video card advice

[dmbforums]

i've been out of the video card scene for quite a while, so i'm not as up on all the options as i used to be. im looking for a video card for my friend. he just wants something that will play your avg shoot 'em up game fairly well. specifically, he just bought halo, and his current card can't handle it...

thanks in advance

 

[ikickpigeons]

i would wait untill the prices go down from the new gen cards. if he cant wait then buy a 9800 pro 128 mb card. A 9800 pro is a great avg card. It also should handle HALO very well. Rember dont buy the 128 bit card from saphire. Also the 256 mb and 128 mb are pretty much the same. U can find a 9800 pro for about 200 USD.

 

[dmbforums]

he just bought a house, so we're looking for as affordable as we can possibly get, haha. thanks for the comments

 

[nick1985]

9800pro

 

[Schadenfroh]

video card benchmarks for halo

 

[dmbforums]

Originally posted by: Schadenfroh
video card benchmarks for halo

very helpful! thanks.

 

[dmbforums]

ok, im going to rephrase this question a bit, just to give him the widest possible range.

what is the absolute lowest we could go without the aliens looking like they're chasing you under strobe lights? would a geforce4 Ti run it? a radeon 9200? fx5600? you get the idea...

 

[Schadenfroh]

what is the absolute lowest we could go without the aliens looking like they're chasing you under strobe lights? would a geforce4 Ti run it? a radeon 9200? fx5600? you get the idea...[/quote]

4200 is the fastest of the cards you listed

 

[dmbforums]

seriously? that surprises me (you can tell how long ive been out of the loop). newegg only has refurbished 4200s, and they're all dirt cheap.

 

[modedepe]

What card does he have now and what is the rest of his system like?

 

[dmbforums]

got a dell system, so his card is a dinky 32MB something or other.

all i know without asking him is a p4 2.0 and 256MB ram. i can get more from him if needed.

 

[novice]

If you can stretch the budget a bit, you could pick up a Radeon 9600XT here for just $120 shipped. Probably the best deal around for less than $125. Certainly more expensive than a Ti4200, but also a better performer with DX9 capability. I would grab one myself, but I am upgrading from a Ti4200, and my son has his heart set on a 5900XT or a 9800 Pro. So I have to come up with an additional $50 to $100. He may also want to consider adding another 256 mb of ram. Seems to really help on some of the more demanding games like Halo and Call of Duty.

 

[ikickpigeons]

if i was your friend i would get atleast 512 megs 1gb is best, u can get great 512 ram off newegg for like 80 bucks. Now that i said this if your buddy is really pressed on cash i would get the 9600 xt off newegg.