Simviation Forum - Lookin to upgrade (Finally! ;D)

Jan 29^th, 2005 at 8:52pm

xFLAMESx Offline
Colonel
Torquay, England

Gender:
Posts: 1760

OK guys, it's time for me to splash some cash.

I recently came into some money and decided it was time to 'trick-out' my rig Wink

I'm lookin at a new graphics card (currently at an 'impressive' 64mb Tongue

) and have about £80 - £100 to spend.

Any recommendations (British stores preferably, online if necessary)

I wouldn't mind a DVD writer so I don't have to keep all of the zips on my HD, but that can wait for now.

Hope to hear some good news,

Carl

Honours :&&Freeware Screenshot Competition Winner, June 2009

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Reply #1 - Jan 29^th, 2005 at 9:01pm

Asda_price Ex Member

First off, we have to found out what your current mobo and specs are, then we will be able to recommend some good harware for current rig.

Cheers,

Rob

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Reply #2 - Jan 30^th, 2005 at 5:28am

Asda_price Ex Member

If we consider for a moment that your PC is AGP, then I would say for you to go for the nVidia GeForce 6600 GT, which is only £115 at www.overclockers.co.uk.

Rob. Wink

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Reply #3 - Jan 30^th, 2005 at 5:31am

eno Offline
Colonel
Why you shouldn't light
your farts!!
Derbyshire UK

Posts: 7802

Just Google for Graphics cards and narrow the search down to UK sites. Prices can vary drastically for the same card so what is £115 on overclockers might be £105 on another site or £150 on another. Shop around you can get some good deals if you take the time.

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Reply #4 - Jan 30^th, 2005 at 7:31am

xFLAMESx Offline
Colonel
Torquay, England

Gender:
Posts: 1760

I was lookin at maybe one of these :

BFG TECH
GEFORCE FX5200OC
256MB DDR PCI GRAPHICS CARD - Web : £80, Store : £100

ABIT
R9550-GURU
128MB DDR ATI RADEON GRAPHICS CARD - Web : £80, Store : Same as Web

PNY
GEFORCE FX5200
VERTO 128MB DDR PCI GRAPHICS CARD - Web : £50, Store : £60

SAPPHIRE
RADEON 9600SE
128MB DDR GRAPHICS CARD WITH TV-OUT - Web : £50, Store : £70

PNY
GEFORCE FX5500
128MB DDR GRAPHICS CARD - Web : £43, Store : £60

PNY
GEFORCE FX 5200
VERTO 128MB AGP 8X GRAPHICS CARD - Web : £43, Store : £60

ABIT
RADEON R9250-128-ADT
128MB DDR GRAPHICS CARD - Web : £39, Store : £50

SAPPHIRE
RADEON 9200SE
128MB DDR GRAPHICS CARD - Web : £30, Store : £50

I know none of them are great, but they're all an improvement on my current, right?

Thanks,

Carl

P.S. : Asda, how can I find out if my PC is AGP?

Honours :&&Freeware Screenshot Competition Winner, June 2009

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Reply #5 - Jan 30^th, 2005 at 8:10am

Asda_price Ex Member

To find out if your PC supports AGP, download the utility called CPU-Z available here:

http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php

Open it up, then go on the tab that says 'mainboard'. From here, tell us what your motherboard model is. At the bottom of that page there is a section called 'Graphics Interface'. It should say either 'AGP' or PCI-Express.

Rob.

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Reply #6 - Jan 30^th, 2005 at 8:22am

Fozzer Offline
Colonel
An elderly FS 2004 addict!
Hereford. England. EGBS.

Posts: 24861

Quote:

P.S. : Asda, how can I find out if my PC is AGP?

Hi Carl... Grin

..!
I would have thought it is as simple as looking on your motherboard for a "brown" slot, which will be an AGP slot for a latest graphics cards... Wink

...!
The others will be PCI slots...generally black.

Cheers Carl... Grin

..!
...(Watch out for Thames flooding due to Global Warming)... Wink

...!
LOL...!

Paul.

P.S. Note that "smilies" don't work in the Title Headings.. Wink

...!

Dell Dimension 5000 BTX Tower. Win7 Home Edition, 32 Bit. Intel Pentium 4, dual 2.8 GHz. 2.5GB RAM, nVidia GF 9500GT 1GB. SATA 500GB + 80GB. Philips 17" LCD Monitor. Micronet ADSL Modem only. Saitek Cyborg Evo Force. FS 2004 + FSX. Briggs and Stratton Petrol Lawn Mower...Motor Bikes. Gas Cooker... and lots of musical instruments!.... ...!
Yamaha MO6,MM6,DX7,DX11,DX21,DX100,MK100,EMT10,PSR400,PSS780,Roland GW-8L v2,TR505,Casio MT-205,Korg CX3v2 dual manual,+ Leslie 760,M-Audio Prokeys88,KeyRig,Cubase,Keyfax4,Guitars,Orchestral,Baroque,Renaissance,Medieval Instruments.

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Reply #7 - Jan 30^th, 2005 at 12:11pm

Gixer Offline
Colonel
Lets go fly a kite!!

Posts: 1540

Personally I wouldn't purchase any of the cards you listed, and its likely that a few of them will not performa any better than your existing card. Ram size on a g/card isn't everything.

I am taking into account that you have an AGP port (If you dont then you will be stuck with an FX5200 PCI card)

The two I have listed are from www.overclockers.co.uk

Connect3D ATI Radeon 9600XT 256MB DDR TV-Out/DVI (AGP) - Retail (GX-025-CO)

- 256MB DDR high performance two-channel DDR memory interface
- Highly Optimized 128-bit 2D engine with support for new WindowsXP GDI extensions
- 3rd Generation Visual Processing Unit (VPU) comprised of 4 rendering pipelines and 2 geometry engines
- Fully compliant with PC 2002 requirements
- Supports the AGP 8X and AGP 4x standard
- Full support for DirectX® 9.0 and the latest OpenGL® functionality
- New SMARTSHADER™ 2.0 technology allows users to experience complex, movie-quality effects in next-generation 3D games and applications
- SMOOTHVISION™ 2.1 technology enhances image quality by removing jagged edges and bringing out fine texture detail, without compromising performance
- 128-bit floating-point color precision allows for a greater range of colors and brightness

£100.76 Including VAT

OR

OcUK ATI Radeon 9700 Pro 128MB DDR TV-Out/DVI (AGP) - OEM (GX-010-AT)

- Fastest* 3D gaming performance with next-generation VPU architecture
- Complete DirectX® 9.0 support for unprecedented realism and sophisticated visual effects
- SMOOTHVISION™ 2.0
- VIDEOSHADER™ and FULLSTREAM™ technologies

(£89.89 Including VAT)

I have a feeling the 9600XT may be the better card though, but I am not totally sure.

AMD64 3500+ @ 2200MHz 400FSB&&MSI K8N Neo 2 mobo nForce3 chipset&&1gig Corsair XMS PC3200 timings @ 10.2.2.2 &&XFX 6800 Ultra @ 450/1200&&80gig HDD&&Loadsa fans!!!

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Reply #8 - Jan 30^th, 2005 at 12:59pm

xFLAMESx Offline
Colonel
Torquay, England

Gender:
Posts: 1760

Quote:

Hi Carl... Grin

..!
I would have thought it is as simple as looking on your motherboard for a "brown" slot, which will be an AGP slot for a latest graphics cards... Wink

...!
The others will be PCI slots...generally black.

Cheers Carl... Grin

..!
...(Watch out for Thames flooding due to Global Warming)... Wink

...!
LOL...!

Paul.

P.S. Note that "smilies" don't work in the Title Headings.. Wink

...!

LOL - Just noticed... Grin

BTW - now living on top of a big hill, many miles from 'old smokey' Grin

Carl

P.S. AGP Supported

Honours :&&Freeware Screenshot Competition Winner, June 2009

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Reply #9 - Jan 30^th, 2005 at 1:25pm

Asda_price Ex Member

Since you've confirmed that your PC is AGP, we can make a couple of recommendations as to which video card to get for you.

nVidia GeForce 6600 GT
This card supplies very good performance for a very low price.

ATi Radeon 9800 Pro
The 9800 Pro is only £110, and is still a very good card for flight simming and other games.

ATi Radeon 9600 XT
The 9600 XT is an overlooked card but should not be underestimated.

nVidia GeForce FX 5900 XT
This card was around £400 a few months ago. Now it's only £100. But it still does pack some power against some other cards and is still very good for games.

All of these cards are within your budget. It's up to you to make the choice.

Rob. Wink

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Reply #10 - Jan 30^th, 2005 at 1:34pm

Fozzer Offline
Colonel
An elderly FS 2004 addict!
Hereford. England. EGBS.

Posts: 24861

Here is a useful little performance guide* which someone posted here some time ago.... 8)...!
I saved it for my own reference...>>>

Cheers all... Grin

...!

Paul.

* Performance guide...Viagra instruction book... Roll Eyes

...?
LOL... Grin

...!

Dell Dimension 5000 BTX Tower. Win7 Home Edition, 32 Bit. Intel Pentium 4, dual 2.8 GHz. 2.5GB RAM, nVidia GF 9500GT 1GB. SATA 500GB + 80GB. Philips 17" LCD Monitor. Micronet ADSL Modem only. Saitek Cyborg Evo Force. FS 2004 + FSX. Briggs and Stratton Petrol Lawn Mower...Motor Bikes. Gas Cooker... and lots of musical instruments!.... ...!
Yamaha MO6,MM6,DX7,DX11,DX21,DX100,MK100,EMT10,PSR400,PSS780,Roland GW-8L v2,TR505,Casio MT-205,Korg CX3v2 dual manual,+ Leslie 760,M-Audio Prokeys88,KeyRig,Cubase,Keyfax4,Guitars,Orchestral,Baroque,Renaissance,Medieval Instruments.

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Reply #11 - Jan 30^th, 2005 at 4:53pm

xFLAMESx Offline
Colonel
Torquay, England

Gender:
Posts: 1760

Quote:

Here is a useful little performance guide* which someone posted here some time ago.... 8)...!
I saved it for my own reference...>>>

Image Here

Cheers all... Grin

...!

Paul.

* Performance guide...Viagra instruction book... Roll Eyes

...?
LOL... Grin

...!

...

...LOL Paul... Cheesy

Rob : Thanx for the advice, would love to get the 6800Ultra just 'cause of the FPS it's capable of, alas, I don't have £300 to spend Sad

Cheers all, hope to have it bought and installed V. Soon

Carl

Honours :&&Freeware Screenshot Competition Winner, June 2009

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