So which is it?

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Guest

Guest
ok, i'm getting a headache from reading all the reviews. They all go back and forth...gts is better, no radeon is better...how about some listing on actual cards like ati 64mb ddr because...or hercules 3D Prophet II GTS 64MB because...elsa gladiac because... come on everybody I need to pick out a new video card for my new system and I cant make a sure choice. I've got around $300 to spend, please help me decide. It will be used for games like UT, Quake, half-life & Deus Ex. Here is my system so far
asus atv133
amd 1.2ghz t-bird
20 gig ibm deskstar
micron 256mb pc133 cas2
creative labs sound card

Please, I am begging, please help me decide.
 

dannyaa

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Jan 1, 2001
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yeah go with NVIDIA. The ATI is really good too and does lots of neat stuff like TV out and has lots of features. But the NVIDIA does alot of that too, and it is the best choice for gamers and sheer speed. Plus its NVIDIA, they are the leader in the market. Great speed, quality, and support (I have heard people complain about ATI support). Also NVIDIA has great drivers and... well, go with the GeForce2, just don't get an MX.
 

Crashman

Polypheme
Former Staff
The Geforce2 Pro is definately better for games. The ATI is better for some things, but the Geforce2 Pro rules for games by a relatively large margine.

Suicide is painless...........
 

noko

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Jan 22, 2001
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Radeon is best at playing DVD's, good video in and out features using the best standards , sharp 2d quality comparable to Matrox G400(50), better future capabiltiy as in more Dirx8 compliant (not totally), excellent 32bit performance not so good 16bit performance. GTS is best for sheer speed in most games, FPS king, better and stabler drivers, W2k performance on par with Win9x performance, better Linux support, less finicky drivers and tweaks needed to play your games. Radeon can play certain games faster as in Test Drive 6 but rare. Future games with more than 2 textures may play better on the Radeon plus games that use directx8. Radeon cards can be obtain with DDR for less than $100 in the USA while Nvidia cards cost more. The king of performace/price crown goes to ATI. I have a Radeon 64 VIVO retail and I love it. That doesn't mean that I won't buy a Nvidia card because they are good too. I just do alot of video watching, 2d work at high resolutions and 32 bit game play. My only complant is W2k drivers are indeed slower than WinMe, not by as much as before but enough yet. You could buy a cheap Radeon (they perform well) and wait for the NV20 to come down in price. Radeon will play most games without a hiccup. If you go for a Geforce 2 get the pro version is my only recommendations from Hercules since they seem to have ironed out the 2d quality problem.

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by noko on 02/09/01 04:21 AM.</EM></FONT></P>
 
G

Guest

Guest
I appreciate the responses, but I still don't know which brand (which looks like the geforce 2pro is the winner), which mfg. is best to go with Elsa, Creative, Asus, Hercules, Visiontek or one thats not mentioned? I've read articles from this site and many others, its funny how different benchmarks show different results. This is going to come down to a majority rules decision, so please show me your votes of the most popular brand of the geforce2 pro.
Thanks again for your help.
 

Crashman

Polypheme
Former Staff
Vision Tek is the best value-they are among the cheapest, have Infineon memory that can clock up to around 400MHz (DDR rate, which is actually 200x2 bits per cycle)

Suicide is painless...........
 

LordKaos

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The Hercules , i think is the best !
I have a 3D Prophet II GTS w/ 64 Mb and its fast as hell ! If i need the extra speed i can @ it and it skyrockets, and it wont stall because it has heatsinks to keep the memory cool!
If the Pro and the Ultra are as good has the GTS (And i believe so!) you wont be wrong on buying any of the 2!

Better burn in Hell with some company than freeze in Heaven all alone
 
G

Guest

Guest
Here's how I look at it, yes you have $300. Is it worth it to spend $200 of that for extra 10-20% better performance? I know it's not for me. Here's the deal, the radeon 32meg DDR is faster than the vanila GTS and for <$90! Sound too good to be true?
http://www.hardocp.com/reviews/vidcards/ati/radeon
Ofcourse we're talking about 32-bit performance. Then again, this may not be a convincing arugement to you since you bought a 1.2ghz TB. :) In most games you couldn't tell the difference between that and a 700mhz processor (assuming you're not running in 640x480).
 

noko

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Yeap, A Radeon 64 Vivo Retail can be had for less than $190 now days. Right now I am watching TV as I type this (news,movies,rock videos). Sometimes when I browse I put in a DVD and watch and browse. No slowdown since the Radeon does must of the work. Games scream at hight resolutions with a very consistent frame rate. Not that much jumping around since the Radeon addresses those complex scenes where alot of action is going on by not rendering stuff you don't see. I am only a very happy Radeon owner so don't listen to me. Good luck in no matter what you purchase.