Vote for the best under $400 video solution

btarunr · Nov 25, 2007

Hello folks!

$400 is all I have to blow for the video sub-system of a PC I'm planning to gift to a special friend. So drop your votes.

Oh yeah, drop in a vote above. Democracy rocks.

I'm only asking about the video-hardware EXCLUDING monitor, so don't talk about monitors, please.

Based on the results of the above poll, I can decide on the motherboard.

If a SINGLE or GPU + PPU option wins, Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R is what I'm planning to choose. ($ 125)

If a SLI option wins, EVGA 122-CK-NF67-T1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i LT is what I'm planning to choose. ($ 165)

If you've got a better idea, put it up! Either ways, the CPU of choice is a C2Q Q6600.

EDIT: If a CROSSFIRE option wins, the CPU + mobo would be GIGABYTE GA-MA790FX-DS5 + AMD Phenom 9500

Chewy · Nov 25, 2007

If the 8800gts 128sp model wasent pushed back to December 14th I would say that.. otherwise get the 8800gt if your friend has the pc conected to a TV (with HDMI) get a 3870xt.

Mussels · Nov 25, 2007

8800gt. great value, great card.

panchoman · Nov 25, 2007

dual 3870's in CFX

zekrahminator · Nov 25, 2007

20" LCD, TV Tuner, and an HD 2600XT 512MB (this kid prolly doesn't game that much, and if he did, anything much higher than a 2600XT would require a power upgrade

).

JC316 · Nov 25, 2007

Single 8800GT.

zekrahminator · Nov 25, 2007

As far as actual votes go, I'd get the 2900Pro w/ a beefy power supply.

JC316 · Nov 25, 2007

zekrahminator said:
As far as actual votes go, I'd get the 2900Pro w/ a beefy power supply.

Yup, thats a good solution too if you can find a pro. It would be best if you could get the pro around $200 or under it.

btarunr · Nov 25, 2007

It's just about an hour since I started this poll and I'm stunned at so many people giving thumbs-up to ATI solutions.

JC316 · Nov 25, 2007

btarunr said:
It's just about an hour since I started this poll and I'm stunned at so many people giving thumbs-up to ATI solutions.

Yeah, I owned an 8800GT and it was good, but personally, I think that Nvidia is fucking with the numbers on that. Especially on 3dmark06, my pro scored 12K with the CPU at 3.5GHZ, but the 8800 made 13.1K. There is hardly a difference in the 2900 and the 8800.

DrunkenMafia · Nov 25, 2007

I voted for the crossfire 3850's man, that would be a nice setup..

The only thing I can see that you should change is the DFI mb... that ATI chipset is very old and rather slow... A P35 chipset is much faster. If you can't afford a P35 crossfire board the the P965 is also a good option.

I am not to sure why people are telling you to buy a PSU when you have a 700w Tagan!!! that is heaps..

Good luck with it..

Chewy · Nov 25, 2007

I voted for the single 3870, that way you should still get a cross fire board so if he/she wants to upgrade down the road they can do so very easily when the card drops in price. big thumbs up!

btarunr · Nov 25, 2007

DrunkenMafia said:
I voted for the crossfire 3850's man, that would be a nice setup..

The only thing I can see that you should change is the DFI mb... that ATI chipset is very old and rather slow... A P35 chipset is much faster. If you can't afford a P35 crossfire board the the P965 is also a good option.

I am not to sure why people are telling you to buy a PSU when you have a 700w Tagan!!! that is heaps..

Good luck with it..

But P35 gives x16 + x4 PCIe lanes.

At least the ATI chipset give two full x16 lanes (or x8 + x8 + x2 when 3 PCIe x16 slots used)

I'm building a fresh new PC to gift.

Besides the CPU I'm using has a 1066 MHz FSB, so that's leveled-ground for the mobos

JacKz5o · Nov 25, 2007

Why not just get a regular or superclocked EVGA 8800GT then save the rest of the $$?

btarunr · Nov 25, 2007

JacKz5o said:
Why not just get a regular or superclocked EVGA 8800GT then save the rest of the $$?

Because I've decided upon how much to spend on a sub-system basis, even if I have to spend $ 399.99 that's okay. No savings, no problem. At least I have a good rig put-up. Are you interested in knowing about the other sub-systems?

Namslas90 · Nov 25, 2007

Until I see what the ATI 4XXX series does, my 1900XTX works just fine, (but thats not one of the options...I guess thats becase I paid more than $400 for it! LOL)

:toast:

erocker · Nov 25, 2007

8800GT is made for benchmarking, the ATi 2900Pro 1gb is made to work! The ATi gets my vote.

Mussels · Nov 25, 2007

erocker said:
8800GT is made for benchmarking, the ATi 2900Pro 1gb is made to work! The ATi gets my vote.

Depends if he wants to use widescreen - ATI still have issues with disabling scaling, so that unless you can game in native res the screen blurs badly (which screws me over good, as i only have widescreen monitors and TV's)

P.S - before anyone says anything, 1366x768 (HDTV) isnt a common res in older games, so no, i cant just set every game to use that.

yogurt_21 · Nov 26, 2007

Mussels said:
Depends if he wants to use widescreen - ATI still have issues with disabling scaling, so that unless you can game in native res the screen blurs badly (which screws me over good, as i only have widescreen monitors and TV's)

P.S - before anyone says anything, 1366x768 (HDTV) isnt a common res in older games, so no, i cant just set every game to use that.

still ahve yet to see any proff of your comments on widescreen and ati, and don't forget I'M RUNNING WIDESCREEN ON ATI. infact i run all my games at 1680x1050, so I really don't know what you're talking about.

Mussels · Nov 26, 2007

yogurt_21 said:
still ahve yet to see any proff of your comments on widescreen and ati, and don't forget I'M RUNNING WIDESCREEN ON ATI. infact i run all my games at 1680x1050, so I really don't know what you're talking about.

its not RUNNING them at 1680x1050 - run it at 1280x1024 and tell me what it looks like. Nvidia have scaling so that it stays a 4:3 ratio, ATI just stretch to fit - AND IT LOOKS LIKE CRAP.

btarunr · Nov 27, 2007

Is it really worth buying a PhysX card?

yogurt_21 · Nov 27, 2007

Mussels said:
its not RUNNING them at 1680x1050 - run it at 1280x1024 and tell me what it looks like. Nvidia have scaling so that it stays a 4:3 ratio, ATI just stretch to fit - AND IT LOOKS LIKE CRAP.

wow so what you're saying their having toruble with widescreen when you really mean they have trouble running nor mal resolutions in widescreen monitors. why the fuck would you buy a widescreen monitor to run at 1280x1024? I think you're trying really hard to make ati sound bad and are using any excuse.

Scrizz · Nov 28, 2007

wow, just wow

Dr. Spankenstein · Nov 28, 2007

Mussels said:
its not RUNNING them at 1680x1050 - run it at 1280x1024 and tell me what it looks like. Nvidia have scaling so that it stays a 4:3 ratio, ATI just stretch to fit - AND IT LOOKS LIKE CRAP.

Ummm...CCC, ATT and (I think) ATI Tool all have options to not scale the image. Centered timings anyone! Any video card would be rediculous not to have such an option.

Get real! :slap:

FatForester · Nov 28, 2007

If people are reading this looking for 8800GT's, they're back in stock! I just ordered another one for a friend that's in class, because these things go fast!
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130306

System Name	RBMK-1000
Processor	AMD Ryzen 7 5700G
Motherboard	ASUS ROG Strix B450-E Gaming
Cooling	DeepCool Gammax L240 V2
Memory	2x 8GB G.Skill Sniper X
Video Card(s)	Palit GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER GameRock
Storage	Western Digital Black NVMe 512GB
Display(s)	BenQ 1440p 60 Hz 27-inch
Case	Corsair Carbide 100R
Audio Device(s)	ASUS SupremeFX S1220A
Power Supply	Cooler Master MWE Gold 650W
Mouse	ASUS ROG Strix Impact
Keyboard	Gamdias Hermes E2
Software	Windows 11 Pro

Processor	Q6600 G0 @ 3.2Ghz
Motherboard	Asus p5k-Premium/Black Pearl
Cooling	Luna Block, 240mm rad
Memory	Patriot Extreme PC2-6400 2x2GB
Video Card(s)	Saphire 5850 1GB
Storage	60GB SSD + 2x500GB/1TB/2TB
Display(s)	Samsung 226BW and 50" Panasonic S2
Case	Silverstone TJ-09
Audio Device(s)	X-fi Prelude
Power Supply	Enermax Galaxy Dxx 850watt
Software	Windows7 32Bit
Benchmark Scores	Super Pi 1M 14.333

System Name	Rainbow Sparkles (Power efficient, <350W gaming load)
Processor	Ryzen R7 5800x3D (Undervolted, 4.45GHz all core)
Motherboard	Asus x570-F (BIOS Modded)
Cooling	Alphacool Apex UV - Alphacool Eisblock XPX Aurora + EK Quantum ARGB 3090 w/ active backplate
Memory	2x32GB DDR4 3600 Corsair Vengeance RGB @3866 C18-22-22-22-42 TRFC704 (1.4V Hynix MJR - SoC 1.15V)
Video Card(s)	Galax RTX 3090 SG 24GB: Underclocked to 1700Mhz 0.750v (375W down to 250W))
Storage	2TB WD SN850 NVME + 1TB Sasmsung 970 Pro NVME + 1TB Intel 6000P NVME USB 3.2
Display(s)	Phillips 32 32M1N5800A (4k144), LG 32" (4K60) \| Gigabyte G32QC (2k165) \| Phillips 328m6fjrmb (2K144)
Case	Fractal Design R6
Audio Device(s)	Logitech G560 \| Corsair Void pro RGB \|Blue Yeti mic
Power Supply	Fractal Ion+ 2 860W (Platinum) (This thing is God-tier. Silent and TINY)
Mouse	Logitech G Pro wireless + Steelseries Prisma XL
Keyboard	Razer Huntsman TE ( Sexy white keycaps)
VR HMD	Oculus Rift S + Quest 2
Software	Windows 11 pro x64 (Yes, it's genuinely a good OS) OpenRGB - ditch the branded bloatware!
Benchmark Scores	Nyooom.

Processor	Amd Athlon X2 4600+ Windsor(90nm) EE(65W) @2.9-3.0 @1.45
Motherboard	Biostar Tforce [Nvidia] 550
Cooling	Thermaltake Blue Orb-- bunch of other fans here and there....
Memory	2 gigs (2x1gb) of patriot ddr2 800 @ 4-4-4-12-2t
Video Card(s)	Sapphire X1950pro Pci-E x16 @stock@stock on stock
Storage	Seagate 7200.11 250gb Drive, WD raptors (30/40) in Raid 0
Display(s)	ANCIENT 15" sony lcd, bought it when it was like 500 bucks
Case	Apevia X-plorer blue/black
Audio Device(s)	Onboard- Why get an sound card when you can hum??
Power Supply	Antec NeoHe 550-manufactured by seasonic -replacement to the discontinued smart power series
Software	Windows XP pro SP2 -- vista is still crap

Processor	AMD Athlon 64 X2 4800+ Brisbane @ 2.8GHz (224x12.5, 1.425V)
Motherboard	Gigabyte sumthin-or-another, it's got an nForce 430
Cooling	Dual 120mm case fans front/rear, Arctic Cooling Freezer 64 Pro, Zalman VF-900 on GPU
Memory	2GB G.Skill DDR2 800
Video Card(s)	Sapphire X850XT @ 580/600
Storage	WD 160 GB SATA hard drive.
Display(s)	Hanns G 19" widescreen, 5ms response time, 1440x900
Case	Thermaltake Soprano (black with side window).
Audio Device(s)	Soundblaster Live! 24 bit (paired with X-530 speakers).
Power Supply	ThermalTake 430W TR2
Software	XP Home SP2, can't wait for Vista SP1.

System Name	Budget Gaming
Processor	AMD FX6300
Motherboard	Gigabyte 880GMA-USB3
Cooling	Coolermaster Hyper 212+
Memory	8GB Ripjaws DDR3 1600
Video Card(s)	HD7850 1GB
Storage	1TB Sata2
Display(s)	Acer 24" LED
Case	Generic black
Audio Device(s)	Stock onboard
Power Supply	FSP Aurum Gold 650W
Software	Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit

System Name	GaMEr / HTPC
Processor	FX8320 4.5ghz so far NB- 2815mhz / X2 255 @ 3.2ghz (Temp till BD)
Motherboard	990FX-UD5 / GA-MA785GPMT-US2H
Cooling	XSPC - 240rad 480rad 5 x 120mm out, 6 x 80mm in / H220-edge 1/2" & 2 x 120mm Magma
Memory	4gb PI 6,8,6,18 1T 1706mhz / 4gb Crucial D9's 1400 @ 6,6,6,18,1T
Video Card(s)	3gb HD7950 / Onboard
Storage	2 x 120gb Sandisk ultra plus 2tb WD / 60gb vertex 2 + 2 x 2tb WD Greens
Display(s)	3x24in Dell Ultra (portrait) / NEC 32" FullHD LCD
Case	LL PC71A Full tower / Antec fusion black with Imon remote Modded for WC
Audio Device(s)	OB / Auzentech cinema 7.1
Power Supply	TT 700w TR2 / TT 600w Litepower modded with Noctua S12 fan.
Software	7 Ult / 7 premium x64

Processor	Intel Q6600 @ 3.2GHz
Motherboard	XFX nForce 780i
Cooling	Ultra 120 eXtreme (lapped)
Memory	4GB G.Skill PC2-8000 PQ
Video Card(s)	eVGA GeForce 9800GTX
Storage	640GB + 250GB + 2x500GB (external)
Display(s)	Samsung 216BW 21.6"
Case	CoolerMaster Cosmos S
Audio Device(s)	Creative X-Fi XtremeMusic
Power Supply	PC Power & Cooling 750W Silencer
Software	Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit

Processor	AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard	ASUS TUF x670e
Cooling	EK AIO 360. Phantek T30 fans.
Memory	32GB G.Skill 6000Mhz
Video Card(s)	Asus RTX 4090
Storage	WD m.2
Display(s)	LG C2 Evo OLED 42"
Case	Lian Li PC 011 Dynamic Evo
Audio Device(s)	Topping E70 DAC, SMSL SP200 Headphone Amp.
Power Supply	FSP Hydro Ti PRO 1000W
Mouse	Razer Basilisk V3 Pro
Keyboard	Tester84
Software	Windows 11

System Name	Thought I'd be done with this by now
Processor	i7 11700k 8/16
Motherboard	MSI Z590 Pro Wifi
Cooling	Be Quiet Dark Rock Pro 4, 9x aigo AR12
Memory	32GB GSkill TridentZ Neo DDR4-4000 CL18-22-22-42
Video Card(s)	MSI Ventus 2x Geforce RTX 3070
Storage	1TB MX300 M.2 OS + Games, + cloud mostly
Display(s)	Samsung 40" 4k (TV)
Case	Lian Li PC-011 Dynamic EVO Black
Audio Device(s)	onboard HD -> Yamaha 5.1
Power Supply	EVGA 850 GQ
Mouse	Logitech wireless
Keyboard	same
VR HMD	nah
Software	Windows 10
Benchmark Scores	no one cares anymore lols

System Name	:)
Processor	Intel 13700k
Motherboard	Gigabyte z790 UD AC
Cooling	Noctua NH-D15
Memory	64GB GSKILL DDR5
Video Card(s)	Gigabyte RTX 4090 Gaming OC
Storage	960GB Optane 905P U.2 SSD + 4TB PCIe4 U.2 SSD
Display(s)	Alienware AW3423DW 175Hz QD-OLED + Nixeus 27" IPS 1440p 144Hz
Case	Fractal Design Torrent
Audio Device(s)	MOTU M4 - JBL 305P MKII w/2x JL Audio 10 Sealed --- X-Fi Titanium HD - Presonus Eris E5 - JBL 4412
Power Supply	Silverstone 1000W
Mouse	Roccat Kain 122 AIMO
Keyboard	KBD67 Lite / Mammoth75
VR HMD	Reverb G2 V2
Software	Win 11 Pro

Processor	Intel C2D E8500 @ 4.25GHz (1.36V)
Motherboard	Gigabyte GA-X38-DQ6
Cooling	(Temporary) Tuniq Tower 120
Memory	2GB Transcend aXeram 1200+
Video Card(s)	HIS HD3870 CF Volt modded
Storage	3 Seagate 320Gb Barracuda in an Intel Matrix Raid array
Display(s)	Sony GDM-FW900 24" Widescreen CRT (a.k.a "The Shiznotch")
Case	Ultra Aluminus Full Tower
Audio Device(s)	onboard Intel HD audio
Power Supply	PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750
Software	XP MCE + Vista (HP) dual-boot

Processor	Intel e2180 2.0ghz @ 2.8ghz w/ stock volts
Motherboard	ASUS P5K-e Wifi-AP
Cooling	Zalman 9500 w/ AS5
Memory	G.Skill Black PI's DDR2 @ 896MHz 4-4-4-12 1.9v
Video Card(s)	EVGA 8800GT w/ Zalman VF-900
Storage	2x Crucial C300 64GB, Samsung F3 2TB & 1TB, F1 1TB & 750GB
Display(s)	ASUS VW246H 24" 16:9
Case	Ultra / Chieftec Black Tower
Audio Device(s)	X-fi XtremeMusic -> Z-5300e's
Power Supply	PCP&C 610 Silencer
Software	Windows 7 x64

Vote for the best under $400 video solution

Vote for the best under $400 video-solution

SINGLE: A factory-overclocked GeForce 8800 GTS (Or the new 8800 GTS NVIDIA is planning to put up)

SINGLE: EVGA 512-P3-N806-A1 GeForce 8800GT SSC

CROSSFIRE: 2x Radeon HD 3850 256M

CROSSFIRE: 2x MSI RX2600XT Diamond Plus Radeon HD 2600XT 512MB 128-bit GDDR4

SINGLE: Sapphire Radeon HD 2900 XT 512M GDDR3

SINGLE: Sapphire Radeon HD 2900 Pro 1024M GDDR4

SINGLE: Powercolor Radeon HD 3870 Xtreme 512M

SLI: 2x XFX PVT84GYDQ3 GeForce 8600GTS 512MB

SLI: 2x XFX PVT80GGHF4 GeForce 8800GTS 320MB (Open-box prices)

GPU + PPU: XFX PVT88PYDF4 GeForce 8800GT 512MB + ASUS Ageia PhysX Card

GPU + PPU: Powercolor Radeon HD 3870 Xtreme 512M + ASUS Ageia PhysX card

Editor & Senior Moderator

Freshwater Moderator

Sold my stars!

McLovin

Knows what makes you tick

McLovin

Knows what makes you tick

Editor & Senior Moderator

Knows what makes you tick

Editor & Senior Moderator

New Member

Editor & Senior Moderator

New Member

*

Freshwater Moderator

Freshwater Moderator

Editor & Senior Moderator

New Member