Video Card

[chaodck]

Hey guys I'm buying a new card for my PC, and don't have much money, sooo I'm thining low-end, someone reccomended me a GeForce 8500 GT chipset, which is quite good on 256MB, supporting Shader Model 4.0 (DirectX 10), and a Memory Interface and BUS of 128-bit. Besides I've read that it supports a good overclocking rate, which makes it run smoothly for games like Lost Planet (with 800x600 and mid graphics).

I dunno much about ATI, but I have around 120-150 bucks to spend, currently here in my country and XFX GeForce 8500GT costs US$115, which is more than reasonable for me.

Any thoughts??

PS: Basically I want something so I can run PS 3.0., and hopefully 4.0. anything is an improvement from my integrated Intel chipset.

[JaoSming]

http://www.gamespot.com/features/617313 ... ks;title;5

Check out the 'Mainstream' or 'Budget' tabs at the top of that article

[benji]

But before we even talk about video cards. You have an integrated Intel GPU. Do you even have a PCI-Express x16 slot then? I have a feeling you don't.

[chaodck]

Thanks JaoSming, checked it out and have a couple more possibilities.
And to benji, yes I have a PCIe slot, the guy who built my PC said, that I tried with the integrated card (I knew it wouldn't work with anything, but my dad has the final word), and if I wanted to upgrade it had a PCIe slot available for the card.

[benji]

Then you are one of the lucky few who also has slots on their integrated "solution" motherboard.

Actually, I would kinda forget about SM4 and DX10. Look into a X1950 Pro (it's in that $120-150 price range I believe), it eats the 8500 GT alive. The 8500 is so gimped, it's not going to be able to handle DX10 games even though it has all the features built in. Since there aren't going to be DX10-only games for a long time, I would go with a superior DX9 card. Lost Planet runs in DX9, it'd be better to run it at a higher resolution and frame rate than it would to run a slide show with half the features off anyway. Especially if you don't have Vista or DX10 anyway.

Using that monster Oblivion outdoors:
X1950Pro (256MB): 17.1 fps (starts at $137)
8500 GT (512MB): 4.8fps (starts at $90)

Assuming the 8500 GT is 100/5 = 20 dollars per frame, the X1950 Pro is around 150/17 = 8.9 dollars per frame.

[el badman]

Actually, I would kinda forget about SM4 and DX10. Look into a X1950 Pro (it's in that $120-150 price range I believe), it eats the 8500 GT alive. The 8500 is so gimped, it's not going to be able to handle DX10 games even though it has all the features built in. Since there aren't going to be DX10-only games for a long time, I would go with a superior DX9 card. Lost Planet runs in DX9, it'd be better to run it at a higher resolution and frame rate than it would to run a slide show with half the features off anyway. Especially if you don't have Vista or DX10 anyway

Yeah, without Vista, I'd definitely go for a slightly older ATI like the X1950, their prices have really dropped and it'll still perform nicely with many games.

On a side note, I just ordered 2 minutes ago an EVGA 8800GTS 640MB OCed at 575MHz, can't wait to receive that monster...Just have to buy a Core 2 Duo E6600 and a nice 600W PSU, and I'll be all set

[NBJ]

El Badman, you dont need a 600W PSU. I have a BFG 8800 GTS 320 and a E6400, and i have a 420W PSU. Save some money and buy a 500W PSU instead. Also, unless you plan to run your games at a higher resolution than 1280*1024, you also could have saved some money by buying the 320 mb. version

[el badman]

El Badman, you dont need a 600W PSU. I have a BFG 8800 GTS 320 and a E6400, and i have a 420W PSU. Save some money and buy a 500W PSU instead. Also, unless you plan to run your games at a higher resolution than 1280*1024, you also could have saved some money by buying the 320 mb. version

Well, from everything I've read and everyone I've talked to, it seems that it wouldn't hurt to have a 600W to support that card, a E6600, and 2GB of PC6400 RAM. It's not that costly anyway, like 100 bucks, so I don't mind investing in a good one. The PSU is much too often overlooked...
Same thing for the 640MB card, with the evolution of gaming, I don't mind investing in that to make sure everything I'll play will be super smooth (I only play at 1280x1024 because of my LCD but I'll probably get a new one at some point). I'm sure the extra memory will come in handy failry soon...But thanks for the tips man

[benji]

One reason to get a better power supply is that it could last you longer. If el badman decides he wants a real DX10 card and gets the 9x00 series of nVidia cards when we actually have DX10 games, he'll have some extra room to work with if the wattage goes up.

I think a lot of people overlook the Case, PSU and Mobo. Some people will buy a case, then realize it's going to be a pain in the butt to even put in a new hard drive or fit this giant graphic cards. Or if you get a mobo that's limited in the type of RAM/CPU it can take. I usually look at mobos that can take at least a level of both above the mid-range crap I'm buying. So when those quad cores or top of the line RAM modules drop in price, I can swap them in no problem. At least CPU makers aren't switching sockets/slots every six months anymore...

[el badman]

If el badman decides he wants a real DX10 card and gets the 9x00 series of nVidia cards when we actually have DX10 games, he'll have some extra room to work with if the wattage goes up.

So when those quad cores or top of the line RAM modules drop in price, I can swap them in no problem.

Exactly, thanks for explaining that in better terms

[Lean]

I only have the old 128MB DDR GeForce FX5500. I don't even know if DX10 supports my card.

[NBJ]

I only have the old 128MB DDR GeForce FX5500. I don't even know if DX10 supports my card.

The only video cards that supports DX10 at the moment is the Nvidia GeForce 8 series (named 8XXX) and the Amd 2000 series

[Lean]

Thanks for the info. Now I could only dream.

[BigKaboom2]

The 8800 series is a total joke as I see it. They can barely run DX10 games at passable framerates, so why even bother adding in the support? I'm sticking with my 7900 GT (which is a bit bugged under Vista 32 ) until something decent in the $300 range rolls around.

[el badman]

The 8800 series is a total joke as I see it. They can barely run DX10 games at passable framerates, so why even bother adding in the support? I'm sticking with my 7900 GT (which is a bit bugged under Vista 32 ) until something decent in the $300 range rolls around.

...yeah
You should go see the 100s of reviews left by 8800GTS and 8800GTX buyers on sites like newegg.com, I don' think they're all high on crack and that's what allows them to play all the most recent games at 60fps+ in 1600x1200....I'm pretty confident in what I'm getting here.

[NBJ]

Dude! The 8800 is great! (i have a 8800 gts myself) But the 8600 and below is a joke.

Edit: Just to prove that i am right, i can run lost planet at around 30 FPS, and the rest of my PC isnt that good. In game, it doesnt feel laggy at all. Also Crytek, (the makers Farcry and Crysis) says that Crysis will run well on a 7800, image how it will run with a 8800!

[chaodck]

Sorry to bump an old thread, but finally for this christmas I'm getting, following Benji's reccomendation, a x1950Pro:

Characteristics:

* ATI RADEON™ X1950 PRO core
* 256MB GDDR3
* Windows Vista™ 3D environment Support
* DirectX 9.0 / OpenGL Support
* CrossFire support
* Core 580MHz
* Memory Clock = 1400MHz

Specifications

* 36 pixel shader processors
* 8 vertex shader processors
* Up to 256-bit 8 channel GDDR3 memory interface
* Native PCI Express® x16 bus interface
* Plug-and-play (native) CrossFire™
* OpenGL® 2.0

Shader Technology

* Support for Microsoft® DirectX® 9.0 programmable vertex and pixel shaders in hardware.
* Shader Model 3.0 vertex and pixel shader support

Here's a pic of the specifics in Spanish:

Costs US$190, but notice that Dollar is quite weak here in South America...

[lj umali]

Hey guys I'm buying a new card for my PC, and don't have much money, sooo I'm thining low-end, someone reccomended me a GeForce 8500 GT chipset, which is quite good on 256MB, supporting Shader Model 4.0 (DirectX 10), and a Memory Interface and BUS of 128-bit. Besides I've read that it supports a good overclocking rate, which makes it run smoothly for games like Lost Planet (with 800x600 and mid graphics).

I dunno much about ATI, but I have around 120-150 bucks to spend, currently here in my country and XFX GeForce 8500GT costs US$115, which is more than reasonable for me.

Any thoughts??

PS: Basically I want something so I can run PS 3.0., and hopefully 4.0. anything is an improvement from my integrated Intel chipset.

Go for the 8600gt or gts its better in games compare to 8500gt. It can run crysis with shaders and physics on high and the rest on mid settings.

[benji]

No matter how much Sauru is your idol, it is generally a good idea to read threads before responding. In this case, the last post would've been a good one to read.

[lj umali]

But if you really want a videocard that can play all the latest games with eye candy and with decent frames per second i recommend the 8800gt and 9600gt.
It is the best bang for the buck.

[J@3]

I could not hate the Philippines any more if I tried.