Upgrading Video Card: Suggestions Please

[Rl'Halsinor]

I have an X800 GTO and it is a fine card but I want something with a little more umph especially with a few of the newer games lately demanding more video power.

I don't care if it is an ATI or an nVidia - I've had luck with both - just as long as it is stable and it delivers on what it promises. What I do like about my X800 is that it is a 256 meg card with DDR 3 RAM.

My budget cannot exceed over $250. Here are my Socket 939 system specs:

CPU: Athlon 64 3200+ (2.0 ghz)

RAM: 2 Gigs of PC 400 (3200)

OS: Windows XP Pro with SP2

PS: Antec True Power 2.0 550 watts

Thoughts? Thanks.

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

The x1950xt is the sweet spot at the price point right now.

Personally, though, I'd wait a month or two. You're just starting to see the first gen of the DirectX 10 cards hit the market. That should drive the price down on the existing gen cards, so either you'll get more bang for the buck, or you can decide to jump to the newer tech.

 

[drothgery]

If you've got an AGP video card slot (which seems possible, given socket 939, a single-core A64, and an X800) rather than a PCI Express x16 card slot, then your upgrade options are going to be very limitted; you might want to hold off on upgrading until you can afford to refresh your whole system.

 

[Rl'Halsinor]

My socket 939 is PCI-Express.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

There is a killer AGP version of the X1950PRO coming out with 36 pixel shaders.

EDIT: Oh you are PCI-e. Well there is a good guide here. http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/12/12/the_best_gaming_graphics_cards_for_the_money/

 

[Mycanid]

My socket 939 is PCI-Express.

GeCube makes some very nice ATI cards for cheaper than other brand names that you might want to look into. I just saw one on amazon, for example - a X1600 with 256mb of ddr2 memory for about 110$ ....

Just as a reference point you see.

 

[Rackhir]

I think we are less than a month away from the mid-range versions of the GeForce 8800 cards shipping, so I'd hold off purchasing one for the moment.

 

[Rl'Halsinor]

I think we are less than a month away from the mid-range versions of the GeForce 8800 cards shipping, so I'd hold off purchasing one for the moment.

Thanks to everyone who has replied.

Rackhir, pardon my ignorance but I haven't been keeping up with Vista or the 8800 because 1) I stay away from new tech hardware and software for at least two years, and 2) the 8800 is waaaayyyy overpriced for me and probably so will the mid-range version as well.

Anyway, is the 8800 a true DX10 card and how does it play with XP Pro SP2, socket 939 boards, and Athlon 64 cpus? Any issues?

 

[Rackhir]

Thanks to everyone who has replied.

Rackhir, pardon my ignorance but I haven't been keeping up with Vista or the 8800 because 1) I stay away from new tech hardware and software for at least two years, and 2) the 8800 is waaaayyyy overpriced for me and probably so will the mid-range version as well.

Anyway, is the 8800 a true DX10 card and how does it play with XP Pro SP2, socket 939 boards, and Athlon 64 cpus? Any issues?

DX10 is not an issue unless you plan to upgrade to Vista. MS has stated that it will be a Vista only feature. The 8800 is a true DX10 card.

The 8800 plays just fine with DX9 and XP. In fact they haven't actually released a DX10 driver for it, even though the Hardware is DX10 ready. It pretty much doubles the performance from the previous generation of cards, so one 8800 matches the performance of a SLI 7900 setup.

 

[Rl'Halsinor]

DX10 is not an issue unless you plan to upgrade to Vista. MS has stated that it will be a Vista only feature. The 8800 is a true DX10 card.

The 8800 plays just fine with DX9 and XP. In fact they haven't actually released a DX10 driver for it, even though the Hardware is DX10 ready. It pretty much doubles the performance from the previous generation of cards, so one 8800 matches the performance of a SLI 7900 setup.

Wow! That is impressive! And thanks for the info. Very enlightening. By the way, will a 550 watt power supply be sufficient with such a monster card? How about cooling?