Video Card

[[Jett]-Tank]

Ok, so I'm looking for some video card suggestions for my PCIe 16x video slot.

Any recommendations on brands I should avoid, or consider? I don't wanna spend a fortune, but I also don't want to have to upgrade in less than a year. :)

-=Tank=-

[[Jett]-rush2049]

How much is a fortune?

50-100: get a geforce 8600 GT

100-200: get a geforce 8800 GT

500: get a geforce 9800 GX2

and yes I am a bit biased....

[[Jett]-OMEGA]

According to Toms Hardware "100-200: get a geforce 8800 GT" for $260 is the best bang for your buck. I did this research just yesterday.

[[Jett]-RANGER]

Where the heck were you shopping Omega? I found the EVGA 8800GT at CompUSA online for $189. I have this card Tank and it performs great.

[[Jett-R]-Giant]

Best Buy is selling VisionTek 3870 512MB OC's for $129.99. Thats about the best deal going right now.

[Kallell]

I have a 9600GT and love it. Compares well to the 8800GT, faster on some games, slower on others.

[[Jett]-Willow]

8800GT is what I'd do... what I have and don't regret it a bit, for the price you can't beat it.

[[Jett-R]-Giant]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814134037

Another sweet deal.

[[Jett]-Tank]

-Giant;3264']http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814134037

Another sweet deal.

Wow...$159 after rebate...and that one honkin' big vid card! lol

-=Tank=-

[Kallell]

Yeah, make sure that your card will fit before you buy it. Especially a name-brand box may be a tight fit.

My 9600GT BARELY fit in my case, and I mean about || that much room, between it and the hard drive.

[[Jett]-rush2049]

In my case I had to move a hard drive into a cdrom slot because the card ran into it....

[[Jett]-Tank]

Well, after digging around for a good while yesterday, I went with the one Giant found at Newegg. It was the best price (after rebate) that I could find for that series of card without getting something overclocked.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814134037

-=Tank=-

[[Jett]-Tank]

Well.....crud....lol. That card won't fit...it's double-slot width all the way from the front to the back, thus going right across the top of my SATA connectors, making it so the card cannot plug in all the way. :/

Guess I'll be exchanging it for one that's only one-slot wide on the long end. Length wasn't a problem, just the width on the end towards the front of the case. :(

-=Tank=-

[[Jett]-Tank]

Well, the replacement card will be this one:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?Sku=P450-8814

It's a step down from the other one, but I know it will fit, and as little as I game, it will be sufficient. :)

-=Tank=-

[Kallell]

That's the same one I used to have. My free game didn't work though. :( But it ran COD4 and TF2 just fine.

[[Jett]-Tank]

-Kallell;3453']That's the same one I used to have. My free game didn't work though. :( But it ran COD4 and TF2 just fine.

Well, CoD4 and TF2 are the only ones I care about at the moment. :) Heck, TF2 even runs ok on the built-in Intel video card. Quad-core goes a long way i guess...lol. :)

-=Tank=-

[[Jett-R]-Giant]

Ohh man thats a bummer. Couldnt you have bought some right-angle sata cables? http://www.svc.com/gc10akm22.html
They are less than $5 each

Because the 8600's are serious dogs compared to thier 8800 counterparts.
look here for a direct FPS comparison in COD4. Note where the 8800GTS and the 8600GTS is/are respectively.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-8800-gts-512-mb,1743-12.html

[[Jett]-Tank]

-Giant;3469']Ohh man thats a bummer. Couldnt you have bought some right-angle sata cables? http://www.svc.com/gc10akm22.html
They are less than $5 each

Because the 8600's are serious dogs compared to thier 8800 counterparts.
look here for a direct FPS comparison in COD4. Note where the 8800GTS and the 8600GTS is/are respectively.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-8800-gts-512-mb,1743-12.html

Thanks for the info Giant. I'll keep that in mind. I'm not sure some right-angle cables would have given enough clearance either.

-=Tank=-