lew1725

hey i currently have a ATI Radeon HD 3850 (512mb)


i'm looking to upgrade to a 1gb card in which case i have selected the 9800GT 1GB sparkle. is there a better 1gb equivelant that wont set me back over 1000 bucks? if so any feedback would be nice

Phædrus2401

The 9800GT is an ok card, but not spectacular in comparison to the rest of the options available. One comment, I would choose a card by EVGA over one by Sparkle. EVGA is one of the better choices for Nvidia graphics cards, while Sparkle is a bit of an off-brand.

In order to suggest a graphics card we'll need to know a few things. First, what is your budget? The 9800GTs are around $100, so if that's your budget the 9800GT is a good card. We also need to know the rest of your system's specifications. We need to know:
1.) Make and model of your motherboard
2.) Make, model, and wattage of your power supply, and how many amps are on the +12V rail and if there are one or multiple +12V rails
3.) Type of case you have, at minimum how many and what size fans you have and where in the case they are
4.) Is your case normal size or slimline? Normal cases will usually be ~5-7+" wide at the front, slimline will be ~3-5"
5.) Your CPU's model and clock speed

If you don't know all of that stuff, tell us the brand and model number of your computer.

If you got your computer pre-made at a store then you'll likely need a new power supply to use a 9800GT or better. If this is the case and you don't want to get a new power supply then that restricts you to the 9400GT/HD4350 (top of the low-end) or the 9500GT/9600GS/HD4650 (mid-range cards) at maximum, and that's usually pushing it. Ideally those cards should have a quality 450 watt PSU, preferably 550 watt, but you can run them on a 300 watt PSU (I ran a 9500GT on a stock HP 325 watt PSU, and it worked but was unstable and would sometimes crash under heavy load).

The 9800GT is what I consider the top of mid-range cards. It will get you high graphics settings on a 1280x800 resolution in most 2008-early 2009 games and ultra high on all games before that. The ATI equivalent would be the Radeon 4770. The 9800GT should have a quality 550 watt PSU minimum. If you want to for the high-end cards you're looking at the GeForce 9800GTX+/GTS250 or the Radeon HD4850. Other cards in the high-end range include the GeForce GTX260 and GTX270 (discontinued), and the Radeon 4870 and 4890. These cards should have a quality 650+ watt PSU, preferably 750 watt.

Good brands for Nvidia GeForce cards: EVGA, XFX, BFG, Asus, Gigabyte
Good brands for ATI Radeon cards: PowerColor, Sapphire, Diamond, Asus, HIS

Good brands for power supplies: PC Power & Cooling, Corsair, Seasonic, OCZ, Thermaltake ToughPower


I hope all this has helped. Get us the rest of that info and your budget and we can help you get the best card/PSU for your money.

lew1725

hi thanks for the reply the information u shared was right on what i'm looking for. my pc stats are as follows to my best knowledge.
AMD Athlon 64X2 Dual core processor 5200+, 2.61GHz 1gb ram. ( i have 2X2gb sticks coming this thursday)
its the standard size tower case with a 300w power supply though if needed i can replace with an IC mex 450w power unit.
its from what i can tell an Asus m2n - X motherboard and my budget for a graphics card would sit around $800 dollars atm any help would be great in making the most effective and price sound choice for my system and gaming lifestyle

ebackhus

I recently bought a 3870 with 1GB of RAM. Performs great!