How well will a X1800XT 256mb run HL 2, Episode 1 and Episode 2?

just Scott

just Scott

just Scott

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Hey,

Just wondering if an X1800XT will be enough to run all of these games on highest settings? I tried searching for benchmarks but couldn't find any.

Thanks

Other specs if it matters: E6320 @ 2.8Ghz, 1GB RAM.
 
Definitely enough for Ep1 fully maxxed, Ep2 introduces some new eye candy that reduced FPS a little so you may have to disable AA/AF in order to keep things smooth. They will still look just about as good as they can get and run at a perfectly playable framerate.
 
I have an x1800xt and i have to turn off HDR if i want to play with max quality settings at 1680x1050. Even then i can only have 2AA/8AF to keep it playable.
 
paradigm said:
Should be fine on any resolution up to around 1680x1050.
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That's what I plan to use.

Streeteh said:
Definitely enough for Ep1 fully maxxed, Ep2 introduces some new eye candy that reduced FPS a little so you may have to disable AA/AF in order to keep things smooth. They will still look just about as good as they can get and run at a perfectly playable framerate.
Click to expand...

Hmm, ok.

Thanks lads.

mark1 said:
I have an x1800xt and i have to turn off HDR if i want to play with max quality settings at 1680x1050. Even then i can only have 2AA/8AF to keep it playable.
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Which game? Episode 2?

Would a x1950 Pro do better? I have like £50 to spend on a video card. :(
 
mark1 said:
I have an x1800xt and i have to turn off HDR if i want to play with max quality settings at 1680x1050. Even then i can only have 2AA/8AF to keep it playable.
Click to expand...

Guess it's a matter of opinion since I played them all at that res with 4AA/8AF and a much lower overall spec, maybe I'm just used to the low framerate now :(
 
So would a x1950 Pro perform better? Are there any other £50ish video cards (used price I mean) I should look out for?

I probably should have posted this in the video card section haha.
 
H2F Scott said:
Which game? Episode 2?

Would a x1950 Pro do better? I have like £50 to spend on a video card. :(
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Both. Episode 2 is more demanding but i couldn't have HDR on in either game unless i turned down the resolution.

It should be only slightly better in some occasions. They were pretty much on par, sometimes the x1800xt would perform better, sometimes it would perform worse. It's probably the best card you can get for £50, although i'm not too sure if the 8600GT beats it or not.
mnet674 said:
Guess it's a matter of opinion since I played them all at that res with 4AA/8AF and a much lower overall spec, maybe I'm just used to the low framerate now :(
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Maybe it's me setting my mouse sensitivity too high, but i definately couldn't play with HDR on.
 
Well, yes it would perform better, but it certainly isn't worth the upgrade. Your card will handle it fine, i played HL2 through for the first time on a 9800pro and enjoyed every minute of it despite only playing on medium. You will be able to play HL2 + Ep1 on the very highest settings and Ep2 at damn near close to that if you're fussy about framerates, but you could prob max it out if you don't mind the odd dip.

To cut a long story short, don't bother upgrading.
 
Streeteh said:
Well, yes it would perform better, but it certainly isn't worth the upgrade. Your card will handle it fine, i played HL2 through for the first time on a 9800pro and enjoyed every minute of it despite only playing on medium. You will be able to play HL2 + Ep1 on the very highest settings and Ep2 at damn near close to that if you're fussy about framerates, but you could prob max it out if you don't mind the odd dip.

To cut a long story short, don't bother upgrading.
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My current card is a 6600GT. :p

X1800XT was the card I was looking at to upgrade to. I've just bought a new monitor and I've only got about 50 quid to spend on a video card.

I'm not much of a PC gamer, so I doubt I'm fussy about framerates. Though I wouldn't know because the most demanding game I've ever played is Black & White 2 :D. I've always wanted to play the HL series, and now is a good time with the monitor upgrade and all. I don't want an expensive card because I won't play much, these 3 games will probably keep me going for 6 months+.
 
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H2F Scott said:
My current card is a 6600GT. :p

X1800XT was the card I was looking at to upgrade to. I've just bought a new monitor and I've only got about 50 quid to spend on a video card.

I'm not much of a PC gamer, so I doubt I'm fussy about framerates. Though I wouldn't know because the most demanding game I've ever played is Black & White 2. :D
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What a coincidence, i had a 6600GT before my x1800xt too :p

To be precise it was actually two 6600GT's in SLi. When i upgraded to the x1800xt the performance difference was huge. If you can get the x1800xt for £50 then go for it. There's no point spending the extra for an x1950pro if it's more expensive.

However, wait till someone comes along and can confirm whether the 8600GT would be a better deal as that's around £50 as well.
 
mark1 said:
What a coincidence, i had a 6600GT before my x1800xt too :p

To be precise it was actually two 6600GT's in SLi. When i upgraded to the x1800xt the performance difference was huge. If you can get the x1800xt for £50 then go for it. There's no point spending the extra for an x1950pro if it's more expensive.

However, wait till someone comes along and can confirm whether the 8600GT would be a better deal as that's around £50 as well.
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Hmm, benchmarks seem to favour the X1800XT for most games.

I think I'll just go with the X1800XT. Never had an ATi card before. :p
 
Try and get one like mine, with an accellero X2 cooler on it, clock it to 700core 800mem and enjoy the added speedyness :)

Personally i only have mine at stock, but even playing crysis i dont think the fan hardly changes at all!

edit - If you dont like high pitch fans definaltely get one with accellero X2 on. Well worth the stupid whining noise when the stock fan goes into henry mode!
 
geeza said:
Try and get one like mine, with an accellero X2 cooler on it, clock it to 700core 800mem and enjoy the added speedyness :)

Personally i only have mine at stock, but even playing crysis i dont think the fan hardly changes at all!

edit - If you dont like high pitch fans definaltely get one with accellero X2 on. Well worth the stupid whining noise when the stock fan goes into henry mode!
Click to expand...

I don't mind noise personally. My computer is already very noisy. I'm not bothered though.
 
geeza said:
Well get one anyway then and set the fan to full. Clock it to 700/800 and enjoy the added clocks and lower temps
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Will do thanks. :)

Oh, I have a general question about ATi cards if you don't mind. I use my HDTV as a second monitor (watch videos/films on the TV, use the computer normally on the monitor) so I was wondering if dual monitors is easy to set up on ATI cards? Is it as simple as going into the control panel, choosing the second monitor and setting a resolution (1360x768 for example) like on Nvidia cards?
 
yep a 3 year old could do it. right click, properties, dropdown, drag resolution, apply

As seen here

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I think you can fart around with advanced driver settings and stuff to do it too. Ive only installed the basic drivers without all the tools for setting aa, af etc

It works easily, doesnt crash and i can overclock with ATITool if i want
 
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