Should I upgrade my video card already??

[goe602]

I just put together a new system (some old stuff some new)

here it is

asus k8n-e deluxe (new)
athlon 64 3000+ (new)
3gb kingston pc2700 (new)
ati radeon 9700pro
creative audigy zs 2 platinum

Game like Far Cry run great but not perfectly smooth. would a newer vid card do the trick or would changing something else work?

 

[icejunkie]

what is your budget?

 

[goe602]

200-400 ish i guess..
tell me what I could get, and then tll me what would be great if I could get

 

[icejunkie]

btw, why did u get pc2700 memory? and why 3gb, are u on crack? u don't need more than 1gb... there's a point of diminishing returns right around the 1gb mark with A64s... they arent memory hungry, just letting you know that's a horrible decision...

 

[icejunkie]

6800gt.

 

[goe602]

Originally posted by: icejunkie
btw, why did u get pc2700 memory? and why 3gb, are u on crack? u don't need more than 1gb... there's a point of diminishing returns right around the 1gb mark with A64s... they arent memory hungry, just letting you know that's a horrible decision...

the 3gb was free.

icejunkie: is it my vid card thats holding me back a little bit? would replacing it with that mke a huge difference?

 

[RussianSensation]

Yeah get a 6800GT if you can afford to drop $340 (your mobo is AGP if I am not mistaken right?)

 

[Fenuxx]

It depends on what resolutions your playing at. At 1600x1200 with 4x AA and 8x AF, then your current video card won't be powerfull enough to play at that. If thats the case, then pick up a 6800GT or an X800Pro or X800XT. If all you want is playable framerates at 1024x768 no AA no AF, then your card should be able to pull that off, and I would look elsewhere.

Also, you said that you bought your RAM new, why did you get PC2700? Even though you got 3GB of it (thats nice, actually ), I am concerned with its speed. At PC2700, it may not affect you, but you should have picked up some PC3200, as the slower 333MHz clock for PC2700 (as opposed to 400MHz for PC3200) could come back to bite you later.

 

[imverygifted]

depends how much you play games, if you play for more than an hour a day of new games as in farcry, doom3, hl2, or recent games i'd say a 6800gt wouldn't be a bad upgrade

 

[goe602]

Originally posted by: geforcetony
It depends on what resolutions your playing at. At 1600x1200 with 4x AA and 8x AF, then your current video card won't be powerfull enough to play at that. If thats the case, then pick up a 6800GT or an X800Pro or X800XT. If all you want is playable framerates at 1024x768 no AA no AF, then your card should be able to pull that off, and I would look elsewhere.

Also, you said that you bought your RAM new, why did you get PC2700? Even though you got 3GB of it (thats nice, actually ), I am concerned with its speed. At PC2700, it may not affect you, but you should have picked up some PC3200, as the slower 333MHz clock for PC2700 (as opposed to 400MHz for PC3200) could come back to bite you later.

well the ram was free. so I'll upgrade that sometime later.

ok guys thanks for all your help

 

[2Xtreme21]

I wouldn't upgrade. 9700pro is a solid card and it's not like it's slow in games, is it? Wait until you can't play games with it before you upgrade.. and by that time, a new generation should be out.

 

[imported_humey]

Your cpu is 400fsb and can do possibly 600fsb, is your ram running 333(pc2700) gee, you running lot lower powered than you could be with 400(pc3200) ram

 

[Concillian]

The RAM is not likely causing performance issues. With that setup most issues you have will be from video card, though the 9700 pro should do fairly well.

 

[imported_humey]

I never said his ram is the problem, but its a waste of a good 64bit cpu to run 3gig of slower 333(pc2700) ram instead of 400(pc3200) even if free, unless it can o/c to at least pc3200(400mhz).

Why do peeps constantly read things that arent even typed by others ? :frown:

 

[Fern]

Originally posted by: goe602
200-400 ish i guess..
tell me what I could get, and then tll me what would be great if I could get

Sell the 9700p (approx $120), get a 6800GT (256MB) (used $320-340, new less than $400)

 

[thanatos355]

no one is going to pay $120 for a used 9700 when they can get a 6600gt for a couple bucks more.

 

[2Xtreme21]

Originally posted by: thanatos355
no one is going to pay $120 for a used 9700 when they can get a 6600gt for a couple bucks more.

I would buy it for $120. That's really cheap for a 9800pro-style card. Plus by "couple bucks" you're talking over $50 more... and that's a stretch for some people.

 

[Mykl]

If I had a 9700 I'd try to string it along until the next generation of cards was released so I can get maximum performance out of Battlefield 2 when it's released. But that's just me.

 

[Fern]

Originally posted by: thanatos355
no one is going to pay $120 for a used 9700 when they can get a 6600gt for a couple bucks more.

Dude, check the FS/FT forum (some are listed higher). You CAN'T find an AGP 6600GT for anything near $120.

$120 ain't a bad deal for a 9700p. Check prices on a 9800p. They haven't fallen in a year. I almost LOL today. A banner here or THG or Nforce HQ was advertising a BBA 9800p for $249 (it wasn't a AIW either). Weird, next to it was an ad for for a 6600GT for a little less (even though its a faster card! Go figure?). Maybe not in HL2 though.

I'm pretty sure $120 is doable w/o a prob these days. I think its good time sell those cards (9700p & 9800p's. Prices are too high. Don't think it'll last much longer though. I'm putting mine up for sale soon).

 

[thanatos355]

hey. $/perf, $50 isnt anything.

i know people WANT to sell them for that much, but i dont see it happening. i see people struggling on forums to sell their 97-98pro for a bit over $100. MOST people arent willing to spend that when for a little more they can get much better cards. my OPPINION only.

 

[Fern]

Originally posted by: thanatos355
hey. $/perf, $50 isnt anything.

i know people WANT to sell them for that much, but i dont see it happening. i see people struggling on forums to sell their 97-98pro for a bit over $100. MOST people arent willing to spend that when for a little more they can get much better cards. my OPPINION only.

Well, that w/b a bummer. I admit I don't actually know what they're getting. I see 'em advertised, but they don't report back and say what they sold it for. Often they "blank-out" the price once sold.

Maybe I'll go "low-ball" some at ebay. That way ebay will keep track for me of the ending sales price.

 

[mooncancook]

you got problem playing any games? if not don't bother, else your options are 6800 series or X800 series, depending on price and availability. I don't think it makes sense to upgrade to a 6600GT from a 9700Pro.

 

[thanatos355]

i agree about the 97pro to 66gt. if you arent having any real problems playing, just stick it out till the next gen cards come out. if you NEED a new card now, you would need a high end card to do you any good for any length of time.

 

[PrayForDeath]

If you wanna upgrade, you should get atleast a 6800 or an X800 series card. But your card should hold you until next gen cards come out. So I recommend waiting for that then you can get either one of the 6800/X800 for a cheaper price or just buy a new gen card.

Don't worry about the RAM, it's not gonna slow you down since most of the games today rely more on video cards. But if I were you I'd sell the 3Gb 333 and get a 1Gb 400 instead and save the extra cash.

 

[Hadsus]

I think the 9700 badly holds back the processor....its a bottleneck and I'd dump it asap. I upgraded a 9800PRO to 6800nu on my 3ghz machine and it was worth it ($240). It increases my enjoyment of HL 2 and Doom 3 significantly (someday I'll finish those games, lol). BTW, I sold the ATI on ebay for $155 (probably coulda got more but there was no box, no documentation and it was my first sale).