Curse

jackshredder · Jul 26, 2009, 05:20 AM // 05:20

Alright, So currently, I have a Radeon 9220 Pro (128mb I believe), and 2Gb of normal RAM.

To cut to the chase: Will upgrading to a 1Gb video card make a dramatic difference in GW graphics?

Since hardware has come down so much, I figured an upgrade wouldn't be a bad idea.

Thanks in advance!

Brett Kuntz · Jul 26, 2009, 07:08 AM // 07:08

It should make a pretty good difference, you should be able to run at maximum settings quite easily.

Malician · Jul 26, 2009, 07:22 AM // 07:22

yes. Graphical settings are almost totally reliant on your graphics card, and Guild Wars has very low system requirements. If I remember correctly, I could run it at max @ 1900x1200 (barely, no AA) with a 6600 GT, which only had 128 megabytes of RAM. (Which shows how little amount of RAM actually matters on most graphics cards..)

At a lower res you'll probably need about half that much power.. which basically means you can pick up something for $30-50.

You need to find out if you have an AGP or a PCI-Express slot first.

1 gigabyte card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102844

moriz · Jul 26, 2009, 01:52 PM // 13:52

keep in mind that vRAM does not necessarily determine the graphic card's performance. you can strap 2gb of vRAM onto a geforce 9500, but my HD4850 with 512mb of vRAM will still kick the crap out of it.

Elder III · Jul 26, 2009, 04:11 PM // 16:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by moriz

keep in mind that vRAM does not necessarily determine the graphic card's performance. you can strap 2gb of vRAM onto a geforce 9500, but my HD4850 with 512mb of vRAM will still kick the crap out of it.

QFT

to the OP: Remember that upgrading your video card could quite likely cause a need for an upgrade to your Power Supply as well. If your current GPU is a Radeon 9200, then chances are that your PSU is outdated as well. Also be sure to check out if you have an AGP or PCIEx16 mobo.... as stated a couple of posts above.

Brett Kuntz · Jul 26, 2009, 08:03 PM // 20:03

He has a 9220, which means he's AGP, but ATI still releases their cards for AGP, so I think that is what he is refering to.

jackshredder · Jul 26, 2009, 09:11 PM // 21:11

I just looked at the most recent post, and I believe it's PCI express
at least that's what my dad told me

Brett Kuntz · Jul 26, 2009, 09:34 PM // 21:34

Erm, there is no such thing as a Radeon 9220 Pro, and any card that old can only be AGP. PCI-E wasn't available until the X800 Pro which came out years and years after the 9x00 series cards.

moriz · Jul 27, 2009, 01:18 AM // 01:18

he probably meant Radeon 9250, which does exist.

also, keep in mind that the Radeon 9250 also comes in PCI versions. pray that yours isn't it.

jackshredder · Jul 27, 2009, 03:34 AM // 03:34

CORRECTION!
Sorry, I was mistaken.
On the front of my computer, it says "Available PCI-Express slot"
So, I'm guessing the current card might be in an AGP.

I'll have to open it up and check eventually.

N E D M · Jul 27, 2009, 04:03 AM // 04:03

if you indeed have a pci express slot chances are slim that you have AGP.
I recommend a radeon 4650 or 4670 made by Gigabyte
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125253
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125244

if you end up having AGP, do not despair - AGP version of 4650 is available

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125281

moriz · Jul 27, 2009, 09:53 PM // 21:53

there's also the question of what kind of PCI-E slot you have: 1x, 4x, 8x, or 16x.

personally, i wouldn't bother upgrading such a system. the X1300 is capable enough for GW, and you should save up money to build an entirely new system. you can pretty easily build a system that can max out GW (as well as other games) for $300 these days.