Video card suggestions

[KoolDrew]

Currently I have A Sempron 2800+ @ 2.62GHz (stock 1.6GHz), 1GB of RAM, and onboard video. I'm thinking about getting a cheap new card to allow me to play some newer games. Not at high settings or anything, but good enough to actually enjoy them. I'm really not looking at spending much more than $100 on the card, since I'm a student in college and can't afford much. This will probably be just to hold me over until I build basically a whole new rig later down the road.

The X1950 Pro looks like a good card and I'm gonna be looking around on ebay for good deals. Any other suggestions? 7900GS? Really I'm looking for a few recommendations, so I can keep my eye open for good deals.

 

[Ruptga]

1950pro was the way to go six months ago for bang/buck, but now people are recommending the 1950XT, assuming your PSU can tank it. None of the 86xx line is worth recommending, same with the 26xx line, they're both terrible performers

 

[KoolDrew]

Yeah, but the X1950Pro I can get for $105 after MIR. The X1950XT is about $50 more than that.

 

[KoolDrew]

I ended up getting a 7900GS for $76. I know the X1950Pro would've performed better, but for $76 I think I did really well and it should hold me over until I can build a whole new rig (probably sometime early November).

 

[ricken]

how could you get 7900gs for 76 dollars???

Originally posted by: KoolDrew
I ended up getting a 7900GS for $76. I know the X1950Pro would've performed better, but for $76 I think I did really well and it should hold me over until I can build a whole new rig (probably sometime early November).

 

[bigsnyder]

Originally posted by: KoolDrew
Yeah, but the X1950Pro I can get for $105 after MIR. The X1950XT is about $50 more than that.

Yes, but the XTs are not just faster versions of the Pros. They are different cores. Check this crude little chart I made for another thread.

The X1900XT is superior to the X1950Pro regardless of vram. The XTs are full R580 cores, not just faster clocks.
Here is a quick comparison:

---------------------Pro--------XT
Core Clock -------575--------625
Pixel Pipes---------12---------16
Pixel Shaders -----36---------48
TMUs ---------------12---------16
ROPs----------------12---------16
Mem Clock--------1380------1450
--------------------DDR3-----DDR3

Bump the XT clock speeds to 650/1800 and you have a X1950XT. I am sure there is a better chart somewhere, but hopefully this gives you an idea.

 

[imported_Shazzam]

yea dude where did you get a 7900gs for $76??? I just bought one from fry's for $100 after $50 rebate? Please let me know where you got your deal....

 

[lyssword]

maybe off ebay/for sale forum.

 

[lyssword]

Originally posted by: bigsnyder

Originally posted by: KoolDrew
Yeah, but the X1950Pro I can get for $105 after MIR. The X1950XT is about $50 more than that.

Yes, but the XTs are not just faster versions of the Pros. They are different cores. Check this crude little chart I made for another thread.

The X1900XT is superior to the X1950Pro regardless of vram. The XTs are full R580 cores, not just faster clocks.
Here is a quick comparison:

---------------------Pro--------XT
Core Clock -------575--------625
Pixel Pipes---------12---------16
Pixel Shaders -----36---------48
TMUs ---------------12---------16
ROPs----------------12---------16
Mem Clock--------1380------1450
--------------------DDR3-----DDR3

Bump the XT clock speeds to 650/1800 and you have a X1950XT. I am sure there is a better chart somewhere, but hopefully this gives you an idea.

The prob is, you'll need decent 400+w power supply to be comfortable, no? And 1950pro is 80nm design, uses less power. Well, if he does have decent p/s then he should go for xt

 

[Sonikku]

You're going to be bottlenecked by the Socket A cpu.

Socket 754 with a X1950 card would have been pushing it.

 

[Bradeep]

I had a similar question myself about video cards. Currently, I'm using an Athlon 2200+ with a Radeon 9700 Pro, 1 gig of ram. I could either upgrade to a new mb/proc etc., but that would be a lot more money than I'm willing to spend at this point. What are some legitimate options? The motherboard I'm using has AGP (obviously), and AGP cards seem overpriced compared to PCIe cards. The mb also only has two memory slots, both occupied by 512 meg ram chips. I've considered something like a Radeon x800, as that would run Neverwinter Nights 2 fairly well (depending if my processor could take full advantage of it, also assuming it won't have any incompatibility issues with my niggaberry). The 9700 is kinda choppy. Am I pretty much better off just saving up and getting a whole new machine to play current games, or would investing in a new video card be better? Thanks.

 

[bigsnyder]

@bradeep

Most will tell you ditch the setup for a PCIe based system, but if you are happy with the system minus video card, this is what I suggest. If you want one of the absolute best agp cards, check the FS/FT forum for a used X1950Pro. There is an X1950XT model available, but it would be way overkill IMO (the 1950Pro is too but at least its cheaper). Other good choices (roughly from fastest to slower) 7800GS, X850XT/800XTs, X800XL, 7600GT, 7600GS, and then possibly 6800GT. Anything slower than 6800GT would not be much of an upgrade. Again check the FS/FT, no use in overspending on an AGP card when some good buys can be found right here in the forum. Second thing, find a mobile barton CPU. These are about the best "socket a" processors ever made since all them virtually overclock beyond Athlon 3200+ speeds on less voltage. This is moot point if your board doesn't support adjustable multipliers. If you can't find any good deals in the FS/FT on either of these, then it is probably best to save up for a new system.

 

[SolMiester]

I would say the 66GT would be 2x as fast as the 9700pro and a cheap upgrade that isnt overkill for your tiny cpu.
Dont live in US, so dont know prices....but i doubt any PSU you have with that little system is gonna cut the mustard with any of the X19xx series cards.

 

[bigsnyder]

Thats why I suggested the barton upgrade, it doesn't eliminate the CPU bottleneck, but it helps. If the price is right, then there is certainly nothing wrong with a video card that is overkill. As far as PSUs, the 1950Pro behaves a lot better on power consumption vs the XT variants.

 

[kmmatney]

Originally posted by: Bradeep
I had a similar question myself about video cards. Currently, I'm using an Athlon 2200+ with a Radeon 9700 Pro, 1 gig of ram. I could either upgrade to a new mb/proc etc., but that would be a lot more money than I'm willing to spend at this point. What are some legitimate options? The motherboard I'm using has AGP (obviously), and AGP cards seem overpriced compared to PCIe cards. The mb also only has two memory slots, both occupied by 512 meg ram chips. I've considered something like a Radeon x800, as that would run Neverwinter Nights 2 fairly well (depending if my processor could take full advantage of it, also assuming it won't have any incompatibility issues with my niggaberry). The 9700 is kinda choppy. Am I pretty much better off just saving up and getting a whole new machine to play current games, or would investing in a new video card be better? Thanks.

I was in your position a while back, and ditched my AGP systems and after selling my old hardware on Ebay, I really didn't spend that much. For my other AGP computer, I purchased one of the open-box ASRock Dual VSTA motherboards, and recycled my old DDR memory and X1600Pro AGP video card. The motherboard has its share of quirks, but overall runs stable, and allows for some minor overclocking. I bought mine about 6 months ago, but NewEgg has some open box motherboards available again:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...?Item=N82E16813157092R

My open box did not come with the custom ATX shield, so I just left it open in the back. Overall, I'm happy with it. For a processor, you can run a $50 Conroe-L, which will be a lot faster than your current cpu, and you will have the option to get a faster cpu in the future. With a faster cpou, you should find your games run a bit smoother, and then you have a PCI Express slot for the future. You should be able to overclock the $50 Conroe-L to at least 2.2 Ghz, probably more.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16819116040