Need help getting a new Graphics Card!

[Peterbaey]

Better to get BFG 260 for 20 inch screen?

Hi all. My PC has just been upgraded and these are its specs.

Intel Core 2 duo 3.16 ghz
Gigabyte S-series Ultra Durable 2 Mother Board (PCI-E x16 slot)
8800gts
600w PSU
4GB Ram
20 inch LG monitor
Running Windows Vista 32 bit
Coolermaster Cosmos Case


I am wanting to buy a new graphics card, and was looking at the BFG 260. Im a frequent gamer and I want a card that can run Crysis and Far Cry 2 very well. I was originaly looking to buy the 285 but being on a 20 inch screen I though It would perhaps be a waste of money?
Also my Mother B does not have PCI-E 2.0. Will that affect the performance of the card?

Sorry, Im not too familiar with the ins and outs of PCs, but I just want to know if the BFG 260 is a good card to get for running high end games and wether it suits my PC, or would you guys recomend any other card?

All comments are welcome.

 

[ekam]

get the most expensice nvidia ur budget allows you to

 

[Rodger]

The 285 is a tad overpriced for what it is.

The GTX260 (216 core) would serve you well, ditto a 4870 1gb if you want to go the ATI route.

If you mainly play Crysis and Farcry 2, the you would get better performance with Nvidia, since they paid the publishers lots of money to optimise the games for their cards.

Most people on these forums seem to rate the 4870 and GTX260 (216 core) as being among the best in terms of Price/Performance.

On the PCI Express situation I believe the bandwidth issue is only relevant in certain situations. Toms Hardware had a guide on this which discussed whether there were differences in performance. The card will certainly work in your Motherboard since PCI2.0 is backwards compatible, but I'm not sure specifically what, if any performance impacts there might be. Perhaps someone can shed some light on this?