DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK! Gamer needs advice on new vcard.

[redboy33]

Ok, It seems as though the life on my Radeon 9500pro has come to an end. The card itself is fine, but I just installed F.E.A.R and the 9500 is not cutting it..

This card has been great on my Athlon 2500+ (OC 3200+) for a couple of years now, but it's time to upgrade.

Here is my new system in a nutshell.

AMD x2 3800+
OCZ Platinum Revision 2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2
4 - 250GB Sata II in Raid 5 (OS and Data)
4 - 80GB Pata in Raid 0 (Games)
GIGABYTE GA-M51GM-S2G

I’ve been running off the onboard nvidia 6100 for video (haven't tried any games) I'm just going to assume it's not worth it to even try.
I need some feedback/opinions on the best video card to get for around $100-150.

I really haven't followed the latest and greatest in video cards for some time now, but know I would like (obviously) the max performance for the price range I set.

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[jitpublisher]

http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/02/06/the_best_gaming_video_cards_for_the_money/

 

[cleeve]

If you want something worlds better than your 9500 PRO for cheap, a Radeon X1650 XT or Geforce 7600 GT will do you wonders for about $120.
Both are very capable cards for the $$ and close performers, I think the X1650 XT has the edge in the tougher games like Oblivion though.

If you're more serious about getting back into gaming, $300 get's you a nice new DirectX 10 capable Geforce 8800 GTS...

 

[redboy33]

How long before the 8XXX series is out? I waited this long, what's a few more weeks..

Thanks for the info!

 

[cleeve]

The Geforce 8800 GTS is available *right now* for about $300.

Have a look at newegg.