Vote for the best under $400 video solution

[btarunr]

Hello folks!

$400 is all I have to blow for the video sub-system of a PC I'm planning to gift to a special friend. So drop your votes.

Oh yeah, drop in a vote above. Democracy rocks.

I'm only asking about the video-hardware EXCLUDING monitor, so don't talk about monitors, please.

Based on the results of the above poll, I can decide on the motherboard.

If a SINGLE or GPU + PPU option wins, Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R is what I'm planning to choose. ($ 125)

If a SLI option wins, EVGA 122-CK-NF67-T1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i LT is what I'm planning to choose. ($ 165)

If you've got a better idea, put it up! Either ways, the CPU of choice is a C2Q Q6600.

EDIT: If a CROSSFIRE option wins, the CPU + mobo would be GIGABYTE GA-MA790FX-DS5 + AMD Phenom 9500

[Chewy]

If the 8800gts 128sp model wasent pushed back to December 14th I would say that.. otherwise get the 8800gt if your friend has the pc conected to a TV (with HDMI) get a 3870xt.

[Mussels]

8800gt. great value, great card.

[panchoman]

dual 3870's in CFX

[zekrahminator]

20" LCD, TV Tuner, and an HD 2600XT 512MB (this kid prolly doesn't game that much, and if he did, anything much higher than a 2600XT would require a power upgrade ;)).

[JC316]

Single 8800GT.

[zekrahminator]

As far as actual votes go, I'd get the 2900Pro w/ a beefy power supply.

[JC316]

As far as actual votes go, I'd get the 2900Pro w/ a beefy power supply.

Yup, thats a good solution too if you can find a pro. It would be best if you could get the pro around $200 or under it.

[btarunr]

It's just about an hour since I started this poll and I'm stunned at so many people giving thumbs-up to ATI solutions.

[JC316]

It's just about an hour since I started this poll and I'm stunned at so many people giving thumbs-up to ATI solutions.

Yeah, I owned an 8800GT and it was good, but personally, I think that Nvidia is fucking with the numbers on that. Especially on 3dmark06, my pro scored 12K with the CPU at 3.5GHZ, but the 8800 made 13.1K. There is hardly a difference in the 2900 and the 8800.

[DrunkenMafia]

I voted for the crossfire 3850's man, that would be a nice setup.. :)

The only thing I can see that you should change is the DFI mb... that ATI chipset is very old and rather slow... A P35 chipset is much faster. If you can't afford a P35 crossfire board the the P965 is also a good option.

I am not to sure why people are telling you to buy a PSU when you have a 700w Tagan!!! that is heaps..

Good luck with it..

[Chewy]

I voted for the single 3870, that way you should still get a cross fire board so if he/she wants to upgrade down the road they can do so very easily when the card drops in price. big thumbs up!

[btarunr]

I voted for the crossfire 3850's man, that would be a nice setup.. :)

The only thing I can see that you should change is the DFI mb... that ATI chipset is very old and rather slow... A P35 chipset is much faster. If you can't afford a P35 crossfire board the the P965 is also a good option.

I am not to sure why people are telling you to buy a PSU when you have a 700w Tagan!!! that is heaps..

Good luck with it..

But P35 gives x16 + x4 PCIe lanes.

At least the ATI chipset give two full x16 lanes (or x8 + x8 + x2 when 3 PCIe x16 slots used)

I'm building a fresh new PC to gift.

Besides the CPU I'm using has a 1066 MHz FSB, so that's leveled-ground for the mobos

[JacKz5o]

Why not just get a regular or superclocked EVGA 8800GT then save the rest of the $$?

[btarunr]

Why not just get a regular or superclocked EVGA 8800GT then save the rest of the $$?

Because I've decided upon how much to spend on a sub-system basis, even if I have to spend $ 399.99 that's okay. No savings, no problem. At least I have a good rig put-up. Are you interested in knowing about the other sub-systems?

[Namslas90]

Until I see what the ATI 4XXX series does, my 1900XTX works just fine, (but thats not one of the options...I guess thats becase I paid more than $400 for it! LOL)

:toast:

[erocker]

8800GT is made for benchmarking, the ATi 2900Pro 1gb is made to work! The ATi gets my vote.

[Mussels]

8800GT is made for benchmarking, the ATi 2900Pro 1gb is made to work! The ATi gets my vote.

Depends if he wants to use widescreen - ATI still have issues with disabling scaling, so that unless you can game in native res the screen blurs badly (which screws me over good, as i only have widescreen monitors and TV's)

P.S - before anyone says anything, 1366x768 (HDTV) isnt a common res in older games, so no, i cant just set every game to use that.

[yogurt_21]

Depends if he wants to use widescreen - ATI still have issues with disabling scaling, so that unless you can game in native res the screen blurs badly (which screws me over good, as i only have widescreen monitors and TV's)

P.S - before anyone says anything, 1366x768 (HDTV) isnt a common res in older games, so no, i cant just set every game to use that.

still ahve yet to see any proff of your comments on widescreen and ati, and don't forget I'M RUNNING WIDESCREEN ON ATI. infact i run all my games at 1680x1050, so I really don't know what you're talking about.

[Mussels]

still ahve yet to see any proff of your comments on widescreen and ati, and don't forget I'M RUNNING WIDESCREEN ON ATI. infact i run all my games at 1680x1050, so I really don't know what you're talking about.

its not RUNNING them at 1680x1050 - run it at 1280x1024 and tell me what it looks like. Nvidia have scaling so that it stays a 4:3 ratio, ATI just stretch to fit - AND IT LOOKS LIKE CRAP.

[btarunr]

Is it really worth buying a PhysX card?

[yogurt_21]

its not RUNNING them at 1680x1050 - run it at 1280x1024 and tell me what it looks like. Nvidia have scaling so that it stays a 4:3 ratio, ATI just stretch to fit - AND IT LOOKS LIKE CRAP.

wow so what you're saying their having toruble with widescreen when you really mean they have trouble running nor mal resolutions in widescreen monitors. why the fuck would you buy a widescreen monitor to run at 1280x1024? I think you're trying really hard to make ati sound bad and are using any excuse.

[Scrizz]

wow, just wow

[Dr. Spankenstein]

its not RUNNING them at 1680x1050 - run it at 1280x1024 and tell me what it looks like. Nvidia have scaling so that it stays a 4:3 ratio, ATI just stretch to fit - AND IT LOOKS LIKE CRAP.


Ummm...CCC, ATT and (I think) ATI Tool all have options to not scale the image. Centered timings anyone! Any video card would be rediculous not to have such an option.

Get real!:slap:

[FatForester]

If people are reading this looking for 8800GT's, they're back in stock! I just ordered another one for a friend that's in class, because these things go fast!
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130306

[btarunr]

If people are reading this looking for 8800GT's, they're back in stock! I just ordered another one for a friend that's in class, because these things go fast!
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130306

Here's something you'll laugh at: Every card you see in the above poll? I ordered them and they're all with me, unopened. After I decide upon which card to keep (the one that wins this poll), I'll simply sell all the other cards for a refund. I knew what a fu**-up this holiday season would mean for shoppers. I bought them all from Singapore. A cousin's going back in 20 days, enough time to sell (with a tiny margin of-course,)

[FatForester]

Here's something you'll laugh at: Every card you see in the above poll? I ordered them and they're all with me, unopened. After I decide upon which card to keep (the one that wins this poll), I'll simply RMA all the other cards for a refund. I knew what a fu**-up this holiday season would mean for shoppers. I bought them all from Singapore. A cousin's going back in 20 days, enough time to RMA.

:wtf: I smell BS, but if you actually did that... then that's ridiculous. On that list, I would take off the 2900 series because the 3870 is cheaper, quieter, cooler, more efficient, and faster than any of them. Buying a 2900 is rather silly now, unless it's the 1gb 2900 Pro GDDR4. Even then it's still a waste. Considering the new 8800GTS's are out yet, buying an older version is also a waste considering the value of the 8800GT. Another thing, crossfire and sli of lower / mainstream parts is not a good solution if you're planning for the future.

Depending on if you can get the benefits in your country, the evga 8800GT is a great deal. The only reason I'm going with evga is because of their warranty and their 90 day step-up program. If you bought an evga 8800GT for 300 or so, in 90 days you can step up to the 9800GTX or new 8800GTS for only the difference in price. It's awesome!

[bombfirst885]

Here's something you'll laugh at: Every card you see in the above poll? I ordered them and they're all with me, unopened. After I decide upon which card to keep (the one that wins this poll), I'll simply sell all the other cards for a refund. I knew what a fu**-up this holiday season would mean for shoppers. I bought them all from Singapore. A cousin's going back in 20 days, enough time to sell (with a tiny margin of-course,)You somehow even have the new 8800GTS G92 in front of you? Right. :laugh:

[btarunr]

:wtf: I smell BS, but if you actually did that... then that's ridiculous. On that list, I would take off the 2900 series because the 3870 is cheaper, quieter, cooler, more efficient, and faster than any of them. Buying a 2900 is rather silly now, unless it's the 1gb 2900 Pro GDDR4. Even then it's still a waste. Considering the new 8800GTS's are out yet, buying an older version is also a waste considering the value of the 8800GT. Another thing, crossfire and sli of lower / mainstream parts is not a good solution if you're planning for the future.

Depending on if you can get the benefits in your country, the evga 8800GT is a great deal. The only reason I'm going with evga is because of their warranty and their 90 day step-up program. If you bought an evga 8800GT for 300 or so, in 90 days you can step up to the 9800GTX or new 8800GTS for only the difference in price. It's awesome!

No BS, man. I really did get all these from Singapore. They're at my cousin's place. Correction: we won't RMA it but sell them locally excluding the card(s) I choose to keep. They're all gray-market priced and came in white boxes.The 320M 8800 GTS cards were packed along with clothes.

[Mussels]

No BS, man. I really did get all these from Singapore. They're at my cousin's place. Correction: we won't RMA it but sell them locally excluding the card(s) I choose to keep. They're all gray-market priced and came in white boxes.The 320M 8800 GTS cards were packed along with clothes.

pics or it didnt happen :P

[erocker]

Hands down the new GTS is going to romp all other cards.

[btarunr]

pics or it didnt happen :P

Cousin's place, moron, 800 KM from here. didn't happen? who cares I don't own any of them as yet. He's the one dodging customs and bringing stuff here, all of them except the New 8800 GTS.

[btarunr]

Very few takers for the GPU + PPU options. Is it worthless having a physics-accelerator at this point?

[FatForester]

Well a PPU isn't worthless, but when that money could be used for a better GPU, it's a no brainer. Also physics processing doesn't really have a future with add-in cards, but more so on the CPU. With quad-core starting to become mainstream, there's no need to invest in PPU's right now, if ever.

[btarunr]

Well a PPU isn't worthless, but when that money could be used for a better GPU, it's a no brainer. Also physics processing doesn't really have a future with add-in cards, but more so on the CPU. With quad-core starting to become mainstream, there's no need to invest in PPU's right now, if ever.

Whatever happened to the NVIDIA Quantum physics acceleration. Tks!

[zekrahminator]

Whatever happened to the NVIDIA Quantum physics acceleration. Tks!

Intel/Havoc killed it (http://www.techpowerup.com/?45145) (as well as AMD's GPU physics) until DX11.

[btarunr]

Intel/Havoc killed it (http://www.techpowerup.com/?45145) (as well as AMD's GPU physics) until DX11.

Havoc is Intel's baby (at least now). What about AMD multi-core processors? Will the Havoc FX be "optimised" for Intel processors? Are we here to see another drift in the industry?

[Scrizz]

what mobo are you gonna use?

[btarunr]

what mobo are you gonna use?

Read post #1 (Page 1)

[imperialreign]

Very few takers for the GPU + PPU options. Is it worthless having a physics-accelerator at this point?

Not yet. The PPU necessity hasn't taken off yet.

If you want that possibility later down the road, though, it might be best to stick with ATI at this point. Supposedly they will at some point allow xFire across dissimilar cards. Supposedly they will at some point also offer the capability that a dissimilar card could act as a PPU. nVidia's rumored plans are only through similar cards.

When that will happen, who knows?

If you're looking more for great HD playback and compatibility, I'd have to cast my vote for either a xFire 3850 setup, or a single 3870.

But if your looking for flat out performance, I'd go with the new GTS.

[J-Man]

SINGLE: EVGA 512-P3-N806-A1 GeForce 8800GT SSC

[Mussels]

Not yet. The PPU necessity hasn't taken off yet.

If you want that possibility later down the road, though, it might be best to stick with ATI at this point. Supposedly they will at some point allow xFire across dissimilar cards. Supposedly they will at some point also offer the capability that a dissimilar card could act as a PPU. nVidia's rumored plans are only through similar cards.

When that will happen, who knows?

If you're looking more for great HD playback and compatibility, I'd have to cast my vote for either a xFire 3850 setup, or a single 3870.

But if your looking for flat out performance, I'd go with the new GTS.

if history is any indicator when 'someday' happens and they 'someday' allow dissimilar cards to work together and work as PPU's, we'll need entirely new cards anyway - 'masterless' crossfire did this... needed all new cards, so people who tried to early adopt got shafted.

[btarunr]

if history is any indicator when 'someday' happens and they 'someday' allow dissimilar cards to work together and work as PPU's, we'll need entirely new cards anyway - 'masterless' crossfire did this... needed all new cards, so people who tried to early adopt got shafted.

GPU's doing physics processing is dead and gone, you'll never have that, at least not till DX 11. Read some of the older posts in this tread.

[Pinchy]

Dual 3850's imo.

[Mussels]

GPU's doing physics processing is dead and gone, you'll never have that, at least not till DX 11. Read some of the older posts in this tread.

i was replying to one of those 'earlier posts' and saying the same thing - IF it happens, it wont happen with current cards. please dont argue for the sake of arguing.

[btarunr]

LOL I'm not arguing for any sake. Just thought you didn't read some posts on page 1. Take a chill mate, I know it's hot down-under. :toast:

[niko084]

Crossfire 3850's... They are fast, work great, run cool, don't use tons of power, and you can get them brand new for under $400 with good warranties :)

[snuif09]

Crossfire 3850's... They are fast, work great, run cool, don't use tons of power, and you can get them brand new for under $400 with good warranties :)
double that:p:p

[Grings]

yup, i'd go for crossfire 3850's (512mb ones though, or 3870's if you can stretch to that), if i were to pick a single card it would be the new 8800gts 512mb (or even an ssc 640mb one if it was cheap)

I would however avoid using the phenom/790 for the crossfire setup (at least until/if a good clocking phenom arrives), and get an intel quad/x38 setup

[niko084]

I would however avoid using the phenom/790 for the crossfire setup (at least until/if a good clocking phenom arrives), and get an intel quad/x38 setup

Indeed Phenoms are not very promising... Infact they are pretty much failing so far...

AMD needs to fix these problems lately :(

[HeavyH20]

I would not consider anything with less than 512 MB of memory. 256 MB cards, whether in Crossfire or SLI, are a very limiting factor. Even the 320 MB GTS cards should be considered a no go. While DX9 performance (3DMark06 for example) is decent with low memory cards, DX10 is much more demanding on memory. I would pick anything that is SLI or single card that offers 512 MB on a single card in the mix or you are limiting the value proposition and will likely feel the need to upgrade a little too soon.

[Franklinwallbrown]

I didn't read any of this; I just know that dual video cards don't always work. Sorry if someone already said something, but it's late and I'm sleepie.

[Bluefox1115]

I voted for 2x 8800GTS in SLI because the beat a single GTX in most cases, but it would be better to know what the system is going to be used for.. either way I'd say either dual 8800gts's or dual 3850's..

[Scrizz]

w8 that 2x gts wasn't there b4

[Bluefox1115]

lolol

[Mussels]

with all the problems Xfire and SLI have.. dont see why people cant just buy a bigger card. its useful for the low end viddies, but those people usually dont have an SLI board anyway...

(look at crysis for example, they still havent got crossfire working properly... SLI has issues with a lot of games too, until a few montjhs later when the drivers catch up)

[btarunr]

Wow! a sudden influx of votes in favour of 8800GT SSC. Keep it going laddies!

[cefurkan]

of course single 8800gt

if we compare other cards with single 8800 gt

it has the best performance/price