What video card should I get?

[r3dh3adkid]

Ok I built my entire system over this past summer and i'm already looking to upgrade .

Can anyone help me decide what video card to get. The limit for this bad boy is around 650.

Can be ATI or Nvidia.

Can be SLI or Crossfire or neither.

Must be PCI Express x16 (altho anything for that much probably will be anyway).


Suggestions?

 

[bebopin64]

ati x1900xtx would be my choice. the 7950 gx2 is more powerful but not enough that i would spend for it. you will have some money left over too for other things with the x1900xtx.

 

[ckfordy]

either get a ati X1900XTX or a Nvidia 7900GTX both very good cards and should play games very nicely.

 

[ilovefishsticks]

I would go with anything that uses nvidia 7950 gpu

 

[ckfordy]

I would go with anything that uses nvidia 7950 gpu

I wouldnt get the 7950 when the 7900GTX can handle most if not all games out there maxed out with a good framerate i just dont see spending that much more when there is one that is much cheaper that can get the job done just as well.

 

[Pr0]

Yes Agree X1900xtx is the choice right now. Its a lot cheaper then 7950 and it has better frame rates then 7950 with some games

 

[TonyBAMF]

Newegg has a deal for a X1900XT for $389 and 100.00 Rebate

 

[ceewi1]

If you really want to spend that much money:

MSI X1900XT $279 after MIR
MSI X1900XT CF $369 after MIR

Total: $648

Frankly, though, the single X1900XT would be fine for almost anything.

 

[r3dh3adkid]

If you really want to spend that much money:

MSI X1900XT $279 after MIR
MSI X1900XT CF $369 after MIR

Total: $648

Frankly, though, the single X1900XT would be fine for almost anything.

Both cards dont have to be CF only one of them does?

Well dang i learned something today.

 

[Saurian]

Crossfire operates with a master card connected to a "slave" card (Calling it a slave for lack of a better term). Both cards have to have pretty close to the same settings, but unlike SLI both cards CAN differ. They basically have to be same GPU, same ram amount, but the Bios revision can be different, maker can even be different I'm pretty sure. Basically, not nearly as picky as SLI. Also the ATI tools included give it several different options for performance depending on what the game supports, while nVidia's SLI does just one (Which does SLI do? Supertiling?). The two cards are connected by an external connector that goes from a specified DVI output on the "slave" to a specified DVI-looking port (has a fancy name, don't ask me right now its too late) on the master card. This just makes it potentially cheaper and such.

I'm not an expert on Crossfire, so by all means correct me on my info.

 

[maroon1]

GIGABYTE 7950GX2

 

[ceewi1]

Both cards dont have to be CF only one of them does?

Well dang i learned something today.

Correct. From ATI's site (http://www.ati.com/technology/crossfire/faq.html):
A complete CrossFire system requires a CrossFire Ready motherboard, a CrossFire Edition graphics card and a compatible standard Radeon (CrossFire Ready) graphics card from the same series, or two CrossFire Ready cards if they are software enabled. This applies to cards from ATI or any of its partners.

 

[knockout34]

i would definitley get the 1900 XTX. the 7900 gtx cant run anti aliasing and hdr lighting at the same time. (which i think is stupid) also the 1900 xtx has 2 times as many pixel processors and has far better technology. only bad thing- crossfire is kind of klunky and confusing. doesnt live up to its expectations. i would even recommend one xtx and once they perfect crossfire, get another one later. just make sure u get the crossfire edition card. and as ceewi1 said above, a crossfire mobo.

DONT GET 7950 GX2! DX10 will make it obsolete!

 

[knockout34]

Newegg has a deal for a X1900XT for $389 and 100.00 Rebate

thats amazing

 

[holyjunk]

i would definitley get the 1900 XTX. the 7900 gtx cant run anti aliasing and hdr lighting at the same time.

Yes, but you see HUGE drops in performance when these are enabled and frankly I do not think anti-aliasing and hdr lighting are that much of a deal. I would take more fps over flashy objects and such any day.

 

[Geoff]

Yes, but you see HUGE drops in performance when these are enabled and frankly I do not think anti-aliasing and hdr lighting are that much of a deal. I would take more fps over flashy objects and such any day.

I partially agree with you. When you have HDR+FSAA, there is a big hit in performance, however they do offer the option for people who love eye candy.

FSAA on the other hand, is one of the best features I like to have, since it smooths out edges, and makes objects look much nicer. I can live without the HDR, so buying an nVidia card, for me, isn't a big deal.

 

[holyjunk]

I partially agree with you. When you have HDR+FSAA, there is a big hit in performance, however they do offer the option for people who love eye candy.

FSAA on the other hand, is one of the best features I like to have, since it smooths out edges, and makes objects look much nicer. I can live without the HDR, so buying an nVidia card, for me, isn't a big deal.

True. It is all just a matter of opinion. To tell you the truth I wouldn't know which to get only if I saw nvidia's and ati's top performer go at it side by side. There is always a good and a bad, bad and a good.