Which video card for under $200?

[calyco]

Recently Ive noticed alot of lag with the newer games as well the some of the textures looking all messed up with my ti4200 (not dx9 compaitble I guess..?) so looking into buying a new gfx card. I see the 9800 Pro recommended alot and was wondering what would be the Nvidia equivelant or similar. Ive had the geforce 2/3/4 and have been happy with them so I kinda want to stick with the nvidia cards, also heard there are problems with ati drivers. Is the performance from the 9800 pro that much better than the nvidia cards in the same price range? I usually play at 1024 x 768.. but Im also looking into a 19" or 21" crt so I will probably up the resolution. My budget is around $100-$200 and would like to stay under $150, any help would be appreciated.

 

[imported_Bleh]

Spend 50 bucks more and buy a nvidia 6800.

 

[Corporate Thug]

Originally posted by: Bleh
Spend 50 bucks more and buy a nvidia 6800.

 

[effee]

what he said.

 

[Cheetah8799]

For under $200, I'd go for the 9800 Pro 128mb 256bit card. Can likely get a used one for around $160 in the FS/FT forum.

I'm not sure what the nVidia equivelant is to the 9800 Pro... sorry...

 

[imported_JeReMY]

9800 pro, or 6800, or wait for AGP version of the 6600 GT.

 

[drpootums]

6800nu, or if u positivily cant spend that, get the 9800pro

wat are ur other system specs? Maybe it's the rest of ur system that's bottlenecking it

 

[calyco]

Athlon 1700
Asus A7N8X
Kingston 512MB PC2700
Maxtor 80 GB

 

[Pete]

If you must stay under $200, I think a used (256-bit!) 9700/P or 9800/P and an Athlon XP-M 2500+ may be a better upgrade overall (and obviously sell the 1700+). For new cards, I'd look for a $200 6600GT (coming soon) or a $250 6800 (the BFG at Best Buy includes Far Cry, tho tax may offset that). The 6800 is obviously more, but it's faster, it may well offer better game bundles, and it has the chance of unlocking to a full 16-pipe card.

I've been pointing to this nice "overhead" view of the overall performance of cards in your range. A 9700P is maybe 10-15% slower than a 9800P, so about as fast as the X700 in that graph. I don't think X700s will be available in AGP form soon, so your realistic choices are ATi 9700s and 9800s or nVidia 6600GTs and 6800s. You'll almost certainly want a faster CPU than you have now, though. I'm actually upgrading from a Radeon 9100 (=GF3) to a 9700P in a few days with a 1700+. I expect some nice gains, especially with AA+AF, but the benchmarks I've run show my 1700+ is limiting me even with slightly older games, and even on this slightly moldy 9100.

BTW, all this is assuming your MB can accomodate Athlon XP Mobiles. Verify that it can before you buy one.

 

[ChineseDemocracyGNR]

For $200 I'd recommend you:

1) Sapphire Radeon 9600PRO ($106 on newegg) and a XP-Mobile processor.

2) a XP-Mobile now and wait (save) for the AGP 6600GT.

3) overclock your Athlon 1700+. If you get a decent boost than you may want to skip the XP-Mobile and just wait for the 6600GT.

 

[Pete]

A 9600 of any stripe is kind of getting long in the tooth, no? A used 9700P would be better, IMO. Just be aware of the rolling lines issue.

 

[AristoV300]

9600XT is a good choice for under $200.

 

[calyco]

Does going from a 1.4 ghz to a 1.8/2.0 make that much of a difference? Also would my A7N8X deluxe mobo accept the Athlon mobile??

 

[Vaya]

Im selling a 6 month old Radeon Pro 128 mb 256bit R360 Core with USPS shipping included for $165. Its a great price for a great card. Buying a new $400 card cause i have commitment issues =\ and i jump at shinny things that take life and money. Anyway the selling is Shaotai on this site i think its like page 3 or 4. Check it out.