- Nov 16, 2004
- 79
- 0
- 18,630
Hello all! I know you've probably heard this about a thousand times already around here, but I'd like some advice regarding a new video card I'd like to purchase.
Ever since I got my first PC back in '96 I've always wanted a first class system to play games with. Just this past September I finally got that wish when I bought my Dell 8400. It has an Intel Pentium 4 550 (3.4 GHz Socket 775 w/HT and 800 FSB) processor and 1024 MB of SDDRRAM (I'm not sure if it's PC 2700 or 3200, but I think it's the latter). However, the power of a good video card has eluded me once again, as my system came with a Radeon X300 128 MB SE card (it's the crap one with the 64-bit memory interface).
As such, I decided to buy a new video card. However, there are several things that are limiting my choices (for better or worse):
For starters, my motherboard has a singular PCIe slot; as hard as it is to belive, there is no AGP slot available on my motherboard, so the video card I get has to be PCIe.
The games that I want to use the new card for are Battlefield Vietnam (and the soon to be released Battlefield 2) and Counter-Strike: Source. Both these games run decently on my Radeon X300 SE, but not as well as I'd like them to, especially BFV, which is very fickle. I'd also very much like to play Doom 3 and Far Cry and other future generation shooters (like S.W.A.T. 4, F.E.A.R., and Time Shift) with my new card.
As such, I'd like to get a current card that supports the latest technology. So far, nVidia's 6000 series cards seem to have the edge as they support SM 3.0 (which ultimately translate to higher FPS for games that utilize it), not to mention the fact they are cheaper and generally faster than their Radeon counterparts.
I'd also like to play my games at a minimum setting of 1024x768x32 BPP with all settings set to High and 4x FSAA and 8x AF and still get an acceptable framerate (around 40 FPS).
In terms of money, as much as I'd like to get a 6800 GT, I honestly don't think I can afford the $550+ CAN for it.
Since I'm located in Canada (specifically in Markham, Ontario, where ATI is headquartered, no less!), shopping online has turned out to be the most economical solution as cards found in brick-and-mortar stores are significantly more expensive (usually by about $20-$50 CAN more). Also, most online retailers are based in the US and not all of them ship to Canada, which further limits my choices.
Given these limitations, I spent several weeks researching various cards and have narrowed down my list of candidates to the following cards:
MSI NX6800-TD256E GeForce 6800
MSI NX6600GT-TD128E GeForce 6600 GT
Gigabyte GV-NX66T128VP GeForce 6600 GT Turbo Force Edition
The MSI NX6600GT-TD128E has garnered numerous accolades and awards and has been touted as one of the best, if not the best, video card on the market, all things given. This card would be a sure sell for me, however...
Gigabyte's GV-NX66T128VP GeForce 6600 GT Turbo Force Edition gives me pause. It seems like a great card on the surface, but I haven't been able to find any reviews or reliable benchmarks for it. Maybe some of you have heard more about it and can compare it to the MSI NX6600GT.
Like I said before, I'm strapped for cash, however, I may be willing to shell out money for a vanilla 6800, if the price is right. The MSI NX6800-TD256E card is the cheapest 6800 chip card I can find anywhere and the reviews for it seem very positive.
My dilemma on which card to choose is this:
1. Given that I mostly play BFV and CS:S, a 6600 GT card should be good enough; however, I don't know how tough newer games will be on the 6600 GT. I don't want to shell out $200+ CAN only to find three months down the line that my 6600 GT is starting to fall behind.
2. Similarly, since I only recently got back into computer tech, I don't know how often card manufacturers come out with newer cards. I can conceivably see myself replacing a 6600 GT in a year or two, but not before. The 6800 would have to last longer, however, at least 3 years, maybe 4. If I shell out the extra money for a 6800, given past trends, can anyone guess how long will it be before it becomes obsolete? Would a 6600 GT be more worth my while?
3. I am very much interested in overclocking my card, as I have seen significant performance increases overclocking these cards (usually around 10 - 15 FPS increase!). However, given the 6800 slower core and memory clock, I'm not so sure it gives as much of a boost overclocked as the 6600 GTs do. Does anyone know which one will ultimately provide better overclocking performance?
I realize my post is a bit on the long side, so thanks for sticking to the end. So, can anyone offer me any sound advice (no pun intended)?
Mad Cat
Ever since I got my first PC back in '96 I've always wanted a first class system to play games with. Just this past September I finally got that wish when I bought my Dell 8400. It has an Intel Pentium 4 550 (3.4 GHz Socket 775 w/HT and 800 FSB) processor and 1024 MB of SDDRRAM (I'm not sure if it's PC 2700 or 3200, but I think it's the latter). However, the power of a good video card has eluded me once again, as my system came with a Radeon X300 128 MB SE card (it's the crap one with the 64-bit memory interface).
As such, I decided to buy a new video card. However, there are several things that are limiting my choices (for better or worse):
For starters, my motherboard has a singular PCIe slot; as hard as it is to belive, there is no AGP slot available on my motherboard, so the video card I get has to be PCIe.
The games that I want to use the new card for are Battlefield Vietnam (and the soon to be released Battlefield 2) and Counter-Strike: Source. Both these games run decently on my Radeon X300 SE, but not as well as I'd like them to, especially BFV, which is very fickle. I'd also very much like to play Doom 3 and Far Cry and other future generation shooters (like S.W.A.T. 4, F.E.A.R., and Time Shift) with my new card.
As such, I'd like to get a current card that supports the latest technology. So far, nVidia's 6000 series cards seem to have the edge as they support SM 3.0 (which ultimately translate to higher FPS for games that utilize it), not to mention the fact they are cheaper and generally faster than their Radeon counterparts.
I'd also like to play my games at a minimum setting of 1024x768x32 BPP with all settings set to High and 4x FSAA and 8x AF and still get an acceptable framerate (around 40 FPS).
In terms of money, as much as I'd like to get a 6800 GT, I honestly don't think I can afford the $550+ CAN for it.
Since I'm located in Canada (specifically in Markham, Ontario, where ATI is headquartered, no less!), shopping online has turned out to be the most economical solution as cards found in brick-and-mortar stores are significantly more expensive (usually by about $20-$50 CAN more). Also, most online retailers are based in the US and not all of them ship to Canada, which further limits my choices.
Given these limitations, I spent several weeks researching various cards and have narrowed down my list of candidates to the following cards:
MSI NX6800-TD256E GeForce 6800
MSI NX6600GT-TD128E GeForce 6600 GT
Gigabyte GV-NX66T128VP GeForce 6600 GT Turbo Force Edition
The MSI NX6600GT-TD128E has garnered numerous accolades and awards and has been touted as one of the best, if not the best, video card on the market, all things given. This card would be a sure sell for me, however...
Gigabyte's GV-NX66T128VP GeForce 6600 GT Turbo Force Edition gives me pause. It seems like a great card on the surface, but I haven't been able to find any reviews or reliable benchmarks for it. Maybe some of you have heard more about it and can compare it to the MSI NX6600GT.
Like I said before, I'm strapped for cash, however, I may be willing to shell out money for a vanilla 6800, if the price is right. The MSI NX6800-TD256E card is the cheapest 6800 chip card I can find anywhere and the reviews for it seem very positive.
My dilemma on which card to choose is this:
1. Given that I mostly play BFV and CS:S, a 6600 GT card should be good enough; however, I don't know how tough newer games will be on the 6600 GT. I don't want to shell out $200+ CAN only to find three months down the line that my 6600 GT is starting to fall behind.
2. Similarly, since I only recently got back into computer tech, I don't know how often card manufacturers come out with newer cards. I can conceivably see myself replacing a 6600 GT in a year or two, but not before. The 6800 would have to last longer, however, at least 3 years, maybe 4. If I shell out the extra money for a 6800, given past trends, can anyone guess how long will it be before it becomes obsolete? Would a 6600 GT be more worth my while?
3. I am very much interested in overclocking my card, as I have seen significant performance increases overclocking these cards (usually around 10 - 15 FPS increase!). However, given the 6800 slower core and memory clock, I'm not so sure it gives as much of a boost overclocked as the 6600 GTs do. Does anyone know which one will ultimately provide better overclocking performance?
I realize my post is a bit on the long side, so thanks for sticking to the end. So, can anyone offer me any sound advice (no pun intended)?
Mad Cat
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