Curse

Pasha the Mighty · Apr 04, 2008, 01:16 PM // 13:16

I'm planning on getting a new psu+mobo+memory+graph card this monday, maybe even a soundcard.
Now, I've decided that I don't want to buy the 9800gtx because it's kind of a dissappointment, and I have the patience to wait for the 9900gtx. So I want to get a mid-range card to last me long enough, and play a few games at med settings at 1280*1024 resolution. I looked for a while, and found the the ati HD3650. There's a lot of versions out there, and I was wondering what is better: a card with 512mb of ddr2 memory, or 256mb of gddr3 memory, or 256mb of gddr2 memory, or 512mb of gddr3 memory, or do they all have gddrx memory and it's just written down incorrectly? And is the card a good choice as mid-range card? I don't really know much about them, I know more about high-end cards.
Also, another question popped into my head. I'm thinking of ordering the x-fi xtrememusic with it, because i'm planning to get it sooner or later. Can I connect the audio ports on the front I/O panel to it, which is built into my case (cooler master cm-690), or would I have to connect it to my motherboard and just plug the audio in the back?

Hengis · Apr 04, 2008, 02:06 PM // 14:06

Have you considered the Geforce 9600GT?

NVidia finally have a mid range card worthy of the name.

Have a look at this review which answers many of your questions.

http://www.behardware.com/articles/7...n-hd-3650.html

The 9600GT is quite a bit more expensive though but would probably keep you happy for a lot longer than the 3650.

Whatever card you decide upon though, I would definitely go for 512 meg of memory. Having only 256 meg cripples the performance at higher resolutions and texture details.

Pasha the Mighty · Apr 04, 2008, 02:17 PM // 14:17

I know the 9600 gt, but it's not an option because it's 130 euros for a card that i'm just going to need till june.
So 512 mb is the way to go? and is there a difference between ddr2 and gddr3?

majestikk · Apr 04, 2008, 02:22 PM // 14:22

do you have a budget?

EVGA E-GEFORCE 8800GT 512MB is pretty solid

Pasha the Mighty · Apr 04, 2008, 02:46 PM // 14:46

I know all the ones you'd suggest, but what I need is a cheap (<100) videocard to last me till the 9900gtx comes out. I don't need a good one, just one that can play most shooters at moderate framerates. If I would want a good card, I would get a 9800gtx, or maybe a 3870x2, but I want to wait, and just need something to last me till then.
Now I've done some more research and found a few 512mb 3650's, but I don't really know the difference between 512 ddr2, ddr3 and gddr3. Can someone tell me what the difference is?

I Dont Do Coke · Apr 04, 2008, 02:53 PM // 14:53

When does the 9900GTX come out? If it's within 90 days, get an 8800GT and step up later.

Shendaar · Apr 04, 2008, 02:53 PM // 14:53

The memory type doesn't really have much of an impact. Having more memory on the card is important when playing at high resolution in game requiring a lot of memory. At 1280x1024, 256Mb may be enough for some games, but it may struggle a bit in others as well, depending on the rest of the graphic settings of course.

I imagine 256Mb for medium settings could be fine. I'd says just the find the cards that match your price range and search for reviews on google to find out which one is the best.

Pasha the Mighty · Apr 04, 2008, 03:00 PM // 15:00

The release is supposed to be in june, but it might be postponed so I can't take that risk.
I don't need to play high settings, but it would be a nice bonus. If paying €10-20 extra (which is actually the case here) will allow me to play on high settings in some games, it's fine with me, i'll go with 512 mb.
The weird thing is I see three memory types here: gddr3, ddr3 and ddr2. isn't ddr3 just a typo? And which one should I choose? btw, the one gddr3 i see is a €104,- so that's not worth it, because I see ddr3 ones for 70. But is it really ddr3 or just a typo and it's actually gddr3 too?

Blackhearted · Apr 04, 2008, 03:17 PM // 15:17

Here's something you should always follow. If a card comes in a gddr3 version, as well as a gddr2 version, Always buy the gddr3 version as it will be much faster than the gddr2 one. Alot of companys make cheap-o versions of mid-range cards with gddr2 to get more money from less knowledgeable buyers and they're are always significantly slower than their normal gddr3 counterparts. Which is why you generally want to avoid those models.

Edit: For an example you can see it on some 8600gt's. The normal gddr3 versions have 1400mhz memory, where as the cheap-o gddr2 versions tend to only have the ram at 800mhz. In this case they nearly cut the memory bandwidth in half(22.4gb/s vs. 12.8gb/sec), which will really hinder performance, especially at higher resolutions or settings.

Pasha the Mighty · Apr 04, 2008, 03:21 PM // 15:21

yeah i get that, but it says ddr2, ddr3 and gddr3. I know the difference between ddr2 and 3, and i know all high end cards have at least gddr3, but I've actually never heard of ddr3 on a graphics card. Is it, like I thought, just a typo?
EDIT:
I'm either ordering this one:http://www.club3d.nl/index.php/produ...phics/item/311
or this one: http://www.sapphiretech.com/us/produ...gpid=208&grp=3
the club3d one says it has gddr3 memory, but does not list dx10.1 support, which would be a nice bonus.
the Sapphire on has 10.1 support, but says their models have ddr2 or gddr3 or gddr4 support, depends on which version. So that would mean that the site I'm ordering from just typed it wrong, because they say it has ddr3 memory, right?

Blackhearted · Apr 04, 2008, 03:33 PM // 15:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pasha the Mighty

the club3d one says it has gddr3 memory, but does not list dx10.1 support, which would be a nice bonus.
the Sapphire on has 10.1 support, but says their models have ddr2 or gddr3 or gddr4 support, depends on which version. So that would mean that the site I'm ordering from just typed it wrong, because they say it has ddr3 memory, right?

Don't worry about the directx 10.1 support being written down or not. As long as what you're buying is a 3000 series card it will always have it, as it is part of the core itself.

Pasha the Mighty · Apr 04, 2008, 03:41 PM // 15:41

are you serious? Any mid to low end 3xxx series card supports it, while none of the current high end nvidia cards support it? I had actually found it weird when I say they didn't add it to the 9800 gtx/gx2, but it's even weirder now I see ati did.
So basically, I can go with the cheapest? Or is one of them exceptionally better? The difference between the two is just 4 euros by the way.
And does anybody know wether I can plug the front panel of my case into an X-fi?

Brianna · Apr 04, 2008, 04:16 PM // 16:16

Wait.. we have to buy new cards to get DX 10.1 support? I hope that is a joke, or else I'll be really pissed.

Pasha the Mighty · Apr 04, 2008, 04:23 PM // 16:23

nope no joke: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directx_10.1
The dx10 hardware still works with dx10.1, but not all the new features will work

Brianna · Apr 04, 2008, 04:27 PM // 16:27

Grr.. why the hell do they crap out new versions of Dx faster than anyone can even adapt to the new stuff? I mean hell.. now we have to buy new cards just to get it too? This really pisses me off.

Besides for Mid-Range gaming cards just get an 8600 GT, can find it for under 100$ USD and it can play most games very well, whatever that is converted into € or such.

wetsparks · Apr 04, 2008, 05:18 PM // 17:18

I don't know about shipping costs to Europe (you did mention you wanted something less than 100 euros) but newegg.com is selling the card you are looking at for less than $100 which, I think, converts to well under 100 euros.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...HD3650&x=0&y=0

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GDDR3
Take the wiki article with a grain of salt of course but it would seem gddr3 is the way to go.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102725
That would appear to be the card you are looking for, but my knowledge of video cards is limited.

Blackhearted · Apr 04, 2008, 05:19 PM // 17:19

Missing the .1 update really isn't that big a deal imo. Nothing even requires normal directx 10 yet. By the time DX10 renderers completely replace DX9 in games(as in, dx9 isn't an option) ones you'll probly have upgraded anyway.

Zamorakk · Apr 04, 2008, 05:19 PM // 17:19

The 9900GTX will come out 2008 Q3 or later. And DX10.1 will be pretty like useless. The 9800GTX ís a big disapointment, its just a g92 with some new features and a new name (if I am right g94

) I dont think the 9900GTX will be way better, I think this year will be an ATi year

Now just wait for the 10800GTX or how the hell they wanna call it

And it'll be better if u buy the card in your own country, the shipping+extra tax costs can be like 80 euros.

And DDR3 can go faster than DDR2, bút memory isnt the most important thing on a graphics card, the shaders are on #1 the core clock on #2 and the memory clock on #3, but I would buy a graphics card with 512mb.

Pasha the Mighty · Apr 04, 2008, 06:23 PM // 18:23

I just looked into a few other models, and apparantly the MSI2600xt-diamond-512 just falls into the budget. It's a 2600xt with 512mb of gddr4 memory, and I read a few reviews saying the 3650 is better than the 2600 pro, but not the 2600xt. Is msi a good company though?

Brianna · Apr 04, 2008, 06:42 PM // 18:42

MSI is ok.

My extended family owns a hard core gamer store and they put MSI parts into their comps; see http://www.lanspeedgames.com/Computers.aspx

They run pretty good computers there, so I'd say it wouldn't hurt.