• Some users have recently had their accounts hijacked. It seems that the now defunct EVGA forums might have compromised your password there and seems many are using the same PW here. We would suggest you UPDATE YOUR PASSWORD and TURN ON 2FA for your account here to further secure it. None of the compromised accounts had 2FA turned on.
    Once you have enabled 2FA, your account will be updated soon to show a badge, letting other members know that you use 2FA to protect your account. This should be beneficial for everyone that uses FSFT.

Worth the upgrade?

T

TheCommander

2[H]4U
Joined
Apr 2, 2003
Messages
2,999
I don't plan on building a whole new PCI-E system anytime soon but have the money for a new AGP card. Would going from a 9800XT to a X1950 make a big difference?

My current system is a 3.0 ghz Athlon 64 with a gig of ram.
 
TheCommander said:
I don't plan on building a whole new PCI-E system anytime soon but have the money for a new AGP card. Would going from a 9800XT to a X1950 make a big difference?

My current system is a 3.0 ghz Athlon 64 with a gig of ram.
Click to expand...

Yes. A HUGE difference... 3-4x the performance in modern games.
 
hold on, I'm assuming if you're running an A64 but still on AGP you're either on 754 or 939 in which case you should definitely consider buying a PCI-E motherboard + PCI-E card. Almost always it results in the same amount of money spent which nets you more performance and an upgrade path.
 
You will gain big benefits about 2X to 4X as stated above. I'd advise you to make the switch to PCI-E though unless you dont plan on buying a whole new computer anytime soon.
 
quadnad said:
hold on, I'm assuming if you're running an A64 but still on AGP you're either on 754 or 939 in which case you should definitely consider buying a PCI-E motherboard + PCI-E card. Almost always it results in the same amount of money spent which nets you more performance and an upgrade path.
Click to expand...

I'm on a 754. When I looked around, the x1950 is about 230 dollars or so. Could I get a PCI-E motherboard + PCI-E card for about the same price with a large performance boost?
 
Well, the Abit NV8 motherboard goes for $60 on newegg, so you could even buy that motherboard and the PCI-E X1950Pro for the same amount you'd pay for the AGP card, but you'd have a future upgrade available to you. Alternatively you could go for a card like the 7900GS or X1900XT along with that motherboard and you could even walk away having spent less than $230 (if you use a MIR).

I just want to make sure that you know that a PCI-E switch isn't expensive, and could prove to be the best option for you.
 
Socket 754 PCI-E board = $46
PCI-E Radeon X1950Pro = $170

Total= $216 (although, to be fair, I wouldn't get the Jetway card, but the $20 more expensive Sapphire model, making the total $236)

vs

AGP Radeon X1950 Pro = $230

So...yeah, it's either cheaper (if budget is all that matters), or basically the same price. And, of course, you end up having a PCI-E system for next-gen graphics cards coming out this summer.

Of course, if you plan a COMPLETE system rebuild this year, then it'd probably just make sense to hold off entirely.
 
I would recommend going to PCIE if you can find a MB that will let you keep up most of that overclock without spending much more than 230 total. At least one of your components would be able to cary on past the next upgrade that way. If you are set on getting DX10 with your next system then you might as well get the AGP card for simplicity.
 
I'll be building a totally new system in about a year or so and will be upgrading from socket 754 to something else. So that's why I was looking for more of a temporary upgrade.

How do the X1650 cards compare to the 9800XT and the X1950?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top