Upgrade Advice

[Nightfang]

Currently, I have a AGP GeForce MX4000 128MB card. Yeah, out of date piece of junk, I know, but it has done me well for a while now. Well, many games are starting to come out that do not support this card (Silent Hunter III, PoP:SoT, Republic Commando, to name a few) and I want to get something different. However, I am on a budget, so I cannot toss big money at some of the super high end cards. I need something within a $100 that will serve me well for a year or two. I do not have PCI-X, so I have to use AGP.

So, doing some hunting, I came across this -

Radeon 9600Pro 256MB
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-102-410&depa=1

Good card for $103? Any advice is appreciated.

 

[cbehnken]

6200 AGP http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-122-216&depa=0

$120

 

[Acanthus]

id look for a used Geforce 6600 AGP.

 

[fstime]

No point in getting a 6600 when the 6200 ( non turbo cache) can softmod to a full 6200 via riva tuner and have some overclocking headroom if needed.

 

[tbird2340]

Just my 2 cents but I bought a 9800 Pro 128mb for $125 and they are pretty sweet cards..

You could prolly do the same.

 

[Machine350]

I'd say a Geforce 6200 or a 9600 Pro. Either one will be a major improvement over what you have.

 

[Nightfang]

Originally posted by: cbehnken
6200 AGP http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-122-216&depa=0

$120

Nice. Question, though. The Radeon card I posted is 256MB, this GeForce card is 128MB. How important is Video RAM in this equation? Is the Geforce card better although it has less memory?

 

[Machine350]

These two cards will perform relatively the same. I believe they are both 128 bit. Even though the Radeon has 256mb of memory, it cannot really use it. It's more a marketing gimmick. About the only cards that can truly utilize more than 128 megs are the high end cards such as the 6800gt/ultra or the radeon x800xt.

 

[Frown66]

The Radeon card I posted is 256MB, this GeForce card is 128MB. How important is Video RAM in this equation? Is the Geforce card better although it has less memory?

Not very important. There are a few games that use that can use that much memory, but its mainly utilized at higher resolutions. Just marketing hype really. You probably won't be playing them at high resolutions with all the eye-candy turned up on a $100 card. I mean, you can, but it would be a slideshow.

I would pick the 6200 in that situation. I think it overclocks pretty well too.

Edit: 6200 instead of 6600... my typo.

 

[SneakyStuff]

Go for the 6200, it supposedly can be soft-modded into a 6600 quite easily.

 

[hans030390]

get a Geforce 6200

1. Good for that price
2. Shader model 3.0 support ( you won't find that on any other $100 card)
3. Can have 4 pipelines unlocked and then be OCed to about a 6600

thats your best buy

 

[Creig]

Either a 6200 and hope it softmods, or a used 9700 Pro (check the For Sale forums) will give you a considerable speed bump.

 

[MonkeyWrench4000]

Everyone seems to be jumping your price range by about $25. You can always get a better card by jumping up in $25 intervals.

the 6200 128mb 128-bit can be had for around $95
the Ati 9550 128mb 128-bit can be had for around $65 (comparable to a ti4200 in speeds, but with dx9)

I wouldnt go for that 9600 Pro, its around $100, and its not as fast as the 6200.

 

[Nightfang]

Well, I approached this like buying a car. I went in saying I could afford a certain amount, when in fact I can afford a higher amount. It was all in an effort to find a good deal on a good card. Going over by $25 will not kill the budget, I will just have to buy one less bottle of liquor this week.

Thanks for the help. I am going to get the 6200 and softmod it.

 

[Nightfang]

Oh, now where I can find the softmod information so I can crank the 6200 up to 6600? All my searching has turned up a bunch of sites that are not English.

 

[WhipperSnapper]

Be real careful to make sure that you get a 128 bit card. Some of the card companies have been putting out neutered 6200 and 6600 cards with only 64 bits. Sometimes NewEgg and especially ZipZoomFly aren't real clear about the memory bandwidth for the cards.

 

[Keysplayr]

Originally posted by: WhipperSnapper

Be real careful to make sure that you get a 128 bit card. Some of the card companies have been putting out neutered 6200 and 6600 cards with only 64 bits. Sometimes NewEgg and especially ZipZoomFly aren't real clear about the memory bandwidth for the cards.

Yes, definately be careful. And DO NOT get the Turbo Cache card as they cannot softmod I believe and are neutered somehow.