What should I do with my 2900XT?

Dougiebabe2003 · 17 Jan 2008 at 20:17

As title really...

I don't know whether to sell it or keep it really...

It does more than enough for me as i'm only a casual gamer that likes grpahics on full when I do play

Only problem with it is really is the power it needs... I think it's too much on my 485W Enermax and is causing the PC to not start correctly.

Would people suggest that I sell my current card and get a 3870? I know for a fact I can't afford a 3870x2 and my only other option is to buy a new PSU and keep the 2900XT...

What would other people do?

Cheers, Doug.

Typhoon · 17 Jan 2008 at 20:27

If you can play games on it that I doubt its the graphics card thats causing your problems, when its essentially in idle and consuming the least amount of power on start up.

Monkeynut · 17 Jan 2008 at 21:00

3870 is quieter, more overclockable and greener. The 2900XT used silly amounts of power, and it could well be that your PSU can't cope. What exactly happens?

Dougiebabe2003 · 17 Jan 2008 at 23:49

It just turns on, fans light & spin up, HDD's spin up etc but it doesn't post at all.

If I leave it on like this for say 20 mins after it's been off all night, switch it off then back on it will post and work flawlessy...

God knows what's up with it.

I can't O/C my 2900XT either. Was just wondering how much people think I would get and if it's worth selling it and getting the 3870 over the 2900 really.

The PSU problem is just that I think... a problem with the PSU

Cheers, Doug.

Cyber-Mav · 18 Jan 2008 at 00:03

id lob it in the bin.

willhub · 18 Jan 2008 at 00:10

Dont get a 3870 thats for sure just a side step.

Get an 8800GT, the average overclocks of a 3870 seem around 860Mhz without any mods so I dont see how its more overclockable...

bimmerboii · 18 Jan 2008 at 09:00

Dougiebabe2003 said:
It just turns on, fans light & spin up, HDD's spin up etc but it doesn't post at all.

If I leave it on like this for say 20 mins after it's been off all night, switch it off then back on it will post and work flawlessy...

God knows what's up with it.

I can't O/C my 2900XT either. Was just wondering how much people think I would get and if it's worth selling it and getting the 3870 over the 2900 really.

The PSU problem is just that I think... a problem with the PSU

Cheers, Doug.

may I ask what is your mobo? Sounds like a similar problem with my mobo not graphics card

YorkshirePadd26 · 18 Jan 2008 at 09:14

What should I do with my 2900XT?

Burn it with fire !

Darg · 18 Jan 2008 at 09:28

I still like mine, it may be a hulking red monster in my PC eating up all my megawatts but I still love it. It was my first ever high end card and there is still no game that I can't run maxed out even now that I've moved to 1680x1050 (which surprised me).

I'll be keeping mine until games actually can't run on it with high settings. The only thing that bugs me is that at the moment it's spinning up even when on idle but my system just needs a good cleanout.

EDIT: and tbh your bootup problems sound to be motherboard based, no reason the graphics card would be causing it if your system can run it perfect otherwise.

Streeteh · 18 Jan 2008 at 09:44

Darg said:
It was my first ever high end card and there is still no game that I can't run maxed out even now that I've moved to 1680x1050 (which surprised me).

Crysis?

[/fenickety]

Tbh the 3870 sounds like the way to go to me, the 8800 is considerably more expensive these days and if the 2900 is meeting your needs i don't see why you need something more powerful. Its got the lowest power consumption of the 'high end' cards and works well in crossfire if you ever decide you do need a monster PC.

Scougar · 18 Jan 2008 at 09:50

Sell it

You can buy an aftermarket cooler if it's too hot and you REALLY want to keep it, but I would advise selling it before it is worth nothing at all. The 3870 are much better alround cards, and won't cost that much to upgrade, or if your lucky, free/extra cash

Matthew

willhub · 18 Jan 2008 at 09:54

Its worth peanuts allready, probs get about £80, it'll go lower when the 3870X2 comes out.

Darg · 18 Jan 2008 at 10:11

If you can sell the 2900XT for the same or greater price as getting a new 3870 then I'd do that but I highly doubt anyones that daft.. are they??

@Streetah: I play everything in XP so hacked very high Crysis still works fine. As in around 20-25FPS which isn't perfect of course but can anyone get much better

For some reason 25FPS doesn't seem so bad in Crysis either, probably the motion blurring effect I've talked about before on here.

willhub · 18 Jan 2008 at 10:13

Darg said:
If you can sell the 2900XT for the same or greater price as getting a new 3870 then I'd do that but I highly doubt anyones that daft.. are they??

@Streetah: I play everything in XP so hacked very high Crysis still works fine. As in around 20-25FPS which isn't perfect of course but can anyone get much better

For some reason 25FPS doesn't seem so bad in Crysis either, probably the motion blurring effect I've talked about before on here.

I get 30-40fps in crysis with hacked very high (XP)

gareth170 · 18 Jan 2008 at 10:53

no point buying a 3870 its same performance as the 2900xt..if u want something faster get a 8800gt..

HeX · 18 Jan 2008 at 11:13

Sounds like the PSU is on the way out, had an old Thermaltake PSU that would do the same, basically had to turn it on once, then let it stand while it 'charged up' then after about 5mins I could press the power button again and it would start.

About a month later it died completely.

Emlyn_Dewar · 18 Jan 2008 at 11:14

I wouldn't buy an 8800GT as an upgrade from a 2900XT if only a "casual gamer", it's an expense for not much reward.
Does sound similar to PSU issues I had before with my Hiper 580w...

Had to warm up before it worked with my 7800s. (safe)

I'd just get a new PSU.

rjk · 18 Jan 2008 at 11:26

HeX said:
Sounds like the PSU is on the way out, had an old Thermaltake PSU that would do the same, basically had to turn it on once, then let it stand while it 'charged up' then after about 5mins I could press the power button again and it would start.

About a month later it died completely.

same problem with me
i have a 600w modular psu now - easy to cable manage
better airflow in the case
stable power supply to my 8800gt and my 7900gtx before that

you dont want a new card - dont take on board people badmouthing the 2900
if it does what you want it to like you say then there is no reason to upgrade and face the prospect of losing money.

why not look at something like a 600w stealthxtreme ocz psu if you are on a budget.

it would be stable enough for a single card setup and would ensure that your powerhungry card gets enough

plus you would avoid all the stress that ensues if your psu is on the way out.

keep your card until YOU want to upgrade
not until people bad mouth it.

good luck

uv · 18 Jan 2008 at 12:09

YorkshirePadd26 said:
What should I do with my 2900XT?

Burn it with fire !

I'm sure that Quote style is trademarked by Pottsey

You may owe him royalties!

Fire Wizard · 18 Jan 2008 at 12:26

Hello Dougiebabe2003, what other components have you got in your system? Unless you are using quite a few hard drives, expansion cards, your Enermax should be absolutely fine.

Have you tried taking the CMOS battery and restoring the BIOS to default settings?