Bit behind on GFX, so where are we now then?

[FatRakoon]

Putting it simply as I can, I am a tad behind in the graphics area of PCs.

I see all this about 8800 and 1950 and now 2900 and so on, and all I can think of, is where they compare to my 256K Cirrus Logic ISA Card!!!?!? - Ok, slight joke there.

Seriously though... I am about to buy 4 new cards... 3 cards will be the same card for my 3 kids and the other one a bit better for myself.

Can anyone recommend me somehting?

I will need to know what they compare to also.

For example, my Kids are on

AGP 1 = BFG 6600GT
AGP 2 = Asus 7900GTS
PCIE = Gigabyte 6600GT
I am on an x1950 Pro which I may be sticking on, I dont know?

I had thought abotu getting 2 more of these x1950s and getting myself an 8800 but how much better is the 8800 than the x1950? - Im thinking about the BFG 8800 for £202 and the x1950 I have, is the Saphire 1950 Pro.

Any suggestions?

 

[LLBDTiberio]

Hmmm, the X1950pro's sure are great cards, but it depends on what your children will be using their pc's for.
In regards to the 8800 series, are you running Vista, if you are, then i'd strongly suggest Ati cards as the Nvidia drivers are a bit rubbish.
The best card on the market is still the 8800GTX although reviews of the new Ati HD2900XT suggest a great compromise between the GTS and GTX.
But I really don't want to tell you what to get, no matter what I say someone will turn this into a fanboi fight

 

[Fr0dders]

biggest misconception about the 8800 Cards is they're only usefull for vista or for DX10

the 8800 Cards (and indeed the ATI 2900) do DX9 as well, and at the moment nvidia very much has the lead

the 2900 XT doesnt beat the 8800 GTS and costs more than it, the 8800 GTX is by the fastest card you could ever need, and costs about £350 if you shop around.

the X1900 / X1950's do make a decent attempt of being a good value card, as they were cutting edge tech on release, so can still cope with any game at 1280 x 1024 with AA and AF. If you can stand the fan noise ..

(a X1900 XTX owner)

 

[Oddw1re]

Get the kids some x1950 Pro's

 

[Nelly]

the X1900 / X1950's do make a decent attempt of being a good value card, as they were cutting edge tech on release, so can still cope with any game at 1280 x 1024 with AA and AF. If you can stand the fan noise ..

(a X1900 XTX owner)

I can agree with that, the IceQ version doesnt make any noise at all, if you decide to get one second hand, it does struggle with Vanguard though at 1280 x 1024 with medium settings in certain areas.

 

[bfar]

In regards to the 8800 series, are you running Vista, if you are, then i'd strongly suggest Ati cards as the Nvidia drivers are a bit rubbish.

Thats not quite true, the latest Nividia Vista drivers are actually quite good. Still not as quick as xp, but closing in. A GTX will still be faster than any ATI card in Vista. The only thing thats slightly faster is a GTX in XP

 

[Sparky]

Get the kids some x1950 Pro's

Yup what he said and a 8800GTS for yourself

 

[FatRakoon]

Ok guys it seems to be the given then that the ATI is a better option for the lower end ( Lower end??? : Sheesh! Are PCs moving that quickly? ) and the 8800 is a better option for myself.

Ok then... I have had a look at a few models...

Any models in particular hitting the spot with you guys?

HIS...

I have to be 100% honest here guys, but I had 3 dead HIS Excalibur 9800Pros and eventually after being shafted Left, Right and Center by HIS, I eventually took them through the SCC to get my money back, and I have no intention of EVER owning one of their products again ( Although I can now happily say that they know never to go against me in court again should the warranty prove poo )

LeadteK... I still got an old Ti4200 going every bit as good as the day I bought it... I was thinking along the lines of them?

Anyway I was considering the 1950s that are floating at the £150 mark, and the 8800 at about the £200 mark... You must remember, I need 3 of the 1950 cards and one 8800 so even at these prices Im talking £650 +

The games they are playing are Mostly UT2K4 which by the way plays just peachy as-is but I fancy taking it up a few notches, and UT3 is already on its way with me already having pre-paid for 4 copies of it, so it will need to play that fairly well.

And I want the buggers to be able to play Doom3 at 1024x768 without a single glitch.

They should all do that surely?

 

[Tombo]

Apparetly with the new driver the 2900XT is now better than the 8800GTS but my X1900XT copes at 1680x1050 with AA and AF so I don't know what these people are talking about saying it will only really cope at 1280x1024 but apart from that I don't really know too much at the moment. But yeah all those cards will cope with Doom 3 easily.