rec.autos.simulators

by **TonyFa** » Thu, 21 Nov 2002 09:55:42

Hey,
Well, it's about time for a new video card, and I'm looking for
opinions on what we should get. (or possibly wait for) So far I've
seen a few different brands of the GF4 TI 4600 128mb card.. It looks
like the Leadtek model has dual fans.. The Abit model only appeared to
have 1.. Is this correct, and for that reason would the Leadtek be the
better buy, IYO?? Besides the 2 fans, what are the differences in the
TI4200, 4400, and 4600 cards? And are they worth the price
difference? (Also notice some of the 4200's now come with AGP 8x.. Is
that going to make the card perform better than a 4400 or 4600 4x agp
card) Sorry for the expended questions, but figured a vid card thread
was in order for the upcoming holidays and release of NRTFE!!

by **Michael Basde** » Thu, 21 Nov 2002 10:05:22

Just buy an ATI Radeon 9700 Pro or AIW. It's hands down the best card
around.

by **Damien Smit** » Thu, 21 Nov 2002 10:59:11

I've got a Leadtek Ti4600 and it was a big mistake to buy it. It's about
15-20% faster than a GF3 Ti500 which is pathetic in the grand scheme of
things. I bought it about 6 months ago and now those two little fans have
developed an annoying buzzing sound kind of like two very loud mosquitos.

nVidia have realised that a 15% improvement isn't going to cut it for their
next chip and it looks like it will be at least twice as fast as a Ti4600.
From all reports, the Ati 9700 is at least 50% faster than a Ti4600. I'd
want to see a 9700 in action before I'd buy one though as I'm not convinced
that Ati can produce drivers that are as trouble free as nVidias.

Also the VIVO feature on the Leadteks is worse than you could possibly
imagine. My ASUS TNT2 I bought 4 years ago has 10 times better capture
quality.

by **Damien Smit** » Thu, 21 Nov 2002 11:21:01

To answer your other question, AGP 8x is a complete con. You'll notice that
it's only the cheapo nVidia cards that have it. The big PC companies like
HP, Dell etc will use these cards so that they can put "AGP 8x" stickers on
their cruddy PCs and uninformed people will think, "Wow, they must be twice
as fast!" There is no difference in performance.

I would recommend a Ti4200 (4x or 8x - doesn't matter) or an Ati 9700 if
your budget will stretch that far.

by **TDRacin** » Thu, 21 Nov 2002 23:54:53

What processor are you using?

by **Dave Henri** » Fri, 22 Nov 2002 00:02:33

Judging on the past efforts of Papyrus, a new vid card will allow
certain features..but if you are looking for high framerates...you'd better
have a killer CPU. In almost any upgrade situation, $$ spent on a CPU will
improve fps more dramatically than spending the same amount on a new video
card.
dave henrie

by **TonyFa** » Fri, 22 Nov 2002 03:34:39

Dave,
See my system specs in reply above.. I'm sure Im in need of a Vid
card upgrade of some kind, but you think maybe a budget card and a
processor would be my best bet? Thanks!

by **TonyFa** » Fri, 22 Nov 2002 03:34:53

My basic system:
Epox 8KHA+

512MB cas2.5 sdram
GF2GTSPro64mb

by **GTX_SlotCa** » Fri, 22 Nov 2002 04:42:31

TonyFan,
You might let us know how much you're willing to spend.
Dave's right about CPU power. A 2.4G CPU or better with some fast DDR memory
(along with a new motherboard, I guess) would be nice, but you really do
need a new video card, even on your current computer. If you aren't in a big
hurry and want to spend some money, wait until the new NV30 is released
(Feb, I think) and read some reviews. It could be 25 to 40% faster than
ATI's new 9700.

--
Slot

Tweaks & Reviews
www.slottweak.com

> > Judging on the past efforts of Papyrus, a new vid card will allow
> >certain features..but if you are looking for high framerates...you'd
better
> >have a killer CPU. In almost any upgrade situation, $$ spent on a CPU
will
> >improve fps more dramatically than spending the same amount on a new
video
> >card.
> >dave henrie

> Dave,
> See my system specs in reply above.. I'm sure Im in need of a Vid
> card upgrade of some kind, but you think maybe a budget card and a
> processor would be my best bet? Thanks!

by **Damien Smit** » Fri, 22 Nov 2002 07:09:36

Athlon XP 2000+

by **TonyFa** » Fri, 22 Nov 2002 08:39:59

GTX,
Well, unfortunately I won't be able to wait on the NV30.. Even if I
could I don't think I'd have the money for it.. That'll probably be a
$400+ card wouldn't you think? What do you think my best option would
be with my current system? I can probably get either a GF4 TI4600, or
a Radeon 9500 Pro (not the 9700 pro).. Or possibly a lower end Vid
Card with a XP2000+ ?? Thanks for the replies!

Current box;
APox 8KHA+
XP1700 1.4 GHz
Geforce2 GTS Pro <---definitely has to go before NRTFE

by **GTX_SlotCa** » Sat, 23 Nov 2002 02:24:12

Yes, I think the NV30s will be released in 2 versions. One for about $400
and one for about $500. A lot of money.

Now that's a pretty good idea. If you plan on keeping the computer for a
while without further updates, the faster cpu and a Ti 4400 might just be
the way to go.

--
Slot

Tweaks & Reviews
www.slottweak.com

by **TonyFa** » Sat, 23 Nov 2002 03:10:42

Thanks GTX!!

rec.autos.simulators

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)

Opinions: vid card (NR2k3/TFE)