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Anyone skipping this generation?

F

fuzzbutt99

Weaksauce
Joined
Sep 7, 2004
Messages
97
I'm in the market for a new video card as my ti4200 just passed away.. I'm thinking of getting a 6800gt, but I would also like to buy 1GB of PC3700 RAM. I can't have both, so I was thinking of getting a 9800 pro for $200 and skipping this generation of cards. It just seems like theres not any good titles that take advantage of the new card, besides Doom3 and Far Cry. I mostly play ut2k4, COD, and BF42.

Would bypassing the 6800gt in order to upgrade my RAM and get a 9800 be stupid? Anyone else skipping this generation?
 
It'd probably be the best to get a 512MB stick of OCable RAM (OCZ/Corsair) and get a 6800GT, while selling your PC2700 for whatever you can get. Since PCI-E for AMD is very near in the future (and possible DDR2) you may want to consider maxing out your AGP card purchase first.

If you really need the memory, you can get the second stick later.
 
It would be better if you got both....but if you're stuck with that choice I would go for the RAM first, then the video card like you said. However, with that said, I noticed a gigantic performance when I switched from my GeForce 4 Ti 4600 to my 6800GT. Used to get as low as 40 fps in CS 1.6, now with the 6800GT I get 100 constant.

But, note I also got a new RAM/CPU/Mobo with that video card :D
 
This generation is so much faster than the last. I think skipping it would mean that you will miss out on getting the most out of the games comming out this year. While there may not be any major titles getting publicity right now, you never know what will actually come out or when.

There have been a few pleasant surprised over the years. To miss out on getting the best playable quality would suck.

Video card is more important than ram when playing games. Not that ram isn't important. It can make things better, but overall the video card has more impact than the memory does.
 
Not me (eVGA 6800GT) it seems last generation would be the one to skip...I almost did but I broke down and bought a 9800pro to replace a Ti4400 about 4 months before I sprung for the GT. :eek:
 
Look, to all thoose "skipping a generation", its time to get your head out of the sand.
Every computer component is going to become yesterdays news in 6 months. Skipping a generation makes no sence. At some point you have to take your skirt off and jump in. If you wait out this generation, you will most likely wait the next geneation and by the time you buy a new component it will become bottlenecked with some of the older components in your system, making an upgrade useless.

So grow some ballz and join the masses or be left behind like the neanderthal you most likely resemble. :)
 
I agree last year's generation was one to skip, the 9800pro/xt wasn't that much better than a 9700 pro(or in my case a volt moded 8 pipe 256 bit 9500 :D). Get the 6800 over the ram, the speed boost is much greater.
 
I don't think you'll be seeing this type of leap in performance in a while (2 years max)
so that's going to be a wait

Sure both companies will come out with the upgrade to these cards (ultra2 and XT2 or whatever they'll call it) but it wont be a huge difference that ultra and xt users will feel the need to ditch (9800 pro vs 9800xt wasn't a huge leap)

So once again, you'll be waiting a long time
Better to jump on the ship early and go for the long ride
 
im skipping the 6800's and x800's. when i built my new system i upgraded from a fx5600u to a radeon 9800pro. i can play every game i throw at this thing great. some games like doom3 and farcry i can not play completely maxed out but its not a big deal to me to have 4x AA, and all that stuff.
 
Even from a 9800 to a 6800 you would notice a huge difference... also 6800 has shader model 3 support which while not used now ... will make a difference.

You may change you mind about upgrading when you try and play games like HL2,
Quake IV

Also someone everyone forgets to mention. NV cards allow for horizontal spanning resolutions. This mean dual monitor gamming. Something I see becomming more abundent in the future
 
I've got a Ti4400, and I skipped the last generation (5xx0-series).

I'm planning on replacing it with a 6600/6600GT when the AGP versions come out.
Since I have an NF7-S, it's going to be the last AGP card I buy. PCI-E will be the next big thing, so why waste lots of money on an AGP card?
 
NEWSFLASH

the AGP 6800
and AGP 6600 (well hard to find)

ARE OUT !!!

The PCIe are the ones not currently out (or hard to find)
because there are very few motherboards that support PCIe or Dual PCIe
 
EternityZX9 said:
I noticed a gigantic performance when I switched from my GeForce 4 Ti 4600 to my 6800GT. Used to get as low as 40 fps in CS 1.6, now with the 6800GT I get 100 constant.

But, note I also got a new RAM/CPU/Mobo with that video card :D
Click to expand...

yeah..thats because there is a frame limiter in the half life engine..you should be getting around 34545678fps from a old ass game like that.. :D

i myself em skipping this generation of cards...my 9600pro OCed is doing fine...but when half life 2 comes out besure a new video card will be in my shopping cart as well too
 
i definitely would not skip this generation. i went from a ti4200 to a 6800nu... damn is it way better. the only thing 1gb of ram would help you with is loading times and stuff.. wouldnt increase your FPS as much as the current gen video cards. cmon, we got Quake 4 using the doom 3 engine in LARGE SCALE outdoor environments.... i wonder how that will run on the current gen video cards... much less the last gen..also dont forget HL2, guild wars, WOW, everquest 2, etc... tons of new games coming out that would need the extra GPU power
 
iBran said:
I've got a Ti4400, and I skipped the last generation (5xx0-series).

I'm planning on replacing it with a 6600/6600GT when the AGP versions come out.
Since I have an NF7-S, it's going to be the last AGP card I buy. PCI-E will be the next big thing, so why waste lots of money on an AGP card?
Click to expand...
Smart move...neither the 98XX series or the infamous FX was a huge leap in power from the Ti4400. I could have saved myself some money by hanging on with my Ti4400 but instead I got a 9800pro right before my GT. :eek:
 
bonkrowave said:
NEWSFLASH

the AGP 6800
and AGP 6600 (well hard to find)

ARE OUT !!!

The PCIe are the ones not currently out (or hard to find)
because there are very few motherboards that support PCIe or Dual PCIe
Click to expand...

What? I haven't seen any AGP 6600's. All I've found so far are PCI-E 6600's. Have any links?

No chance that I would skip this generation. As soon as I can scrounge the money I'm gonna buy a 6800 GT. Doom doesn't play too well on my ti4600.
 
IMO, the current generation is the one to get, not skip. The logical reason is because 3d engines the games are running is not updated each 6 months, but usually each 3-4 years each. Today, we see the release of D3 engine and Source engine. Both run great on the current generation of vid cards.

Skipping the current one and wait for next gen will not yield a big improvement as long as the 3d engines is the same. I think that if a vid card can handle Doom3/FarCry/HalfLife2, it would be good for 2-3 years at least unless you are a hardcore gamer or need some bragging rights.
 
My sig is a lie, I actually played through and beat Doom 3 on my system. It wasn't pretty, and it wasn't anything more than 10fps in a firefight, but I did it!

So I'm guessing that if I upgraded from my GF3 Ti500 to a 6800GT I'd be crapping my pants at the increase, eh? Too bad I'll need a new mobo, cpu, ram, hard drive along with that... AGP 4x on my KG7 Lite =( Maybe I should start saving money for an upgr--er, new puter. Hell, going from 1.2ghz to an A64 3200+ would probably be like bathing in pure happy.
 
fuzzbutt99 said:
I'm in the market for a new video card as my ti4200 just passed away.. I'm thinking of getting a 6800gt, but I would also like to buy 1GB of PC3700 RAM. I can't have both, so I was thinking of getting a 9800 pro for $200 and skipping this generation of cards. It just seems like theres not any good titles that take advantage of the new card, besides Doom3 and Far Cry. I mostly play ut2k4, COD, and BF42.

Would bypassing the 6800gt in order to upgrade my RAM and get a 9800 be stupid? Anyone else skipping this generation?
Click to expand...

thats what I would say to do too... my 9800pro costed me ~ $200 and plays everything great.. OCs good too
 
I'd say get the 6800GT, it's much faster than the 9800 pro, and you can always buy another stick of ram later, unlike with a video card, where you would have to sell your current one and buy a new one.
 
With videocards if you get a high-end card you can often easily skip a generation (or 2).

using NV as an example the GeForce 1-6 series.
You could have went from GF2 GTS-GF4 ti4x00-GF6800 very well.

The new videocards come out every 6 months, and provide great improvements in perfomance usually. Which outpace gaming developments. This generation would not be the one to skip though. Both the X800XT and 6800 GT/U's are leaps ahead of their old generation. 16 pipes clocked fairly high, etc.

The next gen part will probably just be a refresh with faster clocks for both ATI & NV. (die shrink)

And I dont think there will be a huge performance increase like last time. I think the big difference will be in price and availability.

When they shrink the cores from .13 to .11 they should get better yields /(dies per wafer & Mhz) so the high end parts can come down in price and actually be found on store shelves.
 
If you had asked this question 2 weeks ago.. I would've said I would skip this generation of vid cards...


But the appeal overwelmed me.
 
Triple B said:
So I'm guessing that if I upgraded from my GF3 Ti500 to a 6800GT I'd be crapping my pants at the increase, eh?
Click to expand...

I went from a GF3 Ti200 to a 6800GT (@400/1100) and I pee'd a little.
It's really mindblowing. I'm really really glad I didn't get a 9800pro or the like sooner.
 
luminal said:
What? I haven't seen any AGP 6600's. All I've found so far are PCI-E 6600's. Have any links?
Click to expand...

Maybe its cause I live in Canada .... we are backwards on a lot of things. Im at work now. but when I get home Ill try and find some links
 
that's a perfectly reasonable idea. having any less than 1024mb ram is a major bottleneck so get the best card you can afford which for you may be a 9800pro. this is a good card and you will get solid performance with it. a 6800gt is of course a significant upgrade. just get what you can afford :D
 
bonkrowave said:
NEWSFLASH

the AGP 6800
and AGP 6600 (well hard to find)

ARE OUT !!!

The PCIe are the ones not currently out (or hard to find)
because there are very few motherboards that support PCIe or Dual PCIe
Click to expand...

News FLASH!! There are ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY NO AGP 6600's out!! LMAO

Now the 6600 PCIe are out and the 6800 in PCIe are available in places too.
http://www.evga.com/products/moreinfo.asp?Part_Number=128-P2-N368-TX <--- 6600 PCIe
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-135-149&depa=1 <--- 6600 PCIe

http://www.gameve.com/gve/Store/ProductDetails.aspx?sku=VC-EVGA-057 <--- 6800 Ultra PCIe

The PCIe parts are all going in to the OEM channel to people like Dell, Gateway, b/c they are selling loads of new mobos with PCIe. However, the retail channel for videocards is mostly for upgrades, and if someone is upgrading their PC they are most likely to upgrading their AGP cards since PCIe computers are brand new. Thats probably the main difference.
 
I see that you are running an A64 and VNF3-250. I say you pick up a 512MB stick PQI Turbo PC3200 (2-2-2-5) for $125. Either them or some other module based on TCCD's (PDP PC3200 XML's, OCZ Rev 2's, etc). My PQI will do 280mhz on 2.8v with good timings so far in testing. That fits very well within the confines of your VNF3's 2.9v of vdimm if you plan on overclocking your 3200+ much. Then grab the new video card of your choice and then when you can afford it, grab another stick of ram. The new generation of cards is to big of a leap over your previous one to ignore, plus the fact that you can get a 6800nu that is not only fast, but questionably affordable at $250-270 and as further incentive, stand a 50/50 chance of enabling all 16 pipes and 6 vp's like my Chaintech AA6800 does.
 
fuzzbutt99 said:
It just seems like theres not any good titles that take advantage of the new card, besides Doom3 and Far Cry. I mostly play ut2k4, COD, and BF42.

Would bypassing the 6800gt in order to upgrade my RAM and get a 9800 be stupid? Anyone else skipping this generation?
Click to expand...

In my opinion this is a generation you will not want to skip. Half Life 2 alone makes upgrading completely worthwhile. As for what to upgrade, Im not sure since the ATI cards run i think 20% better than their nvidia counterpart (what i heard, not sure if its fact). Obviously a 6800gt will run better than a 9800 in HL, but Im unsure which is the best way for you to go. I would probably go 6800gt and upgrade RAM later. Thats just me.
 
jhatfie said:
I see that you are running an A64 and VNF3-250. I say you pick up a 512MB stick PQI Turbo PC3200 (2-2-2-5) for $125. Either them or some other module based on TCCD's (PDP PC3200 XML's, OCZ Rev 2's, etc). My PQI will do 280mhz on 2.8v with good timings so far in testing. That fits very well within the confines of your VNF3's 2.9v of vdimm if you plan on overclocking your 3200+ much. Then grab the new video card of your choice and then when you can afford it, grab another stick of ram. The new generation of cards is to big of a leap over your previous one to ignore, plus the fact that you can get a 6800nu that is not only fast, but questionably affordable at $250-270 and as further incentive, stand a 50/50 chance of enabling all 16 pipes and 6 vp's like my Chaintech AA6800 does.
Click to expand...

That's funny, you have the same setup as I do, kind of. I'll have to check out the 6600nu benchies. My main problem with my ram is that its cheap (PNY) and I can't get any overclock at all.. Maybe getting 512MB of the good stuff and a 6600nu would be the best of both worlds. Although it would be a slower video card then the 6800gt, the RAM would allow me to overclock my 3200+ more.
 
There are people who will say this every gen(I'm one of them).
I think I'm finally going to pick up a current gen card this gen.
 
I'm skipping it. Having picked up a 5900XT a few months before the new product lines were officially announced, I've got no interest in throwing my investment out the window just to stay "current" when it runs every game I have very well. A CPU upgrade might be nicer (as I presently own a Palomino 2400+), but I'm going to hold off for quite a while until I have justification sufficient to goad me into building an entirely new computer. There's no sense in trying to keep up with the upgrade bandwagon when you've got more important things to worry about.
 
I am skipping this generation as well. PCI-E cards show no improvement over AGP, and with my Athlon XP processor the bottleneck would end up being my CPU. I've got a 9800 Pro and am very happy with the graphics performance having jumped from a 9600 Pro.

I will wait another year or two for an all-new rig with AMD64, DDR2, PCI-E, and SATA.
 
Im waiting until christmas to see what happens to prices, but I will probably get a 6600GT or mid-range Ati card to replace my Ti 4200... I love ti to death and it runs all the games that i have now very well, but i think i need something beefier for BF2
 
i didnt want to skip this generation but unless 6800ultra ships realy soon i'm gonna cancel it and wait. i've had it on order since june and still getting oh we'll receive it next week. its getting REALY old. supply might be tight for you guys in the states but its even worst here in canada.
 
archevilangel said:
I agree last year's generation was one to skip, the 9800pro/xt wasn't that much better than a 9700 pro(or in my case a volt moded 8 pipe 256 bit 9500 :D). Get the 6800 over the ram, the speed boost is much greater.
Click to expand...
qft...
 
I'm skipping because i can't afford a whole new comp and a 6800gt would be bottlenecked by my 1.8ghz p4.
 
uh, not only did I not skip it, I ended up with nvidia in one machine and ati in the other. :D

This generation is the best in a looooooong time, imho, best since the original geforce days.

The next generation (not the refreshes) I will be skipping, unless I get the urge to build an entirely new pc (around the new bus and/or SLI).
 
By no means am I an expert on this subject - in fact, I'm an amateur.

My research into these cards, however, suggests to me that these new generation cards (the 6800 series from nVidia, and the x800 series from ATI) are very CPU dependent.

Ideally, I believe that you'll want to run the 6800 GT and the x800 pro with a 3GHZ CPU - this way the CPU and the GPU will be working in harmony.

The 6800 ultra and the x8000 XT are really meant to work with the fastest CPUs available.

I suppose you should skip this generation if your CPU isn't fast enough to keep up with the GPU. Or if there is a slight gain in performance, then I suppose you have to ask yourself if it will be worth the money - let's face it, these cards are not inexpensive.

Personally, if I had a 2.8GHZ CPU I would want one of these cards.

Half-Life2 has just recieved a ridiculous 98% score from PC Gamer - they're calling it 'the greatest game of all time'. Something tells me that if you see Half Life2 running on one of these newer cards, there will be no going back.

This Source engine looks like it's going to be used quite a bit during the course of the next 36 months. One such is already nearly upon us: Has anybody checked out Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines. It's the first source engine game to be released after Half-Life2, and it looks just incredible. It's not even an FPS. It's an action RPG - although a serious RPG.

This time period, right now, is in my mind a very exciting time for gamers - we've got new engines and new generation video cards hitting the market at roughly the same time. I wouldn't want to miss out, which is why I'm desperately trying to put a system together. I'm holding out in the hopes that Dell will soon allow for a 6800 GT configuration option. Got my fingers crossed.
 
Im def not skipping this generation as i have a ti4200 and have waited till now to upgrade. I think the 6600 or 6600 gt look a good part (they remind me of the 4200 some what (price=performance maybe)) I have to upgrade my card as it only has 64 meg so im waiting till the agp version is out and once it is out in Australia (probably 2005 sometime) ill upgrade.

What is the difference between the x700 and the 6600 gt, if i was playing halflife 2/sims 2 alot which would be better in your opinion?
 
Lint said:
i didnt want to skip this generation but unless 6800ultra ships realy soon
Click to expand...

Why would you pay so much extra for an ultra when you can just buy a GT and overclock it to ultra speeds..

And the argumen that you can further overclock an ultra doesn;t work seeing as how GT's are basically underclocked ultras.
 
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