BFG 7800 GT to ATI Radeon X1900 XT upgrade..worth the cost?

Verios · Feb 24, 2006, 12:18 PM

Hiya guys!

I currently have a BFG Geforce 7800 GT OC 256MB and was curious as to your guys opinion on upgrading from it to a ATI Radeon X1900 XT. Currently the only game that I really play is everquest 2 at the moment and as some of you may know it's pretty shader heavy..etc.. so more performance I can squeeze out the better heh. Now down to the million dollar quest..do you think it would be worth the upgrade? From the reviews Ive seen the new radeon is by far superior..but it costs quite a large chunk of change (canadian currency)...which I do have..but could be spent on say better ram..etc..

Current Specs are:

AMD Athlon 64 4000+
2 gigs of Kingston 1GB PC3200 DDR CAS 3
ASUS A8N-SLI Premium
SB Autigy 2 ZS
Logitech Z-5500 Digital THX® Certified 5.1 Speaker System
BFG Geforce 7800 GT OC 256MB
BenQ FP91G+ 19in Digital LCD w/ DVI, 8ms, Black
Lian-Li PC - 71 USB Black case.

Thanks in advance fellas!

AlexM105 · Feb 24, 2006, 01:21 PM

The video card upgrade will make a MUCH bigger difference than better RAM.

g35x · Feb 24, 2006, 01:29 PM

i would wait for newer cards to come out if i where you......
hey alex,our systems are very similar =)

shteve · Feb 24, 2006, 02:09 PM

Asking in the ATI sub-forums will likely get you some biased opinions

http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid...e=expert&pid=7

Chaos · Feb 24, 2006, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shteve

Asking in the ATI sub-forums will likely get you some biased opinions

http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid...e=expert&pid=7

So why point to a review of an X800XL when he was looking at an X1900 XT they are not in the same ballpark a 1900XT beats it like a wet rag. The 7800GT and X1800XL are similar performance wise.

Sandok · Feb 24, 2006, 02:20 PM

Well to be honest, you might see a difference but I don't think it'll be as much as you are hoping for...

Verios · Feb 24, 2006, 03:23 PM

Another quick question. If I do decide to buy this card..would my current power-supply still be of use? Currently have a:

OCZ 450W ModStream Power Supply

Specifications</B>

AC input: 95-132Vac / 190-264Vac 10/6A 60/50Hz
DC output / Max. Output
+3.3V: 28A
+5V: 45A
+12V: 26A
-12V: 1.0A
-5V: 0.8A
+5VSB: 12.5W
+3.3V & +5V combined: 220W
+3.3V, +5V & +12V combined: 430W
Total Output: 450W
Peak Load: 550W

Would this be ok? or do you suggest that I upgrade that as well..if so..which one would you suggest?

Sandok · Feb 24, 2006, 03:25 PM

Well it'd be okay but it'd be very very limit... ATI's latest is a powerhungry crazy card

Verios · Feb 24, 2006, 03:32 PM

I tend not to overclock or anything if that may be the problem and do you mean limited in the sense that I will not be able to add much more to my system..or limited as in it may cause stability issues and such?

Sandok · Feb 24, 2006, 03:38 PM

More as in it may cause stablility issues depending on what else is hooked up... I think they recommend 450 now so that's the thing, tis just really not that powerful but well, OC is DEFINATELY out of the question and stability is most prob more important

But I'm no expert so please, don't take my word for it

Wait for other answers

SSXeon · Feb 25, 2006, 04:58 AM

Get the XT, it will be around 2x faster. Ima sell my card in a bit and grab a XT, $490-530 is a great price for em

[Edit]: 2 Retails, Powercolor and Gigabyte are both $500 @ Newegg, GTX512 performance for less.

Necrosis · Feb 25, 2006, 05:15 AM

If I remember correctly the current requirement on the 12V line is 32A. However, that maybe for the XTX. Hmm I think your PSU should be able to handle the card. How many items do you have loaded on it?

BTW, I went from a 7800GTX to the XTX. I definitely notice a difference. However, I play more than just one game. So...it's really up to you if you would like to spend the money.

shteve · Feb 25, 2006, 05:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chaos

So why point to a review of an X800XL when he was looking at an X1900 XT they are not in the same ballpark a 1900XT beats it like a wet rag. The 7800GT and X1800XL are similar performance wise.

So why not complain about the nVidia card being a 6800gt when he has a 7800gt? What I took from that review (don't know if you read it or just dismissed it when you saw it was not the same gfx card) is that the game is also quite CPU limited. The difference between those cards was negligible.

"From the beginning, we engineered Everquest II with the future in mind. Running on NVIDIA SLI, that future is now," said Scott Hartsman, Senior Producer, EverQuest II.

Maybe adding another 7800gt would be an option?

Necrosis · Feb 25, 2006, 05:41 AM

I just noticed he has a SLI board too. Hmm it would be quite a cheaper plus save money for better ram. He then could OC his CPU a bit for another speed increase.

Verios · Feb 25, 2006, 03:11 PM

From what Ive read on the EQ2 forums SLI dosent help it all that much..maybe en extra 2-4 FPS (note just going from what others have said heh..no hard proof) hence why I was thinking of going for a faster single card with more memory / speed.

Chaos · Feb 25, 2006, 03:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shteve

So why not complain about the nVidia card being a 6800gt when he has a 7800gt? What I took from that review (don't know if you read it or just dismissed it when you saw it was not the same gfx card) is that the game is also quite CPU limited. The difference between those cards was negligible.

"From the beginning, we engineered Everquest II with the future in mind. Running on NVIDIA SLI, that future is now," said Scott Hartsman, Senior Producer, EverQuest II.

Maybe adding another 7800gt would be an option?

Well I did dismiss it without reading and for that I will eat crowe, however I do agree a second 7800GT would be a viable option if they have an SLI capable board

Verios · Feb 25, 2006, 04:13 PM

Should I decide to upgrade my power supply along with video card do you think either of these 2 should be sufficient?

Enermax 535W EG565P-VE All In One ATX 12V v2.0

or

Antec TruePower 2.0 550W

Chaos · Feb 25, 2006, 04:45 PM

I think the Antec would be my pick of those 2. You may also want to look at the OCZ SLI PowerStream 520 or Seasonic S12-500/600 series

SSXeon · Feb 25, 2006, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chaos

I think the Antec would be my pick of those 2. You may also want to look at the OCZ SLI PowerStream 520 or Seasonic S12-500/600 series

Agreed, i would go with the OCZ IMHO, as they pwn with support. They have hooked me up within a few days with more ram (from 512 to 1024MB) and it was plat instead of Gold.

I now respect them alot for a company, and my friend has the 600w Powerstream with his 6800Ultra SLi, and that doesnt even stress his PSU.

H3X4D3C1M4L · Feb 25, 2006, 06:06 PM

My friend's OCZ PSU was giving him a bit of trouble but they fixed it fast, I can reccomend them as their tech support is brilliant. I had a problem with my RAM and it was easily taken care of within days.

coldfrontt · Feb 25, 2006, 06:20 PM

Either Enermax or the Antec would do you fine if you have your heart set on one of them. I'm currently using both, in 2 separate sytsems with no probs. The Enermax is pushing 3 years old with no hiccups.

SSXeon · Feb 27, 2006, 10:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by H3X4D3C1M4L

My friend's OCZ PSU was giving him a bit of trouble but they fixed it fast, I can reccomend them as their tech support is brilliant. I had a problem with my RAM and it was easily taken care of within days.

Yup, i sent back 512MB Gold DDR550 and they sent me back 1024MB Plat DDR533.

I will only buy OCZ from now on.

Necrosis · Feb 27, 2006, 12:47 PM

Damn maybe I ought to send back some ram for the heck of it!

g35x · Feb 27, 2006, 01:18 PM

sounds like a good idea to me necrosis =)