Is 256Mb enough?

[jared17]

I'm currently looking to build a new PC, although it will be a long work in progress, but I was curious about video cards, I don't want to spend an arm and a leg for them. I know I for sure want to run dual cards though, but I wasn't sure if 256 MB cards is enough to play games like FEAR and those types. Any input would be appreciated.

Jared

 

[The_Other_One]

Yes and no... It's plenty, but you must take into account the GPU's chipset. Something like a Geforce MX4000 with 256M RAM wouldn't to crap in FEAR.

 

[dark_legacy2006]

i jsut read on another forum, and it said that 256 was not enoguh for that game but it said nothing about more than 1 card and i know nothing aobut dual cards

 

[Geoff]

It's not so much the memory, its the card. What card(s) were you looking at getting?

 

[The_Other_One]

i jsut read on another forum, and it said that 256 was not enoguh for that game but it said nothing about more than 1 card and i know nothing aobut dual cards

I run FEAR combat at 1024x768 on the highest detail settings(no AF or AA) and it's fine on my 7600GT. It might lag a bit in smokey areas, but never unplayable. I'm sure something like a 7900GT would run it perfectly at this res...

 

[fade2green514]

a 7300gt with 512mb would be 10-20 times worse than a 7900gt with 256mb.
memory size doesnt always matter when it comes to video cards, not as much as rendering speed at least.

 

[ETSA]

A newer card is way better than one which is older and has more memory...

256 is plenty if you have a good card, ie...x1900 or 7900 series...

 

[Motoxrdude]

What is your budget? If you are on a tight budget ($300 or less) i would not suggest running dual cards. Its never worth the price to run dual cards.

 

[dark_legacy2006]

what is the benefit of dual cards and how does it work?
like 2 different video cards :S
i have no idea

 

[Motoxrdude]

what is the benefit of dual cards and how does it work?
like 2 different video cards :S
i have no idea

You get about a 20% increase when running sli or crossfire, but it costs twice as much, so its not worth it. If you have an unlimited budget then price to performance doesnt even matter.

 

[tweaker]

I don't want to spend an arm and a leg for them. I know I for sure want to run dual cards though

A single high end card would give you better value, performance for your dollar.

I wasn't sure if 256 MB cards is enough to play games like FEAR and those types.

It's decent.

You get about a 20% increase when running sli or crossfire

If that was true then nobody would run it.

 

[Motoxrdude]

If that was true then nobody would run it.

Oops, i meant to say 40%.

 

[Geoff]

Oops, i meant to say 40%.

It varies with the specific game or test that your running. You may see anywhere from 40-80% improvement with two cards.

 

[Archangel]

It varies with the specific game or test that your running. You may see anywhere from 40-80% improvement with two cards.

Yup actually.. it CAN get worse with it tough.. WoW for example.. my fps gets higher when i disable SLI, because 1 7800GTX is more than enough to run it on highest settings, and SLI loads the CPU
but yes, mainly it gets a lot better by it (74% fps increase in Quake 4 for example )

 

[Diamondsleeper]

256 MB is enough but you have to have a system and a card that makes it work. Like what I have just completed.

 

[SnapT]

I'm currently looking to build a new PC, although it will be a long work in progress, but I was curious about video cards, I don't want to spend an arm and a leg for them. I know I for sure want to run dual cards though, but I wasn't sure if 256 MB cards is enough to play games like FEAR and those types. Any input would be appreciated.

Jared

I have played F.E.A.R on GeForce3Ti with 64Mb and have no any problem!

 

[Trizoy]

Make sure to disable any virus protection when playing.