Gfx card advice...

[StevieP]

My system is a wee bit old now, was built 2-3 years ago, but I haven't the money to start from scratch again, so I just want it to get me by for now. Problem with it at the moment is that the Geforce 6600GT (Leadtek 128mb AGP) card keeps failing on me. I couldn't get it to work with Vista properly, and now its pissing me about in Windows XP.

I've got an ASUS A8V Deluxe so it has to be an AGP card, I don't want to spend silly amounts of money for this reason. Just want a fair replacement for the 6600GT. Its got to go in a system thats running an athlon 64 3200+ with 1gb ram. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Chris1.4RT]

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/131696

 

[StevieP]

If i were to spend that much on a card, would i be better off uprating my mobo a bit so i could get a pci-e card, or are they not that all important for now?

 

[ben_p]

I have got a decent 9800XT card, 256mb IIRC - ran games easy and has worked with vista, is a little old now and dusty but works fine!! if you like you can have it for 25 quid posted.

Its AGP too BTW

thanks

 

[ben_p]

 

[Mike_182]

If you don't mind second hand definately go with the above - is a bit above 6600. As for the 7950, that's worth the money. The only cards which come close to pushing the AGP bus too far are the 8800s, the 7950 will run comfortably on it so, no, it wouldn't be worth going to PCI-E for the sake of it.

 

[Chris1.4RT]

I'll have that gfx card if you're selling it ben? First dibs to stevie of course

 

[StevieP]

Its ok chris you take the card if u need it, I'm going to do a lil' bit more research so won't want it straight away. Thanks for the advice peeps.

 

[ben_p]

Hello chris, yeah the pic i used as an example, its a lil bit dusty, one of the fan blades is defected on it but does not effect its running... works great.

if you want it let me know, thanks

 

[UncleGrumpy]

You can get hold of a 6800 Ultra on fleabay for about 70 quid, that copes with most stuff on this 4 year old 3.2gHz p4 without much problem, Quake4 on the highest settings is a total no-no but Halo, UT2004, Lord of the Rings online run just fine. There's only the 7950 on an AGP thats quicker - in the Nvidia range, no idea about the ATI's but if you want to compare raw specs have a look here thats a fairly reliable (so im told by the hyper geeky wierd bloke at work) site for specs.

 

[nockmeister]

Hi Stevie, Buy this from here... not quite as good as the XT version, but BIG bang for not so much bucks (less than 100 quid!)

Great card review

 

[Bl1ng3r]

whatever you do, get nVIDIA none of this ATI sh*t
get an 8800
or alternatively spend like 600 on a rig and get a super pro 1...only problem is puttin it together but thats easy

 

[mas]

some of the ATi is great, both companies are equally good.

the ATi's crossfire system is ultimately better than NVidias SLi

But NVidia's cards on there own are currently a step ahead.

If NvIdia were to come up with a better "SLi" system, they would be the best as the market stands

 

[rich[182]]

If your AGP and simply have to stay with AGP for now then the best card available is the ATI X1950Pro 512Mb

However it's power hungry so you need a good branded reliable/stable power supply, minimum 450W but I'd recommend 550W with at least 2, possibly 3 x 12v rails

The Sapphire models use 2 x 4 pin molex connections for power whereas the HIS ones use the newer 6 pin PCI-E type connections so check your power supply to see if it has any PCI-E power leads, you can buy converter cables for approx £3

Theres rumours though that the last 2 driver releases don't properly support the X1950Pro so many owners are stuck with Catalyst 7.7 I think

Have a look at the reviews for the HIS & Sapphire below, from guys that were in same boat as yourself, It's the card to have if you want to stay with AGP for upto 12 months, It'll play any DX9 game at 1280x1024 with 2AA/4AF with good playable framerates with very good image quality

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/productlist.php?groupid=701&catid=56&sortby=nameAsc&subid=403&mfrid=

 

[rich[182]]

whatever you do, get nVIDIA none of this ATI sh*t
get an 8800
or alternatively spend like 600 on a rig and get a super pro 1...only problem is puttin it together but thats easy

8800 is PCI-E not AGP