Graphic Card Info & Help!

[Sjakihata]

Hello,

Me and my family is buying my little brother a graphic card (I hope he is not browsing these forums) for xmas.

His rig is:
3 ghz,
1gb ram
mobo: P4S800D

first of all, his mobo doesnt support PCI Express. So can you buy an adapter that will work, and in that case how much?

Second of all, what cards do you suggest for this system. Max price is €250 or $300.

Thank you all!

mods, please dont move this to tech support - no one is browsing that compared to here. Let it remain a few days before it gets moved, thanks

[Beirut]

mods, please dont move this to tech support - no one is browsing that compared to here. Let it remain a few days before it gets moved, thanks

We love talking about graphics cards around here.

300 pounds? That's about $600Cdn. That will buy you an excellent card!

You should be able to get a X800XT or even an X850XT, either in PGA. Both are great cards and will handle the heavy stuff.

I'm pretty sure you can get an Nvidia 6800 card in PGA as well. These are great cards and have Shader 3 support which enables more eye candy (higher quality shadows and things like that) in some games. The ATI cards do not have Shader 3 support, but many people say the ATI cards have better overall picture quality. (Mind you, at this level of graphic cards, they all look great.)

Whether you get the X800, X850, or Nvidia 6800, try to get the best version of each card. For example, don't buy a vanilla X800. Get the X800XT, that sort of thing. It can get pretty confusing.

Be aware, though, that the Nvidia 6800, while an excellent card, does require two power supply feeds from the power supply unit in the computer. Your power supply unit has to be at least 350 watts. 450 or more is better. The ATI cards only require the standard one power feed.

As far as I know, you cannot use a PGA to PCI adapter.

[Kanamori]

I'm pretty sure there aren't any 64 bit PCI adapters, but LEN seems to be a lot more of a hardware guru -- I've always found hardware/electronics a fastenating area -- than I. Beirut mentioned some good cards, but personally I've had some issues w/ VisionTek as a supplier, probably due to compatability between my board and the card, so it might be wise to try researching if people have had problems w/ the combination...

[Lemur]

There is no such thing as a AGP to PCI express adapter. Sorry. Your friend is going to have to do as Beirut suggests -- buy the best possible AGP card.

[KukriKhan]

Millions of users would kill for an AGP-to-PCIe adapter, if they existed. Sadly they don't - it's about how the electrons get moved around on the circuits.

The guys above give good advice on v-cards. Your decision turns on your ability to predict the future: what does little brother require now, and what will he require, graphically-speaking, three years from now?

His current mobo is a 2003 model, with good features http://www.ocworkbench.com/2003/asus...4s800d-e-1.htm
but without PCIe, an unknown protocol when it was designed.

So: Buy a $250 top-end AGP card that accomodates his current mobo, or spend $180 on a new PCIe-compatible mobo, then scrimp on a $120 PCIe v-card?

If the "Wow!-now" factor is more important, I'd go with A: top-of-line AGP card, knowing it won't run games released 18 months from now.

If "wow-later" is more important, then 'B': new mobo and 'cheapee' v-card now, with the promise of upgrade later, and 2.5 to 3 years more use of his rig, sounds better.

[LeftEyeNine]

Sjakihata,

Beirut -as a GFX card guru- has already mentioned best recommendations. And he made a good point: Be careful with sub-models of the chipsets. There is a significant difference between a 6600 and 6600GT, for example.

I'll try to prepare a "Modified GFX Drivers Guide" that I expect the readers will be benefiting a lot. I got very satisfactory feedback from the ones who tried it.

[Sjakihata]

Thanks all, im quite versed in the universe of ATI, so they wont rip me of (with a bad submodel) but in Nvidia i have no clue.

Also, i didnt say 300 POUNDs, but 300 dollars... or 250 euros

[Beirut]

Thanks all, im quite versed in the universe of ATI, so they wont rip me of (with a bad submodel) but in Nvidia i have no clue.

Also, i didnt say 300 POUNDs, but 300 dollars... or 250 euros

Oops, my mistake. Not used to the Euro dollar sign yet.

I think for $300 you can get an X800XL or X800XT card, especially after Christmas when the sales hit.