• Competitor rules

    Please remember that any mention of competitors, hinting at competitors or offering to provide details of competitors will result in an account suspension. The full rules can be found under the 'Terms and Rules' link in the bottom right corner of your screen. Just don't mention competitors in any way, shape or form and you'll be OK.

Suggest a video card.

BoomAM

BoomAM

BoomAM

Soldato
Joined
5 Jul 2003
Posts
16,206
Location
Atlanta, USA
Hi.
Ive decided to devote £380 to a upgrade to my computer.
Taken off the £380 already is £165 to buy a replacement HDD & a new PSU (550W).
So, that leaves me with about £215.
Im looking for a video card to drive my 2 Samsung 172x TFTs.

What video card should i be looking at buying? Im not well up on the new video cards, theres so many varients now its rediculus and i havnt bothered keeping upto date.
My immediate target 'game' is X3 & prehaps HL:EP1. So certainly the first of those games is very graphically intensive.

I'd prefer it to be an ATI card, purely as it can potentially save me some trouble moving from my X800XL to that.
But, if the equilivent nVidia card is that much better at the same price point, i'd get the nVidia card. So really, im open to what chip manufacturer i end up getting. :)

Or, would i be better sticking with what ive got at the moment for a few months, and splashing out on G80 or R600?

Thanks in advance all. :)
 
A G80 or R600 will be more than £215 - try double that figure.

If I were you I'd go for either the HIS X1900XT or a 7900 GTO. They seem to be the sweet spot of price/performance. Not too sure about how well they run 2 TFTs, but no reason they should have any problems. If you play Oblivion, the X1900XT; if not the 7900 GTO is (apparently) quieter, more overclockable, and has twice the memory. HL2 and X3 should be fine with either.
 
melbourne720 said:
A G80 or R600 will be more than £215 - try double that figure.

If I were you I'd go for either the HIS X1900XT or a 7900 GTO. They seem to be the sweet spot of price/performance.
Click to expand...

Thats the way I looked at it, when DX10 comes out at the start of next year or whenever, they will cost a bomb, new technology, big demand. Then they will be sort of still not fully stable. So I'd probly wait till the second or third line of DX10 cards so they will be cheaper and stable and more configured after testing goes on around the net on sites such as firing squad.
 
melbourne720 said:
A G80 or R600 will be more than £215 - try double that figure.
Click to expand...
I know. Hence why i suggested waiting. Prehaps i should have put 'saved' as well. ;)

Im looking for a card thats quiet as well, and i have no intension of OCing the video card at all. So OCability isnt a factor.

So the 7900GTO is recommended?
What about the GeForce 7950 GT cards? From what i can tell, they are just 7900s built on a different process. And if i was to spend an extra few quid and get the EVGA one, i'd be getting one thats HDCP compatible as well.
 
BoomAM said:
I know. Hence why i suggested waiting. Prehaps i should have put 'saved' as well. ;)

Im looking for a card thats quiet as well, and i have no intension of OCing the video card at all. So OCability isnt a factor.

So the 7900GTO is recommended?
What about the GeForce 7950 GT cards? From what i can tell, they are just 7900s built on a different process. And if i was to spend an extra few quid and get the EVGA one, i'd be getting one thats HDCP compatible as well.
Click to expand...

Well I asked one of the staff at OcUK and they said that the 7900 GTO basically destroys the 7950.
 
Macabre said:
Well I asked one of the staff at OcUK and they said that the 7900 GTO basically destroys the 7950.
Click to expand...

Agreed, the accepted wisdom (as much as anything is on these forums!) is that

(a) the G80 and R600 will cost a fortune, and most probably need their own PSU;
(b) the 7900 GTO has bags of o/c headroom, is quiet, fast, has 512MB of GDDR3 and is the best value for money card at the moment;
(c) if you're playing oblivion and want all the bells and whistles then x1900XT is the way to go, allow HDR and AA at the same time (Nvidia can't do that... yet)
 
Macabre said:
Well I asked one of the staff at OcUK and they said that the 7900 GTO basically destroys the 7950.
Click to expand...
Theres a good source. lol.
Considering they've got a special offer on the GTO on, of course they're gonna pimp it! lol. :p

Any good benchmark/reviews around of the GTO vs the 7950?
 
Im not really interested in Oblivion.

At the moment, it'd be X3, HL2:Ep1.
And in the future, HL2:Ep2, Crysis, Stalker, that game by the TA team, C&C.
 
melbourne720 said:
Agreed, the accepted wisdom (as much as anything is on these forums!) is that

(a) the G80 and R600 will cost a fortune, and most probably need their own PSU;
(b) the 7900 GTO has bags of o/c headroom, is quiet, fast, has 512MB of GDDR3 and is the best value for money card at the moment;
(c) if you're playing oblivion and want all the bells and whistles then x1900XT is the way to go, allow HDR and AA at the same time (Nvidia can't do that... yet)
Click to expand...

I play Oblivion, but which is better HDR or AA. I know what they both are but which looks better graphically. I do play Oblivion but I play BF2, F.E.A.R., Company of Heroes, COD 2, Quake 4 etc. Lots more. But the point is the 7900 GTO will be better for it all overall?
 
BoomAM said:
Im not really interested in Oblivion.

At the moment, it'd be X3, HL2:Ep1.
And in the future, HL2:Ep2, Crysis, Stalker, that game by the TA team, C&C.
Click to expand...

HL2 Episodes are a rip off, paying £20 for each episode. Valve can make 50 of them and think how much cash they would make, good concept but evil idea ;) .

Crysis is going to be a DX10 game, but it can be played in DX9 mode hence the reason you want a top of the range graphics card.

Stalker, that game looks ace but its constantly being delayed, its been what? 4 years since it was announced? C&C Command and Conquer the new one I guess? probly need a pretty good spec, considering Company of Heroes requires a pretty good PC to run it nicely.
 
Macabre said:
HL2 Episodes are a rip off, paying £20 for each episode. Valve can make 50 of them and think how much cash they would make, good concept but evil idea ;) .

Crysis is going to be a DX10 game, but it can be played in DX9 mode hence the reason you want a top of the range graphics card.

Stalker, that game looks ace but its constantly being delayed, its been what? 4 years since it was announced? C&C Command and Conquer the new one I guess? probly need a pretty good spec, considering Company of Heroes requires a pretty good PC to run it nicely.
Click to expand...
The merits of what Valve are charging doesnt really have a lot to do with what video card i choose though does it? ;)
4 years in development? Thats nothing, DNF anyone.......? :p
 
BoomAM said:
The merits of what Valve are charging doesnt really have a lot to do with what video card i choose though does it? ;)
4 years in development? Thats nothing, DNF anyone.......? :p
Click to expand...

You already got your answers, I was just adding the bonus of my criticism of Valve ;)
 
7900 gto or x1900xt 256
take your pick
7900 gto best value for money and double the memory
we will have to wait and see how the x1950 pro overclocks ,
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom