xepherys

Alright, what about the 9800 GX2... it's a performer (at a cost)... BUT...

Does it require an nVidia SLI-ready board? I can't seem to find info on whether it does or not. The mobo I'm looking at is an Intel platform (performance) and I'd prefer to stick with it, but I'm liking the 9800 GX2 for both performance and HDMI out.

Question #2 is, with an 8800GT, how well will it work on a 1080p LCD set using DVI->HDMI for video at 1920x1080? Any advice on using an HDTV as a display? Thanks!

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From what I've read:

The 9800 GX2 is $600.
The 8800 GT is $200.
The 9800 GX2 has the same performance as 2 x 8800 GTs running in SLI. ($400)

I wouldn't think about buying a 9800 GX2 yet. No clue about your second question.

However, below are a few reviews of the 9800 GX2:

Early Test

Overclocked and Tested

with ForceWare 174.51

Running in Quad SLI

Edit: Off hand anyone know how much power two 8800 GTs in SLI need vs one 9800 GX2? If you have to buy a new expensive PSU, it might all come out in the wash.

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Willravel

Yeah, I know. I REALLY want an iMac, though.

It's moot for now as I refuse to get one until my eMac breaks. Maybe by *whenever my eMac finally bites it* they'll have a 9600 in the iMac 24".

YaWhateva

Isn't the problem with the iMacs that they have to use mobile processors and video cards because they are so thin?

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Willravel

Yes that's true, but it's not like they don't have amazing cards for laptops. The Alienware Area-1 m15x has the 8800M GTX in it (that's 512MB). That thing would blow away with the iMac has now, the Radeon HD 2600 PRO (that's 256MB). Battlefield 2142 or Command and Conquer 3 would play a lot better with a stronger video card.

YaWhateva

Ya but Alienware is meant to be a gaming powerhouse laptop. iMacs don't seem to be marketed as amazing powerhouses, they are stylish computers for the average user all wrapped up in a nice little bundle. The average user (especially of a mac) won't need the power from the video card to play high end games. It would seem like a person wanting a super powerful mac would go for the Mac Pro. I don't know, that's just what it seems like to me.

Also, a question I had is are the new 512MB 8800GTS's more powerful than the GT? It seems like they are from some of the benchmarks I have seen.

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Willravel

The iMac has an 2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Extreme (4 cores), 4 GB RAM, up to 1 TB HD, etc. Basically, the iMac is a top end laptop for your desktop. Compared to the processor/ram/hard drive, the stock video card is lacking. If the iMac only went up to a 2.0 or 2.2GHz multiple core, then the 256MB 2600 would make sense. With the top end iMac, it makes more sense to have the balls to play decent games and high end video apps.

Yes, one can get the Mac Pro, which is a man's machine, but iMac has been the staple of Mac since 1999. I'm still thinking about getting a Mac Pro, but the damn thing is so expensive. It STARTS at $2800, and that's without a monitor. Even getting the hard drives, video card, and ram third party (because Apple charges way too much for extras), I'd still probably be paying about $4,600 for a computer (tower with two 3.0GHz Quad-Core Intels, 30" display, extra drive and AirPort). That's a decent chunk of change.

Cynthetiq

we just got a Mac Pro. It wasn't no 4k, but somewhere in the 3k range, student or corporate discount applied as well, but that was really to not pay any taxes on the machine and get a 1%-2% discount.

You could get a single chip 2.8Ghz Xeon quad core, which makes it start at $2,299. If you're stating that an iMac was good for you, no application (especially gaming) you were using would really take advantage of the quad core and you'd still have a powerhouse CPU.

edit: sorry the price is $2,499.00, since it's a $200 upgrade for the 8800GT card.

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Lasereth

Made some surprising changes. Added the older GeForce 8800 GTS 320 to the list since its incredible price drop. Added the 8800 GS. Added Radeon HD 3650. Deleted the 3850 512 MB. Added the 8800 GTX back to the list.

MexicanOnABike

I have a question about my video card problems: in my old computer, running a 3600AMD processor with 1gb of ram on XP with a 6600GT nvidia card was running games OK this year.

Now that I have a Quadcore 6600 with 2gb of ram on vista with a 8400gs, it's running like crap on the lowest settings. is this card that bad!?!?

Now seeing as i'm in canada, is there a site that has the same prices or close to the same as newegg in quality?

What would you recommend as a top quality card for ~100-150$?

i'm asking beause a card like i have now which is pretty shitty still runs at about 100$ in my town. http://www.staples.ca/ENG/Catalog/ca...AffixedCode=WW

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Martian

The short answer is yes, the 8400GS is that bad. It's a workstation card, and isn't really meant for any serious gaming.

Staples overprices everything.

Tiger Direct is offering a BFG 8600GTS for $129 ($104 after the $25 mail-in rebate) or an XFX 8600GT for $120 with a $20 mail-in rebate. The 256 MB version of the 8600GT is even cheaper, just $100 with a $30 mail-in rebate (best deal IMO, at a final price of $70). Alternatively, if you can scrape a bit more cash together you can get an EVGA 8800GT for $220 less a $30 mail-in rebate.

I've personally never used Tiger Direct, but I have friends who swear by them. If you prefer a brick and mortar store and are within driving distance of Whitby, Best Byte usually has some good deals, and is currently offering an XFX 8600GT for $125.

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Lasereth

Yes, the videocard is that bad. Videocards do a huge portion of the work in today's games. That 8400 GS is worse than the years old 6600 GT.

I would buy this from Tiger Direct's Canadian site:

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applicatio...416&CatId=1558

GeForce 8800 GS, $135 with a $30 rebate so it's really $105. You won't find a better deal.

MexicanOnABike

very good. thanks for the info guys!! I also found a 9600GT for 175$. what's better here? on the tiger direct site, i have to pay 20$ of shipping. on this site, shipping is free. so 125 for 8800gs or 175 for 9600gt... what's the best deal?!

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Lasereth

9600 GT will be slightly better. Both are a good deal, just depends on how much you want to spend.

Shauk

ok so my very very behind the times self has decided to refer to this thread for video card assistance.

basically, i'm cheap, i don't want to pay for a video card ALONE a price which would net me an entire current gen gaming platform (wii/ps3/360)

everyone is ranting and raving about 8800's but where i get confused is what the hell is the difference in the lettering? GT? GS? GTS? LMNOP? that tells me nothing. Is there a site that breaks it down ala the ever familiar "Free version vs pro!" charts that i've come to love (like the winamp download page for example)


Basically i'm gonna wanna play SC2, Orange box, tf2, COD4, and...

Multibox WoW on one machine (run 2-3 instances of WoW at the same time)
http://www.dual-boxing.com/forums/index.php?page=Portal like this

what am I looking at?


EDIT: ok I answered my own question I think (thanks google)


1st I found

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/132


seems like the GT is the best price point eh?

the GT ultra moves 103.6 GB/s but jesus, it's 500$

would anyone recommend this?

Cynthetiq

the GT, GTS, GTX all don't mean much in the grandest scheme of things.

The most important things to keep in mind with the video cards are the same things that Las posted in the first post....

I'm looking at the 8800GT as a replacement for my 7900GT some time this year, the price is hovering around 200-250 depending on if Britney Spears is wearing panties, hit some SUV, or doesn't have her kids.

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Shauk

GS=38.4 GB/s 192bit
GT=57.6 GB/s 256bit
GTS=64 GB/s 320bit
GTX=86.4 GB/s 384bit
Ultra=103.6 GB/s 384bit


ok disregard my last post

the GTS is at the best price point

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

144$
114$ after rebate

you could buy 2 of those and SLI them and run circles around the Ultra, am i reading this right?

Lasereth

A GeForce 8800 Ultra would smoke 2 GTSs. The 8800 GTS 320 is still a good deal at $140 though.

If you're counting rebates though I would look at a 9600 GT http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814133216. $130ish after rebates and better than the 8800 GTS 320.

MexicanOnABike

I just ordered myself 2 9600GT from your advice. hopefully they're awesome cards. I plan on running UT3 full speed full everything on my quadcore.

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LoganSnake

My 8800GT 512MB is beasty. I'm running Crysis on Very High everything 1280x960 with no slowdown at all.

Will upgrade in about 2 years.

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Ustwo

A few months ago before I got poor my GTX card died.

So I got 2 8800 GT 1gig OCed cards SLIed (cost about as much as my GTX card did when I got it).

Really great, and it runs a LOT cooler than the GTX card, at least a two year upgrade for me on this one.

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Lasereth

Updated while on my honeymoon!! What dedication!!!!!!!!!

Lasereth

Updated. The $130 price point is now the killer deal segment of the market. The power you get for $130 is crazy. Now is a good time to buy!!

Willravel

*DOES BACKFLIP!*
http://www.engadget.com/2008/04/28/a...c-as-expected/

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Lasereth

Nice!! The 8800 GS is a good card.

Willravel

Yeah, it is... and this opens up the possibility of including a GTX or Ultra in the future. *greedy*

blahblah454

Okay mr. Lasereth, the time that I have money is now upon me!! I have been researching all my components towards a new computer and am stuck on 2 things right now, one graphics card related and one not. But I am posting both here.

1.) I am considering overclocking either choice eventually. Not sure which one would be the way to go. Both do not come with a heatsink or a fan as I am planning on upgrading this to one of the Scythe or Thermalright or Zalman units, I have to do some research on cooling units first.
a.) Intel Duo E8400 3.00GHz w/ 6MB Cache ($200)
b.) Intel Quad Q9450 2.66GHz w/ 12MB Cache ($380)

And finally....

2. Graphics card!! Old reviews say that the 8800 GT is better than the GTS, but apparently the newer made GTS units are better. I am not sure what to do, or if I should run some in SLI, here are some cards and some prices I can get on them
a.) 8800 GT 512MB ($200 each)
b.) 8800 GT 512MB ($230-240 each)



Okay, not sure if I should be posting all this in here, but I am going to anyways!

You guys figure its worth it to go for a mobo that supports DDR3 ram? If I go the DDR2 ram and get 4 gigs of ram (using 32 bit xp) it will cost about 300 bucks less than getting the nicer mobo with DDR3 and 2 gigs of FAST ram.



Essentially I can build myself a computer with the dual core, DDR2 mobo, 1 hard drive, 1 graphics card and a dvd drive for around 1300 (my brother just build this one from NCIX, about the same prices as memex for me).

Or I can build myself a computer with the quad core, ddr3 mobo, 2 hard drives in raid, 2 graphics cards in SLI for like 2500.

Now what do you think holds the better value? Get the nicer comp now, or get the 1300 (maybe add a few upgrades) and keep doing that every couple years or so.

Lasereth

Can't give you any recommendations about OCing because I don't do it and don't promote it either. But I'd get a Core 2 Duo over a Core 2 Quad for gaming.

Either of those video cards are good choices. I wouldn't buy 2 of them since the newest generation of cards are coming out in a month or two.

I would buy DDR2 ram and mobo instead of 3 just because of the absurd price difference.

I would spend $1300 instead of $2500 unless you piss money. The gain in performance from 1300 to 2500 isn't worth it.

settie

Hey Lasereth, I need your knowledge with a rather pathetic problem on my hands...
Unsatisfied with my ATI Radeon 1950 Sli ready video card (I bought last year for 205, blech!), I purchased two Asus Geforce 9600 GT cards for 194 each from a local dealer (less than what I would pay at Tiger Direct after all the taxes and S/H fees), happy to discover with Asus to Asus compatibility, you get a 10% clocking boost! sweet.

Anyways, I know you should uninstall the drivers before pulling out the video card, but, I basically pulled the guts out of my computer and cleaned everything out before I even considered buying new video cards.

So, last night I put the guts back in (never touched the RAM, but everything else was disconnected at one point or another), and pop in the two new cards with the Sli bridge....no signal to the monitor.

As dumb as this question sounds, I'm going to ask it, to heck with it all!
Do I have to take out the memory sticks, wait a minute or two, and pop them back in to get a signal to the monitor? What's the deal there?

Will I have to reconnect the old video card to uninstall the driver, then put the new ones back in? I doubt that should have to happen...since when do video card drivers deny a pc any sort of monitor signal!

Before you have to ask me: yes, PSU is Ultra 600W ATX(above par for two sli cards as far as I know), all connections are in where they need to be, and cables are secure. BIOS gives me one beep upon booting system.

What's the missing puzzle piece? :P

Many thanks.

Lasereth

What brand is your PSU?

The drivers are irrelevant. It should work regardless of the software on the PC.

Have you tried booting it with only 1 videocard in? Then set it up for 2 in Windows?

The memory shouldn't have to be pulled either, but what you could do is take out the little watch battery on the motherboard for 1 minute and put it back in. This will reset all BIOS options.

MexicanOnABike

I meant to post this but everytime, my connection would drop.

So I finally received my EVGA 9600GT card, and I upgraded my PSU to a 550W to make sure I had enough even though my old 8400gs was running with my system with a 300W. but that's over now.

After installing it, I maxed out UT3 with all the possible settings and I get no slowdowns or anything. So thanks for helping me pick a card.

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Lasereth

Awesome!!!!

settie

The brand is ULTRA.
And yes, I didn't think drivers could be messing everything up.
I have tried booting with only one video card in, with no luck.
I'll try again, and if it doesn't work, will try pulling the mobo battery out.
It was the last thing I wanted to try.
Bummer
Thanks for your advice

Well, now the pc powers up, fans running, HDD spins, but no BIOS beep
That's got to be a hardware issue. *sighs*

blahblah454

Today at dell.ca is the GeForce 8800 GTX OC on sale for $430. Think its worth it? at that price I would be able to buy 2 880GT's and for just a little more 2 880GTS cards.

Lasereth

Not by a long shot.

Lasereth

Edited the guide for formatting since HTML no longer works.

Lasereth

Today the new Nvidia GeForce 260 GTX and 280 GTX were reviewed by many sites. It's an interesting launch because both cards are simply single cards unlike the recent GeForce 9800 GX2. These new cards may be new and powerful but they are being directly compared to dual GPU cards, and most importantly, SLI setups.

When compared to SLI setups the new GeForce 280 GTX is overpriced and heavily disappointing. The 260 GTX is a good card when considering price to performance ratios but again is eclipsed by an 8800 GT SLI setup that is cheaper.

So on one hand we have the most powerful single GPU videocards ever released coming out today, but on the other hand we must compare them to SLI setups since SLI is so cheap these days.

Bottom line: the guide will be updated tomorrow when they launch officially but expect some notes in the guide about how these cards compare to SLI capable PCs. If your PC handles SLI, you can't beat a pair of 8800 GTs...this has been proven tenfold with the review of these new GeForces.

Lasereth

Today ATI released the first next-generation card of its lineup: the Radeon HD 4850. This card MSRPs at $199 and is an absolute steal. I've deleted the 8800 GTS G92 off the list because it's no longer a good buy compared to this card. All other videocards have had their bold tag removed and the Radeon HD 4850 is now the only bolded card which indicates that it's the best buy on the market.

A powerhouse of a card that beats the 9800 GTX in many tests for only $199...this is a champion card right now!!

blahblah454

Well I picked up my graphics cards. I got 2 8800GT cards and I am running them in SLI (total price of about 290 before GST).
Amazing cards, but the fans are bloody loud on them. Is there anyway to replace the stock fans with something else?

I am also using eVGA's overclocking software for them. The software works sometimes, but just reverts all my settings back to normal after like 5 min, and turns the fans OFF on the cards... I had my temps hit 105 degrees C when I wasnt paying attention!! OUCH!!! So I have since stopped playing with the software and run the fans on 100% when playing games.

Willravel

Who woulda thunk it. NVidea's been temporarily dethroned.