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Graphics What card...

Discussion in 'Hardware' started by tom_s, 14 Dec 2005.

  1. tom_s

    tom_s What's a Dremel?

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    Well, I'm thinking of getting a new GFX card for christmas. My Radeon 9200SE I found in the bargain bin is getting a little out of it's depth :D

    It has to be an AGP model, and if not a VGA output, then atleast come with a DVI->VGA adapter.

    I have a budget ofaround £150. I'd really, really rather not go above that.

    A friend recommended I get the GeForce 6800XT, which is only a hundred quid. All looked well, but I just read a few different reviews on the card, and the number of times I saw the word "avoid" was a little off-putting.

    Basicacly, my requirments are that it can play Fear. I'm not looking for max settings here, but 'playable' without making me feel I'm playing it on a Dreamcast.

    I also want to play HL2 and CS:S, with very good graphics. I'm not expecting max as I'd guess that'll cost be a lot more, but good graphics settings enabled, anyway.

    What card should I get?

    I don't mind whether it is ATI or NVIDIA, as long as it is AGP, within my price range and can do the above.

    Please, when you reply, explain what you mean. Your talking to a newblet when it comes to graphics cards...

    Thanks!

    - Tom
     
  2. Tim S

    Tim S OG

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    There's going to be an XFX 6800 GS coming soon for £175 - might be a bit outside your budget, but terrific value for that kinda money. Stock should be in 'soon' - I don't know when NVIDIA is officially releasing it though.

    http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=314618

    Alternative choices would be something like the X800GTO AGP or X800XL AGP - I can't find any in stock at scan though. Depends what you're looking for - none of them are particularly bad choices but I would make sure you can get hold of one with 256MB of RAM if you want it to last you any reasonable amount of time.
     
  3. phuzz

    phuzz This is a title

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    Just to make sure
    6800XT = avoid ;)
    Mine didn't like unlocking any of the pipes/shaders and won't overclock worth a damn.
    Spend a few more £ and get a 6800LE, or go for something ATI, wish I had :(
     
  4. Guest-18698

    Guest-18698 Guest

  5. Valo

    Valo Minimodder

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    try to get x800gto2 and unlock to x850xt, not sure about the price and availability of agp one, but if you get one, you wont regret it
     
  6. Bladestorm

    Bladestorm What's a Dremel?

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    http://www.trustedreviews.com/article.aspx?art=2240

    Another two weeks or so apparently (I asked Komplett, they replied that they hadn't been informed of a delay but the stock had not arrived, so it was probably accurate)

    On the plus side, seems to confirm the speeds will be about the same as the pci express versions .. even if the "Within a whisker" bit sounds a touch odd to me.

    Waiting on it myself, bought a 6800 gt golden sample from gainward in the summer, it never ran the higher clock speeds (would lock up) and had texture corruption at stock speeds, even so I kinda fell in love with the speed of the 6800 GT compared to the previous FX 5900 XT, RMA'ed it reluctantly, two months later my retailer had heard zilch from gainward (EU) and is assuming they won't be replacing it, offered me a refund (happy with that) just stuck with this hole in the market to get a replacement.
     
  7. tom_s

    tom_s What's a Dremel?

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    I've been reading up on the 6800GS, and considering my budget and needs, seems to be my best choice.

    I've just looked over the comparison on this site of the GS with the GT (and two other cards). Although I was expecting the GS to be better, it was only a tiny bit behind the GT most of the time, which is acceptable.

    Now I've picked possibly the hardest card to get a hold of before christmas, especially an AGP version, I better get looking :(

    Thanks for the help, if any of you happen to come accross one for sale that isn't a preorder, reply here! :D

    Thanks again,

    - Tom
     
  8. Tim S

    Tim S OG

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    The XFX is likely to be faster than the reference sample, and thus faster than a 6800 GT.

    Valo - is the X800GTO2 available on AGP? I was under the impression that it was limited to PCI-Express.
     
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