Need card for 30" monitor - have to ditch AGP mobo?

[wacki]

A buddy of mine has a relatively new motherboard with an AGP port. He needs to get a 30" monitor. Are there any AGP cards that can support this?

If not then what is the quietest card that can support a 30" monitor? I assume it's going to be some ATI 1600 variant.

The only games he plays is a little warcraft3. He puts a premium on noise so I'm thinking of recommending him one of the thermalrights. Cheaper is better but it's not a real concern for him.

 

[JAG87]

I am obviously assuming you are not going to game on that.

ATI 9600 PC&Mac edition

http://www.anandtech.com/mac/showdoc.aspx?i=2502

try and find one used on ebay or forums.

 

[themisfit610]

Anything will work, provided you've got enough VRAM. Warcraft 3 works fine on something as pedestrian as a Geforce2 MX.

Here's a good alternative:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814127290

It's a GeForce 6200LE AGP, with 256mb. More than enough VRAM, real VGA and DVI (no distortion inducing ribbon cable), and TV Out. Passively cooled for silence. $30. What a steal.

~MiSfit

 

[JAG87]

he's looking for something that can run 2560x1600 wise guy.

 

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: JAG87
he's looking for something that can run 2560x1600 wise guy.

From the newegg.com spec list for the 6200 :

General
Tuner None
RAMDAC 400 MHz
Max Resolution 2048 x 1536

Of course it won't game that well at that res, but 1280x800 on low detail should work for many older titles. I'm not sure if WC3 will work on 16:10 mode, but who knows. It'll play like glass at 1024x768 on a 6200. I played WC3 on a Radeon 7200.

I wonder how ugly the 30" would run at 2048x1536?

 

[Arkaign]

My suggestion : Fanless 7600GS AGP, Supports 2560x1600 : $88

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814125039

 

[themisfit610]

From the newegg.com spec list for the 6200 :

General
Tuner None
RAMDAC 400 MHz
Max Resolution 2048 x 1536

So, you're going to trust the newegg specs? I find it hard to believe that the 6200 (provided it has a dual link DVI port, which it may or may not have) can't handle that resolution. It might have to be forced with power strip, but it should work - at least over VGA.

 

[JAG87]

the 6200 doesn't have dual link DVI. and it doesn't do 2560x1600.

his options are 7600GS/GT, X1600 AGP, or the archaic 9600 PC&mac. the reason I suggest the latter, is because its fanless, and it can be found for dirt cheap.

 

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: themisfit610

From the newegg.com spec list for the 6200 :

General
Tuner None
RAMDAC 400 MHz
Max Resolution 2048 x 1536

So, you're going to trust the newegg specs? I find it hard to believe that the 6200 (provided it has a dual link DVI port, which it may or may not have) can't handle that resolution. It might have to be forced with power strip, but it should work - at least over VGA.

I've had to do that before with an FX5500 for a customer with a 22" Widescreen. Analog at high resolutions like 1680x1050 and above looks pretty damned bad.

I do trust the newegg specs, and especially for someone who's not computer-savvy. Even the 7100/7300 cards don't say they support 2560x1600.

 

[themisfit610]

Hmm.. I would have to agree now that the evidence stacks up.

Very surprising that a GeForce 6 series card wouldn't support that resolution. It's not as if the GPU itself can't handle it, or as if there isn't enough RAM to do so.

What a bunch of crap I stand corrected.

~MiSfit

 

[JAG87]

no, its because it doesn't have a dual link TMDS DVI transmitter. it was useless on old cards because the gpu would not have handled that resolution anyways.

 

[themisfit610]

I find it very hard to believe that the GPU couldn't physically handle that resolution. Yes, the card cannot output it because it needs a dual link DVI output but surely the card would have enough horsepower to run that resolution on the desktop.

~MiSfit

 

[daba]

Any updates on this? Seems like the 7600GS is the way to go.

 

[ColdFusion718]

I have the 7600GS and ATI x1650. I've used either one to run my Dell 30" LCD and they both do 2560 x 1600.

 

[Noema]

I'd go with the fanless 7600GS.

 

[clickynext]

Asus silent 7600GS. It needs a decently ventilated case, though, seems it reaches 90C at full load.