• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

new graphics card, what to get?

Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
Title says it all :D...PCIe card, leaning towards ATi (i know the ASUS P5B Deluxe has crossfire, but im not sure if that means SLi too)

Looking at an X1950 PRO. 256mb - $300, 512mb - $360 (aussie dollars) (looking at 512mb)

Ive heard the X1950 have better crossfire, like they are hardware not software or something.

All suggestions welcomed :)...prices - www.staticice.com.au (gets cheapest prices on all shops in AUS)

Thanks in advanced!

CPU (probably e6300 cus its $70 cheaper than e6400 and i figure i can just OC it a little, correct me if im wrong)
RAM - 2GB G.Skill PC6400 800Mhz 5-5-5-15
Mobo - asus p5b deluxe
 

HookeyStreet

Eat, sleep, game!
Joined
Aug 29, 2004
Messages
7,122 (1.00/day)
Location
Great Yarmouth, England
Title says it all :D...PCIe card, leaning towards ATi (i know the ASUS P5B Deluxe has crossfire, but im not sure if that means SLi too)

Looking at an X1950 PRO. 256mb - $300, 512mb - $360 (aussie dollars) (looking at 512mb)

Ive heard the X1950 have better crossfire, like they are hardware not software or something.

All suggestions welcomed :)...prices - www.staticice.com.au (gets cheapest prices on all shops in AUS)

Thanks in advanced!

CPU (probably e6300 cus its $70 cheaper than e6400 and i figure i can just OC it a little, correct me if im wrong)
RAM - 2GB G.Skill PC6400 800Mhz 5-5-5-15
Mobo - asus p5b deluxe

If your mobo is CrossFire it means you need ATi cards m8 ;)
 
Joined
May 13, 2006
Messages
654 (0.10/day)
Location
Newcastle upon Tyne
Processor AMD Ryzen 5900X
Motherboard MSI MAG B550M Mortar WiFi
Cooling Corsair H100i RGB Platinum SE 240mm
Memory 32GB Corsair Dominator Platinum RGB 3600MHz
Video Card(s) Sapphire Vega 64 8GB
Storage Sabrent Rocket 4.0 1TB / ADATA SX8200 Pro 1TB / Crucial MX500 1TB
Display(s) Dell U2715
Case Corsair 280X
Power Supply Corsair RM850x
Mouse Razer DeathAdder Chroma
Keyboard Ducky One2 Horizon
Software Windows 10 Professional
Benchmark Scores Cinemark r23 Multicore: 22280
yep that mobo is crossfire so ATi, it doesn't support SLi...

Personally I'd wait untill ATi bring out the R600 (not too far off I dont think)

Even if you don't want the r600 the prices of the other cards will really start to fall when bother nvidia and ati have dx10 cards out
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
If your mobo is CrossFire it means you need ATi cards m8 ;)

lol thanks! thought so :D...im new to the whole PCIe/SLi/Crossfire thing :p

yep that mobo is crossfire so ATi, it doesn't support SLi...

Personally I'd wait untill ATi bring out the R600 (not too far off I dont think)

Even if you don't want the r600 the prices of the other cards will really start to fall when bother nvidia and ati have dx10 cards out

yeah i wanted to orignally wait for the price drops (not to actually buy an R600...too expensive :p)...but im not sure on their release date. I could wait till after Chirstmas for the gfx i guess....but will it be worth it? like will the price drops be significant?
 

DaMulta

My stars went supernova
Joined
Aug 3, 2006
Messages
16,168 (2.51/day)
Location
Oklahoma T-Town
System Name Work in progress
Processor AMD 955---4Ghz
Motherboard MSi GD70
Cooling OcZ Phase/water
Memory Crucial2GB kit (1GBx2), Ballistix 240-pin DIMM, DDR3 PC3-16000
Video Card(s) CrossfireX 2 X HD 4890 1GB OCed to 1000Mhz
Storage SSD 64GB
Display(s) Envision 24'' 1920x1200
Case Using the desk ATM
Audio Device(s) Sucky onboard for now :(
Power Supply 1000W TruePower Quattro
Midrage will not be out till march or april, the X1950pro is a nice card/ It will last for a while too/
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
so you guys reckon X1950PRO is best bang for buck?

If so, what should i go for, 256 or 512mb?
 
Joined
Nov 16, 2006
Messages
2,724 (0.43/day)
Location
Blighty
Processor R7 5800x3D
Motherboard MSI x570 Tomahawk
Cooling XSPC Raystorm Edge,EK QS P420M,EK D5pwm Revo Res
Memory 32gb Corsair Vengeance RT 3600 cl16
Video Card(s) Zotac 3070ti Amp Extreme
Storage Samsung 980pro 1tb x2
Display(s) MSI MPG321QRF QD
Case Corsair 7000D
Power Supply EVGA 1000 P2
Mouse G900
Keyboard Corsair k60 RGB PRO
Software Win 11
x1950 has an nvidia style bridge cable between cards instead of the 'dongle' that x1800/1900/1950xt etc cards have, the best part of this is you no longer need a crossfire master card (which usually cost more, and can be hard to find)
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
ahh i see...well thats handy :D

thanks for that

so any idea on whether 256mb or 512mb?
 

Azn Tr14dZ

New Member
Joined
Mar 2, 2006
Messages
5,288 (0.80/day)
Processor AMD Athlon 64 3200+
Motherboard DFI LanParty nf4 Ultra-D
Cooling Thermaltake Big Typhoon
Memory 2x512MB GeIL
Video Card(s) ATI Radeon X800XL
Storage 2x80GB Western Digital
Display(s) HP vs17
Case SuperTalent
Audio Device(s) Soundblaster
Power Supply Ultra X-Finity 500 Watt
From what I've seen, 512Mb doesn't make too much of a difference, and a bigger increase in price, so I would go with the X1950Pro 256Mb. The Mid-Range DX10 cards will be out March-April area as DaMulta said, and even then, DirectX9 will still be going strong, so it wouldn't really bad to get a DX9 card right now. And later, maybe add another X1950Pro for CrossFire as well. Great card from the reviews I have seen. Wish I could get it, but Wii is in my mind.
 
Joined
Feb 3, 2006
Messages
1,245 (0.19/day)
Location
Virginia, USA
System Name Desktop
Processor Ryzen 5 5600G
Motherboard Gigabyte B450 Aorus Elite
Cooling Cooler Master Hyper 212 RGB Black Edition
Memory 4x8Gb Corsair 3600mhz
Video Card(s) Intel ARC A750 super special limited edition
Storage many
Display(s) Custom 124" 4K HDR Home Theater
Case NZXT S340
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply EVGA 700B1
Software Win 11 x64
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
From what I've seen, 512Mb doesn't make too much of a difference, and a bigger increase in price, so I would go with the X1950Pro 256Mb. The Mid-Range DX10 cards will be out March-April area as DaMulta said, and even then, DirectX9 will still be going strong, so it wouldn't really bad to get a DX9 card right now. And later, maybe add another X1950Pro for CrossFire as well. Great card from the reviews I have seen. Wish I could get it, but Wii is in my mind.

Yeah, but i hear all these new games using all this extra memory...are you sure its not worth the extra $60 AUD? (256 - 300, 512 - 360)

Cus i dont think im gonna get DX10 for a while, i wanna stay with the x1950 for a while :)
 
Joined
Oct 15, 2006
Messages
2,341 (0.37/day)
Location
Tyne & Wear, UK
System Name AMD '13
Processor FX-6300 @ 4.43GHz (1.35v)
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3 rev 1.0 (F6)
Cooling Cooler Master T2 + x2 case fans
Memory 2x4Gb Crucial Ballistix Sport DDR3-1600 (Stock)
Video Card(s) Gigabyte GTX650 Ti OC 2Gb @ 1110/1500
Storage Corsair 240Gb SSD / Seagate 500Gb HDD + old skool IDE HDD's x 3
Display(s) Acer 23'' LED
Case Billy Basic
Audio Device(s) Onboard 8.1 HD
Power Supply Corsair CX600
Software Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Benchmark Scores Smenchmarks
Yeah, but i hear all these new games using all this extra memory...are you sure its not worth the extra $60 AUD? (256 - 300, 512 - 360)

Cus i dont think im gonna get DX10 for a while, i wanna stay with the x1950 for a while :)

If your going to stick with it for a while I would suggest spending the extra $60, that is about ÂŁ25 I think maybe less! So its well worth it imo

;)
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
Yeah its almost exactly ÂŁ24. And i just realised that the powercolor ones come with the Accelero cooler as a stock fan! :D...im not sure of the 256mb, but the 512mb does, and thats worth $50 :D Oh and they got a default OC of 600/700 :) I was gonna go ASUS till i noticed all the advantages of Powercolor, and the Powercolor is cheaper :p
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
the cheapest i can get a X1900GT is for around $280 (256mb) vs the $300 X1950 PRO (256mb)

Im not gonna OC that much at the start, and the X1950 PRO does have the advantage of the easier crossfire
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
dont ask me, i dont know anything about crossfire, its just something i read :p

http://xtreview.com/review154.htm

X1950 PRO wins in every bench ;)

+ the 512mb X1950 PRO is $360 with an Accelero worth $60, so thats basically a $300 512mb card :p
 

DOM

Joined
May 30, 2006
Messages
7,628 (1.17/day)
Location
TX, USA
Processor Intel i7 4770K
Motherboard Asrock
Cooling Water
Memory Team Xtreem LV 16GB (2x8GB)
Video Card(s) EK Full WB HD7970
Display(s) CROSSOVER 27Q LED-P 27"
Case Danger Den Torture Rack
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply CORSAIR Professional Series Gold AX1200
Software W 10 Pro
dont ask me, i dont know anything about crossfire, its just something i read :p

http://xtreview.com/review154.htm

X1950 PRO wins in every bench ;)

+ the 512mb X1950 PRO is $360 with an Accelero worth $60, so thats basically a $300 512mb card :p

but it just beats the 1950XTX in FPS and i bet if the XTX was OC it would beat that crossfire
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
but the X1950XTX is $800, over double its price ;)
 

micron

New Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2006
Messages
144 (0.02/day)
The GT has voltage software controls for the core and memory, and the Pro doesnt.

If you arent going to overclock, the Pro is a couple of fps faster as your link shows.

I'm just adding my input. I almost bought the X1950Pro but was swayed away when I saw the benchmark scores of people who bought them.

Good luck:toast:
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
lmao thanks for all the input, i need the ideas :D...no hard feelings or anything, im just telling you wat i know ;)

Yeah, see, ill overclock, but i never keep my OC at that level, like ill push it to see how far i can get it, but ill set it back down to default once ive benchmarked it (my theory is that as long as i get no lag, im happy :D) + i dont like changing voltage :p
 

DOM

Joined
May 30, 2006
Messages
7,628 (1.17/day)
Location
TX, USA
Processor Intel i7 4770K
Motherboard Asrock
Cooling Water
Memory Team Xtreem LV 16GB (2x8GB)
Video Card(s) EK Full WB HD7970
Display(s) CROSSOVER 27Q LED-P 27"
Case Danger Den Torture Rack
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply CORSAIR Professional Series Gold AX1200
Software W 10 Pro
the ceapest XTX i found on newegg was ($359.99 after $50.00 Mail-In Rebate)
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
5,105 (0.78/day)
Location
Sydney, Australia
System Name UltraPC
Processor E8500 Core 2 Duo, 1333Mhz FSB, 3.16Ghz @ 4.5GHz (got into Windows @ 4.75GHz)
Motherboard ASUS P5Q-e
Cooling CPU Cooler - TT V14 Pro, 2x120mm CM Blue LED fans, 1x90mm CM Blue LED fan
Memory G.Skill Pi 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel DDR2 PC8000 (1000MHz), 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s) Sapphire HD4850 512mb with ASUS EAH4850 BIOS
Storage 2x 500GB Seagate 7200.12 Raid 0
Display(s) Acer AL1912, 19" LCD screen
Case Thermaltake Soprano Black ATX case
Audio Device(s) Onboard 7.1, Speakers - 5 + Sub + Monitor speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake 850W Toughpower Cable Management - Quad (2x18A and 2x30A) 12V rails
Software Win 7 Pro x64, MSN, CS:Source, etc etc
yeah prices are a lil ghey over here in australia :p

and newegg doesnt ship to us :cry:

EDIT: I just found one for $620
 

DOM

Joined
May 30, 2006
Messages
7,628 (1.17/day)
Location
TX, USA
Processor Intel i7 4770K
Motherboard Asrock
Cooling Water
Memory Team Xtreem LV 16GB (2x8GB)
Video Card(s) EK Full WB HD7970
Display(s) CROSSOVER 27Q LED-P 27"
Case Danger Den Torture Rack
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply CORSAIR Professional Series Gold AX1200
Software W 10 Pro
$620 in us $ thats alot :eek: is that pro DDR4 or 3
 

micron

New Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2006
Messages
144 (0.02/day)
+ i dont like changing voltage :p

 
Top