What to get??

[ZedBias]

Fairly simple post I want a new graphics card, I have about £150-£180(Max)

Which one should I get??

I have heard some reviews about the ATI 9500? (I think that was the one) But just wondering if any one else had any other opinions?

Thanx

Z

P.S Im in UK

 

[funnyperson1]

Check out this guide http://oc3dmark.octeams.com/cardguide.html.

Prices are in dollars, but I am sure that there are many conversion websites on the web for you.

For that price the 9500Pro may not be worth it (I dont know how much they cost in the UK) a 9700non pro might be in that category if search hard enough.

 

[ZedBias]

Link dont work!

 

[ZedBias]

I got it, dont worry!

 

[HaTE]

i would go with a 9500 pro

also £180 = $205 USD

 

[ZedBias]

Thanks hate, that is what I have come to the conclusion off, but now its the choice of where to get it from??

Thanx

 

[ZedBias]

What do you think of this one???

 

[InThrees]

Given the current market / available kickassicity situation, if I

a) wanted a REALLY good gpu but
b) didn't want to pay for the BEST gpu, I would
c) Get the 9600 Pro

Not as expensive, very overclockable (in reality, like you would NEED to, but it's there) and very biggified with kickassicity.

 

[funnyperson1]

What do you think of this one???

If you were in the states that would be about 20$ too expensive. But I think that is a decent price for your side of the pond. Also a very good card.

 

[ZedBias]

funnyperson1, Im soooo glad you said that! I have already ordered it! Hope its good! Should be here in bout 3 days!

I will let you know how I get on.

 

[attack]

180 lbs is 205 dollors? I thought it was 1 lb to 1.5 US dollors? That was what it was like last year when I went to london at least....was that a bad conversion or did the lb just drop?

 

[Wam]

I was in the same position I as needed to get another graphics card. The 9500pro is probably the best value for money card out at the moment. If I were you I probably stump up the extra cash and get a 9700np from here for £185 inc p&p. Whoops, I must have bought the last one as they seem to have sold out! Well they also do the 9500pro for a good price. The reason why I'd get the 9700 is that it will give you better performance when you start using AA & AF especially at higher res, which is after all the main reason I (and most guys) went from Nvidia to ATI cards.

Which ever one you get make sure you overlcock it and try and avoid infineon memory as that clocks the worst.

 

[ZedBias]

The reason why I'd get the 9700 is that it will give you better performance when you start using AA & AF especially at higher res.

Which ever one you get make sure you overlcock it and try and avoid infineon memory as that clocks the worst.

What are both of these then??

nOOb here! Sorry.

 

[Wam]

No, my apologies. I should remember not to be so lazy and use abreviations!

AA is Anti Aliasing and basically it gets rid of the jagged edges on diagonal lines and curved surfaces (see here for more info). Even if I run games at 1600x1200 I still see 'jaggies' but if you use 1024x768 with 4x FSAA (Full scree anti aliasing) it looks better than 1600x1200 without it.

AF is Anisotropic Filtering which basically sharpens the detail of objects that are far away or moving away.

When the two are combined you can imagine the improvement in image quality.

I've just checked with the store and they are sold out of 9700's (mine's in the post though ) They had the best price I could find in the UK.

edit. Apparently, (according to that store) the 9700 has been discontinued so get one or a 9500pro as soon as you can!

 

[ZedBias]

Brilliant, thanks mate, I have already got a 9500 pro on the order, should be here in a few day!! Fingers crossed!!

Just about to read to Anti-aliasing, page!

Thanks again.

 

[Wam]

Excellent. By the way where are you getting your 9500pro from if you don't mind me asking?

Also one word of warning it may be best to

1. Uninstall your old drivers - reboot
2. Remove old card - Clear the CMOS - reboot
3. Install new card
4. Install chipset drivers- reboot
5. Install DirectX9 reboot
6. Install lastest Catalyst and Control panel (3.2 or 3.4)

Not all the steps are always necessary, I sometimes just stick the new card in and install the new drivers but I've heard from guys who have had a lot of problems when the don't do it this way.

 

[ZedBias]

OMG!!!!

I got it from ebuyer.com I had a quick surf round to look at prices and these was the cheapest got it for!

 

[ZedBias]

Wam, I just got my card through today, just a few questions b4 I go ahead and install it:

1) In your step 2, you say clear CMOS, shall I do it using the jumper on my mother board or take battery out?
2)In your step 4, you install chipset drivers, do you mean install the drivers that come with the card?
3)What is a catalyst?

Thanx

Z

 

[Wam]

Sorry I couldn't respond earlier but in the unlikely event that you aren't playing UT2003 on your new card here's the answers.

1. Either will do the trick but the jumpers are the easiest for me and will save you touching the battery.

2. No, they normally come with the motherboard, i.e in the case of Via chipset they are 4in1 drivers that you get.

3. Catalyst, as you probably know by now are the name of the ATI unified graphics drivers. Comparitive to the Detonator drivers for Nvidia.

Let me know how you get on. GL.