Should I get a 9700pro? I have an 8500

[lastig21]

I have read, and continue to read, the reviews of the 9700pro. I currently have a radeon 8500, and have never really been disapointed with it. I'm afraid it may be a case of "you don't know what you're missing" though. I have seen a couple of TI4600's, and the image runs much crisper. I think it is from being able to crank up the AA and still have a playable framerate.

If anyone has made the jump from a Radeon 8500 or a geforce 3, could they leave some comments about what they did/didn't like. I am thinking about doing it, but might hold onto my cash if it is just a minimal improvement.

 

[BFG10K]

I upgraded from a Ti4600 to a 9700 Pro and it was more than worth it. Just make sure you have a strong CPU as this card really needs a powerhouse to push it well, even at 1600 x 1200 with 16x anisotropic filtering.

(Note that the review was done on the Catalyst 2.3s so some of my comments about games are a bit out of date).

Even with the occasional driver problem I absolutely love this card and it's the best I've ever owned. If you can afford, it, go for it.

 

[zephyrprime]

Hey maybe you should get a 9500 and hack it into a 9700! I'm not kidding. There are several threads about doing this.

 

[BMW330ci]

I second recommend this card. I use to own a Radeon 8500 and GeForce Ti4400 and I don't regret one bit going to the Radeon 9700 Pro.

 

[CJP]

What about going from a Geforce 3 ti-500 to a radeon 9700 non-pro? Would that be worth it? I'd be upgrading to a 2.6 ghz pentium 4 from a 1.8 ghz one as well.

 

[Metalloid]

I would defintely get the 9700 Pro. Best card I have ever owned. I upgraded from a TI4400, and the IQ and framerates are both far superior on the 9700.

 

[filmore crashcart]

IF you can afford it...... by all means. I'm another one that went from a ti4400 to a 9700 pro and it was worth it to me. I also went from an Athlon xp2000 to a pentium 2.4b system and that also made a difference. Do your homework on driver installation before hand to save yourself a headache and reformat job..... and be careful about buying a cheap powercolor oem 9700 pro. It's not a pro. I learned a few lessons in my video card upgrade that weren't entirely pleasant.

 

[lastig21]

anyone else care to comment?

 

[Sarge1]

I went from a Gainward GF3 (great card!), to a 9700 Pro...WOW!!! Now all my non 9700 Pro friends hate me.

 

[43st]

I have a retail 64 MB 8500 currently and I really like it.

I haven't been in a situation yet that has honestly bogged down the card. I run full details in IL2, NOLF2, Ghost Recon, JK2 and I have great frame rates. Certainly not as fast as a 9700 but certainly fast enough. For example at 1280x1024 in JK2 I have a constant 90 fps and that's with full details turned on. IL2 is the only game that has low frame rates (30 fps), but even people with much faster machines only get 40 fps in IL2 (around citys). So it's really not a big deal for me.

The demos for Splinter Cell and Raven Shield both played very well on my system also. So... Would I like a new card? Sure. Do I really need it just yet? Not really.

Of course all of this is my personal justification as to "why my machine is still good". Other people justify things differently, and that's ok also.

 

[lastig21]

How do I see how many fps I am running in UT 2003?

 

[BoomAM]

lastig21, i just upgraded from a GF3Ti200@Ti500, to a 9700PRO, and all i can say is, wow.
The performance is out of this world, and the image quality is amazing.
Im amazed that im getting frame rates so high with a XP1800 in a SDR memory system.

With yours, and CJP`s CPUs then the 9700PRO will blow whatever you have out of the water.