Video Card Question

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PopeTiberii

n00b
Joined
Nov 19, 2005
Messages
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Okay. I will be the first to admit that I don't know the technical details of vid cards.. Honestly, a lot of these indepth video card threads (while very helpful to those who understand it) are over my head. To cut to the chase...

I'm looking for a new video card. Something that I can run at 1280x1024 resolution with antialiasing and all that jazz. For first person shooters (Battlefield 2 and CounterStrike: Source) I'd like to drop no lower than 60fps in a heavy fight.

I'm also looking for something that will allow me to have decent update rates with Lightwave and Maya while viewing very large poly counts. I'm getting rather tired of seeing 2-5 fps on a 2 million poly object. :)

My current system specs (as detailed as I know how to get them):
3.0 GHz Pentium IV (Not sure on exact chip.)
Asus P4P800 SE Motherboard
1.5 gigs Crucial RAM (One 1 gig, one 512 meg)
Two HDs (one 40gig for windows and virtual memory, the other for everything else)

Price range, well... Not high. $320 max. And no, I don't have the cash to buy a new mobo with the PCI-Express thingee. Need to stick with AGP for now.

If there are other things that would be helpful information here, let me know. :)
 
I'd suggest a 6800GT OC or 6800Ultra OC AGP. I'm not sure about the professional Rendering support of these cards but these should shread through those Games. Also look into the Saphire Radeon X800GTO which can be modded to a X850 card. This is done with very minimal effor and even somebody who is a novice can get this done. If not ask here and you shall be helped. Create a thread and you'll be helped.
 
Is newegg a good place to grab these cards? I'm seeing an incredible range of price on what appears to be the same card. From like $140 to $370... Any help there? :)
 
Newegg is awesome. Also once you have settled on a card, bookmark the newegg price and item description and check for the same card here;

www.zipzoomfly.com sometimes they can match or beat newegg. I always check both of these sites before buying.
 
Sounds good, thanks. But with the massive difference in price... Is there something I should know, or should I find what's cheap and grab that? :)
 
It depends on what you feel. There are some cards you can buy cheap and tweak to work as really expensive cards. The 6800GT AGP is good for that and so is the Saphire X800GTO. If tweaking and changing things isn't something your too into and you have the money go for the big boys. Like the 6800 Ultra or Radeon X850. I guess it depends on how you feel.
 
I see. Thanks for your help! :) Hopefully I'll have that new video card soon, then. (Once I figure out which one I want. :) )
 
Are there any other games you can mention that you plan on playing. Since your doing Open GL Cad and are limited to AGP NVidia cards are the best bet as they can run games and the Open GL performance is far superior in the AGP spectrum as your comparing X800 vs 6800 and there is a huge advantage for nvidia there in open GL performance

My advise would be to lean towards Nvidia because it's the all around best package for what your doing.
 
I've always leaned to nVidia. :) I plan on playing WoW (and other MMOs), AOEIII, Black & White 2, maybe one of those new first person shooters (haven't decided which one I'd like to try, yet).
 
I recommend the 6800GT or Ultra. There is also rumor of a new AGP card coming from nvidia. It may also be their last. It may come out in about 1 week or so. It's called the 6800GS AGP and it's only rumored now. But if your not buying tonight keep an eye out for this card as it may be a sleeper. ;)
 
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