7900GS(256) vs 7600GS (512)

Definitely the 7900, 512 Mb of memory is useless on a 7600 GS, especially if it's GDDR2.

so the 7950GT is better than the 7900GS?

I might just get that then if it comes down to it

Man, everywhere i go for the 7950GT is sold out,

I have a 7950GT 512 and its pretty solid. It gets the job done for most games that I play. I bought this knowing the 8800s were coming out but now I'm glad I did. I'll probably wait around for next gen cards to come in before I upgrade.

You could try getting this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814161092 it is a very good card.

alright, I'm his friend..

So you think the 512 would get stomped huh? Wow, that blows me away. I understand the pixel pipelines and such, but im not sure why it would out preform the 512, wouldnt it run hot if it tried?

So if a 256 would stomp a 512, what is a good (yet affordable) 256 SLI compatible?

Yes, the 7950GT is a great SINGLE 512MB card, but one thing you have to understand is that the onboard ram is only used for to store things like textures, once you have stored them, remaining space will not net you any extra performance. The difference not only lies in the pipelines (which after reading a review somewhere between I think a 6800, 6800 unlocked and a 6800GT it clearly states that even though there's a performance difference, it isn't all that great), but more importantly in the Core. The 7600GS uses the G73 core which is based on the G70 core, but of course... crippled. On the other hand the 7900GS is based on the G71 core, an improved revision for more performance. There's really no point in even comparing them because you'd be comparing the GF7 cheap mainstream (7600GS) to the GF7 cheaper high-end solution (7900GS), kind of like comparing an 8600GT to a 8800GTS.

Another thing, do not SLI unless you're going to SLI the BEST (and I mean the absolute best) cards on the market (i.e. 8800GTX), not even the 8800GTS is worth using SLI. Using SLI is strictly reserved for those who want the best performance that money can buy, not for those who are wanting to use 2 midrange solutions.

For example, the 7600GS 256MB is about $75 in newegg and you'll find the X1950Pro for $135 in the same website. However, if you SLI two 7600GS you'll only see an average increase of 120%-130% from this card's solo performance, however the X1950Pro (Same price as 2x 7600GS) will perform roughly 200-220% faster than the dual card setup. And this trend repeats ALWAYS no matter which cards you choose, this is why SLI is only used for systems that are intended to be the best of the best.

And it makes it's bottom hurt too, the onboard memory thing is from a time that long forgotten when not many had access to hardware and we thought that more onboard memory equaled performance but that's false.
The core is the most important part of a graphics card and probably going after an 8800gts 320 is the best choice.
And like javimars said it will just do terrible sexual things with an 7950gt