X1800XT vs X1900XT and does widescreen make a difference?

[ornryactor]

I'm building a new rig for the experience of it, and also to have a Windows machine that I can game (and use Photoshop) on. I've managed to get just about everything except the critical parts: CPU, GPU, and motherboard. (I've been running off of the assumption that I should choose a CPU and GPU first, which will help limit my mobo choices, and will also dictate what RAM to buy.) I'll be getting a C2D, probably an E6400.

My question is twofold: I do mid-level gaming; nothing super-hardcore. I don't play many FPSs, but I do play MMOs and anything else that looks interesting. It's not like I'm playing solitaire. I'd like to get a GPU that will last me a good while (couple of years at least, until DX10 cards have settled down), but isn't too expensive. I've had the X1800XT recommended to me, as well as the X1900XT. The 1800 is more what I'm looking for, since I can get it for around $200, but if there is compelling reason to get another card, I'm certainly open to suggestion. What are everyone's thoughts on the 1800XT as a mid-level gaming card?

If it makes any difference, I'm leaning towards a 19" widescreen monitor. I don't have any specific models in mind; I'm still looking for something I like that's not too expensive. How should this choice of monitor affect my GPU decision, if at all? I don't really know how the two interact. (Also, does anyone have a 19"WS monitor they recommend?)

Thanks in advance.

 

[IcY18]

Well the way your talking it seems as though the X1800XT will provide more power than you'll really even need,i have a X1800XT as of right now i can run BF2 ( a FPS with huge maps) at full settings with a res of 1680x1050, which will be a higher res then what you run at since your looking at a 19", so i would say the X1800XT will provide you with all your needs and more, i would consider it more of a mid-high level card, with the x1900xt providing the high end, the nvidia 7600GT would be more of a mid level gaming card

so i would say its a good card for you

 

[towely]

If it makes any difference, I'm leaning towards a 19" widescreen monitor. I don't have any specific models in mind; I'm still looking for something I like that's not too expensive. How should this choice of monitor affect my GPU decision, if at all? I don't really know how the two interact. (Also, does anyone have a 19"WS monitor they recommend?)

I'm generally not such a fan of any 19" widescreen LCD as they all seem to run at that bastard child resolution of 1440*900. Its not hard to tweak ur games to support it, but u may want to consider getting a standard 4:3 at 1280*1024 (near-universally supported in any recent game), or if you have a bit of extra dough, cop a 20" widescreen that supports the much more ubiquitous rez of 1680*1050. Of course, if you go this route, ensure you have enough GPU muscle to do it justice.

 

[sojrner]

If it makes any difference, I'm leaning towards a 19" widescreen monitor. I don't have any specific models in mind; I'm still looking for something I like that's not too expensive. How should this choice of monitor affect my GPU decision, if at all? I don't really know how the two interact. (Also, does anyone have a 19"WS monitor they recommend?)

I'm generally not such a fan of any 19" widescreen LCD as they all seem to run at that bastard child resolution of 1440*900. Its not hard to tweak ur games to support it, but u may want to consider getting a standard 4:3 at 1280*1024 (near-universally supported in any recent game), or if you have a bit of extra dough, cop a 20" widescreen that supports the much more ubiquitous rez of 1680*1050. Of course, if you go this route, ensure you have enough GPU muscle to do it justice.

You know, just when you start sounding like you are speaking truth and bringing up a good point... you go and mess it up. Yes, not all games support widescreen, but if widescreen resolutions like 1440x900 are hard to tweak, how is 1680x1050 any better? Makes no sense to say one is bad and not the other... they are both widescreen formats and so equally easy/difficult to tweak. The logic just does not fit. Oh, and neither one is "ubiquitous" in games.

@ the OP:
towely did bring up a valid point though; not all games support widescreen resolutions. Many can be tweaked to function just fine w/ it if they don't "natively" support it. For those that cant be tweaked, most modern widescreen monitors support the ability to display the 4:3 resolution w/ "black bars" on the sides so that you dont have to deal w/ stretching/blurring on interpolation. Check out widescreen gaming forums and they have nice advice on all things widescreen.

also, I agree that the 1800xt is a great card. The 1900xt is of course a little better card (256 meg version, 512 much better yet) but you will not be dissapointed w/ the 1800xt if you dont want to spend the $ on the 1900.

 

[angry_ducky]

I'm with the others; get a standard 19" monitor along with a 256MB X1800XT. On newegg, you can get a Sapphire X1800XT for $200, which is a great price for the performance.

 

[towely]

If it makes any difference, I'm leaning towards a 19" widescreen monitor. I don't have any specific models in mind; I'm still looking for something I like that's not too expensive. How should this choice of monitor affect my GPU decision, if at all? I don't really know how the two interact. (Also, does anyone have a 19"WS monitor they recommend?)

I'm generally not such a fan of any 19" widescreen LCD as they all seem to run at that bastard child resolution of 1440*900. Its not hard to tweak ur games to support it, but u may want to consider getting a standard 4:3 at 1280*1024 (near-universally supported in any recent game), or if you have a bit of extra dough, cop a 20" widescreen that supports the much more ubiquitous rez of 1680*1050. Of course, if you go this route, ensure you have enough GPU muscle to do it justice.

You know, just when you start sounding like you are speaking truth and bringing up a good point... you go and mess it up. Yes, not all games support widescreen, but if widescreen resolutions like 1440x900 are hard to tweak, how is 1680x1050 any better? Makes no sense to say one is bad and not the other... they are both widescreen formats and so equally easy/difficult to tweak. The logic just does not fit. Oh, and neither one is "ubiquitous" in games.

.

Man, don't be such a hater!! 1680*1050 IS a more common resolution supported by games. WoW, HL2, FEAR, Oblivion all support 1680*1050 right out of the box. They must be tweaked to support 1440*900. Simply put, 1440*900 is less supported because there arent nearly as many screens that run at that resolution. 1680*1050 is the standard resolution for 20" widescreens which are MUCH more prevalent than 19" widescreens. Most people who run 19"ers use 4:3 ones @ 1280*1024.

Just because they are both widescreen doesnt mean anything. I'm sure people will agree with me on this.

Notice I said "more ubiquitous". If you think that 1440*900 is as well supported out-of-the-box in games as 1680*1050, you are mistaken. I have had a 1680*1050 monitor for nearly 2 years now, so I think I have some idea what I'm talking about.

And there is no reason to be a dick about it.

 

[p90m16mp5a4]

Get the x1800xt, x1900xt is for FPS's and HDRL whores. No doubt this card will be able to play modern and future games at low res. Also, your power supply is just as important as CPU/RAM/mobo. Especially if you plan on getting a high end card like the x1800xt.

[code:1:e57c659be7]

12x10 is not a 4:3 ratio.
simple formula in case nobody knows:

400x300 is a 4:3 ratio, quite obviously. 400/4 is 100. 300/3 is 100. Since the result is 100 for both problems you can see that this formula works.

1280 / 4 is 320
1024 / 3 is 341
The results do not match meaning no 4:3.

1280 /4 is 320
960 /3 is 320
The results match meaning it's a 4:3 ratio.

1280x960 is the proper 3:4 ratio and should be supported as the "native" resolution for 4:3 ratio LCD's, either that or increase 1280 to 1364. (341*4)

This random rant brought to you buy p90.
[/code:1:e57c659be7]

 

[Calapuso]

If it makes any difference, I'm leaning towards a 19" widescreen monitor. I don't have any specific models in mind; I'm still looking for something I like that's not too expensive. How should this choice of monitor affect my GPU decision, if at all? I don't really know how the two interact. (Also, does anyone have a 19"WS monitor they recommend?)

I'm generally not such a fan of any 19" widescreen LCD as they all seem to run at that bastard child resolution of 1440*900. Its not hard to tweak ur games to support it, but u may want to consider getting a standard 4:3 at 1280*1024 (near-universally supported in any recent game), or if you have a bit of extra dough, cop a 20" widescreen that supports the much more ubiquitous rez of 1680*1050. Of course, if you go this route, ensure you have enough GPU muscle to do it justice.

1280*1024 is 5:4 ratio. 1280*960 is the closest 4:3 ratio. Some standard ratio LCDs are 4:3 whilst others are 5:4 and some widescreen LCDs are 16:10 or 16:9 so be careful choosing a correct resolution to match.

 

[choirbass]

this is going to be more of a personal preference to recommend for monitors, that way you get the widest variety and compatability of resolution choices... but, i would say to even purchase 2 identical 4:3 ratio lcd monitors with a narrow bezel so you can put them side by side... that way if you want to run a standard resolution, you can run just fine, and if you want to do widescreen, you can do that just fine as well with a simple settings change... the price may even be cheaper than a single large widescreen... but as long as you dont mind the 1/4" or so gap between the picture with a narrow bezel, it may work out to be a much more diversive and enjoyable choice... with 2 17" lcds being equal to about a 30" lcd as far as desktop space, for far less money

actually... im still using crt monitors myself, so theres a 3 1/2" gap in the center with the screens against each other, lol... but the additional real estate and freedom from a small confined work area is well worth it though, IMO

for FPS games though... the gap may get in the way more, as it would be right down where you would need to see, but, either way though.

 

[p90m16mp5a4]

FORMULA POWER!!

 

[towely]

If it makes any difference, I'm leaning towards a 19" widescreen monitor. I don't have any specific models in mind; I'm still looking for something I like that's not too expensive. How should this choice of monitor affect my GPU decision, if at all? I don't really know how the two interact. (Also, does anyone have a 19"WS monitor they recommend?)

I'm generally not such a fan of any 19" widescreen LCD as they all seem to run at that bastard child resolution of 1440*900. Its not hard to tweak ur games to support it, but u may want to consider getting a standard 4:3 at 1280*1024 (near-universally supported in any recent game), or if you have a bit of extra dough, cop a 20" widescreen that supports the much more ubiquitous rez of 1680*1050. Of course, if you go this route, ensure you have enough GPU muscle to do it justice.

1280*1024 is 5:4 ratio. 1280*960 is the closest 4:3 ratio. Some standard ratio LCDs are 4:3 whilst others are 5:4 and some widescreen LCDs are 16:10 or 16:9 so be careful choosing a correct resolution to match.

Hehe you know what I mean by 4:3 Any monitor that's not widescreen looks like a square to me. Once you go wide, its hard to go back

 

[sojrner]

Man, don't be such a hater!! 1680*1050 IS a more common resolution supported by games. WoW, HL2, FEAR, Oblivion all support 1680*1050 right out of the box. They must be tweaked to support 1440*900. Simply put, 1440*900 is less supported because there arent nearly as many screens that run at that resolution. 1680*1050 is the standard resolution for 20" widescreens which are MUCH more prevalent than 19" widescreens. Most people who run 19"ers use 4:3 ones @ 1280*1024.

Just because they are both widescreen doesnt mean anything. I'm sure people will agree with me on this.

acutally that means everything. Not to be a bandwagon jumper here, but as so many have pointed out the ratios I will too b/c it fits here. Both 1680x1050 and 1440x900 are the exact same 8:5 ratio. If you can tweak for one, you can tweak for the other. If one is supported then scaling to the other works too. (if the game did not support the 8:5 ratio then possibly it would stretch the pixels. I have seen this happen and it sucks) That was what I was getting at, sorry if I was not clear on that.

Notice I said "more ubiquitous". If you think that 1440*900 is as well supported out-of-the-box in games as 1680*1050, you are mistaken. I have had a 1680*1050 monitor for nearly 2 years now, so I think I have some idea what I'm talking about.

And there is no reason to be a dick about it.

wow, wasn't resorting to names... and was not intending d!ckhood here. Getting emotional? My point is that you said you could tweak the game to support the 1680 res. (or at least that is how I interpereted what you said) If you can do that, then you can do it for anything at that format. as far as how long you have had a widescreen monitor... who cares? Many ppl have computers that do not know how to change resolutions! (not saying you are an idiot necessarily but how long you own something is not proof of authority on a subject)

your point on the widescreen support in general was good. You just had info that started making it too unclear and I called you on it. Not wanting it to be a drawn out personal argument. Just clearing the facts from fiction.

 

[towely]

I apologize if I didn't make myself clear. Let me try again

For pure ease of use, 1680*1050 is supported by more games without any tweaking than 1440*900. That was the point I was trying to make.

Like, if you go into the video menu of your average game, it is quite a bit more likely that you will see a setting for 1680*1050 than 1440*900.

That is all.

I simply advised against a 1440*900 monitor for someone who doesn't feel like tweaking their games for custom resolutions.

Sorry if I overreacted. 5 days and counting without a smoke. Plus I got my wisdom teeth out yesterday. Boredom + stress = angry posts.

Thanks for bearing with me during this difficult time

Peace/Salaam/Shalom

 

[Dr_asik]

The X1800XT is worth every single penny and you will not be disappointed from buying it. Yes, a 7600GT would do, but it's way crappier.

 

[adamb10]

I lost my sanity today and bought a X1900XT to game on 1024x768. 8O I wanted the high detail though and the cool feeling that you own a high end item.

 

[towely]

I lost my sanity today and bought a X1900XT to game on 1024x768. 8O I wanted the high detail though and the cool feeling that you own a high end item.

The x1900xt is a wicked, albeit slightly noisy/hot card. You won't be disappointed.

 

[lowlifecat]

to add some spice; i got a 22" ws 1680x1050 running on a OCed x1800xt.

i've noticed some games that don't have ws resolutions but do have a 16:9 or 16:10 ratio option. ex: Prey, max res 12x10 but with 16:10 aspect ratio it fills the screen without any stretching.

looks very sweet.

 

[towely]

to add some spice; i got a 22" ws 1680x1050 running on a OCed x1800xt.

i've noticed some games that don't have ws resolutions but do have a 16:9 or 16:10 ratio option. ex: Prey, max res 12x10 but with 16:10 aspect ratio it fills the screen without any stretching.

looks very sweet.

Check out the widescreen gaming forums. Most can be tweaked to support nearly any custom resolution. Of course, this is easier with some games than others. But, when there's a will, there's away.

Good luck to ya.

 

[p90m16mp5a4]

you can make a 4:3 ratio montior widescreen simply by changing the res to a widescreen res and adjusting ur vertical height. I played a few games in a letterbox and laughed afterwards at how stupid I am.

 

[lowlifecat]

oblivion was definitly meant to be played ws

i'm really not worried about 16x10 being to much for the gpu, card seems to take it with flying colours. very impressive!

 

[ornryactor]

Thanks for the advice, all. I bought a retail MSI X1800XT from ZipZoomFly for $209 shipped. Should be here by the middle of next week. My list of still-needed components is shrinking...

I'm still stumped on the monitor issue, though. To the poster who suggested dual 17" monitors, that was actually what I'd been planning on doing for a long time. But I noticed that I could get a 19" monitor for about the same price as a 17". I also realized that I don't really have the desk real estate for two monitors' footprints. My reasoning for a 19" WS was that it would give me enough desktop space to have two windows side by side (I do a lot of research and data entry that neccessitates the use of two instances of a browser, each with multiple tabs open). Therefore a 19"WS would suit my purposes just as well as dual 17s.

But, like others have said, it might be harder to get games running correctly at 1440*990, and I'm not brave enough to go tweaking display settings manually.

Jury's still out on that one, but I hope I can find something soon. My current monitor is a MASSIVE CRT (almost 24" deep!) that I would love to get off my desktop...