GeForce 7800 GS 256MB AGP or GeForce 7600 GS 512MB AGP?

[Goodsport]

I have an older system (P4 2.53GHz, Nvidia GeForce FX 5900 Ultra videcard, Audigy 2 soundcard, DSL) and won't be able to afford a full system upgrade or a new system altogether for probably another year or so.

However, there are games I have from as far back as two years ago that I need to keep turning down the resolution and other graphical options quite a bit for just so I can run them decently, so I've looked into which AGP card was in my current price range and (since I've had good experiences with Nvidia cards thus far) I've decided on either the GeForce 7800 GS 256MB AGP or the GeForce 7600 GS 512MB AGP.

Should I go for the higher architecture (7800) or the greater MB (7600)? What are the advantages and disadvantages for each card form each other? Will either (or both) work fine with my system?

Thanks.


-G

 

[TwistedBishop]

Go with the 7800GS. It has more shaders and a bigger memory bus, to actually use the memory it has onboard. Cards with 512MB of RAM are more of a marketing ploy than anything of value, especially when they're crippled with a 128MB or god help you 64MB bus.

 

[Steel_Wind]

7800 - if you must.

 

[drothgery]

Save until you can replace your entire system. With a 2.53 GHz single-core P4, you're probably just as CPU limitted as GPU limitted, and once you've got a decent dual-core CPU and motherboard with PCI express slots, it'll be a lot easier (and cheaper) to keep your graphics up to the standards of games.

Or wait for the first round of price cuts and buy a console.

 

[Master of the Game]

I had the exact same question when I bought my new laptop. I went with the 7800 and have yet to find anything I can't play without the setting on high. Of course, my system itself probably runs quicker, and I know very little about how the whole thing works, but if you're worried about making sure that your video card isn't your bottleneck, I can't imagine you going wrong with the 7800.

 

[trancejeremy]

Go with the 7800. The 7600 GS is a nice budget card, but really, it's not powerful enough to take advantage of all that video memory. Which is really only needed for running games with really high resolutions (like 1600x1200 or 2000xwhatever) or really detailed textures, which the 7600 GS couldn't handle to begin with .

 

[Rl'Halsinor]

I am in full agreement with drothgery. The CPU will limit any upgrade that is being considered. Something tells me it is a Socket 478 Northwood which in its day was a decent enough chip, but with games being not only GPU intensive but CPU intensive as well, the money saved for a true upgrade is a far, far wiser use of money. It will be like having a sports car with a 4-cylindar Ford Pinto engine!

And as TwistedBishop rightly notes, "Cards with 512MB of RAM are more of a marketing ploy than anything of value, especially when they're crippled with a 128MB or god help you 64MB bus."

Goodsport, waiting another year is a good thing because there is going to be some very interesting hardware releases in a year or two. Seriously save your money and build a new system from the ground up.

 

[trancejeremy]

In the grand scheme of things, the price of a 7800GS ($100?) is not going to result in a much worse computer in a years time, but it will allow him to play games with the settings on medium at least, probably higher. I really don't think the CPU bottlenecks as much as you think.

 

[TwistedBishop]

In the grand scheme of things, the price of a 7800GS ($100?) is not going to result in a much worse computer in a years time, but it will allow him to play games with the settings on medium at least, probably higher. I really don't think the CPU bottlenecks as much as you think.

I'd second that. Before I built my current PC, I was using a P4 3.2Ghz with a 6800XT 256MB. It did great with stuff like Dark Crusade and Rise of Legends, good performance with Company of Heroes, according to Gamespot it could run C&C3 fine, and it even handled SupCom to a degree. The 7800GS, if it's meant to hold you over until you get a whole new system in about a year, is a fine purchase.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

I've read the 7600GT will run neck and neck, and a bit faster in some cases, than the more expensive 7800GS. Though if you have the money the best video upgrade right now for AGP is the X1950Pro from ATI. It buries any of the Nvidia AGP offerings right now. But you need a PS that has 30amps on the +12v rail.