Graphics Card GTA 4 ------

[Dynaverse]

Hey,

I'm on a budget to get a new card I'm tossing up between the cards linked below!

Currently running a Dual core 4.2 gig, with 2 gigs of ram! Yeah i know its not the best, but not everyone has money to blow on top of the line machines! I recently got GTA 4 and i was running through a 9500 GT and it felt like slow murder! the game was laughing at me calling me a newb! So after that painful incident i did some reasearch and these cards came up! Im not sure if there is much difference with the company that manifactures these things, Im not much of a computer wizz, I just play games when im not out in the clubs! any suggestions would be superb!

Geforce 7600 GT
http://www.bttech.com.au/palit-geforce-9600gt-pcie-p-21174.html

Radeon 4670
https://9289.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=2272

ATI Radeon X1950 PRO 512
http://www.i-tech.com.au/items.aspx?id=21385

Any details or recommendations welcome!

Thanks

- Chris

 

[meodowla]

I've heard that GTA4 is a CPU dependent game.... it utilises core powers.... like Quadcore... also for GPU.... get nVidia 9800GTX/GTX+ or ATi HD4850/4870

 

[kelfen]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131125

 

[Dynaverse]

Thanks but I can't afford either of those cards.

Any cheeper alternative?

Something under $180 AUD, prefb around $150 AUD, no more! I simply can't afford it!

http://www.itsdirect.com.au/com_products.php?view=detail&category_id=48&sub_category=170&Product_ID=3496
http://www.itsdirect.com.au/com_products.php?view=detail&category_id=48&sub_category=170&Product_ID=3651

 

[macer1]

http://www.pricespy.com.au/c_569.html?d=14229


take a look

 

[meodowla]

Try this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161244
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127370


Also Palit HD4850 Sonic is also good choice........

 

[croc]

staticice.com.au is also worth a browse, but at that pricepoint your choice will be somewhat limited.

Macer1 has found probably your best bet from what I can see. Really, your current card isn't all that bad.

 

[Dynaverse]

Is there much difference between 1 gig of ram and 512?

What’s better a faster card with 512 ram or a slightly slower card with 1GB?

And what’s Vram is that different from ddr ram?

btw Crock there is a huge difference according to passMark,

9500 GT is at = 362 compared to, 9600 GT at = 906

the R 4800 is at 1,239

Ill try to get the Radeon, at that price and performance blaeh! Would I need a higher power supply? What do they run on?

 

[enewmen]

Also suggest the 4850. I think it's in your price range. - Anything less gets a lot slower very quickly.
I heard GTA4 is CPU dependent, so quad-core (C2Q or Phenom X4) will help more. (no links). If you got that C2D @ 4.2 Ghz, that should help compensate (try to run the CPU as slowly as possible, just for the sake of using less eletricity, lower temps, and less wear). Also, try to add more RAM when you can. Most games, even Crysis, doesn't use more than 2 gigs. But if you have Vista 64, 4+ gigs will help increase the min-fps by reducing the hard-drive access (less choppyness).

The prices in the links seem high. Please look around more for a cheaper 4850 (a lot faster than a 9800GTX) - at LEAST a 4830 with 512 megs .
my 2 cents worth.

 

[Dynaverse]

Cool enewmen ill check it out! and im running XP!

 

[enewmen]

Is there much difference between 1 gig of ram and 512?

What’s better a faster card with 512 ram or a slightly slower card with 1GB?

And what’s Vram is that different from ddr ram?

btw Crock there is a huge difference according to passMark,

9500 GT is at = 362 compared to, 9600 GT at = 906

the R 4800 is at 1,239

Ill try to get the Radeon, at that price and performance blaeh! Would I need a higher power supply? What do they run on?

A faster card ith 512m will out-run a slower card with 1024meg. Never expect a 4670 1024meg to ever be faster than a 4850 512meg.
However, card A with 1 gig will be faster than card A with 512meg on high screen sizes (1920x1200+) and on some games with very high textures (like Crysis, FarCry2, etc)

Lots of benchmarks are available online at THG and others to show this.

 

[enewmen]

Also, good of you to check the PSU. This is often overlooked. NEVER use a video card more demanding than the PSU can handle. The 4870 for example, uses 2 6-pin PCIe power plugs. Most PSUs don't have this. There are other reasons to have a premium PSU as well.

 

[Dynaverse]

I have a feel that GTA 4 is one of those high texture games! it runs hardcore on graphics memory! so I probably should try to get my hands on a 1GB card if possible?

And my system is at least 1 year old now, this is confusing! I dont even think i can mount a 4870 card LOL!

Ive got a GA-M51GM-S2G motherboard, S series gigabyte! and a standard AMD 64 Dual core Athlon 4.2 Gig.

Thanks for all the replies, keep them coming i do appreciate this!

PSU ?

I don't know what that stands for? processor unit? and Id have no idea how to check.

 

[enewmen]

PSU = Power Supply Unit.
Again, a fast 512m card is faster than a slow 1024meg card. So, try to get a fast card first, then worry if 1024 megs will help any.

 

[Dynaverse]

Cool in that case Ill skip the 1 gig 9600, and go for " MSI ATI HD4830 PCI-E 2.0 512MB " Does that require any special pins with the power supply or no? allso ive heard some of these cards require new power supplies because of the power shortage! whats the minimum power supply required to run this card? how many W?

 

[enewmen]

"450 Watt or greater power supply with 75 Watt 6-pin PCI Express® power connector recommended (550 Watt and two 6-pin connectors for ATI CrossFireX™ technology in dual mode) "

http://ati.amd.com/products/radeonhd4800/requirements.html

Follow the path of Knowlege and The Truth......

 

[Dynaverse]

OK I've chosen this card to buy

http://www.ozdirect.com/product_info.php?source=shopbot&osadcampaign=shopbot&products_id=74586

Now my mobo only has PCI express, i dont think it has 2.0? does that matter? can i still put it on and will it work?

 

[enewmen]

That 4830 will WAX the old 9500GT. You should notice a huge speed boost. If your PCI express is at least ver. 1.1 and 16x, you should be OK.

Again, make sure your UPS can handle the 4830. Check the system requirements. The 4830 isn't the most demanding card, but it still requires a real 6pin PCIe power plug. Remember those requiremtns on the web-site are only MINIMUM requirements. So check if you have something at least a little better than the minimum.

Enjoy!

 

[Dynaverse]

Is this a 6pin PSU?

http://img355.imageshack.us/img355/9707/wtfdb0.jpg

or am i looking at the wrong thing here.

 

[enewmen]

Blurry photo. But that looks like a 8pin and 6pin PCIe plug. Do you have the PSU make/model number? That can help me more.

If that is a 8pin PCIe plug, don't confuse it with the 8pin CPU plug.
Also, if that is a 8pin plug, you can upgrade to a card much faster than a 4830 in the future. Such as a 4870 X2 or 5870 X2 !

 

[Dynaverse]

It's some generic brand, I wouldn't have a clue!
Not sure if this new pic will help

http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/8386/lolzs3.jpg

Ill probably end up buying a new PSU if this dosn't do the job, I think its 450W but i cant tell, all it says is 240V! youd think generic companys label their products better!!

 

[enewmen]

All I can say is, check the pins VERY carefully. Match only round pins to round pins, square pins to square pins.

One more thing you can try is get a Molex to PCIe 6 pin adapter. Even if this works, don't overclock the CPU or Motherboard.

If nothing works, get a much more premium PSU (80+ certification). The Premium PSU will be more reliable, provide a more constant voltage, have less stress on other components, have plugs needed for future components, and run cooler.

 

[V3NOM]

:lol: 7600GT wouldnt even come close to that 9500GT... imo get a 8800GT if you can afford it (which you can't, since they're about $200 AUD where i am) or a 9600GT or a 4670. my 9600GT was $138 AUD

try reducing settings/res to improve performance first? :lol:

 

[Dynaverse]

Nah I wouldnt buy a Nvidia card if you pay me, they are rubbish, I already own a 7600 GT and 9500 GT and they are both rubbish!

ATI is the way.. read this review

http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-hd-4830-review-his-technology/

 

[V3NOM]

meh, i owned a 7600GS which overclocked (edit: 50% ) and played crysis on medium no probs at all... my 9600GT im equally as happy with

except it only oc'd 20mhz ^.^ lol