) Should I buy an additional TV Tuner card as well? What flexibility would that give me?

TIA
 
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josh6079

Diamond Member
Mar 17, 2006
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1) Vista capable cards are not available yet.

2) If you're going for a "full Media Center", you might look into some of the All-In-Wonder boards that are in your price range.

Also, you probably want to upgrade your memory as well. Most of the latest games, BF2, FEAR, Oblivion, etc. really benefit from it.
 
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MyCulito

Member
Oct 5, 2001
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Would those all in wonder boards be able to handle all the latest PC games?

If not, and I nix the "full media center" ability, what card should I get?
 
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josh6079

Diamond Member
Mar 17, 2006
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What games are you primarily interested in and at what settings? The All-In-Wonder boards are a good balance at gaming and media; however, it really depends on the extremity of gaming or media work you're wanting to do. Some of the more gaming heavy cards also do a good job with certain "media" projects. I really am more of a gamer so maybe someone with more knowledge on media features and such could help you more. You're price range is another factor. How much are you willing to spend?
 
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MyCulito

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Oct 5, 2001
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I would like to spend no more than $100-$300 for a card.

I would like to play Doom 3, HL2, etc. and any new upcoming games. I'm not too familiar with settings, but my LCD's native resolution is 1600x1200.
 
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1Dark1Sharigan1

Golden Member
Oct 5, 2005
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The AIW X1800 seems to be the card for you. Though since you don't need to spend more money for a TV Tuner, you can probabaly afford a AIW X1900 which would be better for games.
 
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akshayt

Banned
Feb 13, 2004
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Geforce 7900GT for 279$ or so or Radeon 1800XT for 225$ are the best options.

Atleat Geforce 7900 coes with the Vista capable mentioned, radeon should be fine but don't know whether ATi mentions it or not.

Go with X1800XT or Geforce 7900GT period, unless you want to go higher.
This can play all games not sure of GRAW and Oblivion,EQ2 etc at max at 1024 or 1280
 
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josh6079

Diamond Member
Mar 17, 2006
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There will be a differance between simply being able to play new and upcoming games, and playing those same games at different settings. I think the AIW X18/19 series is probably a good bet to be the best of both worlds. Nvidia's performance with Doom 3 though is still a little higher than ATI's. (I know ATI has closed the gap a little, but I'm pretty sure Nvidia still dominates the OpenGL platforms)
 
Wreckage

Wreckage

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Jul 1, 2005
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Originally posted by: MyCulito
Just bought a Gateway GT4010 at a great price and would like to turn it into a full Media Center.

It has the following specs:
AMD 64 3500+
nForce 430/410 motherboard
1GB PC3200 DDR
Available pciExpress x16 slot

I have 2 questions:

1.) What x16 video card should I get that can play all the latest games and will support Windows Vista in the future? (No more than $100-$300).

2.) Should I buy an additional TV Tuner card as well? What flexibility would that give me?

TIA
Click to expand...

Get a 7900GT for the gaming side and then pick up a hauppauge 150 for the meida side.

NVIDIA has a new dual tuner card out, but I have not read up on it.

You could split the difference and get an ATI AIW. It won't do as well in games as the 7900GT or video capture as well as the 150, but you only have to deal with one card and maybe save some money.
 
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beggerking

Golden Member
Jan 15, 2006
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ditto for AIW 1900
it was sold as price mistake for $150 last week..

OC to handle latest games.
 
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MyCulito

Member
Oct 5, 2001
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Originally posted by: beggerking
ditto for AIW 1900
it was sold as price mistake for $150 last week..

OC to handle latest games.
Click to expand...

OC meaning overclocking? Who had it for $150?

I was thinking that it might behoove me to use two separate cards to do the job, but if I can get the AIW at a good price, I think I'll be sold!
 
akugami

akugami

Diamond Member
Feb 14, 2005
6,210
2,551
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Vista capable cards are already out. In the just under $300 range is what I would recommend. Either the X1800XT (these are disappearing fast) and the 7900GT. Both have their positives and negatives which I won't get into here. Just be aware that these are DX9 parts and won't operate in DX10 mode, though for the forseeable future all new games should come out with a DX9 mode anyways.
 
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josh6079

Diamond Member
Mar 17, 2006
3,261
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Memory intensive isn't really a factor...yet. Ask ST if he thought his 256 MB 7900GT was holding him back against his X1900XT's 512MB. The extra memory has proved to help, but isn't what you should base the card on. I know for one, in Oblivion, having 512MB's of visual memory has certainly helped with mods and such. Right now shaders are way more important. Plus, 512mb AIW's are not easy to find.;) If you get that one, you'll be plenty happy.
 
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DerwenArtos12

Diamond Member
Apr 7, 2003
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Use two cards, any of the high end video cards in teh ~$300 can handle modern games though at 16x12 framrates may suffer if you turn up too much eyecandy. For a single tuner, I love the ATI 550 tuner cards, they are all on the refrence design and have great image quality. If you want a dual tuner it is almost twice as much but the new Nvidia dual tuner card has every bit as good image quality IMHO.
 
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