Which video card to buy?

[Scott78945]

I am getting a new desktop and unsure what video card I should put into it. I will be running a P4 with HT technology with 1gm RAM and 250gb harddrive. I will be using a 21" HD LCD with DVI. I am not a real huge gamer but I would like to play Doom 3 and Quake 4 if possible. Anyone have any suggestions? I will have 1 PCI Express X16 slot open. I had an NVIDIA chip in my last computer and had no problems with that. I would only assume I should be getting 256mb RAM as opposed to the 128mb? It will be coming with the Intel Integrated 900 graphics chip which I dont' think will be doing much. Thanks all.

 

[Powermoloch]

Your budget?

 

[Fern]

For those games I'd go for 256MB of vid ram and at least a 6800GT.

But whats your budget?

 

[lifeguard1999]

How much can you afford?

$460 for a 7800GTX
$365 for a 7800GT (lower with rebate -> $290 offer at tech bargains dot com)
$283 for a 6800GT (again lower with rebate)
$148 for a 6600GT (also lower with rebate)

Then there is ATI which has released some good cards lately.

$440 for a x1800XL

 

[Scott78945]

Sorry, my budget is probably around $150-$200. When I ordered my system I didn't even realize that it came with this integrated stuff. Not a big fan of it but I never seen it in action. I can't think that its that great though. I was just looking at video cards on Newegg.com and can someone please tell me why are there so many companies that seem to be selling the same product? Is there a specific company that I should be looking for?

 

[Sunrise089]

GTO^2 if it goes back down, otherwise Connect3D GTO, so far 100% unlock, even though it will probably not OC quite as much, its nice and cheap.

 

[videoclone]

6600GT No question about it. It's the Open GL VALUE KING and it will give you more FPS per $$$ on those two games listed then any other videocard.

 

[WhipperSnapper]

Originally posted by: Sunrise089
GTO^2 if it goes back down, otherwise Connect3D GTO, so far 100% unlock, even though it will probably not OC quite as much, its nice and cheap.

What? 100% unlock for the Connect3D GTO ???

Unsurprisingly, the prices for that particular card--the Connect3D GTO, have increased over the past week according to Anandtech's Real-Time Pricing Engine.

That having been said, if there's a 75% chance that they'll unlock, it almost makes those cards the PCI-E equivalent of the 6800nu in AGP. (I think they have 256 RAM and 12 pipes stock?)

 

[Sunrise089]

Originally posted by: WhipperSnapper

Originally posted by: Sunrise089
GTO^2 if it goes back down, otherwise Connect3D GTO, so far 100% unlock, even though it will probably not OC quite as much, its nice and cheap.

What? 100% unlock for the Connect3D GTO ???

Unsurprisingly, the prices for that particular card--the Connect3D GTO, have increased over the past week according to Anandtech's Real-Time Pricing Engine.

That having been said, if there's a 75% chance that they'll unlock, it almost makes those cards the PCI-E equivalent of the 6800nu in AGP. (I think they have 256 RAM and 12 pipes stock?)

100% overclock rate is here

concerns with Connect3D are slower memory (2.0 versus 1.6, is that nanoseconds?) and no guarenteed R480 core, so it may only be a X800XT-PE, not an X850XT-PE. Still worth getting for $175 to me when all of the GTO^2s are at $255

 

[Scott78945]

Does the 6600GT require an additional fan for cooling? Can I just put this into the computer an forget about it or do I need to monitor it for overheating. Does it only come in 128mb or should I be getting the 256mb? I couldn't tell from the website I was lookint to buy it from. Does it matte what company makes it? I don't understand the different companies making the same chips. Are they really not the same?

 

[midnight growler]

Originally posted by: Scott78945
Does the 6600GT require an additional fan for cooling? Can I just put this into the computer an forget about it or do I need to monitor it for overheating. Does it only come in 128mb or should I be getting the 256mb? I couldn't tell from the website I was lookint to buy it from. Does it matte what company makes it? I don't understand the different companies making the same chips. Are they really not the same?

6600GTs come with built in fans for cooling, they stock fans are fine as long as you don't overlock them much. IIRC they only come with 128mb.

As for the manufacturer, nVidia designs the cards and the manufacturers basically just follows the design. Most people recommend going with popular brands like BFG, eVGA and Leadtek. BFG and eVGA both have lifetime warrenties on their cards and eVGA has a feature called "Step Up." For up until 90 days after you buy your card, you can buy a newer card from them and they will buy your current card from you at your full purchase price. That might be a good idea for you might get some more money to spend in the near future, but don't want to wait until then.

I would personally would reccomend staying away from the XFX and PNY brands. Some people believe their cards arn't as well made, but others havn't had a problem with them. As long as you don't really overclock your card, you should be fine though.

Lasty, if you do decide to get a 6600GT, be careful when you install it. There have been some issues with the heatsink getting dislodged if its handled the wrong way. Just be very careful and use common sense when you install it and you should be fine.

 

[Sam334]

Originally posted by: lifeguard1999
How much can you afford?

$460 for a 7800GTX
$365 for a 7800GT (lower with rebate -> $290 offer at tech bargains dot com)
$283 for a 6800GT (again lower with rebate)
$148 for a 6600GT (also lower with rebate)

Then there is ATI which has released some good cards lately.

$440 for a x1800XL

Link?


edit*


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814119144


Is that a decent price for the agp 256 mb version?

 

[Scott78945]

Thanks for all the info Midnight Growler. It is good to know that there is a company that will allow you to bump up. That seems really nice. I just wasn't sure if 128mb was enough. I trust everyones suggestions as this is new territory for me. FYI, I have no idea what overclocking is so I guess I won't be doing it. I told you I was a newbie, LOL.

 

[midnight growler]

Well I was basically in your position a little more than 6 months ago, the only thing I knew then was that my computer wasn't going fast enough I still consider myself a newbie, but this is the best place to learn, don't be afraid to ask questions!

Heres a good guide for the 6600Gt series of cards: http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=2295
It has some benchmarks (speed tests) for some of the popular models so you can compare them.

Tom's Hardware has a bunch of benchmark tests for all kinds of video cards (although this is the only part of Tom's Hardware I recommend looking at, there has been lots of accuasations that the writers are biased towards certain products and brands). Its been a while since they did their last series of tests, but you're not interested in the current cutting-edge cards so thats ok. http://graphics.tomshardware.com/graphic/vga_charts.html

 

[Lufusol]

Since this thread already exists, and it's been a while since I did any nitty-gritty videocard homework (last one 6600gt purchased in Dec 04) I'm curious. I'm trying to help my buddy decide the best videocard upgrade. He wants to play Quake 4 (nicely) with me and CPU and RAM are adequate(P42.66/1GB) but he's still using an ol' Ti 4600!

Now the pricerange is around $150 give or take, say, 30 bucks. I know the 6600GTs and 6800 vanillas are very close in performance, and match the price range. Is there a particular one that would be the best bang for his bucks? Should I help him find a good 6600GT or a 6800 vanilla? And why?

Thanks.

-luf

edit: ps. It's gotta be AGP, and what's this about the 6800nu? By which manufacturer? If there's a high rate of success being unlocked/oc'd decently then he'll probably spend a little more... Please elaborate and/or post links In the mean time I'll go do some searching of my own.

 

[Eureka]

I would say 6800 NU, or a x800 Pro refurb from ATI for 180 (whenever they're out, you might have to wait a bit).

As for these, just put it in and forget about it.

Norm

 

[SnoMunke]

Originally posted by: midnight growler

Originally posted by: Scott78945
Does the 6600GT require an additional fan for cooling? Can I just put this into the computer an forget about it or do I need to monitor it for overheating. Does it only come in 128mb or should I be getting the 256mb? I couldn't tell from the website I was lookint to buy it from. Does it matte what company makes it? I don't understand the different companies making the same chips. Are they really not the same?

6600GTs come with built in fans for cooling, they stock fans are fine as long as you don't overlock them much. IIRC they only come with 128mb.

As for the manufacturer, nVidia designs the cards and the manufacturers basically just follows the design. Most people recommend going with popular brands like BFG, eVGA and Leadtek. BFG and eVGA both have lifetime warrenties on their cards and eVGA has a feature called "Step Up." For up until 90 days after you buy your card, you can buy a newer card from them and they will buy your current card from you at your full purchase price. That might be a good idea for you might get some more money to spend in the near future, but don't want to wait until then.

I would personally would reccomend staying away from the XFX and PNY brands. Some people believe their cards arn't as well made, but others havn't had a problem with them. As long as you don't really overclock your card, you should be fine though.

Lasty, if you do decide to get a 6600GT, be careful when you install it. There have been some issues with the heatsink getting dislodged if its handled the wrong way. Just be very careful and use common sense when you install it and you should be fine.

XFX cards are not well made? Anandtech.com was recommending the XFX 7800GT.... and XFX offers double lifetime warranty...how can that be beat?

 

[midnight growler]

Well like I said, its subjective. Ive heard good and Ive heard bad. Theres room to argue both ways, Im just telling him the debate is there.

 

[Lufusol]

Originally posted by: midnight growler
Well like I said, its subjective. Ive heard good and Ive heard bad. Theres room to argue both ways, Im just telling him the debate is there.

Every company has duds and to go with them, their own angry mob. BFG a.k.a. "Big Flaming Graphics [card]" has had their share of bad reputations, too, and I believe you mentioned them. I have an XFX 6600GT and I've heard IF you have a problem their support is horrible - i.e. getting crippled refurbs in exchange, etc. Other horror stories. But really, I drilled some holes in my ol' P4 2.66 stock retail HSF and swapped out the XFX dinkyfan, and haven't had a problem with it even at high OCs (it never gets above 49c, idle or load ). So there are success stories, too. I'm sure even BFG has fans.

 

[Lufusol]

Ok I think this got missed even though I put it in the edit. Which of the 6800s are recommended for high rate of success in unlocking/overclocking? I would prefer a brand name, model, and damn good reason if you can provide it . Otherwise I'm just going to recommend he get the cheapest 6600GT he can find until post-xmas pushes the higher end $$ down.

 

[orangat]

There was a poster who had problem even getting hold of XFX support for an RMA.

 

[SnoMunke]

Woe is me...I just bought a XFX 7800GT last week and it's in the mail now... should I refuse delivery and get something else?

 

[lifeguard1999]

Originally posted by: SnoMunke

Originally posted by: midnight growler
I would personally would reccomend staying away from the XFX and PNY brands. Some people believe their cards arn't as well made, but others havn't had a problem with them.

XFX cards are not well made? Anandtech.com was recommending the XFX 7800GT.... and XFX offers double lifetime warranty...how can that be beat?

My dual-DVI XFX has been running just fine.