Which video card??

[chaos]

9500(non-pro or pro), 9600(non-pro or pro) or 5600(ultra). Don't care about ridiculous fps; just want something that will run dx9 games and won't break the bank..

[Banyan]

i think 9500 is best bang for the buck probably... with the possibility of turning it into a 9700np for about $140. just make sure you get the saphire red pbc and "l" shaped ram. but i have heard better things about the 5600 since they came out with the ultra. the 9600pro is a good card and from what i hear has a lot of oc'ing headroom (core not ram), but from what i have read the 9500pro is a bit better in some circumstances.

[Quest For Speed]

The 9500NP is a great deal IF your lucky and get one that softmods to a 9700 pro. Right now it is about 50/50 for the cards from Newegg. Performance is similar between the 9500pro and the 9600pro. Choose the one that is the best deal. IMO the 5600 ultra is not worth it. ATI cards have better image quality and lately their support and drivers are far better then Nvidia.

[Shade00]

If you can find a 9500 Pro for a decent price, that's the best choice by far.

Second is your choice of the 9500np or 9600 Pro(not np!). They both seem to be about on even ground, with my vote going to the 9500np: partly because I own one but also because there's a chance it could softmodded into a 9700.

[CaptainValor]

I have a 9500 Pro 128mb and I LOVE it. I bought it back a few months ago when the price was still around 200 bucks, but it's come down now. So far I haven't had a single complaint about it, besides maybe the fact that it doesn't o/c quite as well as some other cards I've read about. If you're not a big modder, nor brave about possibly ruining a good card trying to mod it, go with the 9500p and do the softmods instead. You'll be more than satisfied with performance and quality. And of course, bank for buck. :)

[thlnk3r]

Go with the 9500pro, I hear alot of ppl love that card. I had some money so I bought a 9800p hehe

[cha914]

Looks like the ati prices have rised recently...newegg has the 9500pro for 200, and a 9500np for 140ish...

Would it be better to go for the cheaper np and hope for one that can be softmoded, or is the 9500pro worth the extra 60bucks?

Tony

[modenaf1]

http://www.theforumisdown.com/uploadfiles/0103/welcometotheforums.JPG

[james.miller]

9500pros are solid cards - great value for money. softmodded 9500non-pros's, however, are ausome;)

[q149]

Go with one of the 9500.. they both beat 9600 PRO and the 9500np gives you a chance to mod to 9700.. Voodoo3 beats 9600np

[cha914]

just to be super sure...this is the card to get for the best chances at softmoding it to a 9700?

http://images10.newegg.com/productimage/14-102-271-09.JPG

Thanks for the welcome, getting lots of good info here...

Tony

[q149]

That's the card for the only chance. If the memory is in a straight line it can mod into a 9500Pro.