Best Graphics Card?

[DarthS]

So I need a new Graphics Card, but I'm limited by my old motherboard (x8 AGP). I could swap that out, but getting a new motherboard would mean I'd need new RAM, and probably a new processor too (currently a P4 Prescott). I don't have that sort of cash.

So untill I'm 100% employed again (and out of debt), I figured I'd pick a better card off ebay and use that to boost my Planetside frames.

The thing is, what should I be looking for?

My current motherboard is this:
http://www.intel.com/products/motherboard/d865perl/index.htm

And my current Graphics card a Geforce 4 4200 Ti. Realy, I want something with a 1.4 pixel shader so I can give games like Battlefield a try.

[Vasquez]

You sure you'd need new RAM? I've used the same RAM in three different motherboards (2 of them AGP, one of them PCI-E), and it's worked fine every time.

[Ludicrouse]

X800XT... they are very powerful for an AGP card and they are dirt cheap.. like about £100-150..

[DarthS]

Well, I was thinking more around the £50-£80 price mark. :o

[Nyana]

nVidia 6800GT will do or a Radeon 9800 Pro

[Freon]

For around £70 you could get an ATI X1300 with 256mb ram. Thats a fair leap up from a GE4 4200Ti. You can get one running at 450Mhz, with 12 pixel pipes.

Probably the best bet with the funds you want to spend

[Ludicrouse]

Put an extra few quid towards it and you can get this m8.

http://www.dabs.com/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=3YWX&CategorySelectedId=11137&PageMode=1&NavigationKey=11137,12,42220000,4294957147,50758

Its not bad for the price tbh.

[James24]

x1300 has 4pixel pipelines, and according to Hovis's mag is too slow to run any current games.

For around £90 you can get a x1600pro (see ludi's link) or from nvidiaa 6600gt. Neither are stunnigly fast but they'd be a step up.

any card made in the past 4 years (fx+, 8500+) has 1.4 so that is a safe bet. Shame I've sold my 9800pro or I could of flogged you that.

[Hovis]

Gainward have just released the Bliss 7800GS Golden Sample (the name is complicated and weird, not sure if I got it exactly right, but hunt around for the EXACT card). It's basically the best AGP card ever made. Why? Because instead of using the dogshit standard 7800GS which fails at life Gainward use a bridged 7800GT with the full compliment of 20 pixel pipelines, tooled it up with 512meg of RAM, slapped a fat Arctic cooler on it and clocked it til it squeaks. It's about £250 or thereabouts and it performs about as fast as a PCI-E 7800GTX. If these little fellas had been released at a reasonable time I'd use one myself.

Worth every penny in my opinion, because it'll definitely tidy you over for the next year or so.

[DarthS]

That sounds like a good alternative, but if I went for something like that it would be instead of a comp upgrade; id just slam in a bit more ram and pray it would handel huxley ok.

But for now, the point is mute as I don't have £250. :(

[James24]

I don't think you can really justify spending £250 for something that wont perform as well as a £170 pci-e x1800.

Your 2.4ghz processor would be a massive bottle neck as well i'd think for that kind of card.

I'd say get a cheapish card now and when huxley is nearer you'll know exactly what you want.

[Ludicrouse]

I don't think you can really justify spending £250 for something that wont perform as well as a £170 pci-e x1800.

Your 2.4ghz processor would be a massive bottle neck as well i'd think for that kind of card.

I'd say get a cheapish card now and when huxley is nearer you'll know exactly what you want.


QFT

Unless you have a spare couple of hundred pounds id just buy that card i linked and bide your time... save like a fucker and be happy :)

[DarthS]

Well, I've managed to locate a second-hand Radeon 9800 Pro for £40; how does that sound?

[James24]

bargain.