I feel I should be getting better framerates and suffer the occasional
stutters...
1800 XP
256 Mb DDR
GF4 MX440 (don't go there...)
I get better performace and image quality from D3D - unusual for GF cards is
that not?
Cheers,
Mark
Reading, UK
What kind of framerates are you getting?
What drivers are you using for your vid card?
As for the MX440, I know you said don't go there, but you do realize it
doesn't even have as much performance as the GeForce3's? They are ramped up
GeForce 2's basically. I think Nvidia really screwed up with their naming
schemes on those new MX cards.
Don Burnette
Hey, Don.
Back of field, 65% draw distance, 1024x768x16, no AA, medium mirrors, full
detail cars world, etc, min sounds heard (although cranking that up doesn't
seem to affect performance), 42 drawn ahead, 6 rear, no reflections. Latest
Nvidia drivers.
Get usually 30-35fps at rear of field on "Driver start your engines", drops
a little depending on track (Daytona down to circa 26) as we enter the front
stretch, settles down during race once cars get spread out.
Pretty sure it's a graphics card bottleneck as I just now experimented - at
The Rock, in replay mode in***pit, fps is pretty much the same as when
playing. This, to me, shows the 1800XP is not stretched.
About the card (I know a GF3Ti would have been better). Just bought this
box for 370 pounds - 1800 XP, 256Mb DDR, DVD, 27Gb (I know, I know) HD,
on-board sound, GF4 MX 440. Let me tell you - over here, for a new,
guaranteed for 1 year unit, that is frickin cheap. I could have upped the
graphics to a Ti4200 for an extra 50 quid but the missus knocked that on the
head (where doing expensive house renovations right now). Slapped in my
SBLive and used my existing monitor and I'm motoring - only not as fast as I
thought I would be!!
I actually think the vidcard may be duff. I get wierd psychadelic effects
in the F12K2 demo and one of the 3DMark tests (high detail lobby) goes
apeshit.
I'm gonna take a 3Dmark disk to the retailer and see if the same thing
happens on another one of these units.
Cheers,
Mark
Reading, UK
Pick up a copy of MicroMart at your newsagents,i buy boxes regularly for my
clients and we get alot more than you have there for cheaper.
For 370 we have XP2000+,512 DDR,60gb HDD,GF3 Ti 200 etc etc....what you
have is 270 worth matey.
Cheers
Andy
> > What kind of framerates are you getting?
> > What drivers are you using for your vid card?
> > As for the MX440, I know you said don't go there, but you do realize it
> > doesn't even have as much performance as the GeForce3's? They are ramped
> up
> > GeForce 2's basically. I think Nvidia really screwed up with their
naming
> > schemes on those new MX cards.
> > Don Burnette
> Hey, Don.
> Back of field, 65% draw distance, 1024x768x16, no AA, medium mirrors, full
> detail cars world, etc, min sounds heard (although cranking that up
doesn't
> seem to affect performance), 42 drawn ahead, 6 rear, no reflections.
Latest
> Nvidia drivers.
> Get usually 30-35fps at rear of field on "Driver start your engines",
drops
> a little depending on track (Daytona down to circa 26) as we enter the
front
> stretch, settles down during race once cars get spread out.
> Pretty sure it's a graphics card bottleneck as I just now experimented -
at
> The Rock, in replay mode in***pit, fps is pretty much the same as when
> playing. This, to me, shows the 1800XP is not stretched.
> About the card (I know a GF3Ti would have been better). Just bought this
> box for 370 pounds - 1800 XP, 256Mb DDR, DVD, 27Gb (I know, I know) HD,
> on-board sound, GF4 MX 440. Let me tell you - over here, for a new,
> guaranteed for 1 year unit, that is frickin cheap. I could have upped the
> graphics to a Ti4200 for an extra 50 quid but the missus knocked that on
the
> head (where doing expensive house renovations right now). Slapped in my
> SBLive and used my existing monitor and I'm motoring - only not as fast as
I
> thought I would be!!
> I actually think the vidcard may be duff. I get wierd psychadelic effects
> in the F12K2 demo and one of the 3DMark tests (high detail lobby) goes
> apeshit.
> I'm gonna take a 3Dmark disk to the retailer and see if the same thing
> happens on another one of these units.
Don Burnette
"Don't touch that please, your primitive intellect wouldn't understand
alloys and compositions and,......things with molecular structures,....and
the....." - Ash
> > What kind of framerates are you getting?
> > What drivers are you using for your vid card?
> > As for the MX440, I know you said don't go there, but you do realize it
> > doesn't even have as much performance as the GeForce3's? They are ramped
> up
> > GeForce 2's basically. I think Nvidia really screwed up with their naming
> > schemes on those new MX cards.
> > Don Burnette
> Hey, Don.
> Back of field, 65% draw distance, 1024x768x16, no AA, medium mirrors, full
> detail cars world, etc, min sounds heard (although cranking that up doesn't
> seem to affect performance), 42 drawn ahead, 6 rear, no reflections. Latest
> Nvidia drivers.
> Get usually 30-35fps at rear of field on "Driver start your engines", drops
> a little depending on track (Daytona down to circa 26) as we enter the front
> stretch, settles down during race once cars get spread out.
> Pretty sure it's a graphics card bottleneck as I just now experimented - at
> The Rock, in replay mode in***pit, fps is pretty much the same as when
> playing. This, to me, shows the 1800XP is not stretched.
> About the card (I know a GF3Ti would have been better). Just bought this
> box for 370 pounds - 1800 XP, 256Mb DDR, DVD, 27Gb (I know, I know) HD,
> on-board sound, GF4 MX 440. Let me tell you - over here, for a new,
> guaranteed for 1 year unit, that is frickin cheap. I could have upped the
> graphics to a Ti4200 for an extra 50 quid but the missus knocked that on the
> head (where doing expensive house renovations right now). Slapped in my
> SBLive and used my existing monitor and I'm motoring - only not as fast as I
> thought I would be!!
> I actually think the vidcard may be duff. I get wierd psychadelic effects
> in the F12K2 demo and one of the 3DMark tests (high detail lobby) goes
> apeshit.
> I'm gonna take a 3Dmark disk to the retailer and see if the same thing
> happens on another one of these units.
> Cheers,
> Mark
> Reading, UK
Not bought Micro Mart in ages. My last 2 PCs were cheap mail-order jobs and
I had issues with both. Enough to be irritating but not so severe as to
jump through hoops getting them sorted out. First was an ill fitting
motherboard meaning vidcards etc had to be held in place with blu-tack, next
had an intermittently ropey USB port and a noisy a f*ck PSU fan that sounded
like grating metal but calmed down about 3 minutes after boot-up.
Maybe my mistake, but I bought over the counter (so easy to sort issues
out), and the cheapest I could find on the net for equivalent spec was
nearer 550.
Is 270 what you can find all the components for or what you sell built
boxes at? I know a couple of people who are interested in what I bought,
but they just want something to plug a monitor into and go. If you've got
the kit I'll send 'em your way.
So, based on casual browsing - take DABS as example, prices include VAT and
are cheapest I can find, don't know what shipping charges are:
M/B - 50, Full Tower+PSU - 40ish (no equivalent so guess), CPU - 80 = 170ish
MX440 GFX - 63
256 DDR RAM - 60ish
16x DVD - 30
cack HD - 50
Total - 373 ish - mail order and I'd have to build it, with all the hassles
those entail. As it is, I think my vidcard is busted, so I'll just wander
in and get it sorted. I like that!
Seriously, though, email me a price list as I do know people who wanna buy.
All in all, I still think what I got was cheap - but obviously not as cheap
as it could have been... All those fans are noisy, though...
Mark
I find 50% is OK for most tracks but you need 65% so as not to be
distracted by grandstands being drawn at Martinsville. Also, I like
having full field ahead as it adds to my all important "immersion
factor". Maybe if I wasn't such an expert at qualifying at the back
end of the field this would be less of an issue...
My framerates are 100% playable at these settings, it's just I thought
I'd get a little more. I'm currently begging the missus to allow me
to get a Ti4200 but I don't think it's gonna work. Oh well. Maybe at
Christmas I'll be able to get something meatier.
There was a site that I came across a while back that had a few tips
with regard to ini file mods, but search as I might, I just can't find
the sucker.
Cheers,
Mark
Reading, UK
"Don't touch that please, your primitive intellect wouldn't understand
alloys and compositions and,......things with molecular structures,....and
the....." - Ash
get what you want with the
Thanks anyway, dude. I'm only 4fps away from never going under 30fps -
thought there may be some system tweaks I could manage to eke it out. I
reckon my 3DMark score (4200) is below par, too, and I'm almost convinced
the MX card is broken. I've almost convinced the wife that another 50 notes
is money well spent for a Ti4200 - that's assuming that
a: the card -is- duff
b: the retailer will give me a 4200 for the MX plus difference in cost.
The system is less than a week old, but if he's got MXes lying around and
has to order in a Ti, then he may not be particularly keen...
Mark
> > Mark, IMO, with those settings that you seem so set on, you're not gonna
> get what you want with the
> > MX card bottom line.
> Thanks anyway, dude. I'm only 4fps away from never going under 30fps -
> thought there may be some system tweaks I could manage to eke it out. I
> reckon my 3DMark score (4200) is below par, too, and I'm almost convinced
> the MX card is broken. I've almost convinced the wife that another 50 notes
> is money well spent for a Ti4200 - that's assuming that
> a: the card -is- duff
> b: the retailer will give me a 4200 for the MX plus difference in cost.
> The system is less than a week old, but if he's got MXes lying around and
> has to order in a Ti, then he may not be particularly keen...
And for those who wonder, no, I yanked it out again the next day :-),
didn't sleep at all that night
Beers and cheers
(uncle) Goy
http://www.theuspits.com
"A man is only as old as the woman he feels........"
--Groucho Marx--
Thanks, uncle.
FWIW, I popped in where I bought the system and they are happy to replace my
MX440 with a Ti4200 - so long as I pay the 40 - 50 quid difference in price,
that is. I'll be interested in what the benchmarks show then...
I'm gonna bung in my old GF2MX PCI tomorrow just for giggles so I can than
see how the 3 GF cards compare.
Mark
Reading, UK
