recommend a video card?

kendallt · 03-20-2007, 10:27 AM

I could never get my last video card to run in my system, and I'm looking for a replacement, will likely be picking one up next week

If you've got a card that's never given you problems, I'd realy liketo hear about it, make and supplier etc, the last one crashed so often it was useless in my system, worked great in a single core intel system though.

looking for something with performance at or above the 7600 series cards, not a heavy gamer, but realy like clean graphics, so generaly go higher then the games require so I can run them at quality settings and not give up too much speed.

Have stuck with Nvidia since 95 or 96, but with the problems I have had with the last card (7600gs), and what I've been reading about lately, it's not a requirement anymore. I just want reliable.

only real requirements is that it's reliable, pcix 16, runs without problem on an AM2 x2 system, (3800+ x2 now shortly upgrading) and preferably under $250 usd.

currently running an ati x300 cheapy card, runs the games, but nowhere near what I like as far as graphics quality or speed.

I don't know if my issues were with the 7600gs itself ,unlikely as my card was exchanged and new card had same issues, or driver problems, but I've read many posts describing the same problem with the 7600gs by various makers, in both agp and pcie, so I plan to avoid that card in the future.

any recommendations?

ken.

**mattlock** · 03-20-2007, 10:53 AM

I've had great success with Evga. Going all the way to the MX4000 never had a problem with one yet. Below are a couple of good cards. I'd go with 8800 myself. DX10 support, and kills everything on DX9 games.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130061
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130082

The 8600 are supposed to be out soon and should be priced under $200 for the 8600Ultra.

ebackhus · 03-20-2007, 12:07 PM

I have a BFG 7600GT OC in my machine and it's been smooth sailing. I've seen good reviews on the 7950-based cards.

**TheMatt** · 03-20-2007, 02:06 PM

Hi Ken,

This card will beat any nVidia 7 series card. If you want to pay more, you are better off getting an 8800GTS 320 MB.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814161048

**TheMatt** · 03-20-2007, 02:09 PM

This is the same price after rebates but is a little cheaper initially. It just has a 25 MHz slower core clock.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102067

What is your PSU? If you get any of these video cards, you will likely need a new PSU.

kendallt · 03-21-2007, 05:18 PM

Appreciate the help everyone, went to look at an 8800 and the 1950, they didn't have any in stock, but they did have a 7900gs on sale for $169, so I picked that up to play with and see if it actualy works.

After getting it home I started thinking that it's still a 7 series card, and a GS at that, so wouldn't it have the same driver issues?

Ken.

**TheMatt** · 03-21-2007, 06:45 PM

The 7600GS and 7900GS both have the same driver. I would get the latest stable drivers from nVidia when you install it.
http://www.techsupportforum.com/hard...a-drivers.html

Also, what is your PSU? You should be looking at a 550+ w PSU for that system.

kendallt · 03-21-2007, 08:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheMatt

The 7600GS and 7900GS both have the same driver. I would get the latest stable drivers from nVidia when you install it.
http://www.techsupportforum.com/hard...a-drivers.html

Also, what is your PSU? You should be looking at a 550+ w PSU for that system.

Hopefully it was/is some issue with the 7600gs itself.

After messing with the computer for a LONG time, I replaced every part on a new rebuild, also included going from a 500w supply, to a antec 650 trio, only to find it was an apparent problem with the card or driver.

Thanks!
Ken.

**TheMatt** · 03-21-2007, 08:55 PM

You're welcome. BTW, the Antec TP Trio 650 w is a great PSU thatw ill handle that card, so you are all set there.

mostkritical · 03-22-2007, 05:44 AM

Every nvidia card with the exception of the 8800 series and the old geforce 2 and 4 series have the same driver

03-20-2007, 10:27 AM	#1 (permalink)
kendallt Registered User Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 97 OS: win7-64	recommend a video card? I could never get my last video card to run in my system, and I'm looking for a replacement, will likely be picking one up next week If you've got a card that's never given you problems, I'd realy liketo hear about it, make and supplier etc, the last one crashed so often it was useless in my system, worked great in a single core intel system though. looking for something with performance at or above the 7600 series cards, not a heavy gamer, but realy like clean graphics, so generaly go higher then the games require so I can run them at quality settings and not give up too much speed. Have stuck with Nvidia since 95 or 96, but with the problems I have had with the last card (7600gs), and what I've been reading about lately, it's not a requirement anymore. I just want reliable. only real requirements is that it's reliable, pcix 16, runs without problem on an AM2 x2 system, (3800+ x2 now shortly upgrading) and preferably under $250 usd. currently running an ati x300 cheapy card, runs the games, but nowhere near what I like as far as graphics quality or speed. I don't know if my issues were with the 7600gs itself ,unlikely as my card was exchanged and new card had same issues, or driver problems, but I've read many posts describing the same problem with the 7600gs by various makers, in both agp and pcie, so I plan to avoid that card in the future. any recommendations? ken.

03-20-2007, 10:53 AM	#2 (permalink)
mattlock Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 4,183 OS: XP SP2, Win 7 Beta, Win 7 RC My System	Re: recommend a video card? I've had great success with Evga. Going all the way to the MX4000 never had a problem with one yet. Below are a couple of good cards. I'd go with 8800 myself. DX10 support, and kills everything on DX9 games. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130061 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130082 The 8600 are supposed to be out soon and should be priced under $200 for the 8600Ultra. __________________ Matt Everest-Thermal Paste Instruction-Power Supply Info-Sensorview PSU Calculator-Speedfan-Bench Test Help TSF Fight Disease. It's Free! Last edited by mattlock; 03-20-2007 at 11:00 AM.

03-20-2007, 12:07 PM	#3 (permalink)
ebackhus Manager, Design Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: SATX Posts: 14,341 OS: WinXP Pro SP3/Windows 7 RTM My System Blog Entries: 28	Re: recommend a video card? I have a BFG 7600GT OC in my machine and it's been smooth sailing. I've seen good reviews on the 7950-based cards. __________________ ----------------------------- There are no dumb questions, unless a customer is asking them. Help in the fight against cancer and other serious illnesses.

03-20-2007, 02:06 PM	#4 (permalink)
TheMatt TSF Enthusiast Join Date: May 2006 Location: Boston Posts: 13,701 OS: Win 3.1, 98, NT 4.0, XP Debian 4.0, Kubuntu 6.06 My System Blog Entries: 3	Re: recommend a video card? Hi Ken, This card will beat any nVidia 7 series card. If you want to pay more, you are better off getting an 8800GTS 320 MB. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814161048 __________________ - Matt M - KB1OSC - Folding@Home 85015 [url="http://www.techsupportforum.com/hardware-support/"] If TSF has helped you, please consider donating. If I have stopped responding to a thread, feel free to send me a PM with a link to the thread. It is advisable to subscribe to threads so you will receive updates when replies are posted. You can subscribe to threads from the "Thread Tools" Menu. »Memtest86 »Prime95 »UBCD »SpeedFan »NHC Personal »Everest »Sandra »PC Wizard »RivaTuner »ATi Tool Click here for Useful Articles and Guides Last edited by TheMatt; 03-20-2007 at 02:12 PM.

03-20-2007, 02:09 PM	#5 (permalink)
TheMatt TSF Enthusiast Join Date: May 2006 Location: Boston Posts: 13,701 OS: Win 3.1, 98, NT 4.0, XP Debian 4.0, Kubuntu 6.06 My System Blog Entries: 3	Re: recommend a video card? This is the same price after rebates but is a little cheaper initially. It just has a 25 MHz slower core clock. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102067 What is your PSU? If you get any of these video cards, you will likely need a new PSU. __________________ - Matt M - KB1OSC - Folding@Home 85015 [url="http://www.techsupportforum.com/hardware-support/"] If TSF has helped you, please consider donating. If I have stopped responding to a thread, feel free to send me a PM with a link to the thread. It is advisable to subscribe to threads so you will receive updates when replies are posted. You can subscribe to threads from the "Thread Tools" Menu. »Memtest86 »Prime95 »UBCD »SpeedFan »NHC Personal »Everest »Sandra »PC Wizard »RivaTuner »ATi Tool Click here for Useful Articles and Guides Last edited by TheMatt; 03-20-2007 at 02:12 PM.

03-21-2007, 05:18 PM	#6 (permalink)
kendallt Registered User Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 97 OS: win7-64	Re: recommend a video card? Appreciate the help everyone, went to look at an 8800 and the 1950, they didn't have any in stock, but they did have a 7900gs on sale for $169, so I picked that up to play with and see if it actualy works. After getting it home I started thinking that it's still a 7 series card, and a GS at that, so wouldn't it have the same driver issues? Ken.

03-21-2007, 06:45 PM	#7 (permalink)
TheMatt TSF Enthusiast Join Date: May 2006 Location: Boston Posts: 13,701 OS: Win 3.1, 98, NT 4.0, XP Debian 4.0, Kubuntu 6.06 My System Blog Entries: 3	Re: recommend a video card? The 7600GS and 7900GS both have the same driver. I would get the latest stable drivers from nVidia when you install it. http://www.techsupportforum.com/hard...a-drivers.html Also, what is your PSU? You should be looking at a 550+ w PSU for that system. __________________ - Matt M - KB1OSC - Folding@Home 85015 [url="http://www.techsupportforum.com/hardware-support/"] If TSF has helped you, please consider donating. If I have stopped responding to a thread, feel free to send me a PM with a link to the thread. It is advisable to subscribe to threads so you will receive updates when replies are posted. You can subscribe to threads from the "Thread Tools" Menu. »Memtest86 »Prime95 »UBCD »SpeedFan »NHC Personal »Everest »Sandra »PC Wizard »RivaTuner »ATi Tool Click here for Useful Articles and Guides

03-21-2007, 08:55 PM	#9 (permalink)
TheMatt TSF Enthusiast Join Date: May 2006 Location: Boston Posts: 13,701 OS: Win 3.1, 98, NT 4.0, XP Debian 4.0, Kubuntu 6.06 My System Blog Entries: 3	Re: recommend a video card? You're welcome. BTW, the Antec TP Trio 650 w is a great PSU thatw ill handle that card, so you are all set there. __________________ - Matt M - KB1OSC - Folding@Home 85015 [url="http://www.techsupportforum.com/hardware-support/"] If TSF has helped you, please consider donating. If I have stopped responding to a thread, feel free to send me a PM with a link to the thread. It is advisable to subscribe to threads so you will receive updates when replies are posted. You can subscribe to threads from the "Thread Tools" Menu. »Memtest86 »Prime95 »UBCD »SpeedFan »NHC Personal »Everest »Sandra »PC Wizard »RivaTuner »ATi Tool Click here for Useful Articles and Guides

03-22-2007, 05:44 AM	#10 (permalink)
mostkritical Registered User Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 13 OS: WinVista	Re: recommend a video card? Every nvidia card with the exception of the 8800 series and the old geforce 2 and 4 series have the same driver Last edited by mostkritical; 03-22-2007 at 05:45 AM.