ATI or nVidia Silent Card?

Z

Zzyzx

n00b
Joined
Aug 1, 2006
Messages
23
I'm looking for a silent graphics card (pcie x16) for my Intel D975BX board. I'm a bit unsure about what chipset to get. I would like to use it for photo editing and general interent browsing. My main concern is the clearest text and graphics I can get. I'm still researching a 20" LCD panel. Thanks for any input.

Zzyzx
 
If you don't game the best 2d card you can get is a Matrox.
 
HDMI is basically the same as DVI. No reason to get one unless he is hooking it up to a tv.
 
If you're getting an LCD monitor, just get one with a digital input (DVI or HDMI, doesn't matter which).

Digital input means that the 2D quality looks perfect regardless of how cheap the card is, because it doesn't go through a DAC.

You can get a card with either DVI or HDMI. The HDMI card will come with an HDMI -> DVI converter.

And IceDigger:

No, Matrox is no-longer "something special" so far as 2D quality is concerned. First off, digital outputs have made Matrox's superior DAC and filter tecnology moot. Unless you're doing video editing specifically, Matrox has no advantages to offer these days.

Second off, Nvidia and ATI have finally caught-up in terms of analog design - take a midrange ($150+) or high-end card from either maker, and you'll get crystal-clear 2D. The last two cards I've purchased (6600 GT, 7900 GT) had 2D quality at 1600x1200 rivaling my old G400 MAX. You'll pay the same price for a NEW Matrox card anyway (over $100-150), so why not get a gaming card too?

NOTE that the lower-end cards tend to get stripped-down to meet price limitations, so they usually have crappier 2D.
 
Well the chipset won't dictate quiet so much as who makes it, there are a ton of mid-range cards that use the same chipset but are vastly different amounts of quiet. If you have a lot of good air flow through your case XFX makes quite a few cards from the nvidia 7300 to 7950GT that are fanless, so those cards would be quiet, however you still need the airflow from other means.
 
If you want silent, the 7600 GS platfrom was DESIGNED by Nvidia from the start to have fanless versions, so you don't have to just go through XFX. Sure, some 7600 GS cards come with a fan, but that's optional.

Here are just a few on-offer:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814139008
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814125028
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814122007
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814141031
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130029
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814143082

You'll notice that the Jaton, Albatron, eVGA and XFX cards all use the same heatsink, because that is the Nvidia reference design.

The 7600 GS is very affordably priced, and is not a bad gaming card if you ever get the itch to try it.
 
The best card you can get is the 7950, however it's $200 and clearly for gaming.

If you do not intend to game, just get the cheapest one you can find. ATI & NVIDIA are pretty much the same when it comes to 2D.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top