Buying a new video card...

[Refrigerator]

Well, I've finally saved up enough money to buy a new video card, but I've realized I haven't a clue what I'm looking for!

What I DO know: I'm looking for a cheap one, but still good enough to play Warcraft III, World of Warcraft, etc. Probably 128mb of RAM, though 64mb might do. I know that the video card is limited by the kind of AGP slot my motherboard has, which is a "universal slot". I have no idea what that means though... <_< Hopefully it means anything will fit

I know that it's not necessarily how many megabytes of RAM, but also depends on processor speed (videocards have processers? :huh:) I also think I know that some of the good ones need good CPU's to work. Is that right?

Well, in case this is needed for anything, my CPU is an Athlon 800.
So... I guess what I'm asking is: Which video cards fit in a "universal slot", are fast, and fairly inexpensive?
I'm looking at less than $100 Canadian for sure. Probably around $80, if possible.

Well, thanks for any help!

[kandrathe]

What is your motherboard? Either of these cards will work in an AGP 1X/2X/4X/8X slot. Of course, the higher the better.

PNY GeForce FX 5200 Video Card / 128MB / AGP / TV Out

or

Connect3D Radeon 9200se Video Card / 128MB DDR / AGP / TV Out

The ATI card would be better with 2x "4 pak - OCZ Copper BGA Ramsinks / Chipset Heatsinks" applied to the front and rear exposed ram chips. But, if you are not running anything too extreme then it might work fine. I prefer ATI, but I've owned both nVidia and ATI and I've been impressed by both.

[Guest]

Well, in case this is needed for anything, my CPU is an Athlon 800.

Is that a type? Should that be 2800? If not, I'd reccomend getting a new processor before a video card...

I know that it's not necessarily how many megabytes of RAM, but also depends on processor speed (videocards have processers?

Yes. Video cards have VPU's (video processing unit, ie, processors). In most cases, the VPU only matters when comparing video cards with the same amount of ram. Ie, a 333mhz 128 mb video card is obviously slower than a 400mhz 128 mb video card.


I would also strongly advise you to go for a 128 mb video card. 64 mb is becomming the new 'minimum requirement' for many games, and for those that only require 16-32, you'll have to run on lower detail settings for a decent framerate.

edit: fixed messed up quote

[DeeBye]

I'm gonna echo what kandrathe said. A FX 5200 or Radeon 9200se are probably your best (and only) bets in that price range. I personally have a 9200se 128 MB and it runs World of Warcraft nicely.

edit to add: I bought my 9200se at a local "mom 'n pop" computer place in London, Ont. for $70 and paid an extra $10 to go ahead and have them install it. This fits in nicely with your price range. A FX 5200 at the same place was $90 FYI.

I'm still not sure what the heck a "universal slot" is. Where exactly are you getting that term from? It would help immensely if you could post the model # of your motherboard. I could tell you for sure what sort of expansion slots you might have.

SiSoftware's SANDRA is a free utility that will allow you to find out all sorts on interesting information about your computer, including the exact model of your motherboard.

[WarLocke]

edit to add:&nbsp; I bought my 9200se at a local "mom 'n pop" computer place in London, Ont. for $70 and paid an extra $10 to go ahead and have them install it.&nbsp; This fits in nicely with your price range.&nbsp; A FX 5200 at the same place was $90 FYI.

Wow, I got reamed. I paid $120 for my 128mb FX 5200. I didn't get any complimentary installation, either. :angry:

[DeeBye]

Wow, I got reamed.&nbsp; I paid $120 for my 128mb FX 5200.&nbsp; I didn't get any complimentary installation, either. :angry:

If you paid $120USD, you REALLY got reamed. The price I quoted was $90CAD, which equals out to about $66USD in today's market.

[Refrigerator]

I got the term "universal slot" from the user's manual of my motherboard. It's listed under the "Expansion Slot, Sockets and Connectors" as "One Universal AGP slot". I also have no idea what a "Universal AGP slot" is. It probably says something else about it SOMEWHERE in there but I couldn't find it.

As for the model#, is this it? - KK266plus-R/KK266plus It's made by Iwill, and the homepage is www.iwill.net

Ah ha! After some searching, I found it's a 4x slot. What does that mean? :unsure:

EDIT: Shoot. Ok, nobody read the title. :wacko:

[DeeBye]

Yes, you have an AGP slot. YAY!

It's only a 4xAGP slot, but that's OK. Both the FX 5200 and the 9200se will run in a 4x AGP slot.

[yangman]

If you paid $120USD, you REALLY got reamed.

I'd have to agree.

Even though the 9200SE is a budget version of a budget card (SE's are under-clocked versions of their numerically-identical counterparts, hence even cheaper) $120 for a FX5200 is too much.

[WarLocke]

If you paid $120USD, you REALLY got reamed.

Well, this was back just before Christmas, so it was worth a little more than it is now, I guess. Still, now I'm peeved. I don't think this local guy is going to get anymore business from me. :angry:

[Roland]

Don't EVER buy a FX 5200. It's the worst card out there. :P It's worse than a GF4 Ti4200 64MB @ 4x AGP. BY FAR. A 5600 JUST BARELY reaches the same abilities, while a 5700 JUST BARELY reaches beyond it. If you want a GOOD card, expect to spend ~$150 - $200. Shoot for a 5900XT or better (5900, for example).

However, given your CPU, I think a whole system upgrade is in order. You're well behind the times, so you're better off building a whole new system. I can e-mail you some custom-built examples, if you'd like, and would be more than happy to give you my advice on buying computer components and/or building a new PC.

Try this on for size:
Gainward NVIDIA GeForce FX5900XT 128MB “Golden Sample”

That's a great card for the money. Comes pre-built with one-touch overclocking, and can be pushed even further. AND, it's the same price as the MSI variant that does NOT feature built-in one-touch overclocking (via Gainward's software, of course), and has heatsinks right on the RAM chips, another feature that most boards don't have. If you want a games bundle, check out the MSI card, but IMO the Gainward card is the best bet for your money (and I LOVE MSI products).

If that's too steep, I'd recommend one of the following, but keep in mind it's a mediocre card at best. It'll run Planetside (most definitly a graphics-intensive game), but FPS with non-Antialiasing / -Anisotropic Filtering will be about equal to my current card. Of course, full AA / AFS will be FAR better than my card could ever handle, so it's still a "decent" buy. I just think that for the small price margin of difference, you're better off with a 5900XT or 5900, but I can fully understand a tight budget (I'm working with one right now, trying to find a few small upgrades for my current computer).

GAINWARD NVIDIA GeForce FX5700 256MB - No built-in overclocjking software, but still capable of overclocking, like all NVIDIA cards.

MSI NVIDIA GeForce FX5700 128MB - Games bundle includes Morrowind, Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project, and Ghost Recon, and some 7-in-1 free trial game demo disc. Also includes DVD software, among many other things. Total of 10 CDs. Less RAM than the Gainward cards, but that's not as large of an issue since both cards feature only a 128-bit bus, so extra RAM only pays off at the high-end of use (high resolution, high detail, 4x AA and 8x ASF).

GAINWARD NVIDIA GeForce FX5700 256MB - For $7 over the other Gainward card, you gain WinDVD4, so that you have DVD-playing software. Whether that's worth it to you or not, only you can tell, but I threw it in here for reference.

As you can see, I'm a hardcore NVIDIA fan. Never had a problem with ANY of my NVIDIA cards in all my years of gaming, and I push them hard (overclock to the limits). If you want an ATi card (*shudder*), they tend to be a wee bit cheaper, occasionally, but I'd have to do some research before I could recommend one for you.

For reference, check out Tom's Hardware Guide. GREAT site for all your tech needs. ANd ONLY purchase parts from NewEgg.com. Fast shipping, great customer service, and the best prices around. :)

Hope this helps! And again, e-mail me (ellis71@charter.net) with any questions. I'll be more than happy to help.

Edit:
If you absolutely, positiviely cannot afford a better card, go for this one. It's in your proce range, and will blow away either of the cards others have suggested.
MSI NVIDIA GeForce FX5600XT 128MB

It runs at 1x/2x/4x/8x AGP, so it truly is "universal". It has 128MB of video RAM, although it's "only" a 64-bit card (meaning it can only access 64MB of RAM at any given time. See my notes above. More RAM WILL help, even if it's above the bus width, but the gains are marginal over a card with RAM = bus width, and the gains only truly shine when you get into the highest settings). It will easily knock the socks off either a 9200SE or a FX5200, give you plenty of room for overclocking (to squeak even more performance out of it), and comes with MSI's usual HUGE bundle of software. Here's the website for the card:
FX5600XT-VTDR128 MSI Part No. MS-8912-240

Again, I cannot in any good conscience recommend going ANY lower than a 5600. I strongly recommend you try for a higher card, to get the most LASTING performance out of your card, but for ~$100 an "interim" card as I call them is still a good deal. And, lastly, I urge you to purchase from NewEgg. I have bought several items from them, and they have never let me down. Fast, safe shipping (no damage to any of my products), incredible prices, and unbeatable service. It's the best online shop around for computers.

Good luck with your decisions, and let us know how it goes.

[Roland]

You obviously want the card to run in an 8x slot, since all the latest-generation cards are designed for that, but most if not all will run in a 4x slot. They just won't work as well as they're designed to (but it won't be a huge difference, and regardless you'll still see a huge increase over what you're currently running).

See my post up top for buying recommendations. I simply cannot, in good conscious, recommend a 5200. I have no comments on the 9200, as I have minimal experience with ATi (thankfully). I strongly recommend at least a 5700, although a 5600 may work as well.

[kandrathe]

But, but, but... He said $75 USD or $100 CDN (and I also took that to mean with shipping (~10-15$).

And, lastly, I urge you to purchase from NewEgg.

They don't ship to Canada. Also, wholesalers get things a little cheaper in the US due to bulk. Canadian mail order sites are not as easy to find.

[WarLocke]

However, given your CPU, I think a whole system upgrade is in order. You're well behind the times, so you're better off building a whole new system. I can e-mail you some custom-built examples, if you'd like, and would be more than happy to give you my advice on buying computer components and/or building a new PC.

Hey, I'd appreciate some advice along these lines, as well. Plus, it's an excuse to exercise my new Gmail account. :lol:


EDIT: Don't need my email hanging out for spambots. :P

[DeeBye]

But, but, but... He said $75 USD or $100 CDN (and I also took that to mean with shipping (~10-15$).

They don't ship to Canada.&nbsp; Also, wholesalers get things a little cheaper in the US due to bulk.&nbsp; Canadian mail order sites are not as easy to find.

Exactly correct. For $100CAD, you can't do any better than a FX 5200 or 9200se. It just cannot be done. Newegg is useless, because they don't ship to Canada.

Here are the Canadian hardware websites I have bookmarked.
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/
http://www.ncix.com/
http://atic.ath.cx/
http://www.canadacomputers.com/

If you browse around the video card sections, you'll see that anything better than a FX 5200 or 9200se are wayyy above his price range.

[Malakar]

I bought an FX5200 once, and was rather disappointed. Soon after I got a Radeon 9600 Pro for about 20$ than I paid for the 5200, and it was MUCH better.

Some guy told me that ATI's cards are simpler to figure out which are the best (they're named appropriately so you don't have to do a bunch of research). If that is in fact true, which in my limited experience it seems to be, that's a big plus if you ask me. I'm tired of doing research every time I upgrade my computer.

[Artega]

You just HAD to flaunt that GMail account, didn't you? Bastard :P

I personally wouldn't touch TigerDirect, even if it does ship to Canada. I've had nothing but bad experiences with them.

[Roland]

No matter what, you ALWAYS have to do research, regardless of what the naming schema is. It's just a fact of retail and computers: technology changes, so you need to research it; and product makers want to sell, nothing less, nothing more, so they'll use any strategy they can - even making things appear better than they are (AMD, for example? :P).

[Roland]

And regardless of his price range, $25 more is beyond worth the benefit of going from a 5200 to a 5600. Hell, I'm tempted to offer to ship the thing to him myself. :P

[kandrathe]

Don't ask me what is reasonable. :) I spent $425 on an ATI 9800 XT 256 -- Which was more than 40% of the price of the system it was going into.

Hell, I'm tempted to offer to ship the thing to him myself.

Tsk. :) Smuggling high tech equipment to foriegn nationals. What would Homeland security have to say? Heh. All that Customs and Duty crap. I'm not sure what NAFTA has done to remove it, but when I worked for the CP Rail buying PC's from Italy to ship to Canada, then ship to the US, I had to pay 100% duty.

It's only a couple hours from Toronto to Buffalo, I'm sure most Canadians could drive south and get what they needed. But, I think it is a matter of supporting the locals. Heck, I do that in my neighborhood. I always try to buy my gas from the station closest to my house, that way at least I've done my part to help keep a gas station in my neighborhood.