Totally clueless picking a card

[Sikaris]

This is the last point of trouble in my build... I've been looking around and really haven't gotten anywhere. The market changes so much I just flat out don't know what I'm doing. I have around $300 to spend on a graphics card. This is the mobo I've been eyeing: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188026
I plan on primarily gaming @ 1680x1050. Is nvidia the best choice now or should I switch mobos and go ATI? I suppose I could get one card now and buy a second in a few months. But like I said, I know nothing

 

[Pazuzoo]

At that resolution you really can't go wrong with either of the options in your price range. The gtx260 or ati 4870 will pretty much max out just about anything at 1680x1050. If you're attached to that mobo I'd go with the 260 so you could upgrade to sli at some point in time if you felt like it.

Either card is a good choice really, and I think you can get a 260 pretty cheap with rebates right now, so maybe the best advice is just to go with whichever of the card you can get the best deal on right now, whether it be through sale/rebates or combo deals from newegg.

 

[Sikaris]

The GTX 260 is roughly $5-10 cheaper, so it's effectively equivalent. I'm not really stuck on the mobo, it's just what I was looking at if I got an nvidia card. Will I notice a difference between CF 4870 and SLI GTX 260? My primary choice I see here is whether to go nvidia or ATI.

 

[cjl]

The CF 4870's will be faster in almost every game, with the possible exception of Crysis.

 

[ZOldDude]

9800GTX are onsale for $149 USD....look around.

 

[Lavacon]

I think Intel chipsets are superior to Nvidias. If you are not bound to a Nvidia mobo consider a x38/x48 w/ an Ati card. If you can wait until the release of the 4870x2 in mid august, the price of a single 4870 should drop another 10%. Then in 6 months get another 4870 very cheap and xfire them

 

[jerreece]

Overall the ATI cards (4850/4870) are your better performance picks for the money over the GTX 260.

The 9800GTX mentioned above is basically equal to the G92 8800GTS (512MB) graphics card performance wise from what I've seen. For $300 you could get 2 of those and go SLI if you wanted.

I'd probably just go with 1 single card that's faster. So like 4850 or 4870. Think you can find some extreme deals on 4850's sometimes too. So you might really do some shopping and see if you can wrestle two of those up for CrossFire.

 

[Sikaris]

9800GTX are onsale for $149 USD....look around.

Oh wow. You're right, COMPUSA has them for $150 after rebate. I'll definitely look into this!

 

[cjl]

Look into the 4850 too then. It's slightly faster, and in a similar price range.

 

[Sikaris]

It looks like I could also get 2 factory OC 8800 GTs for SLI for the same price as a GTX 260. Would this be better than a single GTX 260? I'd prefer to stay with nvidia as I'm more familiar with their products. This is the card by the way: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500006

 

[dennisburke]

I have a friend who just upgraded to two 8800GT's from a 8800GTX and he is quite happy with them...best bang for the buck. He was just not that happy with the other offerings at this stage in the video war. He will probably upgrade again next year when the next real generation comes along.

I also have a 22" monitor and have my eye on the 260...the price is right...but I'm going to wait another month or two and see if they come out with a 55nm version. One 260 should be more than enough for my gaming needs.

 

[Sikaris]

Yeah I'm thinking I might go with SLI 8800 GT's. By the time the next gen is out I should have at least another $500 to spend on a card.

 

[sabot00]

ATI will beat the crap out of them GO 4870
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Description=4870&x=0&y=0

 

[Sikaris]

Well I DID read that article here about how it's better than the GTX 260... people are saying they're playing *eek* Crysis on max with only one of those babies. Plus I only spend $15 more... it's very tempting. Wrong section, I know, but any suggestions for what mobo to get for a CF 4870 setup?

 

[coleipoo]

x48, by far. You can spend about 300 on an Asus Rampage Formula X48, or you can buy the ASUS P5E x48, which is the same thing, sans one LAN connector. just flash teh bios to the Rampage BIOS, and bam, you have a 300 dollar board for 220.

DFi makes some good X48's as well. I just love the BIOS of the Rampage. So many options.