[Hudson180]

I really wanna upgrade my computer to run BF2.I wanna get this ATI Radeon X1600 pro,which has 512mb GDDR2 and is an AGP card.I found it cheap on Tigerdirect for $60.99.What settings will it run BF2 on ?

 

[mattlock]

Likely medium settings.

 

[emosun]

I had an x1600 pro , it will most likely be low. Its not a very impressive card. Try to get a x1650 at least.

 

[mattlock]

Thanks for that input Emosun. ray:

I've never owned that particular series of card. I was basing my assessment on my kids 9600XT 256mb ability to handle BF2 on a combination of low and medium settings. The 1600pro 512mb should be a better card, but I always prefer hands on experience over theory. :wink:

 

[emosun]

Yea, its currently in my work computer. Don't get me wrong its a decent video card. But its game performance is definitely lacking because its the "dumbed down" version of the x1650. So I would say try to find at least an x1650 or a 7600 or a 2600 pro. All should be around 60$. Also don't forget about ebay. great stuff

 

[Hudson180]

Now,im interested in getting an HD 2600.Is there much of a difference between the Pro and the XT ?Is there also much of a difference between HIS brand cards and Visiontek cards ?

 

[emosun]

Yes the pro is also the "dumbed down" version of the xt. The xt is about 30/40% faster. And HIS tends to factory over clock there cards higher then visiontek.

 

[Hudson180]

Now I dont really know much about over clocking.Is what HIS does a bad thing ?Will it shorten the life span of the Card ?

 

[emosun]

No it won't , because its a factory over clock that is safe with the hardware that they put on the card. But thats only if you get a oc version , most are not oc'ed.

 

[Hudson180]

I heard that the AGP version of the HD2600 has driver problems,but it could be taken care of with a hotfix.Should I download and install it before I install the card.

 

[emosun]

Yes the 2600 agp's have a 70% chance of working. Most older pc's they are not compatible with , but are more or less made for newer agp systems. One's that have been released in the past 3 years. Although people have gotten them to work fine on old agp systems. If you want to try the hotfix first you can but I would try the card first and make sure it doesn't work right out of the box. Also update your bios to the latest.

 

[Hudson180]

How do I upgrade my BIOS ?

 

[emosun]

Go the the motherboard manufacturer's website and download the latest from there.

 

[mattlock]

The Omega drivers are supposed to work pretty well with the AGP cards. The official ATI drivers are known to be buggy with the newer AGP cards.