GeForce FX5200: Worth buying?

[Krieg]

the 9600 Pro that I thought I was linking to turned out to be a 9600 SE, which are performing near the bottom of the similarly-priced pack. The 9600 Pros turned out to be closer to $140; I compromised with a $119 card.

You bought a PowerColor card didn't you?


Just a couple of points...

1. ATI's problems with driver releases are pretty much a thing of the past. They're not quite as prompt as Nvidia, but they're getting close.

2. The GeForce5600 series is not the current mid range offering from Nvidia, the 5700 series has replaced it and has fixed just about all of the problems associated with the 5600's.


The 5700 vs 9600 debate is mostly a matter of taste right now, both are excellent products.

FWIW I have both a Radeon 9700 (soft modded) & a 9600 All-in-Wonder and have been extremely pleased with both.

 

[Pielorinho]

Not a powercolor card; rather, an Asylum card. Hopefully it'll work well enough for me; although the 5700 tests about 10-20% better in FPS tests, it's also about 20% more expensive, and I was already getting out of my budget range with the 5600U.

Daniel

 

[Krieg]

Not a powercolor card; rather, an Asylum card.

Looks like they are very similar to PowerColor in how they name their cards. (Which is not a good thing)

FWIW the best thing to do is check the card's specs against those of the benchmark ATI (or Nvidia) cards. Core/Memory speeds don't lie.

Your card should be more than fast enough for most gaming needs, so I wouldn't worry too much.

Have fun!

 

[Pielorinho]

I got the card installed last night, and it was far easier than I expected: disable onboard video via BIOS, install new card, and bingo, I'm playing Prince of Persia! Yay! Very pretty game.

This morning I come in to find what looks like a screensaver saying "Nvidia/Windows XP" and am annoyed that this was installed w/o my permission. Oh well. I move the mouse to bring up the desktop.

No such luck. Eventually, after trying various tricks, the screen goes blank, the keyboard ceases to function (the caplock and numlock lights no longer work). I restart the computer; as soon as Windows would normally come up, the screen again goes blank.

Right now, my computer at home is working on last good configuration -- in other words, I'm working with the Windows native SVGA (?) drivers. I tried reinstalling Nvidia's drivers, but just got the blank screen/nonfunctional keyboard again as soon as I retarted Windows.

Stupid freakin not-working drivers!
Daniel