7600GT Questions

[Ryan_D]

Hi everyone.

I've been looking at a good graphics card to hold me out for a whlie, and I came across this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130017

Based on reviews, I see it has had a history of being very unreliable, but I hear that the problem was fixed and the newer ones shipping now do not have this problem.

Now on to the questions:
I hear this card doesn't require external power from the PSU, that it only draws from the motherboard. I'd much rather it not do that, so is it still possible to use the PSU as a main source of power for it?

However, the main question is, do I purchase it right now (which I can do) or do I try waiting a bit longer for maybe prices to drop more or for the first signs of mid-range DX10 cards to come out?

 

[Ryan_D]

I edited out a lot of the unnecessary stuff in the original post - it should look a lot less long (and less frightening, too).

Thanks in advance, guys!

 

[kaotao]

That'd be a great card to hold you off for a little bit. You might want to look around because they've been seen selling for $100 or even less.

 

[mdmoy]

I have eVGA 7600GT and it works fine (5 months old). I am not a gamer and primarily wanted a card with 2 DVI outputs to drive my 2 LCD screens. I replaced stock cooler with Zalman unit at 5V so that it is very quiet. I chose NOT to go with a passive-cooled card because of clearance issues in my case/mobo combination. The Zalman unit is very compact - perhaps not as efficient as Aero cooler, but for my particular purpose, it is fine. The stock cooler is fine if you are OK with a little more noise.

Although it runs fine at the factory-overclocked speeds, I use nVidia control panel to change clock speeds to the stock nVidia speeds, just to run a little cooler/quieter.

With 2 LCD panels (19-inch), and EyeOne Display 2 calibration, the card is fine for my Photoshop work.

At the time of purchase, I did not find many other cards with 2 DVI outputs - most of the less-expensive cards had one VGA + one DVI, which is not what I needed.

 

[Ryan_D]

Hey, cool, just the type of answers I was looking for!

Just curious about the whole external power thing - when installing the card, all I have to do is shove it in there without having to connect anything (except the fan)?

I've heard horror stories about cards that draw power though the motherboard only that cause BSoD's and such. The reason I'm upgrading is to escape the dreaded BSoD (GMA X3000 drivers are buggy, and overall crap). Is this a problem I should be worried about, or is it possible to connect my PSU directly to the card?

If it matters, here's my current rig.
Core 2 Duo E6600 (2.4ghz)
Intel BOXDG965WHMKR Motherboard (onboard video+sound)
2GB 667mhz Crucial Memory
Seagate 250GB SATA-300 7200rpm HDD
Enermax 500W PSU (20-22A on both 12v rails)
Lite-On DVD+/-R Burner

 

[Ryan_D]

Actually nevermind all of that.

I just realized for $30 more I can get a 7900GS - 256bit bus and 8 more pipelines! I'm pretty much sold on the GS now (here's a link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130056).

Just a quick question: Anyone had any experience with the mail-in rebates? I've heard things about eVGA being shady when it comes to those mail-in rebates.

 

[mdmoy]

my evga rebate was received promptly - no problems.

 

[Ryan_D]

Awesome. Thanks for the help! I'm going to order the 7900GS soon - I'm going to try waiting maybe a week into December or so, to increase my chances at being able to Step Up to a midrange DX10 card if those come around in February. Even if I can't, it will probably still last me a great deal of time.

 

[redwing]

Just a small heads up to address one of your concerns.

Any card that draws over 75W at peak needs an extra 12V connector.
Any card that has an external connector already draws the maximum it can from the PCI-E bus, so your MB will be supplying your card with power regardless of how many connectors it has. The addional connectors are only there to insure stability (i.e. that the required current can be provided at all times for the 12V line).

This happens on every PCI-E motherboard in the world, and so far there have been no concerns linked to this. In other words, don't worry about supplying your peripherals with power through the MB, that's what it's designed for.

Cheers

p.s. The 7600GT and 7900GS are both good cards, well priced for their performance. I had a 7600GT before I couldnt resist and got a 7900GTO, and my only complaint about the 7600GT is that the stock fan is very loud in 3D mode. Tweaking the fan speed helps, but as the card gets pretty hot you can't really turn the fan lower than 50% and expect stability during gaming. I hear the 7900GS is using a similar fan, so be prepared to dish out another 20-30$ for a decent aftermarket HSF when you get tired of the noise. WHne you do, I recommend the entry Zalman unit - vf700 Cu/AlCu, can be found for <30$ nowadays and are literally silent in their "quiet" mode, in which they still provide better cooling than the stock fan. It comes with 8 little heatsinks for the ram too, which is a good thing since the 7900GS/7600GT are both good overclockers given adequate cooling. Quiet operation and an extra 10-15% easy performance boost was worth the 30$ in my case.

 

[Ryan_D]

Thanks! This is good, because eVGA lets you replace the heatsink/fan without voiding your warranty. Thank you very much for your help! I really appreciate it.

 

[leckig]

i have it as well. it is a good card, a bit too loud.