Topic: Video Card

[Dragonlor]

What do you guys think about this video card?  Just looking for some opinions.Video card

[Pugnate]

Hi I am assuming you have an AGP mobo? What games are you looking to play?

Currently in AGP cards that seems to be the best option at $110. I am surprised I can't find the X1950 AGP by ATi. If you can find that at $150, go for it.

[Dragonlor]

Mostly what I want to play with a little bit more consistent frame rate is tabula rasa.  Otherwise I'm not all so much of a pc gamer besides a good real time strategy.  That and I would love to run oblivion better as well on my computer.  Not much of an ATI fan never did like the software they used.

[MysterD]

For Dragon
About upgrading to a GF 7600 model, which from I know is a decent DX9 card (for Windows XP), I'd be definitely worried about how long it'll last for you if you really want to play say lots of new released PC games and those in the future.

That's b/c right now, straight out that box, that card already barely meets the vid-card requirements of Guitar Hero 3 PC, which requires a GF 7600 as a mimimum. Even though you would have 512 MB there (as opposed to the 256 MB requirement, which is a good start to have double on the vid-card RAM as the min. requirement), you're unfortunately still on the same model number as the minimum requirement (the 7600).

Also, that card just won't allow you to be able to at all run Stranglehold PC nor Shadowrun PC, which both require for a mimimum a GF 7800.
(Though, it's also worth noting that Shadowrun PC does require Windows Vista ONLY, unlike Stranglehold PC.)

I think we'll see more X360 -> PC games get very high requirements, getting somewhat lazy ports when it comes to these games supporting mid-range PC vid cards. Also, it really feels like, w/ most new brand PC games, the GF 6600 seems to be the commonly seen vid-card minimum for new released PC games -- that is the minimum vid-card requirement for Bioshock PC, Gears of War PC, Top Spin 2 PC, and The Witcher.

Also, I think we will now see w/ the 256 MB GF 6800 become a commom vid-card minimum, especially more so in the next year 2008, since I bet some will upgrade beyond that card just to play Crysis -- since that card is its minimum vid-card requirement. So, I think the industry, in due time, will follow suit -- where dev's will start supporting that card and beyond as a minimum.
 
Though, as far as I know, if you're looking for a DX10 card (for Windows Vista) for the future of your PC gaming, you might want to start looking elsewhere -- namely, for a 512 MB GF 8800 GT or above seems to run DX10 games much better; keep in mind, those can be quite costly, though...so, we might want to wait for a nice big price drop on those...

Directed at Pug
Puggy, let me know if you ever find that 512 MB GF 8800 GT for like $200 or less online!

Pug, in your opinion -- if he's looking for just say a quick vid-card "band-aid" for around $130 or less and to stick w/ NVidia, would he be better off w/ going w/ say a 7600 or 8600 model? Doesn't the 7600 beat the 8600, in some games even???

EDIT:
Pug clafiries in below post that it's was not the 7600 beating the 8600.
It was the 7900 that was beating the 8600.

[Pugnate]

The driver improvements have meant the 8600 is better than before now. I am not sure if there is an AGP option for the 8600 though.

Also it wasn't the 7600 but the 7900 that was beating the 8600.

[MysterD]

The driver improvements have meant the 8600 is better than before now.

Oooh, that's good!!!
Still not in the range of the 8800 GT I'd guess, though...

I am not sure if there is an AGP option for the 8600 though.

That's a shame, if there isn't...

Also it wasn't the 7600 but the 7900 that was beating the 8600.

Thanks for the clarification, bro!
You're awesome when it comes to vid-card knowledge!

[Dragonlor]

Well heres what I mostly do with my pc.  I myself mainly use it for MMO's which can usually handle lower end computers because they want as many people to play them.  I own consoles, though right now I lack an xbox 360 and ps3, but I will have them in the near future.  But I do understand your argument and appreciate the advice, but I also understand your gaming mainly revolves if not all of it around the pc as with mine it doesn't.

[MysterD]

Well heres what I mostly do with my pc.  I myself mainly use it for MMO's which can usually handle lower end computers because they want as many people to play them.  I own consoles, though right now I lack an xbox 360 and ps3, but I will have them in the near future.

How "near future", would you guess? (if you can?)

Many of the new multi-platformed PC and console games (X360 and PS3), you won't say find on a PS2 or Wii. Those games support at least Pixel Shader 2.0 for a minimum card requirement; sometimes even Shader 3.0. So, until you get a next-gen console, you'd probably have to opt for the PC version on many games -- say like Oblivion, Condemned, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, or C&C3.

But I do understand your argument and appreciate the advice

You're welcome.

but I also understand your gaming mainly revolves if not all of it around the pc as with mine it doesn't.

This is indeed true.

[gpw11]

I don't think any of that matters at all.  He just wants a videocard to play what he can't on the consoles: mainly mmorpgs.  He's just looking for a quick and cheap upgrade in order to maximize what he can get out of his current PC to play those games.  The card he has up there is pretty close to the top of what you can get for AGP, so for anything better he's looking at a new mobo, CPU, RAM, and probably PSU.  It wouldn't make a lot of financial sense to get all that in order to just play games that are available on the consoles he's going to own soon anyways.

All that aside, what's your current card?  It's hard to say if the upgrade is worth the money if we don't know what you're upgrading from (and you might be able to save some cash).  Beyond that, the 7600GS or X1950 cards are pretty much the fastest your going to get on AGP.  I do know that XFX and some other manufacturers were making AGP 7900GS cards (which in my experience is a very good card).  Newegg seems to have them, but they're about $70-100 more than what you're looking at right now (which is surprising because the retailer I use here has them priced a hell of a lot higher and they're usually on spot with newegg or cheaper). 

[TheOtherBelmont]

He really should update this thread.  He ended up getting the card he linked to and its been running Tabula Rasa and several of his other games a lot better than his old card which was a Radeon 9600 I think.

[Dragonlor]

Yeah I already bought the video card.  It's an upgrade from an ATI Xtasy 9600 256mb card.

[gpw11]

In that case, it's a very good buy. Congratulations.