Enforcer57 Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Ive spent about a week know trying to figure out this deal, and i cant figure the difference in some of these cards. Ive got a 1.5 yr old HP pavilion, agp slot etc, bunch of ram, but i need a decent card. I can spend no more than 200 bucks (a bit less than that hopefully), but ive noticed htat some of the 256 mb memory cards are almost as expensive as the 512mb jobs. and what pray tell, is the difference between a radeonx1300 and x1550, both with 512mb of memory? I can make no sense of the info on the box to divine such. Are the radeon cards the best for this, or does that really matter? What is the most important measure of performance? isnt it the amouint of mem they have? I just wanna bit of input so I dont wind up regretting spending about 150 clams or so. I know im gonna have to get a local computer outfit install it since i cant get the old one out (as if its welded in place). I can do that, i just wanna make sure im doing the best thing for the amount of money. thanx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Here's a comparison chart for ati: http://www.techarp.com/showarticle.aspx?artno=88&pgno=2 For AGP the best card right now is X1950 pro 512Mb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Okie Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Good price on the Sapphire version here. I'm very pleased with it myself. I did have to RMA the first one I got but #2 is working very well. NewEgg was very good with the exchange. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814102071 You need a decent power supply to make it go according to most reviews. It could put you over your budget if you have to upgrade it as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lil_sparrow Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Salute: I'm not sure that what I'm about to say holds true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blairgowrie Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Here is another good link Enforcer m8. http://www.gpureview.com/show_cards.php ... &card2=467 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BadAim Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 Carl, what is most important is a difficult question, but perhaps a bit of explanation will help. Think of the graphics card as a small computer that the main computer uses to do a specific task, as such it has most of the same parts as the main computer, specifically Mother board, Processor, and Memory. Â The first thing is processor speed, thats where the work is done, after that comes memory, then the specific architecture of the card. For the most part, the bigger the number, the faster the card, the letter designations are mostly bells 'n whistles stuff (on graphics cards, bells and whistles are good), the xt and gt cards usually have a nice balance of features. (I hear the 1900 series pro's are good too). Memory can be a sticky subject, the simple answer is that more is better, but if you run a smaller monitor at lower resolution (say 19" @ 1024x768 or lower) 256 is probably fine as the memory stores the graphics info for the processor and lower resolutions require less info (still with me?). If you don't need the extra memory, you can spend the extra money on more processor speed or more bells 'n whistles. Â I sure hope I didn't just confuse the situation more. Good luck and happy card hunting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonar Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 (as if its welded in place). You do know that there is a "Key/Tab" that needs to be moved aside on the end of the AGP slot before the Card will Budge? I thought the same thing the first time I ever tried to remove an AGP card. Glad I didn't Man handle it. as for what Card? I know Nada. I look on Ebay then as Quazi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enforcer57 Posted May 20, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 20, 2007 thanx comrades. Gotta do a little research, but circuit city has the two aforementioned cards at 150 and 160 bucks in price, though the higher price is on the lower numbered card (X1300 v X1550), so I guess im leaning toward the 1550, because i thiink it's newer, though it's 10 bucks cheaper. Gotta do a little more research. My limit is 200, so I thiink I can get a fair amount of capability with that. I think I may let them install it just to save me the headache and minimiize the risk involved when an elephant tries to do maintenance work in a china shop. I just wanted to make sure there wasnt some bizarre glitch that didnt work right with Il-2. This is the only sim I fool with these days. (all I can remember key commands to). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blairgowrie Posted May 20, 2007 Report Share Posted May 20, 2007 Hold on there young grasshopper! I just did a search on the 1300 and the 1550 and they can be had for around $70. You really have to use that link I posted for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blairgowrie Posted May 20, 2007 Report Share Posted May 20, 2007 I have just looked at the price of the X1950 Pro AGP and you can get it from New Egg for $180 after rebate. I will be really disappointed if you don't go for that one Carl. Absolutely best card re value/ price/performance. But then my good friend Okie has already pointed that out and provided the same link to New Egg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Posted May 20, 2007 Report Share Posted May 20, 2007 Tempting... I wonder what that would be after the exchange and duty? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blairgowrie Posted May 20, 2007 Report Share Posted May 20, 2007 Get Quazi to buy it if you decide to go ahead Chuck. He can claim the rebate which you likely can't and he will send it to you with a nominal value on it to avoid customs duty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deacon352nd Posted May 20, 2007 Report Share Posted May 20, 2007 I'm looking at the same card. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rattler Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 Quazi got himself a new 850 W power supply to run things. Should do nicely... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBloke Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 From what I've read from ATI's approved list you'd be better off looking for 15A + on 12V rails. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blairgowrie Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 Quazi got himself a new 850 W power supply to run things. Should do nicely... It was a 700 W power supply Rattler. Here is a quote from his recent thread on the zoo. "And I was able to purchase an OCZ 700watt GameXstream for $130 & a $25 rebate." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enforcer57 Posted May 22, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2007 well disaster has struck. Long stry short, my computer is hopelessly obsolete,asit's Pci. Only cards for it are 256mb, so i got a x1550 for pci . I was on teamspeak with sunflower last niht installing all this stuff, new drivers etc, and all was ok everytime i rebooted. Idnloaded a windows update called .net 2.0 or something like that , as it said i neededthat to make it work. when i installed that (from MS), i restarted, andthe winxp page came up as it started etc, making all the noises and music it usually does. then it went completely blank. nadda. i restarted several times,but no go. i even left it on all night hoping it was just taking its time. It shows the win xp starting, then i have noises and sound, but no visual. I cant get into it without a screen, so............ I hope the addy i got for him is up to date. I shoulda givenhim my phone. this is a pain in the ass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBloke Posted May 22, 2007 Report Share Posted May 22, 2007 When you first turn your machine on from 'cold' do you get any computer beep sounds? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rattler Posted May 22, 2007 Report Share Posted May 22, 2007 Quazi got himself a new 850 W power supply to run things. Should do nicely... It was a 700 W power supply Rattler. Here is a quote from his recent thread on the zoo. "And I was able to purchase an OCZ 700watt GameXstream for $130 & a $25 rebate." 700W, 850W, 3000W, what's the difference - if it's more power, Quazi has it! Probably internally water cooled too....and overclocked... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Posted May 22, 2007 Report Share Posted May 22, 2007 well disaster has struck. Long stry short, my computer is hopelessly obsolete,asit's Pci. Only cards for it are 256mb, so i got a x1550 for pci . I was on teamspeak with sunflower last niht installing all this stuff, new drivers etc, and all was ok everytime i rebooted. Idnloaded a windows update called .net 2.0 or something like that , as it said i neededthat to make it work. when i installed that (from MS), i restarted, andthe winxp page came up as it started etc, making all the noises and music it usually does. then it went completely blank. nadda. i restarted several times,but no go. i even left it on all night hoping it was just taking its time. It shows the win xp starting, then i have noises and sound, but no visual. I cant get into it without a screen, so............ I hope the addy i got for him is up to date. I shoulda givenhim my phone. this is a pain in the ass. An obsolete machine that uses the PCI bus for video should in no way have a PCIE graphics card plugged into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonar Posted May 23, 2007 Report Share Posted May 23, 2007 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enforcer57 Posted May 24, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 24, 2007 no, i used a pci card, they made a 1550 version for it, not pcie. Sunflower is helping me get this all straightened out, which wouldnt be needed if htere were just some basic instructions and warnings. Very complicated BS, but it's gettting back to normal. we got to working again despite some silly complications, but i am backing up all my stuff tonight before i try to load the drivers again. This computer is less than 18 mos old, its an hp P-4 3.02 gig, but it has only pci slots. Apparently its made just for office use , but there was no warning of such at circuiit city when i got it. Ive loaded it up with ram, but the onboard card only has 8mb of mem, which makes it kinda amazing i can evenfly at all. I intend on getting a much more modern machine by the time the new series of sims comes out, wiht agp (or whatevers current) slots and a very good card in it before i buy the thing. I was amazed that it was obsolete before i bought it. Ive been messing with this stuff for 12 yrs, and i still have no clue as to whats going on. Too many ambushes and surprises, not enough commonality. Not enough info, lousy manuals etc. I had no idea the type of slot was so important, or htat there were such limitaions. I learned everything else ive messed with.....aviation, firearms, cameras, etc. but not this stuff. It's still much more art than science. sheeesh. hopefully ill have this thing operational by this sat. the comp works, i just want the card to work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Posted May 24, 2007 Report Share Posted May 24, 2007 I'm glad to hear I was wrong, Enforcer. But, Holy Crap!! It totally sucks that you got stuck with such a lemon of a motherboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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