Question ??? What's Wrong with GeForce-based Cards ??? Are they a Problem ???

For sound card the hot setup is one that supports four speakers( 2 front channels and 2 rear channels). I have the Sound Blaster Live Value and it sounds great. I use Cambridge "Works" speakers; Four small 2" speakers and a Bass speaker. They are small but sound like big speakers. Lutrell

Quoted text (10 lines)

>As someone new to sims, I was wondering with all the hype about the >new GeForce-based video cards, no one here seems to recommend them. >When someone asks for a video card recommendation, it seems the V3000 >or 3500, or even 2000 is always the one to get the nod ... >Why ??? >What about sound cards ??? What's the hot setup there ??? >Allan

In article <[email hidden]>, glen <[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted text (15 lines)

>On Fri, 10 Dec 1999 03:19:42 GMT, [email hidden] wrote: > >>When someone asks for a video card recommendation, it seems the V3000 >>or 3500, or even 2000 is always the one to get the nod ... >> >>Why ??? > >It's because, around here, there's only one game that matters, and that's GPL. >And it's a glide game, or rendition. Which means you need a 3dfx card, or a >rendition. > >The Geforce is a next generation TNT card. But you can use the unified ( glide >) drivers from Creative Labs ( I don't know if you specifically need a CL card, >but you're probably better off with one ) which according to some are getting >better all the time. So now you can have your cake and eat it too.

Unified does not work with GPL. The GPL OpenGL patch works, but you have to slow down the mirror refresh to get 36 fps. >Me, I'm waiting for the DDR Geforce, double the memory bandwidth. I'll be >ready to buy toward the end of january and hopefully it'll be out around here >by then. They should be widely available by then. I'll wait until prices drop a bit or I buy a game that's actually too slow on my TNT 1 / Voodoo 2 setup. -- David Ripton [email hidden] spamgard(tm): To email me, put "geek" in your Subject line.

As someone new to sims, I was wondering with all the hype about the new GeForce-based video cards, no one here seems to recommend them. When someone asks for a video card recommendation, it seems the V3000 or 3500, or even 2000 is always the one to get the nod ... Why ??? What about sound cards ??? What's the hot setup there ??? Allan

>When someone asks for a video card recommendation, it seems the V3000 >or 3500, or even 2000 is always the one to get the nod ... >Why ??? It's because, around here, there's only one game that matters, and that's GPL. And it's a glide game, or rendition. Which means you need a 3dfx card, or a rendition. The Geforce is a next generation TNT card. But you can use the unified ( glide ) drivers from Creative Labs ( I don't know if you specifically need a CL card, but you're probably better off with one ) which according to some are getting better all the time. So now you can have your cake and eat it too. Me, I'm waiting for the DDR Geforce, double the memory bandwidth. I'll be ready to buy toward the end of january and hopefully it'll be out around here by then. glen

Raymond, ACT LABS wrote in message <[email hidden]>... >Hello, >I don't play a GPL often, but I do play Rally Championship a ton. I >would highly recomment the GeForce cards unless of course Glide is >important to you Raymond, I have a Banshee right now and am about to switch, I'm planning on a VooDoo 3 but only because there seems to be nothing better available for Glide games. If something better is soon to come along, then I'll wait for it. What will this be and do you know how long? Trev

Hello, I don't play a GPL often, but I do play Rally Championship a ton. I would highly recomment the GeForce cards unless of course Glide is important to you. It is important to note that very recently, 3dfx has made Glide open source. Creative's Glide wrapper does not work that well. I have tried it on a non-Creative card with little success. I am all for forward looking companies like NVIDA (and ACT LABS). NVIDA has put T&L on board despite the fact that no games currently support it. This, I believe is the way to go. The ONLY advantage of 3dfx cards at the moment is their support for Glide games. That is soon to be a non-issue. The Voodoo 3 series of cards are not much more than Banshee cards on steroids. Banshee technology is over 2 years old. I am sure that my remarks are going to inflame a lot of people, but those are my views (and the facts). I, personally, am waiting for the new Asus V6800 Deluxe DDR GeForce card. For a sound card, I give the SB Live family of sound cards the nod. The Diamond MX 300 is good, but I have had a lot of driver problems with it. Also, the CPU overhead is a lot higher for the Diamond card vs the SB card. My two cents. On Fri, 10 Dec 1999 03:19:42 GMT, [email hidden] wrote:

Quoted text (11 lines)

> >As someone new to sims, I was wondering with all the hype about the >new GeForce-based video cards, no one here seems to recommend them. >When someone asks for a video card recommendation, it seems the V3000 >or 3500, or even 2000 is always the one to get the nod ... > >Why ??? > >What about sound cards ??? What's the hot setup there ??? > >Allan

Raymond ACT LABS

You do need a CL card to use the unified driver. I build quite a few (12 or so a year) computers for friends and stuff. I haven't used a GeForce card yet. I'm currently running a TNT2Ultra in my own computer and I will still state absolutely, if you want a card that will run all games, not have to play with drivers and setups, get real good frame rates and a bright enough picture (gamma), stick with the 3dfx products. A Voodoo3 3000 at about $110 is an excellent deal. I've felt this way for 2 or 3 months now, but as I look around on newsgroups, etc. I'm finding more and more gamers agreeing with me. Keep in mind, this is coming from a guy who stuck his last Voodoo3000 card in a friends machine and is now running an Nvidia card. The hype is going out of the Ultra/GeForce and reality is setting in. How advanced a card is, is great if you want to read specs with your card. But if you want to play games with your card, forget the techno-specs.

Hello Trev, I have a Creative Banshee Blaster at home and a Diamond TNT2 Ultra at work. All I can say is that there is something terribly wrong when your video card at work is faster than the one at home. (I never play games at work. :) ) I am absolutely dying for my new GeForce card which I have on order. The Banshee card just doesn't cut it anymore. I am buying a new Samsung 19" Dynaflat monitor for myself for Christmas (just had to put that in), so am going to keep my second PCI Banshee card for my second dispaly. There is no reason why you cannot keep the Banshee card for Glide games. If you are VERY concerned about Glide games and want a new upgrade now (as bad as I do), then you really have no choice, but to opt for a Voodoo 3. As for when 3dfx will be coming out with their next generation card, who knows. Graphics card companies are notorious for taking much longer to come out with a product than they announce. You could be waiting at least 4 more months before the successor to Voodoo 3 comes out. I personally play a lot of FPS, where Open GL performance is more important than Glide. In terms of picture quality, nothing beats the TNT and Matrox cards. When I am fragging, I don't care so much about picture quality and usually play at 800x600 with 16 bit colour. When I am laying single player games, however, I like to play at 1024x768 with 32 bit colour. My TNT2 definitely looks better than my Banshee. The Voodoo 3, basically has the same picture quality as the Banshee. However, if Glide is that important to you, you do not currently have any other options than a 3dfx card. Raymond ACT LABS On Sat, 11 Dec 1999 09:09:57 -0600, "Trevor C Thomas"

Quoted text (13 lines)

>>Hello, >>I don't play a GPL often, but I do play Rally Championship a ton. I >>would highly recomment the GeForce cards unless of course Glide is >>important to you >Raymond, I have a Banshee right now and am about to switch, I'm planning on >a VooDoo 3 but only because there seems to be nothing better available for >Glide games. >If something better is soon to come along, then I'll wait for it. What will >this be and do you know how long? >Trev

Raymond ACT LABS

Hello, Same here. I am dying for the Asus V6800. I may grow impatient, though and go for the non DDR Asus V6600 Deluxe. I am not totally convinced that I will benefit that much from the DDR. Besides, I will have 30 days of use on my card before anyone sees the DDR versions of the GeForce cards. Raymond ACT LABS

Quoted text (27 lines)

>>>When someone asks for a video card recommendation, it seems the V3000 >>>or 3500, or even 2000 is always the one to get the nod ... >>>Why ??? >>It's because, around here, there's only one game that matters, and that's GPL. >>And it's a glide game, or rendition. Which means you need a 3dfx card, or a >>rendition. >>The Geforce is a next generation TNT card. But you can use the unified ( glide >>) drivers from Creative Labs ( I don't know if you specifically need a CL card, >>but you're probably better off with one ) which according to some are getting >>better all the time. So now you can have your cake and eat it too. >Unified does not work with GPL. The GPL OpenGL patch works, but you have to >slow down the mirror refresh to get 36 fps. >>Me, I'm waiting for the DDR Geforce, double the memory bandwidth. I'll be >>ready to buy toward the end of january and hopefully it'll be out around here >>by then. >They should be widely available by then. I'll wait until prices drop a bit >or I buy a game that's actually too slow on my TNT 1 / Voodoo 2 setup. >-- >spamgard(tm): To email me, put "geek" in your Subject line.

Raymond ACT LABS

Hello, Working at a *** company, I get to see a lot of the latest hardware. In my opinion, the Matrox G400 looks the best, but has sucky Open GL performance. The TNT2 Ultras look second best. We do not have any Voodoo 3s in the office, but one of my LAN friends has one in his box. I actually picked it for him, but only because he does not have an AGP slot (all TNT2s are AGP). If you look with a discerning eye, it is quite evident that the 3dfx cards are just a bit behind in picture quailty. The technology behind the Voodoo 3 is really not that much different than the Banshee. Picture quality is somewhat subjective, so you should really just go take a look. Fortunately for me, I just happen to have access to the different hardware. Raymond ACT LABS Raymond ACT LABS