Upgrade from Geforce4 ti4200

[darbius]

So my wife's computer has an nVidia Geforce4 ti4200 64MB AGP vid card, which is getting kind of old, so we were thinking we might upgrade. Her MB only supports AGP 4x, so I was looking at some of the 4x/8x cards on Newegg.

I was looking at this card and this card as possible upgrades. Those are examples really. I don't have my heart too deeply set on either. We play a lot of World of Warcraft, but I don't think she'll ever touch an FPS ever in her life.

So, my main question is, will the performance upgrades be worth the $200--give or take--that we'd be dropping on one of these cards? Or should we just stick to the Ti4200 and wait till she gets a new computer? Another possibility is to forget the vid card and drop $200 giving her another 512MB of ram (jumping her to 1GB).

Any input would be greatly appreciated, as well as suggestions for good cards.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Well, another 512mb of ram surely isn't going to cost $200 . You can get 2x512mb of pc3200 for under $100 now.

Whether it's worth it is up to you. If the performance is still reasonable for her, just wait until you upgrade the whole system later. Oh, and don't get that 5900 card.

You'd be better served by the 6800 or a 6600gt if you want to spend less.

Oh, and what's the rest of her system like?

 

[sniperruff]

the Ti4200 is fine. i'm still using a GF3 TI500 to play CS, vice city and COD, and it performs flawlessly.

 

[darbius]

I wish the memory were cheaper, but unfortunately, she's running RDRAM on a Dimension 8200 and that RAM, even if I buy the vanilla Samsung variety is another $180 for 512MB. I wish she were using DDR DIMMs so I could just pop another gig in there for half the price.

As for the video card, can I even get a 6600 or 6800 that'll run on AGP 4x?

And as for the rest of her system, the specs are as follows:
Dell Dimension 8200
XP Pro
2.25Ghz P4
533Mhz Front Side Bus Speed
512MB RDRAM
75GB Maxtor IDE Drive (not sure what the spindle speed is)

Thanks again for the input.

 

[imverygifted]

i'd keep the video card and upgrade later on someday when you upgrade her motherboard or jus get a new computer

 

[diabloII]

get a eVGA 6600gt agp ($194)

 

[darbius]

Originally posted by: imverygifted
i'd keep the video card and upgrade later on someday when you upgrade her motherboard or jus get a new computer

I'm just going to build her next computer so I can upgrade piecemeal as I see fit.

 

[hans030390]

get a 6600gt...works great for $200, PLUS has shader model 3.0 (do i need to explain how much future games will need this?)

512mb ram will serve you until you have enough money to get another 512 stick

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: darbius
I wish the memory were cheaper, but unfortunately, she's running RDRAM on a Dimension 8200 and that RAM, even if I buy the vanilla Samsung variety is another $180 for 512MB. I wish she were using DDR DIMMs so I could just pop another gig in there for half the price.

As for the video card, can I even get a 6600 or 6800 that'll run on AGP 4x?

And as for the rest of her system, the specs are as follows:
Dell Dimension 8200
XP Pro
2.25Ghz P4
533Mhz Front Side Bus Speed
512MB RDRAM
75GB Maxtor IDE Drive (not sure what the spindle speed is)

Thanks again for the input.

Yikes, if it's RDRAM, don't spend any more on dead end ram you wont be able to use again.

 

[Bonesdad]

Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Originally posted by: darbius
I wish the memory were cheaper, but unfortunately, she's running RDRAM on a Dimension 8200 and that RAM, even if I buy the vanilla Samsung variety is another $180 for 512MB. I wish she were using DDR DIMMs so I could just pop another gig in there for half the price.

As for the video card, can I even get a 6600 or 6800 that'll run on AGP 4x?

And as for the rest of her system, the specs are as follows:
Dell Dimension 8200
XP Pro
2.25Ghz P4
533Mhz Front Side Bus Speed
512MB RDRAM
75GB Maxtor IDE Drive (not sure what the spindle speed is)

Thanks again for the input.

Yikes, if it's RDRAM, don't spend any more on dead end ram you wont be able to use again.

yup, time to start building a new base system for her. The TI4200 will be fine until you assemble all the components for a new rig. I'm still using my 4200...

Are Dell cases proprietary? Can you just buy a new mobo to stick in the 8200 case? Or are you going to have to start from scratch?

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: Bonesdad

Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Originally posted by: darbius
I wish the memory were cheaper, but unfortunately, she's running RDRAM on a Dimension 8200 and that RAM, even if I buy the vanilla Samsung variety is another $180 for 512MB. I wish she were using DDR DIMMs so I could just pop another gig in there for half the price.

As for the video card, can I even get a 6600 or 6800 that'll run on AGP 4x?

And as for the rest of her system, the specs are as follows:
Dell Dimension 8200
XP Pro
2.25Ghz P4
533Mhz Front Side Bus Speed
512MB RDRAM
75GB Maxtor IDE Drive (not sure what the spindle speed is)

Thanks again for the input.

Yikes, if it's RDRAM, don't spend any more on dead end ram you wont be able to use again.

yup, time to start building a new base system for her. The TI4200 will be fine until you assemble all the components for a new rig. I'm still using my 4200...

Are Dell cases proprietary? Can you just buy a new mobo to stick in the 8200 case? Or are you going to have to start from scratch?

I think their power supplies are proprietary too. An antec case/power supply combo is a good deal if you need both. Basic or Sonata hotness.

 

[darbius]

Thanks a bunch for the input guys. As for the 6600GT, has anyone seen one that will actually work on a 4x AGP slot?

 

[Praytus]

A lot of Dell's older stuff was strictly proprietary, with their newer systems, only the motherboard is. For example, in the 8400 systems, their PSUs are BTX.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: darbius
Thanks a bunch for the input guys. As for the 6600GT, has anyone seen one that will actually work on a 4x AGP slot?

Any card that works in 8x AGP should work in 4x AGP too I think.

 

[MonkeyWrench4000]

Yes, your correct, any 8x will work in a 4x, with only minor performance differences.

 

[Gurck]

The 4x00s are still good cards. If her only need for it is WoW I'd stick with it. If you're unhappy with framerates try dropping some of the eye candy or resolution. I can't see dropping $200 on a card solely for a game designed to run well on low end systems in the first place. Definitely don't even think about buying more rdram.

 

[darbius]

Awesome, I didn't know an 8x card could run in a 4x slot either. I thought there was something weird with the voltages that wouldn't allow it.

Yeah, I've gotten a pretty clear response on the RDRAM. Everything I've read about it says it's crap and it's more expensive than DDR, which is why is surprises me that the Dell has it. Ah well, what can you do.

 

[Lonyo]

Originally posted by: hans030390
get a 6600gt...works great for $200, PLUS has shader model 3.0 (do i need to explain how much future games will need this?)

512mb ram will serve you until you have enough money to get another 512 stick

Yes, you do.
This is a Dell with RDRAM and a non-FPS gamer.
How the HELL will SM3 make any difference? Seriously?
Some people just continually spout the same crap, even when it's totally useless.