::Update::Nvidia card for joe six pack

[KGB1]

Yeah kinda hard for a friend of mine to grasp the idea that a 128MB does not mean better performance he thinks his 5200 is +> a 128MB 5700 Ultra. He then asks me why his system is not running FFXI so well and max Payne2 is not doing so well. Granted he is using a TBird 800 SlotA with 512MB SDRAM [1 stick]

If recommending him a eVGA 5700Ultra would be a good idea? I know its overkill for his system, but he isn't planning on upgrading except for video. Is the $177 justified or a waste of $$ on the old CPU?

(I tried a Radeon 9600Pro and his chipset [via KX133] had "complications" with it. So Nvidia cards are the only choice)

Feb 19.

Seems he went and got a ATI Radeon 9200 128MB card. I presume the card is 250core/200mem. I don't believe what a waste of cash, and he didn't return the 5200 yet.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Ahem.

- M4H

 

[nick1985]

ive said it before, and ill say it again....NO ONE SHOULD EVER BUY A 5700ULTRA AT FULL RETAIL PRICE.

 

[Nebor]

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire
Ahem.

- M4H

Oh my gosh, I made that! I can't believe it's still around. No one even laughed when I posted it!

 

[modedepe]

I'd say it's a waste. I don't think you'll get enough performance boost from a new card to warrant the price without upgrading the rest of the system.

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: Nebor

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire
Ahem.

- M4H

Oh my gosh, I made that! I can't believe it's still around. No one even laughed when I posted it!

you posted it in my thread about how nobody should ever buy the 9600XT or 5700Ultra

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Originally posted by: Nebor

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire
Ahem.

- M4H

Oh my gosh, I made that! I can't believe it's still around. No one even laughed when I posted it!

I couldn't let that little gem go to waste!

:beer: to Nebor.

- M4H

 

[Insomniak]

5900 non ultra is amuch better deal for the same price as a 5700 Ultra. Have him get the 5900 NU.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Originally posted by: Insomniak
5900 non ultra is amuch better deal for the same price as a 5700 Ultra. Have him get the 5900 NU.

Hey barkeep, how about a :beer: for the no0b who didn't read anything but the first post?

- M4H

 

[ultimatebob]

I wouldn't recommend upgrading ANYTHING in a system with just a 800Mhz processor. That system is probably over three years old now, and everything on it probably obsolete by two or three product generations. Hell, even the case itself and mouse are probably out of date

Tell this guy to save up for a bit more, and then build himself a brand new gaming system for about $600. Then he could sell his old computer at a yard sale, donate it, or keep it around and put Linux on it.

 

[Pete]

My P3-866 hangs around only 25fps in Wolf:ET, compared to 40+ with my XP1700+ (both with a 9100). His Tbird is probably just as slow as my P3, thus it's a serious bottleneck and *below* the minimum requirements for many new games. He shouldn't waste any more money on games before he upgrades his CPU+MB, IMO. What's the fastest CPU he can put in his MB? That may be a decent upgrade.

$177 is a waste of money on a 5700U, let alone a video card for that system. I wouldn't upgrade to anything more than a $120 5600Uv2 (or maybe a $150 9600XT) on a system that slow. It really needs a faster CPU first, though. Check out Anandtech's UT2K3 CPU Scaling article for a glimpse of how much he'd benefit from a faster CPU.

 

[SneakyStuff]

hahaha DAMN I wish I had joined these forums before Christmas, oh well, i've got a 5700u, and i'm stickin with it! but yea, you shouldnt buy one of thise until the price goes down a bit, and besides, it wont do JACK for that system, he would be betterr off with a ti-4200, or a Radeon 8500 or something.

 

[Blastman]

Yup, he?s pretty well CPU limited on a an 800MHz Athlon with even a 5200. A faster video card won?t make a difference.

 

[n7]

Originally posted by: Nebor

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire
Ahem.

- M4H

Oh my gosh, I made that! I can't believe it's still around. No one even laughed when I posted it!

Haha, that's awesome

 

[kapster]

agree with the rest he is CPU limited.

 

[Killrose]

For nearly the price of a 5700U, your friend could have a new nForce2 board, DDR ram and a decent CPU.

Don't even put something new in that system, besides, lots of games are CPU dependant.

 

[ZimZum]

Originally posted by: Blastman
Yup, he?s pretty well CPU limited on a an 800MHz Athlon with even a 5200. A faster video card won?t make a difference.

 

[KGB1]

I understand guys, but my friend doesn't understand. He prefers to keep the Athlon. He bought a Wireless Microsoft Bluetooth mouse, black IBM Keyboard with special video functions, USB 2 controller card, 2 60GB HDD's, CDRW/DVD. Only thing he didn't update is the onboard sound

Why so much hate on the 5700U? I presumed it was a good card. Can then 5900 be bought for around $200? Thanks for the info guys.

He has a spare P3-733 with 256MB Ram (But its a DELL) and mATX board. So he can only use that for so much. I told him to get the 5200 PCI version for that system [since that's his only option, instead he bought the AGP version for the Athlon

]

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: KGB
I understand guys, but my friend doesn't understand. He prefers to keep the Athlon. He bought a Wireless Microsoft Bluetooth mouse, black IBM Keyboard with special video functions, USB 2 controller card, 2 60GB HDD's, CDRW/DVD. Only thing he didn't update is the onboard sound

Why so much hate on the 5700U? I presumed it was a good card. Can then 5900 be bought for around $200? Thanks for the info guys.

He has a spare P3-733 with 256MB Ram (But its a DELL) and mATX board. So he can only use that for so much. I told him to get the 5200 PCI version for that system [since that's his only option, instead he bought the AGP version for the Athlon

]

we hate the 5700ultra because for the same price you can get a card that blows it away.

 

[SneakyStuff]

I don't hate it, I own one! We're just saying, he won't notice ANYTHING besides graphics quality if he puts it into either of those systems, they are ancient. He's not going to get a tremendous speed-boost AT ALL, now I agree with what some other people have said, he could upgrade the mobo, cpu, and memory, for the same cost as a 5700u, that would be the best course of action here.

 

[modedepe]

Why so much hate on the 5700U? I presumed it was a good card. Can then 5900 be bought for around $200? Thanks for the info guys.

There's no point to the card. Priced at $177 you can get an fx5900 for the exact same price. In fact, the 5900 was even selling for a few dollars less. And trust me, the 5900 will kill a 5700 away in terms of performance.

 

[batmanuel]

Originally posted by: modedepe

Why so much hate on the 5700U? I presumed it was a good card. Can then 5900 be bought for around $200? Thanks for the info guys.

There's no point to the card. Priced at $177 you can get an fx5900 for the exact same price. In fact, the 5900 was even selling for a few dollars less. And trust me, the 5900 will kill a 5700 away in terms of performance.

This warms my heart because the more the 5900 kills the sales of the 5700, the better the chance is that when it comes time for the big spring refresh CompUSA, Circuit City and Best Buy will be discounting these cards big time to make room for the new hotness. I'm gonna be keeping my eyes glued to the Hot Deals forums just in case a deal as good as the $80 GF4 4200 Ti from last March crops up again. IF it goes clearance for under $100, it might be worth looking at a 5700.

 

[akshayt]

not worth it.

128mb fx 5900 bfg is for 175$(inclusive) at castle.pricewatch.com

go for radeon 9800pro 128mb sapphire for 215$ at newegg.com

 

[KGB1]

Bump.... updated...

go for radeon 9800pro 128mb sapphire for 215$ at newegg.com

My last Video Card for the AGP will be a Radeon 9800XT/Pro, when and if it drops to around 200-215 dollars. After that, I can wait another year/year and a half to upgrade to PCI Express, SATA, A64, DDRII

 

[jhbball]

well, my dad got my younger brother a PNY 5700 ultra for 150 around christmas. at first, I was a little worried about performance. But all in all, it's a good card and a decent value. My bro got a huge boost from his 8500 in WCIII, splinter cell, and bf1942. He's not a huge gamer, so aa and af don't matter much to him.


Either way, with current prices the way they are, a 9800 or 5900 would probably be the best value. Though, if you have 150 or less to spend a 5700 ultra won't dissapoint the average gamer.