X700 or 6600 GT PCI-E???

[Zoomzoomers]

I need some advice. I'm about to sink some cash into a new rig, but I'm stuck on which vid card to get. I'm stuck between ATI X700's or Nvidia 6600 GT. I need both of them to be PCI-E cards. Any advice? Thanks in advance. Here is the rig I'm currently building.

AMD 64 3200
Asus A8N SLI
Creative Labs Audigy 2 gamer
Maxtor 300GB 16mb buffer SATA
Nu Tech 8X DVD -/+ RW drive
Aopen 16X DVD drive
4X 256mb PC 2700 DDR SDRAM (will upgrade soon)

 

[Todd33]

6600GT

 

[Zoomzoomers]

Thanks for the advice Todd33, but could you elaborate on why you think the GT is the better buy? Thanks.

 

[Insomniak]

Because the X700 Pro is slower for the same amount of dollars? Because it doesn't support SM3.0 for the same amount of dollars? Because it only has FP24 precision for the same amount of dollars? 6600GT all the way.

 

[mwmorph]

yeah. x700 even 256mb is slower. in fact, 6600gt beats x700 in half life 2 which is a heavily ATI favored game.
http://www.extremetech.com/art.../0,1558,1738299,00.asp

 

[jdogg707]

You also have a A8N-SLI Motherboard, why get an Nvidia card and not take advantage of being albe to add another 6600GT later on?

 

[Zoomzoomers]

OK, thanks all for the help. But here's another question then. What would all of you recommend if I were to say I have $200 to $300 est. to spend. What would you all recommend then?

 

[Insomniak]

Originally posted by: Zoomzoomers
OK, thanks all for the help. But here's another question then. What would all of you recommend if I were to say I have $200 to $300 est. to spend. What would you all recommend then?

6600GT.

The 6800 is not with $100 more than a 6600GT - in most cases, the 6800 is only 5 - 10% faster for 50% more dollars.

The X800XL will be awesome, but it's not available yet for $300 like planned. In the one or two places where X800XLs can be found, they're $500 or more.

So, again, if you have 200-300 to spend, 6600GT. Take the extra $100 bucks and buy a good power supply, or more RAM, or a couple good games. Or hell, even save it.

 

[mwmorph]

BFG 6800oc if tyou dont mind the slightly louder fans
MSI also has great warranty and customer service with stock cooler.(6800oc)
or preorder a x800xl from ATi.com

6800gts can be unlocked to:
16pixel pipes(50%)
6 vertex shaders(90%)
if both are unlocked, it ends up being 2x the bandwith of a 6600gt and will overpower it easily, espically if oc'ed to 400/800.

 

[IamTHEsnake]

Not 6800 GTs! Surely you mean 6800 vanillas you goof.

 

[mwmorph]

whoops. i menat 6800 can be unlocked to 6800gt core.

 

[Insomniak]

Originally posted by: mwmorph
whoops. i menat 6800 can be unlocked to 6800gt core.

Perhaps. Or perhaps you'll just b0rk your card.

But, either way.

Personally I think buying high end right now is pretty silly if you plan to keep it longer than a year...r520 and NV50 are going to be very very big...

 

[Zoomzoomers]

So I guess everyone is recommending that I go for the 66OO GT pci-e for now. Thanks all.

 

[leepark]

If you go with the 6600GT PCI-E does it matter what brand (eg, eVGA, Leadtek, etc.) in terms of performance and quality? What is the best brand?

What is THE best PCI-E card to get for about $70 less than 6600GT?

 

[mwmorph]

at 120-130 you got the following choices
PCX: just plain crap. dosent do real DX9
x300 256mb: overpriced, though there are huce ocs to be had on this
6200 256mb: crap again
6600: pretty bad
X600: still bad.
6600256mb: worthless to have 256 on this board because memory bandwith restrictions
x600pro 256mb: ditto
(toss up between x600 and 6600 not much of a performance difference.)
go agp if yuore going anything under a 6600GT

Edit: if you really need 1, id give 6600 128mbthe edge price/performance wise.
6600 256mb dosent cost all that much more though but will only net you gains of a couple percent.

 

[slimonsays]

I have 2 MSI 6600GT's and they have been working great for me. MSI has always had great customer support. Plus they look good.

I am able to stably overclock this card(s) to 590 core and 1167 memory.
Almost broke 6000 in 3d mark 05.

I was going to go with the Asus or eVGA ones but i found the MSI to be less expensive and still of a high quality.

Link to MSI card.
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/...jsp?ProductCode=321916

 

[Insomniak]

Anand rated LeadTek their top pick, and that's what I went with. So far, I'm extremely happy with it. My suggestion would be LeadTek or eVGA.

 

[VIAN]

Beware, though, that the benches posted above are messed up because default driver settings contain optimizations that noticebly decrease IQ. So 6600GT may perform similar if you turn them off.

 

[leepark]

What are the +s and -s to going AGP over PCI-E? Which should I go with?

BTW, I don't play much games on my computer (probably more so because my current computer setup doesn't allow it). It is mostly used for office, internet surfing, occassional movies and photoshop. I just bought a 19" LCD and would like to take advantage of it (in terms of resolution through movies/tv, games, etc.).

I am thinking of going with the following setup:
**Please advise me on any changes that I should make**

AMD Athlon 64 90nm <socket 939> 3000+
Tsunami Dream Black w. window & 400W PSU
Corsair Valueselect DDR400/512M x2
Creative Labs Audigy2 PCI oem
Maxtor DiamondMax Plus9 200GB SATA
NEC 3520A
Mitsumi 7 in 1 Floppy & Card Reader

If I go AGP:
Mobo: Asus A8V Deluxe
Video: undecided (please help pick appropriate one)

If PCI-E:
Mobo: Asus A8E-SLI Deluxe
Video: undecided (please help pick appropriate one)

I am also considering the following alternatives - what do you think I should do (& why)?:
CPU: Is the 3000+ a good one to go with (in my setup)?
Case: Antec Sonata
RAM: Corsair TwinX512-3700 PC3700 DDR 2 x 256M
Sound: I was told to skip the Audigy (to save $$) as onboard sound will do - what do you think?

 

[mrscintilla]

If you don't play games, go w/ AGP, and pick a passively-cooled video card like radeon 9550, which can be had for $60.

 

[leepark]

What's a "passively-cooled video card"? Is monitor picture quality / resolution affected by quality of video card?
I also want a TV Tuner (since they themselves go for $100 or so) should I get video card that incorporates TV, eg, All-in-wonder? If yes, which model is a good one to get? If no, which TV card should I get?

 

[Zoomzoomers]

Hey Lee I don't know if I can answer all of your questions but I think I can handle a few. I just recently set up a new system myself and did a bit of research before I made the move. In terms of the cpu, if you're into ocing you won't go wrong. I just bought the AMD 64 3200 (2.0ghz) because from everything I've read it has lots of room to oc. Which means I'll be getting more for my money. I don't plan to overboard with ocing but it's good to know that I'll have room for it in the future. On the sound card, I have to tell you that onboard sound doesn't compare to the Audigy. So for me it wasn't much of a choice. Hope that helps out.

 

[leepark]

What is an equal vid card to the 6600GT in AGP (in performance and price)? Would this be overkill for my proposed system. I like the price on the 9550 but am afraid that I will have to upgrade soon if I decide to play games or etc. What is the better card to get: 9700Pro or 6600GT?

 

[Pete]

They sell an AGP version of the 6600GT. You can buy a used 9700P for close to $100, so it's obviously a better buy, especially if you're not even sure you'll game.

But a 9700P is getting a bit long in the tooth in newer games, so odds are you'll be happier with a 6600GT--if you'll game.

 

[Insomniak]

Originally posted by: leepark
What is an equal vid card to the 6600GT in AGP (in performance and price)? Would this be overkill for my proposed system. I like the price on the 9550 but am afraid that I will have to upgrade soon if I decide to play games or etc. What is the better card to get: 9700Pro or 6600GT?

The closest equal would be the 6600GT AGP

But, if you're looking for a non-6600GT answer, the 9800XT is the closest model - but it costs more and is still slightly slower in most cases, so why bother?