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Skiz
12-04-2004, 10:18 PM
I'm gonna get a new video card, but what kind should I get. I don't know alot about them. Right now I have an ATI Radeon 8500. Here is the rest of my specs. I'm thinking about doing this to stay ahead of pc game requirements.



http://img129.exs.cx/img129/9913/adz.jpg

tesco
12-04-2004, 10:43 PM
9600pro, 9600xt, 9800, 9800pro, or 9800xt.
anything higher is a waste of money imo.

or if you want nvidia:
one of the 5700 or 5900's.

Virtualbody1234
12-04-2004, 11:29 PM
What's your budget?

Mr. Elmo
12-04-2004, 11:41 PM
if you want to "stay ahead of pc game requirements" than its going to be a 9800 or higher. or the 5900 line up for nvidia.

my friend has a 9600pro and he can barely play CS:Source at med setting on 8x6. hes getting around 50fps.

kaiweiler
12-05-2004, 12:25 AM
The thing is that no matter what card you get, the second you take it out of the box it will be "old"
One can never keep up with computer hardware....

tesco
12-05-2004, 12:38 AM
if you want to "stay ahead of pc game requirements" than its going to be a 9800 or higher. or the 5900 line up for nvidia.

my friend has a 9600pro and he can barely play CS:Source at med setting on 8x6. hes getting around 50fps.
That's not even a bad frame rate. :blink:

Mr. Elmo
12-05-2004, 12:42 AM
i dont know about any other games, but 45-50 fps in cs is kinda choppy, it itsnt very smooth. I know the whole thing about human eyes detecting things at 30fps and movies being at 29.97 and blah blah blah, but in cs, at least for me, 45-50 fps is hard to play in

kaiweiler
12-05-2004, 02:00 AM
i dont know about any other games, but 45-50 fps in cs is kinda choppy, it itsnt very smooth. I know the whole thing about human eyes detecting things at 30fps and movies being at 29.97 and blah blah blah, but in cs, at least for me, 45-50 fps is hard to play in
agreed. In cs I got 100fps constant because that is what the game's max was, now in css I get anywhere from 75-110.
I have experienced playing on sub-50 fps in cs on my friends comp though and it is definately noticable.

Skiz
12-05-2004, 02:01 AM
What's your budget?Gonna ask for it for Christmas, so kinda hard to tell.

The game I'm into playin right now is Call of Duty United Offensive. I play that on 1280x1024 and keep most of the graphics settings on 'normal'. I'd like to turn those setings past 'high' and on to 'extra' for example.

Also, is there anything else you guys see up there that needs upgrading?

Mr. Elmo
12-05-2004, 02:58 AM
to me, that whole theory of human eyes only detecting 30fps is a whole bunch of crap.

anyways, back to the topic, skizo, if you want to play games with everything past high and onto "extra" , you definately dont want anything less than a 9800. cheapest one on newegg is $173usd, at retail store such as bestbuy....its prob more than $250 (seeing how they have the 9600xt at 199.99 )

Skiz
12-05-2004, 03:40 AM
And is this something that I can replace on my own? (keep in mind I have a Shuttle case) Replacement wise, I'm sure I can do it, but is there really any software change going from a 8500 to a 9800?

orcutt989
12-05-2004, 04:01 AM
Get the Super Digital-Viewing Game-Moduling 89G51 Super Processing Version 3.6G 128MB Gaming Card.

It will be perfect for you, and only 399.99$.

Mr. Elmo
12-05-2004, 04:46 AM
And is this something that I can replace on my own? (keep in mind I have a Shuttle case) Replacement wise, I'm sure I can do it, but is there really any software change going from a 8500 to a 9800?


this is def. something you can do on your own...there are tons of guides on the net if you're not sure. besides replacing the driver to a newer one, there is no other software needed.

Supernatural
12-05-2004, 05:03 AM
I have a GeForce 6600 GT and it's a great card. Got it for $225 from Newegg. It plays Half-Life 2 @ 16x12res 8xAF all detail maxed out with an average of 40-50 FPS. It's the best value in the graphics market right now.

Skiz
12-06-2004, 08:17 AM
I didn't specify a price earlier but $400 is to much. I'd much rather just use the 'normal' settings than spend (or ask for) a $400 video card since the graphics kick ass even on normal.

Anyway, I looked at the 9800 series and remembered a spec I need included. I do have two monitors that I run so I'll need the VGA and DVI (or dual DVI) plugs. I noticed the 9800 doesn't offer both. I was also wondering...

1. What's the difference is between the 9800 pro and the 9800 xt (other than double the price)?

2. How do you know what your fps is?

Supernatural
12-06-2004, 11:10 AM
The 6600 GT I have has Dual DVI out, as well as S-Video. To answer your questions:

1. 9800 Comparison Chart (http://www.ati.com/products/radeon9800/radeon9800pro/compare.html). The 9800 XT is a bit faster than Pro, but not worth the money IMO. Pro is a better value than XT.

2. Most games have a console command to show your current FPS. If not, there's always FRAPS (http://www.fraps.com/).

clocker
12-06-2004, 03:37 PM
And is this something that I can replace on my own? (keep in mind I have a Shuttle case) Replacement wise, I'm sure I can do it, but is there really any software change going from a 8500 to a 9800?
Given that you have a Shuttle ( and thus, a limited number of options for PSU and cooling solutions) I would be wary of stressing the power supply and dealing with the heat from a high(er) end vid card.
9800 Pros in particular, run very hot (with the stock HSFs).