Please recommend graphics card for this system....

[jwalker46]

Plese help with recommendation and comments for two graphics cards for this system:

Asrock 939SLI32-eSata
AMD 64 X2 4800+
2 GB Patriot sdram
2 Seagate 160 gb hdd

Monitors
1 Samsung 244T 1920x1200
2 Samsung 214T 1600x1200

Applications/requirements:
*displaying realtime financial graphics (2-d charts)
*watching DVDs on the larger monitor;-)
*NOT for games
and
*I would prefer cards than could run a 30"monitor running 2560x1600.
Normally I would think of a pair of Matrox G650s, but the max res is too low.

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[dguy6789]

Pretty much any ATI card that fits your price range and resolution needs will work perfectly as long as you don't plan on playing games.

 

[moonboy403]

7900 gt AND gtx both support dual monitor at 2560 x 1600

grabbing a 7900 gt for $300 would be a good choice (one of the best bang for bucks right now)

 

[DeathReborn]

7600GT supports the 30" LCD's and is quite cheap.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductLi...ption=&srchInDesc=&minPrice=&maxPrice=

 

[moonboy403]

really? wow...that's great!

then depending on where you live, getting it at monarchcomputer would be cheaper (no tax)

 

[jwalker46]

Thanks to all of your for a quick repy.....with apologies: when I last built my pc, in 2001, life was simple: you looked up resolution, refresh rates, and....you're done. Today, almost all the reviews, and discussions on this forum, seem to assume you are gaming, and using Windows. For example, I to not understand "ATI card'.

I forgot to add one requirement......I will run Linux.

What is the tradeoff between the nVidia cards you have recommended and a Matrox card..or a ColorGraphics Xentera?

In many components, life has progressed in the past four years..but in graphics, I think it has moved literally a generation or two. So, please.....your help.......and patience?

 

[DeathReborn]

ColorGraphics Xentera I don't have any prior experience of or knowledge about but I have found they use Radeon 9000 GPUs on the GT cards. They only support up to 2048x1536 tho so not native for a 30" LCD.

Matrox make good, reliable 2D cards and are well worth considering for your needs. I do not however know how thir Linux Drivers are.

ATI, like Matrox & nVidia make the GPU's that go onto Graphics Cards. An ATI Card is just a Graphics Card with a ATI GPU on it.

ATI don't have that good Linux Driver Support, nVidia has good Linux support. I myself use my 7800GT's in Gentoo & Ubuntu and can attest to their capabilities there.

 

[jwalker46]

DeathReborn.....I will use Mepis for now (forced to dual-boot WinSlow for a few apps), but Gentoo for "later" (given the long installation process).....so, PLEASE tell me the specific manufacturer/model you use? Again, I am a few years behind the curve on graphics cards, so "7800GT" as far as I know is a chipset not a specific card. (Request for help...not for flames.)

 

[DeathReborn]

I use: PNY GeForce 7800 GT / 256MB GDDR3 / PCI Express / SLI / Dual DVI / VIVO / Video Card VCG7800GXWB

7600GT is the new GPU nVidia released yesterday. The Cards it is on go for less than $200, are quiet & don't produce much heat.

You can find linux drivers for the 7600GT here: http://www.nvidia.com/object/unix.html

 

[Golgatha]

I would suggest the 7600GT. It has nice purevideo support (you mentioned watching movies) and better Linux support. 2D hasn't been a problem with nVidia cards for quite sometime. I like eVGA, Leadtek, or BFG as far as companies building nVidia cards go. Have heard XFX is fine too, but I've never owned any of their products. Would probably recommend eVGA overall just because their tech support is 2nd to none and their returns policy is pretty liberal and easy.

The 6600GT would be a good choice as well if you could live without the support for dual-link DVI. It pretty much has all the same features as the 7600 if you're not gaming. You could display dual monitors on this one.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150098

 

[dguy6789]

ATi, and nVidia are both companies. ATi, up until recently, had FAR(not an exaggeration) better image quality than nVidia. I do not have an nVidia card right now, but I do have an ATi card. I can say that at my maximum res(2048x1536) it has unbelievable image quality and makes all desktop related work and media very clear and easy to use.

Image quality is as follows: Matrox>ATi>nVidia.


This video card has superior image quality, drivers, and supports your 2560x1600 resolution. It has one DVI port and one VGA port.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102622

This video card is the same model, but has 2 DVI ports. What confuses me though, is that newegg states that it only supports up to 2048x1536 resolution. I was under the impression that all x1300s supported 2560x1600. If not, I request that someone enlightens me.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814131426

 

[jwalker46]

Originally posted by: DeathReborn
nVidia has good Linux support. I myself use my 7800GT's in Gentoo & Ubuntu and can attest to their capabilities there.

What motherboard do you use, and which Linux kernel do you run? I elected the new Asrock simply because of all the threads on many forums about problems running Linux with nVidia chipsets (especially the 6100), and general complaints about the nForce4 chipsets.

 

[jwalker46]

Thank you all for your suggestions !