Need Video Card Recommendation

[disperse]

Hi All,

I bought Oblivion and my old Nvidia 4200 Ti isn't cutting it any more. I need to stick in the under $200 range and would like to get away with closer to $150 if possible.

System Specs:
Pentium IV 2.8 GHz
MSI 845 PE Max MB (SUPPORTS AGP 4X ONLY)
1 Gig of RAM

I am interested in the HDR effects of Oblivion but could do without if the costs are going to be high or the performance hit too much for my computer.

Thanks in advance,

Mark.

 

[disperse]

The other threads on this topic seem to devolve into ATI vs. Nvidia flame wars. I've used both ATI and Nvidia cards and am open to either.

I haven't been following the technology and need specific advice for the best card given a limited budget (~$150).

Thanks!

Mark.

 

[1Dark1Sharigan1]

Performance wise, an X850XT would be your best bet. If you want HDR you can try to find a 6800GS for under $200 but it probably won't be fast enough for HDR to be feasible at any decent resolution.

 

[disperse]

Thanks for the advice.

I was browsing Newegg and the only two AGP X850XT cards were over $300. There were PCI Express cards for around $200 but I can't budget a new MB.

I am thinking that HDR is out of my price range, although the light effects are tempting.

Mark.

 

[tooltime]

this runs well at highest settings (no AA):

evga 7800 gs co superclock agp
a 64 4000+ @2.64
2 gb ocz pc 3200
on an asus av8

was playing the 4000+ at stock with an evga 6800 also at stock and it would lag so the above system seems to play really well

 

[Ika]

For $150, your options are a bit limited. Like Sharigan said, you could try to find a 6800GS for less than $200, or you could also try to look through used cards' forums and try to get a 6800GT or X800XL. 6800 and x800 vanilla wouldn't be too bad, but they're hard to find.

 

[Red Storm]

My 6600GT handles the game just fine at 1024x768 with 2xAA with everything on except for shadows and grass (it's still playable with grass, but it stutters a bit more). You can find one for around $140 or so. If you can spend up to $200 though, I'd recommend going with a better card.

 

[poopygood]

I'm in the same boat as you disperse, looking for AGP + Oblivion options!

 

[disperse]

To throw a bit of a wrench in the works... my 4200 Ti is fanless (I'm using the following Zalman heatsink: ZM80A-HP) Noise is a concern to me. Looks like I will not be able to mount the heatsink on a 6600 or 6800 card. Which cards run cool and quiet?

Thanks,

Mark.

 

[DeathReborn]

There is a AGP 6800 128MB for $154 ($134 AR) on Newegg: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814140067

 

[1Dark1Sharigan1]

Originally posted by: disperse
Thanks for the advice.

I was browsing Newegg and the only two AGP X850XT cards were over $300. There were PCI Express cards for around $200 but I can't budget a new MB.

I am thinking that HDR is out of my price range, although the light effects are tempting.

Mark.

Hmm, guess no more deals for the X850XT AGP. No <200 refurbed AGP 6800GT at Newegg either . . .

 

[potato28]

Originally posted by: DeathReborn
There is a AGP 6800 128MB for $154 ($134 AR) on Newegg: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814140067

Garunteed unlockable, so your buying a $154 card that can be modded to a more expensive card.

 

[fibes]

Check out the review on this card.

 

[disperse]

potato28: I've read a bit about unlocking pipes on Nvidia cards but don't know a lot about it. Once unlocked, what will the performance of this 6800 card be like? It supports HDR, right?

Mark.

 

[LW07]

Originally posted by: disperse
potato28: I've read a bit about unlocking pipes on Nvidia cards but don't know a lot about it. Once unlocked, what will the performance of this 6800 card be like? It supports HDR, right?

Mark.

http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/geforce_6800_unlocking/

This'll tell you how the performance of an unlocked 6800 will perform.

Although, I would still consider that X800GTO that was recommended.

 

[Ahkorishaan]

The graphics requirements for oblivion are for me, a bit hyped. I'm currently running it on an IBM T43 lappy, with an X300 Graphics card, and I've got it at 800x600 2xAA, Bloom (HDR isn't supported unfortunately or I would have tweaked it to work), nearly full water effects, and I have almost no stuttering. It's seriously a matter of playing with the .ini file and maximizing the hard way. The biggest tricks are to turn off distance view (I know it's very morrowindish that way, but what do you want from a laptop) and tone down the grass clustering. Your performance will jump hugely with just this tiney mod.

So what I'm trying to say is, don't bust your arse and get something too expensive, if you can take running it at something lower than 1600x1200 almost any modern card can do it with a bit of legwork.

When you get the card you want, feel free to shoot me a PM and I'll help you eek another 10+ FPS out of the thing without sacrificing the stunning good looks.

 

[disperse]

Ankorishaan: I'll certainly take you up on that advice. Someone locally is going to sell me a 6600GT for $85 so I'm going to take it. I can always upgrade later when the prices come down on the next gen cards. No HDR for me... but I'll live.

Mark.

 

[1Dark1Sharigan1]

Originally posted by: disperse
Ankorishaan: I'll certainly take you up on that advice. Someone locally is going to sell me a 6600GT for $85 so I'm going to take it. I can always upgrade later when the prices come down on the next gen cards. No HDR for me... but I'll live.

Mark.

It supports HDR . . . you'll just probably have to turn down the resolution for HDR to be playable on the 6600GT

 

[ddogg]

Originally posted by: fibes
Check out the review on this card.

this card (x800gto) should be a really good upgrade for $165.

 

[obeseotron]

Keep in mind none of the x800/x850 series can't do SM3 and thus no HDR. I have a 6800GT oced past ultra and that is just BARELY enough to run HDR anyway, but it is a knock against ATI, none of their AGP cards run SM3. They do run the game very well with bloom+AA.

 

[RussianSensation]

Originally posted by: obeseotron
Keep in mind none of the x800/x850 series can't do SM3 and thus no HDR. I have a 6800GT oced past ultra and that is just BARELY enough to run HDR anyway, but it is a knock against ATI, none of their AGP cards run SM3. They do run the game very well with bloom+AA.

Ya but not like 6600GT can run with HDR on anyway.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Mid-Range Performance

 

[digitalduck]

Ok, im in the same boat...im buying a card TONIGHT....referr to my earlier post Here and I need to know which card should I be going with if im looking to get any type of HDR out of Oblivion...:

the X850XT
7600GT or
6800GT

Ill be adding a 2405 later on, but for now its just a 19"

This will be on top of:

Athlon 3200+
Abit KN8 SLI
Corsair 3200 1 GIG DDR (from current system)

might add another gig of ram.....what do you think?

 

[imported_Kiwi]

Originally posted by: disperse
Hi All,

I bought Oblivion and my old Nvidia 4200 Ti isn't cutting it any more. I need to stick in the under $200 range and would like to get away with closer to $150 if possible.

System Specs:
Pentium IV 2.8 GHz
MSI 845 PE Max MB (SUPPORTS AGP 4X ONLY)
1 Gig of RAM

There seem to be thousands of posts like yours on TES-IV's forums! But those people all seem to want to run on mere shoestrings, like IGP's, and get upset when those run too slowly to suit them! The officially recommended card is the 6800 GS, and those seem to run the game very well, indeed. About $200-220 USD, online, shipped inside the US.

From least to that point, starting from My Own Personal Opinions' version of best money's Worth, at its price point, is a 6600GT at about $140-150 prices. Good pictures, and a frame rate that won't have you beating your head against the keyboard (or display screen) in frustration. Not fast, but good enough.

I can't be real sure where the X1600 fits speedwise, but some can be found priced less than the 6600GT. If it's as fast or faster than the 6600GT, it should be a bargain at those prices.

The recent price drop puts the X800GTO at a lower price point than the Vanilla 6800; it has a decent frame rate, but slightly less sharp of a picture than the 6800.

But a 256 MB Vanilla 6800 is a good card that splits the difference in price for nVidia from 6600GT to 6800G and sorta splits the performance level also. About $180.

Does that help?

 

[Conky]

Originally posted by: digitalduck
Ok, im in the same boat...im buying a card TONIGHT....referr to my earlier post Here and I need to know which card should I be going with if im looking to get any type of HDR out of Oblivion...:

the X850XT
7600GT or
6800GT

Ill be adding a 2405 later on, but for now its just a 19"

This will be on top of:

Athlon 3200+
Abit KN8 SLI
Corsair 3200 1 GIG DDR (from current system)

might add another gig of ram.....what do you think?

Well since you included my current videocard in your choices, the X850XT, I thought I would tell you it runs pretty decent at 1280x1024 averaging a hair over 60fps(used Fraps running around outside to benchmark it) with all the details on the highest settings but with no AA. This is with a P4 3.06(Northwood) and 1 gig of Corsair XMS RAM in dual channel. It doesn't do HDR(as far as I know) but it looks good and plays good.

Here is a screen of my Oblivion character. Text

 

[Cookie Monster]

Pretty much your choice comes down to:

S.M 3.0 plus HDR
-6600GT (doesnt matter which brand) ~140
Asus 6800nu 350/1080 128bit GDDR2 512mb for $173.75
-X1600 pro Link $125
-Other 6800nu
-BFG 6800GS for 219, but too expensive. Can be unlocked to 6800U speeds.

No HDR but performance
-X800GTO ~$150
-X800XL ~$189

Thats pretty much it. Not sure which card to go for. The X850XTs are way too expensive, even more than the 7800GS (the cheapest is going for 284~ AR in newegg.).

I heard some manufacturers are releasing the 7600GS AGP variants.