[Dark RevenantX]

It's my turn for a "What to get?" thread for a soon-to-get gaming PC.

As of late July, I will have roughly $1,250 to spend on a new computer to replace my ****ty old G4 Macintosh.  I seek advice on what video card to get, because I have many options available.

First off, I'm getting a large and air-efficient case, an Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 processor (aftermarket fan and thermal grease), a 640gb SATA HDD, and 4GB of RAM.  This comes out to about $500-$600.  I'm also using an old Audigy 2 sound card.  All this stuff is a given and will likely not change.
The motherboard (and therefore type of RAM and PSU) will depend on the video card choice.

Possible Choice 1: 2x SLi GeForce 8800GT 512MB (I would get the expensive motherboard with two PCI-E x16 2.0 slots for maximum dual-card power) [$325-$400 for the video cards and at least $250 for the motherboard and $150 for the high-wattage power supply]

Possible Choice 2: GeForce 9800GX2 1GB (I would get a decent motherboard and medium wattage power supply) [$450-$550 for the video card and about $150 for the motherboard and $100 for the power supply]

Possible Choice 3: GeForce GTX 280 1GB (I would get a decent motherboard and medium wattage power supply) [$550-$600 for the ridiculous video card and about $150 for the motherboard and $100 for the power supply] <-- This card overclocks like a mother****er.  Easily smokes everything else.

There are other options, obviously, so I'm willing to hear them.


P.S. I have a GeForce 7600GS (PCI-E) that I'm willing to sell to one of you guys for $35.  It's a little dusty but was used only for a few months...

[colecampbell666]

I'd get the 280.

[CP5670]

If you have read all the reviews, you know that the GTX 280 is a poor buy at the $650 price it has been released at. However, I expect the price to fall sharply in the next two or three weeks, by $100 or more, given what we saw with the 9800GX2. I also think that this card is faster and better than it looks in the benchmarks, because the 9800GX2 has a number of issues that most reviews don't touch on. The 9800GX2 minimum framerates are often much lower than you would expect given the averages (this was only seen in the X-bit review, as no other major site publishes minimums these days). There are also the usual multi GPU problems, like the AFR input lag/microstutter issue and the inconsistent support for vsync and triple buffering. So I would suggest waiting a bit for price drops on the GTX 280 and going for that.

Or you could do what I did and take advantage of the Microsoft Live promotion going on. I happened to get in on it last night and have a GTX 280 on the way for $430. It seems that the 35% links are still showing up occasionally, but they are much less common than they were yesterday evening. Microsoft apparently realized what was going on after the first few hours.

[Fury]

I'm also using an old Audigy 2 sound card.

You're probably better off either using onboard HD-audio codec (they're surprisingly good) or buying X-Fi. I prefer motherboards with Realtek 889A chip because it's their top chip at the moment and Realtek updates drivers frequently. Many other chip manufacturer's don't offer drivers directly and you'd be stuck with motherboard manufacturer to release new drivers once in a blue moon. Not much different from Creative mind you. In my books Realtek 889A HD-chip is lesser evil than any Creative card, new or old.

As for video card, I always recommend people to buy a mid-range video card because the price-performance ratio is unrivaled there. High-end cards are more often than not, outrageously priced. Also, the chances are that when the mid-range card of same generation gets outdated by performance, the high-end part follows only a few months later. So you actually save money by going for the mid-range cards because they cost only 1/3 or 1/2 of the price of high-end card.

You only listed Nvidia cards but from my own experience I value ATI cards higher than Nvidia at the moment. The new 4850 and 4870 should offer great performance for their price point.

As for motherboard, if you're going to get a Core 2, get an Intel motherboard too. Stay away from Nvidia motherboards, they're nothing but trouble. A P45 for example is good bang for the buck even though it is very new and may need a few BIOS updates down the road.

[Ashrak]

get the GX2

[Dark RevenantX]

As for video card, I always recommend people to buy a mid-range video card because the price-performance ratio is unrivaled there. High-end cards are more often than not, outrageously priced. Also, the chances are that when the mid-range card of same generation gets outdated by performance, the high-end part follows only a few months later. So you actually save money by going for the mid-range cards because they cost only 1/3 or 1/2 of the price of high-end card.

Sure, I save money.  However, getting a higher-end card usually offers much better framerates.  This is why I'm asking you guys; which of the high-ends would offer the best bang for the buck?  I've seen all of the reviews and benchmarks but I remain undecided.

You only listed Nvidia cards but from my own experience I value ATI cards higher than Nvidia at the moment. The new 4850 and 4870 should offer great performance for their price point.

You would have to show me some pretty damn conclusive evidence of those cards' superiority to take up that offer.  Ever since the fx xxx line ended for nVidia, ATI has been lagging behind Nvidia.

Also, I was thinking this motherboard would do nicely.

[CP5670]

You would have to show me some pretty damn conclusive evidence of those cards' superiority to take up that offer.  Ever since the fx xxx line ended for nVidia, ATI has been lagging behind Nvidia.

No, they traded blows every few months until the 8 series, and AMD fell behind at that point. However, there are indications that the 48xx line will be better than people previously thought. It looks like the 4870 will be level with the GTX 260 but cost only $300. AMD likely will not have anything to match the GTX 280, leaving aside multi-GPU cards that have their own problems, but their cards will still have better price/performance ratios.

At the same time, as I said earlier I expect Nvidia to drop the prices on their cards fairly quickly in response to this. They have already announced a $100 MSRP drop on the 9800GTX and there are rebates showing up on many GTX 280s even though it was just launched two days ago. I would have waited to see what happens if I hadn't found that crazy deal on the 280.

Also, I was thinking this motherboard would do nicely.

That's way too expensive for a motherboard if you're not using SLI. There are plenty of P35 boards that are half that price with equal performance and better reliability.

[Dark RevenantX]

I'm getting the computer in a month from now, so if the price drop happens for the 9800GTX, I'm going to SLI it.

[Grace_ofGod]

There are some prelimanary reports out there suggesting that the new radeon 4870/4850 will outperform current nvidia offerings by 25-40% @ the $200 price point.  I would wait for some reviews/benchmarks for those cards before making any decisions about video cards.

[ChronoReverse]

I have a 4850 and I'll say that it's awesome.

I like the way it was so unexpectedly good that Nvidia had to drop their 9800GTX down over $100 to $200 and then paper launch (something they haven't done in a long time) the 9800GTX+

[Bob-san]

Some hard proof?

http://anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3341

Given just $90, I'd buy a 2x2GB DDR2 1066 kit.
Given just $130, I'd buy a Core 2 Duo E7200.
Given just $160, I'd buy a Biostar Tpower T45.
Given just $200, I'd buy a Radeon HD4850.

Throw them all together and you have an awesome system that overclocks like a beast. I say get 4GB DDR2 800 or DDR2 1000+ for $90 or less, that E7200, the Biostar T45, a HD4850, Seasonic M12 500W, and whatever you want for drives, OS, case, &c.

[Nuke]

looks like i get paid some cash (and dope) tomorrow. so i can order my new parts too. gonna go with a slightly better quad core than i thought i was gonna get.

[MP-Ryan]

On the sound card front...

Reluctant to put up with Creative's awful drivers, I bought an Auzentech X-Fi board.  Took a while to get used to, but so far I'm quite impressed.

On the case front - Antec Sonata III.  Trust me =)

[Dark RevenantX]

My problem is I have nothing to start with.  I have to buy everything, including the case.

I was thinking I should go with the 9800GX2 unless the 4870 somehow smokes the 4850.  I'm reluctant to get the 4850...  Just not enough power.

[CP5670]

If you're looking at that price range, the 4870 has been released now and is definitely the way to go. It consistently beats the GTX 260 and often comes very close to the GTX 280 (which costs twice as much). Availability is a problem right now due to high demand, but that should clear up soon.

I would not get the 9800GX2, which shows deceptively high framerates in most reviews. Its minimum framerates remain similar to a single 8800GTS in many games even when the averages shoot up. You don't see this in the majority of reviews since very few sites show the minimum framerates these days.

[MP-Ryan]

If you're looking at that price range, the 4870 has been released now and is definitely the way to go. It consistently beats the GTX 260 and often comes very close to the GTX 280 (which costs twice as much). Availability is a problem right now due to high demand, but that should clear up soon.

I would not get the 9800GX2, which shows deceptively high framerates in most reviews. Its minimum framerates remain similar to a single 8800GTS in many games even when the averages shoot up. You don't see this in the majority of reviews since very few sites show the minimum framerates these days.

When I did the research for my new PC a couple weeks ago, the 8800GTS consistenly came in as the best bang for buck video card.

[Fenrir]

You do have a 64-bit OS to handle all that RAM, right?

[colecampbell666]

If you're looking at that price range, the 4870 has been released now and is definitely the way to go. It consistently beats the GTX 260 and often comes very close to the GTX 280 (which costs twice as much). Availability is a problem right now due to high demand, but that should clear up soon.

I would not get the 9800GX2, which shows deceptively high framerates in most reviews. Its minimum framerates remain similar to a single 8800GTS in many games even when the averages shoot up. You don't see this in the majority of reviews since very few sites show the minimum framerates these days.

When I did the research for my new PC a couple weeks ago, the 8800GTS consistenly came in as the best bang for buck video card.

But since the 4870 has been released, the GTS is not any more.

[Bob-san]

The 8800GT and 8800GTS are downright slow compared to the HD4850. Especially at their price points for 512MB versions.

[Dark RevenantX]

So it basically has the same performance as a 9800GX2 but up to $150 cheaper...  Nice.  Too bad it runs so hot.