Upgrade Question: Video card or CPU?

[soundmage]

Right now, my system setup is as follows:
Athalon 900
GeForce2 MX (not 200 or 400, just MX)
256mb PC2700 DDR
a 60 gig HD
a 13 gig HD
all on a Gigabyte GA-7VRXP

Seeing as I don't have much in the way of money, would it make sense to first upgrade my CPU to an AthalonXP 2000+ or would it make more sense to get a GeForce4 Ti4200?

I'm gonna be upgrading both eventually, but I'm really not sure which should go first.

Thanks.
Soundmage

 

[slickstaa]

how much do you game?

<font color=blue> "If you dont have it, that's why you need it!" </font color=blue>

 

[soundmage]

I do mostly gaming. some audio editing, some graphics editing. Mostly Quake3, UT, UT2003 when it comes out, DooM3 when it comes out...

 

[chuck232]

Definitely to Ti4200 first. The MX is already past strained by now I'd say and with an even faster CPU, you'll get almost nothing out of it. I'd personnally wait and upgrade both at the same time. Cause if you get a Ti4200 now, you'll not use all of its abilities, but by the time you upgrade to a new CPU, you'll not use all your CPU's ability either. Plus, you'll save money if you wait a bit or you'll be able to get a better setup if you wait.

Falling down stairs saves time

 

[Quetzacoatl]

If you really need to save, you can go a bit more frugal, and get a Radeon 8500LE at very, very low prices now (like only $110 US).

If you are willing to overclock, the 1800s are at a rock bottom price, and they oc well with good performance. *shrugs* Frankly, I myself would save a good $300-400 and just upgrade both at the same time.

"When there's a will, there's a way."

 

[Matisaro]

110 us versus 130us for a better card?


Thats pretty damn frugal ;-)

The Cash Left In My Pocket,The BEST Benchmark

 

[Quetzacoatl]

*grins*

Hey, what can I say, I like Ati, and I like Nvidia

The Catalyst drivers just look and sound cool, while Nvidia has some nice cards, but questionable driver releases. Where in the world can you get a Gf4 ti4200 for 130??? I thought the lowest price decent card was the R8500...I could be wrong...

"When there's a will, there's a way."

 

[soundmage]

my video card is overclocked as far as it will go...it has to go. I don't have the money to upgrade both at once. I can't just have $300 sitting around the house, waiting to pay my dad back for use of his credit card...I need to do them 1 at a time....and I'm thinking the 64mb version of the 4200, cuz the memory overclocks better, and I dont plan on playing too many games that actually use 64mb textures...

 

[Quetzacoatl]

I would seriously consider getting the 128Mb version, it will last longer, and overclocks to 4400 levels on par, and sometimes to around 4600 levels (higher core, lower mem). If you are going to upgrade the CPU later, you may want to consider an 1800+ T-bred when they arrive, and oc it, or a Barton Athlon when that arrives. If you get a new CPU now, I can see the possibility of a 2000+, they are low enough in pricing to be worth buying, plus, they overclock relatively well when unlocked.

"When there's a will, there's a way."

 

[Matisaro]

Nvidia drivers are so much better than ati's, what do you mean "questionable"


Yes 4200's are 130

the 64 meg versions have faster ram and overclock further, and the extra ram dosent really help all that much.

I havre a 4200@4400+ levels and I have 10k 3dmark2001 on a 1900+.


I get 7000 with quincunx aa and 32tap aniso on, which is my normal playing setting.....I am very pleased with my gainward.

The Cash Left In My Pocket,The BEST Benchmark

 

[Quetzacoatl]

I have seen some odd changes in performance since the advent of the 23.11 drivers, but I know Nvidia is usually rock solid with stability, it's just the peformance I think they could tweak. Ati finally seems to be catching up in driver support, although I could be wrong.

"When there's a will, there's a way."

 

[soundmage]

nVidia's drivers are SOOOOO much better than ATI's

ATI never helped us when we were going through THREE bad cards...

the slow compared to the 4200....it's not even funny how much I'm avoiding the 8500....so it's a little cheaper, and not THAT much slower...I've had really bad experiences with ATI, they're a moot point to me.

 

[chuck232]

I think we may all be used to the 5-10% increase in speed for the ATi cards so that a minimal or non-existant increase for nVidia cards is letting us down. But remember this, ATi came out with a crap set of drivers for the release of R8500/R7500/R7200/R7000. If they did not improve performance through thier drivers, I don't think many people would buy their cards. nVidia on the other hand already had very good drivers and it may be harder for them to squeeze out any more performance. So you shouldn't just companies by how much their drivers help in performance, cause I'm sure a lot of nVidia card owners were laughing at ATi when they released their new products along with drivers that didn't work.

Falling down stairs saves time

 

[Quetzacoatl]

I know, the original Radeon was almost a complete failure, but through the sketchy drivers, i've seen potential in Ati, and I personnaly like the 8500 and where it's going. At this point, I think from now on, their drivers will recieve the dedication they deserve, although it serves as a purpose for Nvidia to stay on their feet as well. With the Geforce 5 in the distance, and the R300 nearing, I think it's safe to say we shouldn't be laughing at either of the companies, save Matrox and their disappointing Parhelia.

"When there's a will, there's a way."

 

[chuck232]

Anyone heard anything about P10? Whatever happened to that one? It kinda sounded promising....

Falling down stairs saves time

 

[Quetzacoatl]

Let's hope it's not another Parhelia...I have my fingers crossed

"When there's a will, there's a way."

 

[soundmage]

so here's what I'm thinking of doing.
get a GF4 Ti4200 now, put on ramsinks, overclock as far as I can go.

overclock the CPU to 1ghz or higher. wait for the AthalonXP 2000+ prices to fall through the floor, which shouldn't be long...I wanna see $129 or less from newegg or accubyte before I buy. I'm cheap, I know.

 

[chuck232]

There's really no point in RAM sinks. Heat is usually not the problem. Overclocking the CPU is a good idea. You may have to wait for quite some time if you're gonna wait for the XP2000+ to reach $129. Since AMD has no new products coming, there'll be no reason for the prices to fall that much right now.

Falling down stairs saves time

 

[Quetzacoatl]

Just a little slower is the 1900+ for $117 US at Newegg.com (OEM) Runs at 1.6Ghz, and is very fast, good for overclocking too.

"When there's a will, there's a way."

 

[AMD_Man]

nVidia's drivers are SOOOOO much better than ATI's

ATI never helped us when we were going through THREE bad cards...

the slow compared to the 4200....it's not even funny how much I'm avoiding the 8500....so it's a little cheaper, and not THAT much slower...I've had really bad experiences with ATI, they're a moot point to me.

Hmm, last time one of my ATI cards went bad, I got a replacement without even leaving my house (within 2 days).

They respond to my e-mails within hours, although, they wouldn't give me access to unreleased drivers no matter how much I begged them. :frown:

They fix any bug that people complain about within a week.

Simiply put, they have the best support I've ever known.

<b><i>"A penny saved is a penny earned!"</i></b>

 

[chuck232]

Yeah, but that's OEM and he'd have to get a separate HSF too. Probably around $10-15USD. Yup, the 2000+ may take a while to reach $129. The 1900+ is probably a max of 5% slower and right now it's quite a bit cheaper.

Falling down stairs saves time

 

[soundmage]

okee...I'm thinking:
-170 or 180 for the 128mb 4200
-overclock my 900
-wait for the 2000 to come down in price

 

[chuck232]

Ok yup, sounds good. Now unless you need a dual monitor display, I think the Gainward GF4 PowerPack! Ultra/650TV Golden Sample is a good choice. It has 128MB and you can run it in the "enhanced performance" mode where it automatically overclocks for you. On newegg.com, you can get one for $173. Pretty good deal.

Falling down stairs saves time

 

[Matisaro]

They fix any bug that people complain about within a week.

Anand did the ut3 review 4 days ago, there were graphical issues with ut2003, they have 3 days left to respond.


AMD_Man ati dosent fix bugs in 1 week, this is waay exaggerated.

The Cash Left In My Pocket,The BEST Benchmark