Gamer needs a recomendation!

[BunnyStroker]

OK, here's the situation.

Right now I am running a PIII 550, 256 meg ram, Win2K, and a OEM TNT2 Ultra board. This setup, thus far, has served me well. That is, until I picked up Tribes 2.

I am unable to achieve what I would consider "acceptable" performance with T2. That is to say, I have ALL the graphics options set to a minimum and the game still often dives to 5-10 FPS.

At a store yesterday, I saw a Hercules 3d Prophet II MX going for $99 . I'm thinking about picking it up.

The interesting part: This summer (Probably early-mid August) I'll be building myself a new pc. I had planned to look at the graphics card situation then; It was my hope that the GF3 and possibly new offerings on the Radeon front would place a really good card in my reach. So, if I did buy the MX now, it could be one of two things: An interim solution until the fall OR the card I would pull and stick in my new PC.

I'm wondering, at $100 dollars, how suitable it is for either option?

Like I said, I game quite a bit. However, the only game thus far that I have been unsatisfied with performance-wise is T2.

Anyway, I'd like recommandations. Thanks!

<b>ßunn¥§troker 0wn§ j00!</b>

 

[stonerboy]

If you are trying to keep things cheap, you can get a GeForce 2 GTS for under $150. This will perform quite a bit better than the MX. If you have the money, but a GeForce 3 now and put it in your future computer.

"In three words I can sum up everything I've learned in life: It goes on." -Robert Frost

 

[tartarhus]

A radeon LE if you only have a little money to spare $80 (newegg.com), a GUILLEMOT KYRO2 3D PROPHET 4500 64MB VGA WITHOUT TV OUT $115.00 (mwave.com) if you have a little more. Don't bother with the geforce3; too new, too expensive. You could also pick up a good geforce 2 card for around 140 from leadtek (newegg.com).

-- Chaos is the better order.

 

[noko]

Crashman has an excellent deal here on another thread with a tested Radeon LE which overclocks to 183mhz tested with heat sinks on the ram and HSF on the GPU with TV out. Good deal.

 

[SerArthurDayne]

I also play Tribes 2, and I am amazed at how much power it needs.

I've got a Duron@1Ghz, 256MB PC133, and a Ge2 GTS (usually overclocked to 220/390, but I turn it down for long hours of T2 gaming). With a number of settings strategically turned down (such as terrain detail, low shadow, less particles, lower shape detail, skybox instead of full sky, all texture details max), I can get 40 to 50 fps solid in the field, with heavy action bringing it down to 30 at worst usually(this is at 1024x768x32). The MX is a pretty crappy card IMO, but since you've only got a 550mhz machine, your processor won't likely be the bottleneck. If you purchased a GTS or Pro, you might see the same performance as having gotten the MX.

Have you tried overclocking your PIII or TNT2? I still can't believe that even with all options turned down, you're still only getting 5-10 fps. What resolution are you running at? Tried 640x480? I know it's ugly, but would probably run faster. And has your performance stayed the same since last patch? They changed a few graphics and altered maps in order to 'optimize' for low end users, so you should've seen a decent increase in speed.

I've heard of V3 users with PIII's getting better performance than what ya listed : /

 

[Guest]

Cardex/Gainward GeForce2 MX TwinView Vivo
GPU Clock: 200 MHz (240 MHz in Enhanced Mode)
Memory Size: 32 MB
Memory Speed: 4 ns @ 166 MHz (240 MHz in Enhanced Mode)

This card i based on the mx400, it has a 32mb of ram at 4ns(thats incredible).
And with the enhenced mode: the gpu can run at240mhz and the memory at 240mhz.
It's the fastest geforce2mx card ever built.

And you can see the review at tom's hardware: GeForce2 At Its Best: 6 Affordable Graphics Cards with nVIDIA's MX

 

[noko]

Interesting card, it must scream for a MX card.

Well to eat your <b>C kie</b> and have it too then a <font color=red><b>Rade n II</b></font color=red>

 

[BunnyStroker]

It's not that I consistently get 5-10 FPS ... just when the action really heats up (lots of players, vehicles, etc. on screen).

Of course, this is when I really need the smooth graphics, so that I can actually aim my damn spinfusor...

I run at 1024/768/16 with a details at min. I dunno, 640/480/16 isn't that much different performance-wise, but I hate resolutions that low.

I haven't decided if I will get a new card yet or not...really, T2 is the only game that needs it (that I play). Still, I find myself really unsatisfied by it - graphics look like trash and I am poor at it because I can never see the enemy and because aiming at 5-10 FPS is damn near impossible.

<b>ßunn¥§troker 0wn§ j00!</b>

 

[Crashman]

I own both the MX and the LE. The LE with retail tweaks puts the MX to shame. Heck, it even works a little better than the MX with HyperZ disabled and stock clock! If you want an MX with s-Video and Composite outs, I can sell you one for $70.

Cast not thine pearls before the swine