Best Card for 1280x1024 gaming? Too many choices please help!

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digitalvynil

Limp Gawd
Joined
Feb 6, 2005
Messages
143
hey guys,

as you all know.. both ATI and Nvidia have some great cards out now, all so competitively priced that it's hard for me to chose the right one.

the biggest factor here is that I will not be gaming at anything higher than 1280x1024.. I have a sweet 19" NEC gx2 LCD and don't plan on getting rid of it until it kicks the bucket. (yes it looks that crispy).. So, my plan is to get the BEST card for that RESOLUTION... I don't want to spend extra money if i don't need to...

so I've narrowed it down to these cards.. Please help a brotha pick the right one!

8800GT 256mb
8800GT 512mb
3850 512mb
3750 512mb

I play all types of games, from FPS, RTS, RPG, and racing.... such as BF2142, UT3, Bioshock, Hellgate: London etc.. I would like this card to last me at least 1 1/2 years.

I can also wait a month or two after the new year when prices finally fall and the dust settles.

any ideas!? all voices are welcome!! :)

my specs:

e2180 2.0ghz (OC'd to 3.1ghz)
Abit IP35
2GB Ballistix 800mhz DDR2 RAM
ATI x1800XT 256mb
WD Raptor 36gb HD
Corsair hx620 PSU
Sound Blaster X-FI gamer
WinXP Pro Sp2
 
8800gt 256 Will be able to play games maxed out and priced very reasonable
 
ok so far we have 1 vote for the ATI 3850, and 1 vote for the 8800GT 256mb.

anyone out there who really knows their stuff want to throw in their 2 cents please?


I've searched through out this forum and no one has a clear cut answer.
 
That was not a vote for any card on my behalf, simply an article that covers all three cards you should consider IMO. I dont know what your budget is, but if you are wanting a card to last years, don't go cheap.
 
I want to keep the price under $250. I'm leaning towards the 8800GT 256mb, but I'm a little concerned about that amount of Vram. I don't use AA on any games, and game only at 1280x1024... Do i really need 512mb on such a small resolution??
 
Well, new titles will most likely push that 256mb to it's limit, even at lower res. If you can, find an 8800gt 512mb, there are some going around for $250.
An Crossfired 3870 wuld definately outperform SLi 8800GT, unfortunately as a single card it is not as powerful. Kyle's reviews are great, I would take a look at those.
If you want the best performance out of a single card solution go with 8800GT 512mb. Whatever you decide, I would not even look at 256mb versions, we are simply past that point already.

8800GT would be a better choice if you do not ever plan on getting 2 cards, plus I do believe that Nvidia drivers are better.
 
digitalvynil said:
I want to keep the price under $250. I'm leaning towards the 8800GT 256mb, but I'm a little concerned about that amount of Vram. I don't use AA on any games, and game only at 1280x1024... Do i really need 512mb on such a small resolution??
Click to expand...

No, you dont need 512mb @ 1280x1024. here is a good review of the 8800GT 256mb vs the 512 GT and 3870 and 3850 (next page)

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3175&p=5
 
tissimo said:
No, you dont need 512mb @ 1280x1024. here is a good review of the 8800GT 256mb vs the 512 GT and 3870 and 3850 (next page)

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3175&p=5
Click to expand...

Look how Crysis hogs your vram. If that game is any indication of what future will bring, I really think 512mb is something that you should go with, besides, isn't it $50 more?

Ofcourse, Crysis is not very optimized IMO, so...
 
The value advantage is on the ATI 3850. You might want to wait to see if the 512 MB version of this card could do you better for the money.
 
I have a similar system and game at the same settings as you OP, except I have a 17" CRT that is good enough for me. I was also thinking of getting the 256MB 8800GT, but with the new GTS out, I might wait to see if the 512 version will come down in price at all.
 
aFive said:
Look how Crysis hogs your vram. If that game is any indication of what future will bring, I really think 512mb is something that you should go with, besides, isn't it $50 more?

Ofcourse, Crysis is not very optimized IMO, so...
Click to expand...

Yep I 100% agree, the 256MB GT should not be considered at all with the 512MB only $50 more. Actually I would grab 512MB HD3870 before I would buy a 256MBGT.

Add to the debate we will probably see more and more games where even 256MB has a performance impact at even modest resolutions and high detail. 6 months ago I would have said 256MB was fine, but not now.
 
Battleneter2 said:
Yep I 100% agree, the 256MB GT should not be considered at all with the 512MB only $50 more. Actually I would grab 512MB HD3870 before I would buy a 256MBGT.

Add to the debate we will probably see more and more games where even 256MB has a performance impact at even modest resolutions and high detail. 6 months ago I would have said 256MB was fine, but not now.
Click to expand...

Indeed, go try World In Conflict on an GTS320, my buddy had hell of a time getting decent FPS with everything maxed out, game ran fine on GTS640 however.

If you look back a few years, 256mb was plenty, now there are games that will max that out. Resolution right now has alot to do with it, 256mb will be enough for most games, but if you plan on keeping that card for a bit, or playing very intensive games, you will greatly benefit from the extra Vram.
 
ok ok, you guys pulled my leg enough... I won't even consider a 256mb card... after all, my last 2 cards (6800, then X1800xt) both only had 256mb.. I think it's time for an upgrade. =)

ok so now here's my question...how well does an ATI 3850 512mb Overclock? and what are my chances of getting it up to 3870 speeds??

if so.. a 3850 512mb is only $200.. where as an 8800gt 512mb will hopefully be $250 again soon...hmmm.. any ideas??
 
digitalvynil said:
ok ok, you guys pulled my leg enough... I won't even consider a 256mb card... after all, my last 2 cards (6800, then X1800xt) both only had 256mb.. I think it's time for an upgrade. =)

ok so now here's my question...how well does an ATI 3850 512mb Overclock? and what are my chances of getting it up to 3870 speeds??

if so.. a 3850 512mb is only $200.. where as an 8800gt 512mb will hopefully be $250 again soon...hmmm.. any ideas??
Click to expand...

The 3850 is a decent overclocker and can get within 85% ish of the 3870 (situational), but the 3870 is no slouch overclocker also.....

At $200 you may as well do the job properly and spend $250 on the GT512MB, don't worry about spending extra on a OC model, just grab the cheapest you can find and overclock it yourself. Spending an extra $50 now will stop you from kicking yourself in a few months.
 
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