what video card was your favorite? (that you own/owned)

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Aznguy1872

Senior member
Aug 17, 2005
790
0
0
nvidia 5900. Oh i loved this card. Back when i had it, it could run anything at the time! Then it broke and I was sad.
 

TraumaRN

Diamond Member
Jun 5, 2005
6,893
63
91
Since I really didnt get into computers until about 3 years ago my favorite card I've owned so far was my 6800GT that baby OCed like the dickens, I had it running stably 425/1100 for a year straight before I got my current 7800GT even tho my 7800 overclocks really well....i still loved that I got past 6800Ultra performance for the price.
 

Ika

Lifer
Mar 22, 2006
14,264
3
81
MX420. ran me for a long time, trying to play modern games - HL2, Halo PC... hah!

also overclocked to double stock speeds...
 

Spicedaddy

Platinum Member
Apr 18, 2002
2,305
77
91
BBA 9700 Pro

I got it when it came out and still using it. (it's enough for the games I play) I'll change it for a PCI-Express card when I upgrade to Conroe later this year.

So it'll have lasted 4 years in my system!! Crazy for a video card...
 

Noema

Platinum Member
Feb 15, 2005
2,974
0
0
I've been into PC gaming for over 12 years now but so far I've only owned 2 cards. I missed out on all the 3dfx age and the first ATI and Nvidia generations. I got back into PC gaming a little over a year ago, and so far I've had two cards:

A 9600XT and a 7800gs (which I currently own).

Of course the 7800gs is vastly superior; however, I originally got the 9600XT for real cheap when I built my current rig. It was supposed to be just a placeholder until I got a 'real' card and I didn't think I'd keep it for more than 6 months.

The card performed better than expected and that's why I kept it for so long. I shall honor her memory.
 

Captante

Lifer
Oct 20, 2003
30,354
10,880
136
I would also have to say my all-time favorite card was my Original 6mb Canopus Voodoo 1, followed closely by SLI'ed 12mb Voodoo 2's... the transition from software 3d to real hardware acceleration was a serious wake-up call!
Next would have to be my just recently sold PNY 6800GT which lasted me over 2 years before Oblivion exposed its soft underbelly ... that card didn't owe me a thing!
 

xtknight

Elite Member
Oct 15, 2004
12,974
0
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Just curious...how do you guys quantify "favorite"? One that brings back memories? Voodoo 3 2000 AGP (freezing constantly on a VIA KT400). Manually patching the Linux kernel to support the VIA VT8235 to run the Voodoo... oh bloody hell :)

The GeForce 6800NU PCIe was a pretty big jump for me from the 9500 PRO and a good choice at that. It overclocked 25% of its stock clocks with a stock HSF. Heck, that can't touch the potential of the 7900GT c/o voltmods though.
 

pkme2

Diamond Member
Sep 30, 2005
3,896
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My Matrox Parhelia 256MB is now my favorite. My ATI Rage was my favorite before.
 

SexyK

Golden Member
Jul 30, 2001
1,343
4
76
Voodoo 5 5500 - amazing image quality, and a true beast of a card to look at... still running in my parents computer to this day
 

1Dark1Sharigan1

Golden Member
Oct 5, 2005
1,466
0
0
-9700 Pro, self explanatory
-7900GT, running at beyond 7900GTX speeds for $200 less so yeah I'm pretty happy with it . . . ;)
 

Golgatha

Lifer
Jul 18, 2003
12,424
1,110
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Voodoo 2 8MB, Voodoo 3 3000 AGP, Voodoo 5 5500, Gainward GF3 64MB, TI4400 128MB, and X800XT.

Liked each of these because each gave me a huge performance increase across the board compared to the card they replaced. My absolute favorite was probably the upgrade to the Voodoo 3 3000. Got the performance of SLIed Voodoo II and no longer had to own separate graphics cards for 2D and 3D. 2D output was amazing too. Must give respect to the Voodoo 2 though, as it is what started me down the 3D gaming pathway I am still on to this day. Paid $212 for that bad boy back in the day when they were still going for $249.99 MSRP. What a deal!

Someone above made a comment about being able to "see" games when they got some 3D acceleration going on. Quake 2 was kind of a moment for me, but getting the 3dfx patch to work on Need for Speed 2 on my Voodoo 2 was a "OMFG WTF!!!! Ooohhhh preeettty graphics...droolz" moment. Must thank the Voodoo 2 for displaying Final Fantasy VII on the PC, which got me hooked into RPGs (although sadly, I pretty much have to play RPGs on my PS2 anymore).
 

framerateuk

Senior member
Apr 16, 2002
224
0
0
My Orchid Righteous 3D, 4mb Voodoo :)

I loved that card, the difference it made on Tomb Raider was unbelieveable, and it stayed top of the range longer than any other card ive had :)

Other that that... probably my X1900 XTX. Ive never owned such a high end card before (well, at least nothing that cost this much!). Its also the first card ive been able to really use AA and AF on (didnt use the features on my TI4200 or my 9800Pro as they were too slow, and my 7800GT couldnt really manage them along with a super high res).