Upgrading from 6800GT... any advice?

[rrqola]

Hey guys,

Looking to get a new Core 2 Duo based system within a month or two, and could use a little advice. Currently I'm on a P4 2.8ghz with an AGP based 6800GT, so I'm probably gonna have to replace that with a PCI-Express card.

I'm not concerned about benchmark scores as such, I'm just hoping for solid performance across the board with noise and power draw within reasonable bounds. I don't really want the hassle of overclocking or modifying coolers unless absolutely necessary.

I think the 7900GT is about the top of my price range, and I'd be interested in better value cards as well so long as they're faster than the 6800GT. I've heard some bad things about its volume, but I've also heard similar accusations of the ATI card. I certainly want to avoid issues with the fan not throttling down when the card is idle.

So... any advice? Is there a card coming out in less than a month that I should be waiting for? Should I get a 7900GT? Should I get a particular manufacturer's 7900GT? Is there a thread answering all these questions that I failed to find with the search?

Thanks, much appreciated.
rrqola

 

[sisq0kidd]

If you're gonna wait a month or two before upgrading, don't consider anything right now. Everything will change in a month.

At that point in time when you are planning to upgrade, that's when you should consider the options.

With the x1950 and Nvidia's refresh, along with g80 coming soon, I'd hold off.

 

[rrqola]

Thanks for the advice, I think thats exactly what I will do. Is there a rumoured g80 date?

 

[RelaxTheMind]

welcome to anandtech mr rrqola...

Its good idea in thought but looking at how "new" releases have been in the past I would get a 7900gt if it was in budget now to hold you off until all the BETA stages of the g80 era begin to get stable with stable drivers to match.

The thing with that is you wont pay the premium price for it... you wont buy a card that will take a several weeks for a driver to fix its initial issues with games/mobos.

If you have the money and want something now get it. if you would rather wait and save up more for the release of the fresh stuff do your research first.