EVGA 8800GTS 320MB: good purchase?

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HKocher

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Dec 17, 2003
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I just purchased a new computer and it came with a 7300LE, so I need to upgrade pretty quickly so I can start playing games again. I think my old 5900 actually ran better than this card.

Newegg has the EVGA 8800GTS (320MD, not superclocked) for $260 after mail in rebate. I've never spent this much money on a video card (and don't plan on spending more this time around), so I want to make a smart choice. I don't need a super high end card, but don't plan on upgrading for another 1-2 years.

That being said, is this a smart purchase at this time, or should I wait a month or two? I've been holding off on gaming since I bought this computer, so I can't wait too long. Are the new ATI cards due out in April? If so, will this release effect the prices of the 8800GTS? Also, aren't the Nvidia 8600 cards coming out in April? I don't understand the naming system of these cards, so I'm not sure if the 8600 will be a higher or lower end card compared to the 8800GTS (I assume the 8800 is higher end). Will these cards effect the prices of the 8800GTS? Finally, will a faster card (8900?) be released by Nvidia within the next couple months?

I know there's no perfect answer (unless you can see in to the future), but I'm looking for some good advise so I don't kick myself a month or two down the road. Obviously something 'better' is always around the corner, but I need something relatively quickly.

I don't buy video cards too often, so I'm not too knowledgeable in this area. Thanks in advance.
 
I don't own a 8800GTS yet (Waiting on the intel price drops to buy everything :D ) but from what I read if your planning to run a resolution less than 1280 x 1240 for gaming then 8800GTS 320MB should be fine.
 
Sickb0y said:
I don't own a 8800GTS yet (Waiting on the intel price drops to buy everything :D ) but from what I read if your planning to run a resolution less than 1280 x 1240 for gaming then 8800GTS 320MB should be fine.
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Less than 1280x1240 - I've heard much higher! Can someone confirm? :confused:
 
What about all those reviews showing the card playing really well on resolutions much higher than 1280x1024?
 
It's fine for current games at higher resolutions but might have problems in the future.. That's just speculation though.
 
CypHill said:
What about all those reviews showing the card playing really well on resolutions much higher than 1280x1024?
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Exactly. I don't know why so many people say its not capable of playing at high resolutions.

1172339741FPItSm9He2_3_3.gif
 
I game @ 1680x1050. I own the 8800GTS S/C by EvGA. It is a great card.
Yes, everyone will say get the 640Mb version, but for the price you cant beat the 320.

Every videocard is going to deplete in performance in the future, even the precious GTX's. scoffing a good card for the price just because it will have some difficulty playing games down the road is illogical, because every card will eventually.

future proofing is impossible. Developers (i.e. Crytek) are going to constantly push the envelope regardless of the available hardware. you cant future proof when others future plan.

enjoy your purchase

-jef
 
What's the rest of your machine? You should buy a card that matches fairly well. An 8800GTS might be overkill for 1440 x 900.
 
Varmint said:
What's the rest of your machine? You should buy a card that matches fairly well. An 8800GTS might be overkill for 1440 x 900.
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Nothing fancy: Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 @ 1.83GHz, 1GB DDR2/667. I'll upgrade the RAM at some point this year.
 
As you see in my new computer set-up below i am getting the 320MB unless i can afford the 640 after the price drops that are currently happening. BUT i am only running this card t a max of 1280X1024 resolution due to me only haveing a 17" LCD monitor so i dont really see why i would have to get a 640 but it would help me out more thatn the 320 when playing games 3 years down the road. AS of now i have an AGP 8x ASUS 6600GT and i get 40 FPS avrage on CSS and i can still paly fine but with a bit of lag so i dont see the reason why you shouldnt buy it if your on a budget like me.
 
Aw crap. I was just about to order the 8800GTS, but decided to open up my case on a hunch to make sure I had room for the card. I don't.

I only have one free PCIe slot, and it's the top slot. For these oversized cards, you need one spare slot above the card right? I have a couple empty slots below, but one is a PCI, and the other I think is a PCIe x1 slot. Damn, no wonder why so many folks suggested I build my own machine this time instead of getting one 'out of the box'. Stupid choice, I won't make that mistake the next time.

I guess there's no way around this, right? Looks like I'm back to square one, looking for single slot cards.
 
pretty sure all vid cards face down in most cases unless you have a case where things are switched around so you would need a spot Below the card to have room for the heatsink/fan
 
Wildace said:
pretty sure all vid cards face down in most cases unless you have a case where things are switched around so you would need a spot Below the card to have room for the heatsink/fan
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Hmm, I hope you're right. Like I said, I'm not too knowledgeable in this area. I just eyeballed it, and looking at the pics of the 8800GTS and the way my current card sits, it didn't look like it would work. I can take some pics tomorrow to shed some light on my setup.
 
HKocher said:
Hmm, I hope you're right. Like I said, I'm not too knowledgeable in this area. I just eyeballed it, and looking at the pics of the 8800GTS and the way my current card sits, it didn't look like it would work. I can take some pics tomorrow to shed some light on my setup.
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He's right - the GPU fans always face away from the CPU.
 
Okay, here's my setup.

The existing card has the fan facing up.

card1.jpg


With the card removed.

card.jpg


And here's the 8800GTS.

14-130-082-10.jpg


Am I looking at this wrong, or are my slots 'backwards'?
 
Yes they are lol.. you must be on the "other side of the world" :D

What case and mobo do you have?? Whos the mfg of your computer?

I would take out a ruler and start doing some measurements.
 
It's a Gateway. I don't know much about the case and motherboard. All it says is '6-bay micro-BTX case' and 'Intel p965 10/100 motherboard' on the packing slip.

I really was thinking of building my own this time. Almost everyone I spoke with recommended that route, but I was afraid I'd screw it up, since I'm not very handy. :) I guess next time I'll be a little more daring.

So am I pretty much stuck with a single slot card here?
 
Well now that you mentioned it's a Gateway - and remembering you mentioning the OEM vidcard was a 7300LE, you may not even have enough power to run a 8800 series. If you want to keep this computer and not change out the power supply (if that's even feasible), you may need to get a lesser card - I'd suggest something like a 6800Ultra or a 7800GS or something similar.
 
400 watt power supply. That was the listed minimum requirement of the card.

Well, hopefully the 8600GTS is single slot, and works with my power supply. I was considering that card originally.

Well, thanks for all the help. I guess I learned an important lesson here. I'll build my next machine.
 
BTW, in case anyone was curious, STALKER runs surprisingly well on my rig with medium settings, and looks pretty good. Still, I can't wait to get a new card and bump those setting up.
 
Like I mentioned earlier.. look into the 6800 series or 7800/7900(?) series AGP offerings.
 
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