nVidia 7950 GX2....worth it?

ric-rivers

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Aug 4, 2006
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Hello everyone. I have started ordering parts for my very first system build. I am wondering if purchasing a 7950 gx2 is going to be worth it. I know it is a great card, I have read many reviews. My question really is will this card be obsolete when dx10 is released? I am an idiot so any info would help
 

Vash-HT

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Hello,
I think you have 2 choices here. First off would be to buy a cheap graphcis card now and upgrade once the first DX10 cards come out, or get a 7950GX2 now and use it for a while until it can't handle games anymore.

One thing to take into consideration is that we wont see full DX10 support in games for along time, so the benefits of actually having DX10 might be minimal. Remember you need windows vista to even use DX10, so unless you're planning on upgrading your OS right when it comes out its kind of pointless to have a DX10 card. Becuase of DX10's limited compatibility(only for vista), a lot of developers will probably stick closer to DX9 until vista is mroe widely adopted, and DX10 cards are mroe available. Also from what I have read, ATis next gen is meant to take the performance crown of DX9, with some compatibility with DX10. Even crysis will be fine with a good DX9 card(or so they say).

I personally opted to buy the 7950, DX10 will see limited support for a while, so you should be fine with a strong DX9 card like the 7950.
 

Doughbuy

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There are some small issues with the 7950, compatability, heat, stuff like that. I would still get one, but I'm just warning you. And yes, what the person above me said is true. Games utilizing DX10 won't be out for quite a while, so if you need a graphics card now, get it. But I still think waiting for a whole system is a better idea. Hybird HDD's are around the corner, not to mention possibly 1TB. Blu-ray and HD-DVD are still battling it out, but one of those is going to be the new standard. Lots of things are changing, so you could change now, and change again later, or just change again later...
 

sailer

Splendid
The 7950 GX2 is a great card for absolute speed in some areas. Like already said, it will be a while before game makers start using DX10, and even then, they will probably make the games work for a DX 9c card for a long time.

Two things I can think of; if you desire the capability to use both HDR and AA at the same time, you need an ATI card, like the X1900 XTX for top line performance. Second ATI is supposed to be releasing a X1950 soon for even better performance.

Its up to you. If you want the fastest speed and you want it now, get the 7950 GX2. If you can wait until the X1950 comes out and at least see the reviews comparing performance, then it would best to wait. Either way, you won't do too bad, and I wouldn't concern myself over DX10 too much.
 

monkey_knife_fight

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While the 7950 is a great card, if you are willing to spend that kind of money on a graphics card, I would definately wait for a DX10 card. I agree with what's been said: if you can, buy a lower-priced video card for now. Depending on when you plan on purchasing your card, you could get a budget eVGA card and take advantage of their step-up program, and upgrade to an eVGA DX10 card when they come out. Here's some info on this:

http://www.evga.com/stepup/default.asp

Best of luck!
 

sailer

Splendid
A problem with DX10 is that its tied to Vista, and Microsoft keeps delaying the release of Vista. Problems keep appearing with Vista, and each time that happens, the release of Vista is pushed farther back. So the question for many people, myself included, is do we want to wait an unknown length of time for programing (Vista) that will support DX10, or do we want the best that's available now?
 

ric-rivers

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Wow, thanks for all of the feedback! Tom's Hardware is a great place for a first time builder to get great help from great people. I think you guys are right in telling me to buy a cheaper one now and wait a little while. I preordered a core2 e6600 which will be ready for pickup on monday 8/7 from microcenter. while I was there I saw they were having a sale on the evga 7900, with the price around $220-$240 I cant remember. Is this a decent card at a decent price? Here are the rest of the system specs if anyone has comments: Motherboard- Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3, Processor- Core2 E6600, Memory- 2GB OCZ PC2-6400 EL Platinum XTC edition (4-5-4-15), PSU- Ultra Xfinity 500w, HDD- Samsung OEM 2x250GB, Huge battery backup, razor diamondback and idezon keyboard (not zboard)....I think that is it. Thanks again!
 

superwoofer

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Wow, thanks for all of the feedback! Tom's Hardware is a great place for a first time builder to get great help from great people. I think you guys are right in telling me to buy a cheaper one now and wait a little while. I preordered a core2 e6600 which will be ready for pickup on monday 8/7 from microcenter. while I was there I saw they were having a sale on the evga 7900, with the price around $220-$240 I cant remember. Is this a decent card at a decent price? Here are the rest of the system specs if anyone has comments: Motherboard- Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3, Processor- Core2 E6600, Memory- 2GB OCZ PC2-6400 EL Platinum XTC edition (4-5-4-15), PSU- Ultra Xfinity 500w, HDD- Samsung OEM 2x250GB, Huge battery backup, razor diamondback and idezon keyboard (not zboard)....I think that is it. Thanks again!
Im gona build the same system but I dont think 500w is enough. how come you got ocz, is it better than the corsair 800?
 

hella-d

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It Will Be Usefull For Me Bacause When I Add Another $1,000.00 Worth Of Parts To My Current PC (An AMD Opteron 170 Dual-Core, 2GB Of DDR600, An IRAM Drive, A 146GB 15,000RPM Ultra-320 SCSI w/8MB Cache And A Fully Customised Case 1. You Are Right, 2. A 7950GX2 Is The Only Way I Can Run SLI In My Current Motherboard Because It Is Single-Slot PCIe And Im Keeping My Excellent Motherboard, 3. Its Fast!