Which Video Card?

[dodgeyaussie]

Could I get some advise as to card options. I am upgrading and have the following Options:

MX460 64Mb DDR $145AU
MX460 128Mb DDR $196AU
GF4 Ti4200 64Mb $253
Radeon 9000 64Mb $175AU

Games Played:
Combat Flight Sim
GTA 3
Nascar 4
Soldier of Fortune : Double Helix
And Similar

Current System:
ECS K75SA
Athlon XP 1600+
512Mb PC133 SDRam
GF2 MX400

 

[gargouille]

Pass on the MX chip cards...yes to Ti...I have 1 system with GeForce3 Ti 200 that's just fine...and have used Ti 500 that I also liked. Have setup Ti4200's and Ti4600's with little or no problems.
Press/reviews like the Radeon...and seem to be high on ATI...altho lots of people have problems with the latter...perhaps 'cause there are so many out there and they seem very picky about which drivers are applied which way...

 

[cdogg]

Where did you get those prices? The GeForce4 MX440 and 460 are both under $100 if you go OEM. Also, you can get the retail version of the Ti4200 around $150. Just search around at

http://www.pricewatch.com.

If you've got the money, the GF4 Ti models will last longer and do much better in the benchmarks. You'll be able to play newer DirectX 8.1 games that use customized Pixel and Vertex shader technology. The MX series doesn't have that. Such games will include Doom III and the sequel to Unreal TM. ~cdogg

"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."
- A. Einstein

 

[paparazi]

Cdogg, I think AU stands for Australian dollars (not the same value as USD)
All the cards you have picked will play all the games you have picked but GF4Ti4200 is my fave card at the mo.
Martin Please let members know if there advice has helped any.

 

[dodgeyaussie]

Thanks All,
I think Ti is the vote. Just for my sake, can you tell me the difference? I though the 128Mb ram would help.

 

[gargouille]

The ram may have helped...with a Ti chip card...but the MX card has fewer native capabilities. The memory will have to be (AFAIK) utilized by the software...if it isn't written to use it...no benefit.
The figures I've seen show no benefit in performance with 128 MB onboard video ram.

 

[cdogg]

Uhhh well, extra RAM benefits mostly when you are trying to play games at higher resolutions (more textures & polygons require more space in memory). They make the GF4 Ti4200 in both 64MB and 128MB configurations. You'll find that the 64MB card actually outperforms the 128MB card just slightly in many benchmarks because the memory is clocked faster. However, at higher resolutions, the 128MB pulls ahead. See for yourself:

http://www17.tomshardware.com/graphic/02q2/020522/ti4400_4600-14.html

Here's also an example of the performance benefit of the Ti over the Mx:

http://www17.tomshardware.com/graphic/02q2/020418/vgacharts-01.html

~cdogg

"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."
- A. Einstein