Please suggest DVI out card to use with LCD monito

[Denis54]

I have a GeForce 2 MX 400 with P3 1Ghz CPU and 512 mb memory. I mostly use my computer to surf the web and do some light Word and Excel work. I just bought a Dell 19 inch (1901FP) LCD monitor with DVI input. Gaming is limited to our son who uses it occasionally when he is home on weekends.

I understand DVI would improve picture quality but my GeForce 2 does not support it. What would be a good card to replace it? Also, I would like a card that supports dual monitors as I might add a 2nd monitor in the future. I do not care wether I get ATI or nVidia. I just want very good picture quality with stable drivers. I have not set a budget limit. However, I hate to spend money uselessly. Given my low gaming requirements, I do not feel I need the latest and greatest card on the market.

For gaming purposes, how would the card you suggest compare to my GeForce 2? I suppose anything recent will be much faster but would like confirmation.

 

[miahallen]

I looked up your monitor and it does have a DVI-D connection (Digital Video Interface - Digital) as opposed to a DVI-A (Digital Video Interface - Analoug). That means the increase in picture quality you heard about using the DVI connection is accurate. But only at the monitor's "native resolution" of 1280X1024, so make sure you select this resolution after you get the new video card. As to which one I would recommend, it would probably be eiter an ATI Radeon 9200 128MB version for under $80 for mild gaming performance...or an ATI Radeon 9600PRO 128MB version for under $150 for moderate gaming performance.
Both have dual outputs (one 15 pin SUB out, and one DVI-D out)

 

[miahallen]

To answer the other question, these cards would both be better than your current card, the 9200 by about a 20-50% margin in most cases and the 9600PRO by about a 100-150% margin. And they also support the new generation of DX9 games where your current card only supports up to DX8.1

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

Just the R9600 series supports DX9, not the R9200.

I would only add that an R9600non-pro would give you benifits of the R9600pro but for a lower price. Even an R9600SE might be an ok option in this case.

The R9000/9100/9200 are pretty good low entry cards. The R9600Pro is one of the best mid-level cards. An R9600non-pro or SE would give you a nice balance between the two. The SE is a less powerful version of the non pro with 64 bit memory instead of 128bit. This is only a huge factor for serious gaming. For rare gaming it'll be fine. The biggest issue is that to look it's best your monitor will have to run at native resolution,, running any of the cards (or even an R9600Pro) with modern games in that resolution can cause the FPS to dip significantly, however this is nothing DVI vs VGA could fix, just something to consider. And if it is a consideration then an R9800non-pro would be a better choice, but it is ~$200US, so a significant leap over the R9600(s).

I'd still say get a Matrox for the best 2D quality, but since there is even a hint of 3D gaming here, you should probably stick with the ATIs which are a good compromise between Image Quality and gaming.


- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK

<b>-NEW PIC IN THGC ALBUM-</b>

 

[Schmide]

This was the best article I remember on DVI.

<A HREF="http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,3973,1370516,00.asp" target="_new">http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,3973,1370516,00.asp</A>

It could sway your choices depending on what resolution of your DVI LCD is…


Dichromatic for your viewing plesure...

 

[Crashman]

If you'd just like to get a card similar to yours with DVI, the GeForce4 MX440 is around twice as powerfull as your card, with similar graphical features, and they are available with DVI and VGA dual outputs.

<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>

 

[BirdRobin]

thought of a question. Im currently using r9600p and im using a 17 inch crt monitor... shld i plug in to the card's analog output (blue plug) or use a dvi to analog converter plug and plug my monitor to my card's dvi connector? thanks alot =X

Who is from singapore? I am.

 

[Crashman]

Use the VGA for CRT1, and if you get a second CRT use the adapter.

<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>

 

[BirdRobin]

ok~ cheers...

Who is from singapore? I am.

 

[kinney]

I just sold my Radeon and I ordered <A HREF="http://www.leadtek.com/3d_graphic/winfast_a280_letdh_1.html" target="_new">card</A> for $90 shipped from <A HREF="http://www.gameve.com/gve/store/productdetails.aspx?sku=VC-LEAD-SP11" target="_new">here</A>.

Very nice card for the price, has the good TV output if you ever choose to use it (1024x768, same as the radeons), has your DVI output also.
It will be able to handle all his games. Its about as fast as a Radeon 9600 Pro in DX8 games IIRC, but doesnt support DX9. Though I doubt hes a "power gamer" and too get a good DX9 card its going to be more money.
I'd recommend either the Geforce FX 5900 non-ultra for $200 (best bang for the buck) or ATI Radeon 9800 Pro for around $250-300.

Just depends how much you want to spend.
I switch from a 9800 Pro to the GF4 because to not hold it back from its full potential you need a 2ghz+ computer.
And I never really used its power.. few do. Even the guys on here. So I decided to ebay it and get my hard earned moneys back.

I'm waiting till I 'need' something like that...maybe Doom3 and Half Life2, maybe not.
If you use the term need... could be quite a long time in reality.
I had a poor experience with the ATI myself though, so it was really a combination of things.
Since this card is for your son, and you want it as trouble free as possible, I'd recommend one of the Nvidia cards.. they have quite an edge on driver support.

Good luck on your purchase!

----
I just tell it like it is and some can't handle it. If your experience is different, well congratu-fukulation.
<b>I’M NOT A ATI FANBOY, I’M NOT A NV FANBOY, I’M A STABILITY FANBOY</b>

 

[kinney]

I looked at your post and forgot you had a P3 1ghz... in that case I think the GF4 is definitely your best bet.
Geforces generally have better CPU scaling for one reason or another.
Meaning they perform better on a slower CPU than their comparable competitor.
This probably again goes back to better drivers.
If your looking for a fast card that is going to be MUCH more likely to be trouble free I'd stick with Nvidia.

Even though that GF2 you have now is pretty old and slower these days, I bet its been very reliable... its kind of a trend with those cards.

edit- Heres a short cpu scaling page between the radeon 9700 pro and geforce 4 4600. <A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.html?i=1683&p=22" target="_new">click!</A>

You'll notice at your speed (1ghz) that they are exactly the same frames per second... thats why with your PC your best off saving your money and getting the GF4. The GF4 is also has a 'flatter' curve, meaning its driver potential is probably maxed out, which is good (means the driver team is doing their job).
This is from Aug. 2002 so things might have changed (though I wouldnt assume that). But its an example of the CPU scaling you generally see between the two lines of cards.

The Radeon 9700 Pro is a good jump from a 4600 and it shouldnt have ever gotten beat by a GF4 at any CPU speed.. even with earlier driver versions in my opinion.
Most of the DX9 cards the guys are talking about are based on the same chip as that 9700.

Now remember that is with much earlier drivers than ATI has out now.. but it doesnt matter anyway because of your CPU. And I doubt your son will play beyond 1024x768 much.
Switching from an Nvidia to ATI might make you do a little work to the system, I'd suggest just formatting if you decide to get one of those.
But going NV to NV you can just pop it in and go.

----
I just tell it like it is and some can't handle it. If your experience is different, well congratu-fukulation.
<b>I’M NOT A ATI FANBOY, I’M NOT A NV FANBOY, I’M A STABILITY FANBOY</b><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by kinney on 12/10/03 04:29 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[kinney]

And they also support the new generation of DX9 games where your current card only supports up to DX8.1

The GF2 series are DX7 hardware, not DX8.x..

----
I just tell it like it is and some can't handle it. If your experience is different, well congratu-fukulation.
<b>I’M NOT A ATI FANBOY, I’M NOT A NV FANBOY, I’M A STABILITY FANBOY</b>

 

[Schmide]

I wouldn’t settle for a card that will have trouble running games at the native resolution of your LCD. You spent ~$700 on this LCD don’t drive it with a lesser card.

The Radeon 9600 Pro has a great <A HREF="http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,3973,1370529,00.asp" target="_new">DVI profile</A>, can be found for about $150, and is DirectX9 compliant.

Certain <A HREF="http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,3973,1370528,00.asp" target="_new">GeForce4</A> cards were not as compliant. as were many previous <A HREF="http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,3973,1370528,00.asp" target="_new">ATI cards</A>, and many recent <A HREF="http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,3973,1370530,00.asp" target="_new">nVidia cards.</A>

Before you buy anything!!! Make sure your AGP bus on your motherboard is compatible with the card. All ATI 9600 Pro cards are AGP 4X+ compatible Universal AGP 3.0 bus configuration, which could keep them from being an option. You may be forced to get an ATI 9000/9200 PRO or GeFroce4. (Don’t get the MX version)

Dichromatic for your viewing plesure...