Opinions sought

[themightysrc]

Hi all,

 

My current XP based system is about 3 years old, and currently runs a dual core P4 2.8 processor, has 1gb of RAM (soon to be 2gb) and....a Radeon 7000/VE card.

 

Not being a PC guru, I've been doing some reading up on the Radeon card, and views are mixed, but all seem to indicate that my pathetic fps in BH&H is largely due to the video card (yes, I know that I need more RAM...), so I've been having a shufti round for a reasonably priced and more modern replacement which will allow me to enjoy the textures and detail that I've seen from various screen shots posted here.

 

Which is where you, dear reader, come in. Given the above, what recommendations do people have for the replacement card? I'm not keen on spending more than about £70 (about $110 ish), but I'm sure that there are plenty of suitable cards in my price range.

 

Suggestions?

 

Cheers,

 

Si

[sitting_duck]

I havnt done any comparisons in cards at that price level, but all i can suggest is go to newegg.com,, and browse thru the video cards there

 

http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.as...ics-Video-Cards

 

You can narrow your search pretty well here.

 

Once i have entered all my search criteria, i generally sort results by Best Review.

 

And, even when I have something i think i like,,,i google it,,,,like this "ati 4870 problems" to find out what might be going on that the reviews dont show

 

And, if you want to go nuts with specs (necessary evil i think)

 

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/printpage/132/1 nvidia cards

 

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/printpage/131/1 ati cards

 

 

I just built my system, and there was not one single component in there that i could find cheaper than what they where selling at newegg

Edited March 19, 2009 by sitting_duck

[themightysrc]

Hi Ducks,

 

Cheers for that! I'll check out Newegg, although I suspect that the trans Atlantic shipping charges might give UK based suppliers the edge. Thanks for the advice and the wise words.

 

Si

[MAICO]

How about a proc with a little more Power? But remember, if its been a while since you last installed your OS, then its time. This will have a good effect on your pc. It will be especially helpfull if your PC is a "do it all" PC.

[themightysrc]

hi MAICO,

 

Probably very good advice! I'm exploring to see whether I can upgrade the PC satisfactorily in its present form, but there's obviously a point at which it's probably easier and less painful to bin the current box and go for something with more oomph. Given that my PC runs DDR type RAM, for example, I suspect I'm already at least one generation behind what's current, but I have to balance that against the cost of a well-equipped and up to date PC. Of course, if I come up on the lottery tomorrow night, I'll be able to go mad and probably buy a Sopwith Pup replica...

 

Thanks,

 

Si

[themightysrc]

Hi again peeps,

 

I've now got my PC running 2gb of RAM - and it's really not made a huge amount of difference, so the next step is a new AGP video card. Any recommendations for a good one? As I say above, I'm willing to lash out about £70. Also, I notice that some of the newer cards (512mb ones) say they have DDR2 memory. Given that my PC runs DDR RAM, would it be OK to buy such a 512mb card? Also (and finally) is the difference twixt a 256mb card and a 512mb card worth the price difference?

 

Thanks for your help and patience!

 

Cheers,

 

Si

 

PS - still getting killed on a regular basis.