gpu, money no object! give us ya view

[webbo]

:cheesy:
question 1: thinking of a new agp gpu card.
not really bothered about price just want the best performer tell me what would you recommend? ;)

system info,
amd 64 fx-55
asus a8v MB
1 ghz of ram
raptor wd740 (when i get it to work!!!)
Hyundai ImageQuest L90D+ 19" screen

or would a pci-e card be better?

Question 2:rumors of 512mb gpu@ leaked news that they would be here in 2005, what has antone else herd on the grapevine? and are we exicted or just not bothered? ;)

[jwenting]

If money's no object an NVidia Quadro FX would be the only card to seriously consider.

Something like this: http://www.pny.com/products/quadro/fx/2000fx.asp
Retail price (special order only) €1600-€1700

[Catweazle]

err.... uummm......

That Quaddro FX might be okay for a system which is intended to do Workstation Graphics, but if the system is intended for 3D games then it's an expensive way to get less performance than from a current top-end gaming card.

And if the system is intended for Workstation Graphics and money is no object, then the Quaddro FX is a minor-league player, I'm affraid!

AGP v PCI-E is dictated by the motherboard. I didn't check the board in those specs, so what slot does it have?

Best gaming card choices at present are the NVidia 6800 Ultra or the ATi X850XT

[webbo]

thanks for the ideas
but you guys didn't answer my second question, (not that you had to, just thought i'd piont it out in case you missed it)
also i now know my card is agp only no pci-e option
and it is mainly for gaming.
also questions and answers for Catweazle
my motherboard is a Asus A8V Rev.2 Deluxe (Socket 939) Wireless Edition Motherboard (MB-063-AS) (check www.overclockers.co.uk) for more info
and also there are so many companies out there who sell 6800ultra's or x850xt's which one offers the best hardware?

[Catweazle]

Oh! Haven't heard any more about 512Mb cards, but they were delayed considerably by the fact that GDDR3 ram chips to suit them are hideously expensive and difficult to obtain in quantities. There's no need for 512MB cards yet anyway, so not to worry.

You'll have to decide for yourself which manufacturer provides the 'best' card. Virtually all of them offer identical performance to any other, if they're the same type of card. Sure some might be 'tweaked' a little more (at a price) but you gotta consider that means they're already closer to the maximum extent any such card can be overclocked to. Some may offer more 'exttras' and better software, but that's no use to you unless they are accessories or software titles which will be useful to your needs. Some cheaper brands might be constructed from thinner PCBoards and more cheaply sourced components, but that usually means that more of them will fail at the outset and need to be exchanged under warranty, rather than that they will all have a shorter working life.

Do your homework, choose what best suits your budget and needs. After all, 'the best' is primarily prestige value, not performance or lifespan ;)

[webbo]

thanks catweazle,
i just thought that if 512mb might come out i would hold on but like you say theres no need,
well im still torn but im thinking i might go for the ati x850xt from msi with there iceqII board as for performance and quiet cooling it's all there in one package, plus the cards a nice big one and i know space in my tower is good for cooling but it's really empty so it will make it look cosy thanks for the help :)

[webbo]

if anyone does read this i thought i would let you know i found 512mb graphic cards i even found a 640mb gpu but the price is massive and is it worth it?
as i said money is no object but i'm not stupid i wouldn't want to spend over the odds for something that may not improve performance (thats what i'm interested in).
i'm also looking at water cooling but for two reasons; overclocking abilities and low noise output, if it can't deliver then i don't want it.
Trying to find something that can handle my fx-55 is proving to be a mission without the set-up needing to be small resivour strapped to my pc. :eek:

[Catweazle]

Only 512Mb or greater video cards released to date are workstation cards, not 3D gaming cards. Not worth it at all for gaming, because they're slower at 3D games ;)

[Coconut Monkey]

Trying to find something that can handle my fx-55 is proving to be a mission

Heh heh....

You might find it's the other way round!

[webbo]

Heh heh....

You might find it's the other way round!

what do you mean? if you've found a CPU water block that fits my fx-55 with out having a massive tank and set up on the outside of my case and costing the same amount as it cost the USA to send troops to the middle east please let me know i would be very grateful for the help as i'm coming up at dead ends :)

[Coconut Monkey]

what do you mean?

Your CPU would be the bottleneck in an X850XT/6800 Ultra setup. ;)

[Catweazle]

Agreed. There ar no processors currently available for purchase which can extract the best from the top-end display cards!

By the way, there are also no procesors available which NEED water-cooling systems ;)

[webbo]

well in the end I’ve decided that I will change my mother board for a pci-e version and go for a xt850 xt pe as I have found some cheaper then their nearest agp brothers and because the clock speeds are slightly faster it makes it worth while, true I understand that water cooling isn't necessary it was just if I could reduce the noise but retain cooling and possibly over clock my system it would help when my missus is in bed that I’m not waking her in the early hours of the morning.