Video Card That'll Last...

Rambo

Rambo

New Member
Hey all!

I recently built a system (in the sig) which had an X800 in it. But after a week of using it, it just shut off...

Anyway, I'm quite glad that it did becuase I don't think it's going to last me the next 6 - 9 months ahead... So, I want to get one that will. Only trouble I'm having is that I have no idea what to go for. I usually sway towards nVidia cards, mainly becuase they've never failed on me (unlike this crappy X800 - especially after 1 week!). However, I don't mind giving ATi one more chance.

The games I currently play are BF2 and UT2k4. I want to be able to play the upcoming UT2k7 (released in March/April time) with high settings.

I'm willing to spend up to $200, but preferably less. I need a card which will give me the most "bang for my buck".

Thanks for reading,
Rambo.

:)
 
Last edited:
When UK2007 is released it will be quite demanding....It will most likely be optimized for a dual core processor, directx 10 compatable, 64-bit enabled, and lastly it would need about 1-2 GB of ram. In the end you wont be getting a card now for under $200 that will play UK2007 on high with HDR....the only cards i can think of now that would possibly play it at about 20-28 fps will everything maxed would be the 7800gtx. If your willing to spend double an SLI 7800gtx will probably be able to handle it well..but you wont have the satisfaction of using directx 10. Right now Nvidia and ATI and working on new cores both of which are optimized for directx 10 and 64-bit game play...your better of sticking with a x800 or a 6800ultra for now and wait and see what happens when ut2007 is released, most likely the spring-summer time.
 
P11 said:
When UK2007 is released it will be quite demanding....It will most likely be optimized for a dual core processor, directx 10 compatable, 64-bit enabled, and lastly it would need about 1-2 GB of ram. In the end you wont be getting a card now for under $200 that will play UK2007 on high with HDR....the only cards i can think of now that would possibly play it at about 20-28 fps will everything maxed would be the 7800gtx. If your willing to spend double an SLI 7800gtx will probably be able to handle it well..but you wont have the satisfaction of using directx 10. Right now Nvidia and ATI and working on new cores both of which are optimized for directx 10 and 64-bit game play...your better of sticking with a x800 or a 6800ultra for now and wait and see what happens when ut2007 is released, most likely the spring-summer time.
Click to expand...

Well, it's going to be released on March 31st, so that is about 4 months away. Surely EPIC (or whoever develops the game) will have designed the game with the best video card available right now?
 
But it also has 12 pipelines vs 16 of the GT.

I know you had a bad experiance with ATI but the saphire X800GTO2 has great performance out of the box and can be unlocked to an X850 XT... its bit over your buget though. I guess $6 isnt much.
 
Last edited:
Buy GT and OC it to ultra or higher... buy NV5 Arctic (20-25$) cooler if temps will go too high...
 
The most visible technological improvements in UT2007 come from the move to Unreal Engine 3. Environments are now alive with rich shaders, and per-pixel lit. As such, a DirectX 9 compatible card is a must. Expect the minimum spec graphics card to be an NVIDIA GeForce FX or ATI Radeon 9700 level card. If you're looking for decent performance however, you'll need to aim a little higher. At E3 2005, Epic's Tim Sweeney suggested an NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra level card for decent frame rates at 1024x768 resolution.
 
34erd said:
But it also has 12 pipelines vs 16 of the GT.

I know you had a bad experiance with ATI but the saphire X800GTO2 has great performance out of the box and can be unlocked to an X850 XT... its bit over your buget though. I guess $6 isnt much.
Click to expand...

That's quite tempting... I may do that... Unless someone else has another idea?

dkny_stylez said:
The most visible technological improvements in UT2007 come from the move to Unreal Engine 3. Environments are now alive with rich shaders, and per-pixel lit. As such, a DirectX 9 compatible card is a must. Expect the minimum spec graphics card to be an NVIDIA GeForce FX or ATI Radeon 9700 level card. If you're looking for decent performance however, you'll need to aim a little higher. At E3 2005, Epic's Tim Sweeney suggested an NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra level card for decent frame rates at 1024x768 resolution.
Click to expand...

At this review, http://www.pcmoddingmy.com/content.php?review.220.7 it compares the X850XT vs the 6800Ultra. They are practically equal... However, when OC'ed the X850XT comes out better. And looking at 34erd's post, I can get the X800GTO2 modded to 16 pipelines, and running at X850XT speeds OC'ed. So my cheapest and best option is probably 34erd's idea.
 
Rambo said:
That's quite tempting... I may do that... Unless someone else has another idea?
Click to expand...
Only downside is that its not guarenteed to successfully reach X850XT PE specs, and your stuck with an overpriced x800GTO. lol
 
geoff5093 said:
Well my x800GTO supports HDR.
Click to expand...
I read that the x800 and x850 series dont directly support HDR in SM2, but they do support HDR in HL2 & Lost Coast. The x1000 series however supports HDR and SM3.
 
Last edited:
P11 said:
I read that the x800 and x850 series dont directly support HDR in SM2, but they do support HDR in HL2 & Lost Coast. The x1000 series however supports HDR and SM3.
Click to expand...
That doesn't make ANY sence, As long as its a DX9 card it supports HDR
 
Not really, the card specifcally was not made to support HDR. Try googling it....all the results say that the x800 and x850 series cards dont support HDR. All games except HL2 and Lost Coast dont seem to allow HDR support for those series.
 
Last edited:
Xycron said:
I just did and the list I looked at had it.
Click to expand...

I don't know if you can tell me about the post above, but the X1600XT has much higher clock and memory speeds than the X850XT. Does this make it better? Becuase it's only $165...

EDIT: The X1600XT only has 12 pixel pipelines...

EDIT 2: Nevermind, I know now that it isn't as good as the X850XT (although I don't understand why...)
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top