Current state of play with graphics cards

alexthecheese · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:04

Hi, was looking at upgrading my PC in time for Christmas, going the whole hog - CPU, Memory, graphics + the rest - but I was wondering if there's anything in the pipeline that I should wait for?

I read that someone mentioned that the '2nd gen dx10 graphics cards' or some such are to be released next year, is that true?

Admiral Huddy · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:06

You can't go wrong with the 8800GT combined with a Q6600 at the moment regardless of what's round the corner. Stick some GeIL PC2-6400 memory, overclock it to 3.2Ghz and you'll have a decent system for peanuts.

easyrider · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:11

Admiral Huddy said:
You can't go wrong with the 8800GT combined with a Q6600 at the moment regardless of what's round the corner. Stick some GeIL PC2-6400 memory, overclock it to 3.2Ghz and you'll have a decent system for peanuts.

Totally agree here.

alexthecheese · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:14

That's what I was thinking, and it does look reasonably priced for the kit at the moment. Is there significantly anything better around within the next 3-4 months though?

Mr.Clark · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:25

Admiral Huddy said:
You can't go wrong with the 8800GT combined with a Q6600 at the moment regardless of what's round the corner. Stick some GeIL PC2-6400 memory, overclock it to 3.2Ghz and you'll have a decent system for peanuts.

So you don't think the 8800GT has anything to worry about from the new 38xx ATI cards?

thor · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:30

Mr.Clark said:
So you don't think the 8800GT has anything to worry about from the new 38xx ATI cards?

Early reviews would suggest no...

Mr.Clark · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:32

*does not cancel GT order*

Thanks

LoadsaMoney · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:34

Mr.Clark said:
So you don't think the 8800GT has anything to worry about from the new 38xx ATI cards?

From what has been said, if you just read 2900 XT reviews, then you'll know how good the 38's are, as they are the same performance as them supposedly, seen as they are 2900's, only smaller, and with a name change.

marscay · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:35

Mr.Clark said:
So you don't think the 8800GT has anything to worry about from the new 38xx ATI cards?

as a single card no i really think the GT is probably the way to go

things get a bit more complicated when thinking of 2 cards however.....xfire is more appealing than sli imo.

vorm · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:43

Is there supposed to be a 8800GT2 slated for the new year - I'm waiting to see what jan brings and then I'm bringing the cash to the party.

alexthecheese · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:48

What's this AMD Spider platform all about then? Is that supposed to be as powerful as they claim? Sounds a bit too good to be true...

Mr.Clark · 14 Nov 2007 at 11:49

marscay said:
as a single card no i really think the GT is probably the way to go

things get a bit more complicated when thinking of 2 cards however.....xfire is more appealing than sli imo.

Hmm... toss in the fact that I game at 1920x1200 and have the the P5W DH Deluxe which is Crossfire compatible...

But then I'd have to get two cards... :/

Teaf · 14 Nov 2007 at 12:09

Apparantly two 3 new cards coming out Q1 ish that I know of that migh be worth waiting for:

AMD 3870 X2
Nvidia 88xx GX2
Nvidia 8800 GTS (new model) - before Christmas?

There's also the new Quads I think? But I still can't disagree with Admiral Huddy in that buying a Q6600 and a 8800GT/3850XT now isn't a bad thing.

marscay · 14 Nov 2007 at 12:14

Mr.Clark said:
Hmm... toss in the fact that I game at 1920x1200 and have the the P5W DH Deluxe which is Crossfire compatible...

But then I'd have to get two cards... :/

and don't forget a shiny new x38 for dual 16x lanes

Mr.Clark · 14 Nov 2007 at 12:21

marscay said:
and don't forget a shiny new x38 for dual 16x lanes

It says on the ASUS website that it has 2 x PCI-E x 16

Is that not right?

I'm not prepared to change the motherboard, so if I can't get a decent Crossfire, it'll be the best single card, which is the 8800GT. But if I can... tricky questions are ahead...

Teaf · 14 Nov 2007 at 12:29

Mr.Clark said:
It says on the ASUS website that it has 2 x PCI-E x 16

Is that not right?

Kinda... they are 2x 16x slots when only using one slot, when you use both they aren't.

The Running Man · 14 Nov 2007 at 12:33

Mr.Clark said:
It says on the ASUS website that it has 2 x PCI-E x 16

Is that not right?

I'm not prepared to change the motherboard, so if I can't get a decent Crossfire, it'll be the best single card, which is the 8800GT. But if I can... tricky questions are ahead...

technically the 8800GT is not the best single card, but it does provide best bang per buck... or will in a week or 2 when supply is sorted out!

Mr.Clark · 14 Nov 2007 at 12:45

Nickg said:
technically the 8800GT is not the best single card, but it does provide best bang per buck... or will in a week or 2 when supply is sorted out!

Yeah, if I had the money to get a GTX I would. But meh.

flibby said:
Kinda... they are 2x 16x slots when only using one slot, when you use both they aren't.

So are there any links to how it performs? Is Crossfire worth it?

(sorry for the hijacking of the thread, by the way...)

Sir Random · 14 Nov 2007 at 13:17

alexthecheese said:
I read that someone mentioned that the '2nd gen dx10 graphics cards' or some such are to be released next year, is that true?

Yes, nVidia will be launching their 9th-Gen cards early next year, which should be a massive boost over current hardware.

The current releases (8800GT, HD38**) are great value, but they're just the 8th-Gen mid-range refreshes. The 9th-Gen mid-range cards will be a lot more powerful.

The Running Man · 14 Nov 2007 at 13:20

the 8800GT to me is akin to te 6800GS, and the 7800GS which followed it..