best performance for price?

trelum · Sep 22, 2004, 01:12 AM

Well i had just got myself an ATI Radeon 9600XT and it wasn't compatible with my system at all. I had way too many crashes, wihout even playing games..
(See this thread)
Radeon 9600XT 256MB crashing. Please help

I paid around $150 for the card, including shipping.
Today i sold the card for about $175.
I guess that can compensate for the time I wasted trying to make it work.

So I want to take this money and use it to buy a good old trusty nVidia card, which hopefully will work and last me a while.

My question is simply this:
What cards perform the best at this approximate price range?
Anyone perhaps have a link to performance comparisons or the like?

I don't need insane performance, just something that is going to last me for a while if I'm going to spend the money.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Wiredzero · Sep 22, 2004, 10:40 AM

Nvidia 5700LE is around that pricerange if you're lookin' on Newegg in the right spots. (more or less anyway) That'd be my suggestion.

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...143-017&depa=0

Like anything, if ya want real performance, you're gonna end up payin' for it.

Of course, to be fair, for about 50$ more, you could get a 9800 Pro or an nVidia 5900XT which is better.

NVidia 5900XT:
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...125-128&depa=1

ATi Radeon 9800 Pro:
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproduc...102-286&DEPA=1

Shinjikun · Sep 22, 2004, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by trelum

Well i had just got myself an ATI Radeon 9600XT and it wasn't compatible with my system at all. I had way too many crashes, wihout even playing games..
(See this thread)
Radeon 9600XT 256MB crashing. Please help

I paid around $150 for the card, including shipping.
Today i sold the card for about $175.
I guess that can compensate for the time I wasted trying to make it work.

So I want to take this money and use it to buy a good old trusty nVidia card, which hopefully will work and last me a while.

My question is simply this:
What cards perform the best at this approximate price range?
Anyone perhaps have a link to performance comparisons or the like?

I don't need insane performance, just something that is going to last me for a while if I'm going to spend the money.

Thanks in advance for your help!

For the price I'd get a 9800 Pro. For the money that's the best card you can get; I don't think there is anything comparable from nVidia for that price.

Wiredzero · Sep 22, 2004, 10:49 AM

The 5900 XT's close, depending on how you tweak the card.

mike2h · Sep 22, 2004, 10:49 AM

shinjikun is correct. if you want nvidia(my preference too) you can pickup 5900/128 mem for under $200. that would be your best buy.
check pricewatch out.

trelum · Sep 22, 2004, 11:42 AM

thanks for your replies

i would think about a 9800 pro but i'm afraid of having the same problems that i had with the 9600XT, i don't want to deal with that again, i'm lucky i even got compensated for it. would that be a worry?

also what are trusted/quality manufacturers for nVidia cards?
and for ATI cards?

i know that the least expensive ones are usually cheapo brands, right?

oh and something else i just thought of..
what are the advantages to having a 128MB 256 bit card as opposed to the 256MB 128 bit card? i assume each has their advantages? i just don't know what they are lol.

thanks again for your replies.

Vampyromaniac · Sep 22, 2004, 12:09 PM

If it were me, I'd wait a little while for the 6600GT's to come out, they look pretty good, and MSRP is $200

trelum · Sep 22, 2004, 12:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vampyromaniac

If it were me, I'd wait a little while for the 6600GT's to come out, they look pretty good, and MSRP is $200

looking at reviews, it seems like that is a really nice card! i want it! lol
when does it come out though? i searched pricewatch.com and found 1 for $209 including shipping. but it was pci express and 'sparkle' brand? never heard of that one. but are they all pci express? for that matter, what exactly is pci express? i've heard a little about it but not enough to understand what it is. but wouldn't i have to have a board that supports that?

Vampyromaniac · Sep 22, 2004, 12:58 PM

Not sure when it's coming

I think there will be AGP versions too. You would need a new mobo for PCI-E.

trelum · Sep 22, 2004, 01:00 PM

oh i actually just found a review that says it is compatible from both from what i understood from it. but i think there may be some quality loss. i'm not sure. anybody know anything?