Quadro4 XGL 900

[ChivalricRonin]

Hey all. I'm thinking of dropping the cash for an nVidia Quadro4 XGL900! Seeing how quickly graphics cards move in the home user spectrum, I figure I'll be able to eek out a little more time with a graphics workstation quality card. But, simply put, will it do what I want? I watch a great deal of movies and play graphically intense games often. Can anyone who owns or has seen one of these in action attest to their performance? Thanks in advance

 

[heliomphalodon]

In my opinion, you'll be wasting your money. The core chip in the Quadro4 is the GeForce4. Minor modifications to the card and the drivers have been made to optimize the Quadro4 for workstation tasks -- but it doesn't sound like you plan to use it that way.

Save your money (hundreds of dollars!) and get a GeForce4 or ATI or Matrox card.

Just as an example -- the Gainward GeForce4 Ultra 750/XP is "equivalent" to the PNY Quadro4 900XGL. The Gainward card can be had for about $320 retail while the PNY card will cost at least $600 if you can get a good deal on eBay.

 

[ChivalricRonin]

Thanks! I didn't really want to drop $1000 for a card if I didn't have to, but i still want to get the best possible video card. Are the differences between the two really that negliable? I'm partial to the GeForce line, but is there any other chipset I should keep my eyes on? Like that one that's on the Anandtech banners (I forgot what its called...sigh). Money's not really an option, so what shall I go for for the best possible performance overall? Thanks again
~Ronin


Edit: another Q

 

[heliomphalodon]

To get "the best possible video card" you have to think carefully about what you're going to use the card for. If your applications are mainstream, a mainstream video card will serve you well. If you are running CAD apps, you need a workstation card.

Here are some cards to be aware of:
3Dlabs Wildcat III 6210
3Dlabs Wildcat VP
ATI FireGL 4
ATI FireGL 8800
Matrox Parhelia
Gainward GeForce4 Ultra 750/XP
ATI Radeon 8500

Each has its strengths and weaknesses. For example, the Wildcat III card doesn't support DirectX. Matrox has fabulous image quality. Gainward supports dual DVI outputs. FireGL 4 is an AGP Pro-50 card.

My recommendation? Get a GeForce4 if you need a card right now, otherwise wait for the new release from ATI. The fact is that this technology is racing ahead VERY quickly, so anything you buy now will be out-of-date in a year.

 

[render]

Considering the fact here I bought a Geforce4 Ti4200 for Maya. Not much difference between regular geforce4 and quadro4.

Quadro4 is great for 3DSMAX since it has its own Maxtreme driver, which boosts up to 500% of original Ti4400.

You have to consider which applications you are planning to run.