New Video Card

[lpc300]

Hi all,

Wondering if I should upgrade my video card. Just added an Ati TV Wonder Pro to my rig. It's working great except that when I switch from full screen back to normal mode, everything slows down massively, redraws take forever and this remains until I close out the program. The longer I stay in full screen mode, the worse it is; on a few occassions I have needed to use the 'three-finger-salute' to close out the TV. My video card is a GeForce 4 MX 420. I don't think it's anything else (processor: AMD 3000+. memory: 512 PC3200), so I'm wondering if a better video card with more than 64mb of memory will help. Suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

[Nuclear Krusader]

Hello there!

You may and I think it would be a good improvement to an already good system. My initial suspicion though, is that the cause of the problem may lie within the new add-on card itself; in that case, you would keep on experiencing the same problem.

I think the only way to know that is upgrading though, unless another member has a better answer.

[lpc300]

Good to see you, my friend. I had been using another tuner card (I/O systems, I think) with the same results, though in a slower system. I may switch it in, temporarily to test out what you are suggesting. If it is the vid card, any suggestions on a middle of the road card?

[Nuclear Krusader]

Well, I got a Sapphire Radeon 9600Pro. I am not too impressed with it. It has been performing reasonably well in games and performs flawlessly in the rest of the apps. As you may know, ATi is the top dog when it comes to picture quality. My problems with games seem to be related to how bloated my Windows XP installation is by now, for I did a fresh install of XP in another partition and the games seem to be running reasonably well in there. But I still get the occasional lag.

I don't know anent your particular needs. If you are gonna play 3D games I recommend the Radeon 9800 Pro and up. If not, you may be satisfied with a Radeon 9600 Pro or XT. Go for the 128MB versions as they have faster memory than their 256MB cousins.

[OLLY89]

Yeah mate for sure i reakon you do need a New Card i recomend you get the 9600 Xt Extreme. But First of all Find out what the real Problem Is.

[lpc300]

Don't do a whole lotta gaming, but I do some home video editing and both DVD/TV watching and, most importantly PVR (beats TiVo). I happen to partial to NVidia (have used their cards on all my builds), but would be open to either one of them or an Ati. Would 128mb be better than 256mb for my needs?

[Nuclear Krusader]

Well, as far as applications are today, 128 should suffice and with the slightly faster memory you could see better results with the 128MB version. There are no programs that take that much memory, save for Doom 3 maybe. Then again, most probably it would be like shaving thin hair and the advantage would not be even noticeably in those apps you want to run. On the long road, maybe a 256MB card would be a more intelligent investment. I was an nVidia guy too, till I jumped into the ATi bandwagon. Since you already have an ATi add-on card, maybe it would be better if all were the same brand, to avoid drivers incompatibilities and the like?

Thinking aloud with that last statement.

I don't know what PVR or TiVo are, so I cannot give an informed opinion regarding that, sorry.

[Hi Ho]

The 128 MB version would definetly be best. In fact, I would recommend the 128 MB version to even the most hardcore budget gamer because 1) 256 MB is not utilized 2) The 128 MB versions use faster memory.

[lpc300]

PVR=Personal Video Recorder, aka DVR=Digital Video Recorder. It's a way of using your computer to capture and record, digitally, as you might on a VCR. TiVo is a device you add to your TV to do just this. It has a hard drive, but costs you a monthly fee to access some of their features. Doing this on your computer doesn't cost the fee. It's also 'fun' to put together.

[Nuclear Krusader]

Neat. Thanks for the explanation.

[Hi Ho]

If you aren't a heavy gamer and want the best image quality I recommend the Radeon 9600 Pro. Unless you're spending $300+ the Nvidia cards simply don't hold a candle to the ATI cards. The FX series was not a good one for Nvidia but they have turned it around with the new 6000 series.

To add to the Tivo description, you can do a lot more than just record like a VCR. You can pause, rewind, and fast forward live TV, easily schedule recordings with the onscreen guide, easily find shows, and a whole lot more. I also agree that using a PC is the better way to go. It isn't cheap to build one but you don't have to pay a monthly fee and you can do even more if you have good software. You can even set up a PC with multiple TV tuners so you can record multiple shows at once. The only Tivo model that can do that as of yet is the one that comes with DirectTV.

[lpc300]

Thanks for all the replies. What's the difference between the Raedon 9600, 9600Pro, 9600SE, and the 9600XT?

[lpc300]

Never mind. Found This .

[Hi Ho]

Here they are in order of performance:

1. 9600 XT - Highest clock speed at 500mhz core/600mhz memory

2. 9600 Pro - 400mhz core/400mhz memory

3. 9600 - 325mhz core/400mhz memory

4. 9600 SE - It's only a 64 bit card (others are 128 bit) which has a huge impact on performance. Same clock speeds as 9600 but performance is nowhere near as good.

EDIT: LOL I should have thought of that. I had four tabs open comparing the cards on Newegg.

[OLLY89]

Originally Posted by Hi Ho Here they are in order of performance: 1. 9600 XT - Highest clock speed at 500mhz core/600mhz memory 2. 9600 Pro - 400mhz core/400mhz memory 3. 9600 - 325mhz core/400mhz memory 4. 9600 SE - It's only a 64 bit card (others are 128 bit) which has a huge impact on performance. Same clock speeds as 9600 but performance is nowhere near as good. EDIT: LOL I should have thought of that. I had four tabs open comparing the cards on Newegg.

Now that's True because my Friend Over Clocked His 9600 XT Extreme to 530 CORE and 855 Memory.

[lpc300]

Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone. Depending on budgetary constraints it will either be the 9600 or the 9600 Pro.

[OLLY89]

It's all Cool man anytime And if you need any Help with anything Post A tHread and i'll Help For Sue.