Direct X 11 AGP Card?

[jaguarskx]

So if I buy the 4670 will it play games that use DX11? If not is there a software update that will allow me to play them? I don't want to buy a card that will be outdated in two months. I would like to get at least three to four years out of it.
I remember the good ole days when a new direct x came out you just installed it and that was it. You didn't need another video card.

DX11 requires specific hardware in the graphics core that the HD 4670 lacks. The is no software that can emulate DX11. If there were, then trust me when I say it performance to your CPU will be relatively large.

The HD 4670 is already outdated. As stated in a previous post, the HD 4670 is about 30% less powerful than the HD 5670 and about 40% less powerful than the HD 6670. That places this particular video card at just a little bit more powerful than the HD 5570. The HD 5570 is not considered a gaming card; more like a powerful multimedia card for watching movies and maybe some lite gaming. The HD 5670 is considered not powerful enough to run DX11 games.

DX9 is not going anywhere anytime soon. That is because Windows XP represented about 52% of the total install base for all Windows operating systems as of December 2010. Windows Vista represented about 25% and Windows 7 about 20% of the total install base for Windows. The remainder is made up of Windows 98, Windows ME and Windows 2K. Of course the percentage has gone up in favor of Windows 7 since then, but not substantially.

Since it seems most potential casual gamer still are on Windows XP, and the fact that many PC games are just ports of console games, DX9 will still be around for a while.

If you want to play DX11 games, then you are just going to have to save up more money to buy a completely new computer.

 

[jaguarskx]

Just so that it is clear... I would assume you know that you must have Windows Vista or Windows 7 to play a DX11 game.

Windows XP only supports up to DX9 so if you wanted to play a game like Just Cause 2 on a Windows XP computer, then you will not be able to since the developer decided to totally drop DX9 support for that game.

 

[king smp]

also I dont think an AGP bus has enough bandwidth to handle the power of a DX11 card
the main reason for the switch from AGP to PCIe (and PCIe going from x4 to x16)
was to handle the data transfer rates
the DX11 card would be bottlenecked by the limits of the AGP capablities

 

[geauxtigrs]

I thought you were telling me that the 4670 is the AGP card to get. Should I get the 5670 or the 6670 instead? Let's say you are me and completely stubborn and not willing to upgrade to a new computer. Which AGP card would any of you get to be able to play the newer games like Black Ops?

 

[Wolfshadw]

There is no such thing as an AGP HD5670 or HD6670. King SMP was simply making performance comparisons, due to the age of the HD4670. If you are dead set on keeping your current computer, get the AGP HD4670.

-Wolf sends

 

[geauxtigrs]

What about getting the 4650 compared to the 4670? Newegg claims the 4650 supports DX 10.1 and it is almost $30 cheaper.

 

[Wolfshadw]

See JaguarSKX's post above concerning the HD4650.

-Wolf sends

 

[geauxtigrs]

Yeah I read that. Let's just say I want to play a game like Black Ops. I have the option of spending $70 on the 4650 or $120 on the 4670. Would you still go with the 4670? I'm leaning toward the 4650. Would a game like Black Ops not play well on the 4650?

 

[Wolfshadw]

Not having ever played Black Ops, I can only guess that neither card will play that game "well". The HD4670 will probably play a little bit better than the HD4650, but regardless of what card you get, you'll still probably have to turn down/off some in game options and lower the gaming resolution to get acceptable frame rates.

-Wolf sends

 

[geauxtigrs]

Thanks. That was very helpful. I think I'll go with the 4650 because I don't think "a little bit better" is worth the extra $40.

 

[jaguarskx]

Actually, the HD 4670 is significantly faster than the HD 4650. See following link for benchmarks:

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/graphics/display/ati-radeon-hd4650_8.html#sect0

The HD 4670 can be bought for $100 (after a rebate) + 7 shipping.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161337

 

[JDFan]

What socket type is the MOBO you have with the AGP slot ??? --- FOr the money you are going to spend on the high end AGP card for the performance you are going to get -- you'd be better off getting a MOBO with a PCI-e slot and same socket type that you have (if they made them) and a PCI-e card since decent AGP card are selling at much higher prices than comparable or better PCI-e cards and you should be able to find an older socket MOBO with a PCI-e slot instead of AGP fairly cheap.

It is a waste to spend top dollar on an AGP card that is not going to be able to play the newer games anyway when you could possibly (depending on your current system) get a MOBO and GPU for about the same $ or slightly more and get something that can last you a bit longer. (for the same $100 you'd spend on the AGP 4670 you could get a $50 MOBO and $50 PCI-e card that performs better than the 4670 !!)

 

[geauxtigrs]

You guys have been most helpful. I think I'm going to go with the 4650 which is $60 and use the rest of the money to upgrade the RAM on my computer. My computer is currently at 512mb and I want to upgrade to 2gb. Plus the current video card I have is the 9800 Pro which is 128 mb with half the clock speed of the 4650. I know they are older games but I can play Half Life 2 and Far Cry with the current card with no problems. Hopefully the difference from what I have now will be noticeable enough to where I don't wish I had gotten the 4670. Once again thanks for all of your help.