Radeon 9600/9700 PRO

[jwocky]

Thinking about getting a ATI Radeon 9600 PRO or 9700 PRO to replace my 8500. My motherboard only has AGP 4X port, so will I be able to run these cards at their top speed? Also, is there a big difference in performance between the two cards? Thanks in advance.

 

[1966]

9700pro is faster & they will both run at agp4X.

 

[modedepe]

1. Running at agp4x will cost you virtually no performance
2. A 9700 pro is considerably faster.

 

[JBT]

The 9700 pro is a bunch faster than the 9600 pro if you want it to be a BIG upgrade choose the 9700p. As for 4X AGP there is virtually NO difference between 4x and 8x anyways so u won't notice a difference.

 

[jwocky]

Thanks. As always, this forum is a wealth of information.

 

[jwocky]

Best bang for the buck is 9600 PRO, 9700 PRO, or 9800 PRO? I basically need it primarily to drive a large CRT (24") at 1920x1200 @ 85hz. I'm afraid my 8500 won't be able to cut it.

 

[modedepe]

A 9800np would be the best bang for the buck, if you can still find one for $200.

 

[jwocky]

Wait, is there even any difference between the 8500 or 9700/9800 for resolution/refresh support for large screen hi-res (1920x1200) CRT's? Maybe I don't even need to get a new video card, as the main reason I'm thinking about upgrading is to best run my new monitor.

 

[DarkSarkas]

There's very little difference in the refresh rate specs for the cards, the only reason you would need a new card is if you want to run newer games at higher resolutions. Other then that, you shouldn't upgrade if you don't do any gaming, the old card will deal with the new monitor nicely.

 

[nick1985]

i think the best bang for the buck is the 5900NU for <200 @ newegg

 

[earthman]

But is Nvidia's 2D quality up to par with ATI?

 

[Sid59]

Originally posted by: earthman
But is Nvidia's 2D quality up to par with ATI?

the 2D for Nvidia is supposed to be way faster. there was a link to an "ultimate gaming rig" a few months back and the guys tested for 2D speed and such.

 

[rbV5]

I basically need it primarily to drive a large CRT (24") at 1920x1200 @ 85hz. I'm afraid my 8500 won't be able to cut it.

It'll drive it fine, all those cards use a 400 mhz RAMDAC.

 

[Blastman]

I would caution against a 9600 pro. For some stupid reason the 9600 series will not run very high resolutions and refresh rates ?at 1600x1200 max is 85Hz, even the low end 9200 will run 120Hz at 1600x1200.


http://www.ati.com/products/radeon9600/radeon9600pro/specs.html

http://www.ati.com/products/radeon9200/radeon9200/specs.html

 

[yhelothar]

if you're just running 2D.. there will be no difference at all.. you prolly wanna just go for a matrox card, as they have the best 2D quality

 

[Sunner]

Originally posted by: Blastman
I would caution against a 9600 pro. For some stupid reason the 9600 series will not run very high resolutions and refresh rates ?at 1600x1200 max is 85Hz, even the low end 9200 will run 120Hz at 1600x1200.


http://www.ati.com/products/radeon9600/radeon9600pro/specs.html

http://www.ati.com/products/radeon9200/radeon9200/specs.html

Wow, wonder why they did that? Seems like they share DAC's...

And to the OP, if you're only looking for 2D performance, save your money and look into a Matrox card.

 

[RaiderJ]

Originally posted by: virtualgames0
if you're just running 2D.. there will be no difference at all.. you prolly wanna just go for a matrox card, as they have the best 2D quality

And support tri-monitors, if you're into that.