Deft Aklin Posted March 4, 2003 Share Posted March 4, 2003 Ok, I'm looking for advice here. It seems that every technical reference I have found says that the 8500 blows away the 9000. Anyone seen or heard differently? Any suggestions here? I can't very well afford a 9700, but I can afford either of these and I am curious if there might be some other reason I would consider the 9000 over the 8500. Let me know what you guys think. On an entirely different note, I just found out that the tech that built my computer put RIMM RDRAM instead of SDRAM like I thought. Good but bad, anyone know where I can pick up some good RDRAM (RAMBUS) PC800 for a good price? I will need at least 256mb. I would really like to find 512mb for around $150, but I doubt I'll find that, I've only found it for around $180+ so far. Let me know what you guys think or can find for me. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Can-able Posted March 5, 2003 Share Posted March 5, 2003 D_S Well i think the Problem you will find with that Ram Type is that it is Quite expensive, so you will Strugle to find and thing Cheeper that what you have quoted by the looks of it. This web Site is Normaly Good in the UK , and they have just started out in the US as well http://www.Ebuyer.com Unforunetley i am unable to give you any advise on ATI stuff, as i am a NVida man myself. One thing i have read on Some gaming Forums is that ATI are not alway the best for Driver suport. I will copy your post to another forum i visit and see if i can get you any advise on the ati stuff froim there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Can-able Posted March 5, 2003 Share Posted March 5, 2003 http://208.57.228.4/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=UBB15&Number=34374&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1 Most of the time you can get some good help and advise from the guys hear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Aklin Posted March 5, 2003 Author Share Posted March 5, 2003 Thanks Can-able, looks like I'm getting the 8500 then. I found it for about $45 cheaper than the 9000 anyway. BTW, for anyway that is interested, I found the 9700 128MB ATI Radeon for $299 here. You have to put it in your shopping cart to see the price though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Can-able Posted March 5, 2003 Share Posted March 5, 2003 It sounds like the Better Card....Some one has posed that ATI miss Labeled the Box for the 9000 <Shrug> I will see what else is posted.... Normaly they are a good Bunch of People as long as you don't talk about Iraq and Religon...Etc etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Aklin Posted March 5, 2003 Author Share Posted March 5, 2003 Doh. The price I saw yesterday was for the 64MB 8500. I'd have to think the 128MB 9000 would be better. I may only be able to afford the 9000 after getting the RDRAM anyway. I'll study and plot my move carefully. No time for error at this point. I'm probably going to save for the 9700 anyway, so I'll just get something to tide me over. Thisd way I can add 512MB of RAM in the form of two 256MB cards and get somethign like the 9000 pro for around $300+. Then I'll have to save another 300+ just for the 9700. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared Sinn Posted March 5, 2003 Share Posted March 5, 2003 I'd save up foir the 9700 Darth- I got one in my new Dell a few months back and I'm very very happy with it. I even sacrificed an extra 512 mb of RAM so I could afford the card, but it was worth it. (I'll pick up another 512 in the next month or so). The way i see it, the more you spend now, the longer you'll have trouble-free gaming (or at least faster gaming..) in the future. JS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thew Rydur Posted March 5, 2003 Share Posted March 5, 2003 I'm guessing the 9700 will come down in price once Nvidia's new FX card comes out. Dunno when the release date is though.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Aklin Posted March 6, 2003 Author Share Posted March 6, 2003 I might just get the memory and wait for the graphics card. Either way, I am pretty sure I will need a graphics card prior to the game coming out. I wish I could afford the 9700, but unfortunately I only have about 150 budgetted, and I know I'll need the 512MB memory upgrade as I am currently only running 128. I want to have at least 512MB RIMM RDRAM (Probably will be 640MB though )and a 128MB graphics card. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared Sinn Posted March 6, 2003 Share Posted March 6, 2003 Yeah, you definately need to get that RAM up first, didnt know you were at 128 JS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Can-able Posted March 6, 2003 Share Posted March 6, 2003 D_S I think i may have said this before to you, but don't just buy a Card for the sake of it that is in your Budget. Buy Top end stuff it will last that little longer, you will just have to save Some one else has posted in that tread i started that the 9000 Is like the MX for Nvidia, Witch is bad news mate The GF4MX cards by Nvidia are pritty much the same chip set as the GF3-2 i belive. Where the TI cards by Nvida are a hole new chip set. Get the Ram Mate You need it I think Jan Posted once that More RAM = Less Lag It's a sound theory , More RAM is always Good....Get RAM !!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Aklin Posted March 6, 2003 Author Share Posted March 6, 2003 Well, I can probably manage the 9700, after reviewing my finances, but my RAM will suffer. So here are the two possible outcomes: 1)Upgrade to 640MB RIMM RDRAM (RAMBUS) PC-800 with a graphics card for under $125. 2)Upgrade to 384MB RIMM RDRAM (RAMBUS) PC-800 with a Radeon 9700. As a side note, I am currently running off of the Intel integrated graphics card, so not getting a card is out of the question in my opinion. Thoughts? Also, I just found an OEM Radeon 8500LE 128MB for $150...here.... http://store.yahoo.com/nexthardwareshope/atirad85le12.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared Sinn Posted March 6, 2003 Share Posted March 6, 2003 I would definately recommend getting one thing at a time at the higher end, rather than trying to compromise and get mediocre upgrades all at once. I really think you should take care of that RAM deficiency first, buying the fastest and largest chip (or chips) that you can, and then work on the card. PC-800 is fine, but does your board support PC-1066? Like I said earlier, more money now equates to longer high-end gaming in the future. JS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Aklin Posted March 6, 2003 Author Share Posted March 6, 2003 Well, I think I'm going to get the Radeon 8500LE 128MB and upgrade to 640MB RAM. Unfortunately, my motherboard only supports the PC-800. I think I can actually come up with $350 and this way I'm not skimping on the RAM. Admittingly, I'll probably want the 9700 later, but I just can't justify paying that much for a card. In another six months it will cost half that. I want to improve my gaming experience for SWG, but not at that cost. That would be damn near $500, as is it will be slightly over $400. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Aklin Posted March 10, 2003 Author Share Posted March 10, 2003 *bump Anyway, this is theoretical. Assuming that I actually did come up with 300+ for the 9700, I have a question. The card is rated 2x/4x/8x and my AGP slots are only rated 2x/4x. Does that mean that the card will only run the 2x/4x or is the 8x necessary for it to work. Assumably with 8x it would work better, but that's not what I am asking. Help. Editted to add: Guess who just announced the 256MB 9800. Bastards! I might go a little cheaper to wait for it. Links for you to enjoy: Rage 3D article Alienware Area 51 w/ Radeon 9800 contest. ATI official specs on Radeon 9800 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Aklin Posted March 12, 2003 Author Share Posted March 12, 2003 Update: In any event, I have finally made my decision after talking to one of the technicians over at Sapphire. I will be purchasing 2 256MB RDRAM RAMBUS RIMM cards, bringing my RAM to 640MB. I will also be buying the Sapphire ATI Radeon 9500 128MB graphics card. It may not be the 9700 or the 9800, but it is DX9 compatable and costs $200 in comparison to the $300+ cost of the 9700. Also, for anyone that has the same dumb question I had, here is an explanation of the AGP cards. The original AGP 1x configuration was mechanically different from the AGP 2x. I saw a diagram on Intel's site which made me question the mechanical difference between the 2x, 4x and 8x. The 2x, 4x and 8x all have the same mechanical structure, but function at different speeds. In other words, in my situation, I have a 4x compatable AGP slot, which means that I can use either a 4x or 2x AGP card to full speed. Unfortunately, the 8x cards will only function at the 4x speed when utilized in a 4x slot, but the features made it too hard to resist. Anyway, the 2x functions at about 500MHz, the 4x at about 1GHz and the 8x at about 2GHz. Either way, the AGP cards are better suited for gameplay than PCI cards, so if you have the ability to utilize AGP over PCI do so. Also, I have seen many technical reviews that simply state that the 8x is not fully utilized by any current mother boards anyway and only runs slightly better than the 4x. In other words, 8x is cool, but until the mother board manufacturers make boards to fully utilize them and game designers make games that need that much power, they will not run much different than the 4x anyway. I have rambled for enough today, and I am sure that some one is going to kill me for posting on this three times in sequence, but hey, no one replied. You bastages made me do real research, so deal. Hopefully this will be helpful to some of you that are less technically inclined. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swphreak Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 you needed more RAM? My computer had 512 when I bought it.... Oh..... I don't know about the graphics card. I'll just stick to my GeForce 4 ti 4600 Card. It's my precious. It hasn't failed me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared Sinn Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 Well son-of-a-bothan... I had the fastest card on the market..for a micron or so. It's part of PC gaming tho, and I have to accept it-you never have the best equipment for long. I'll think about picking up the 9800 next year, after its been around for a while and tested. As for you DS, this is good news, because it may mean that all the other Radeon cards will drop in price JS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Aklin Posted March 14, 2003 Author Share Posted March 14, 2003 BTW, I just got the 9500 Radeon Atlantis 128MB with two sticks of RDRAM RAMBUS RIMM 256MB NON-ECC 256MB at 800MHz for $375 at newegg.com I was actually quite happy with their pricing. Also, this included rush delivery and 2 day Fed Ex shipping. I should have it Monday or Tuesday. Woohooo! Then I get to test out the bad mama-jama that will be my computer. Anyway, this all cost a little more than the 9700, but I feel it's close enough that my system should rock. Lets see, here is a recap: Intell P4 @ 1.5 GHz RDRAM 640MB Radeon 9500 128MB graphics card Soundblaster (low end) sound card (not a primary concern) Windows XP Cable Modem locked to 150KB/second for now (My buddy works for Time Warner and will soon be removing the restrictions on my account.) My ping rates seem fairly decent, the highest I've seen so far was 115, but I don't think that was on my end. So, should I run the Mark3 test before and after? Also, does anyone have a link where I can get a free copy of the Mark3 test? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Aklin Posted March 19, 2003 Author Share Posted March 19, 2003 *bump* Anyway, just to keep you all up to date, I received my parts yesterday and installed them. Prior to this I ran the 3DMark2001 on my comp to see how it tested, 520-530's every time. After the install and with a little setting adjustment, 2325 on the 3DMark2003. Woohooooo! AAO, American Army Online has never run so smooth. I'm loving it. On top of that, it has TV out, which I will play with tonight. 17", 19", 21" displays? I have a 27" TV I can spare for the computer. Also, does anyone have any suggestions for modding it. I prefer soft mods, though I am fully capable with a soldering iron, I am a Cellular Technician after all. I just don't want to play with something like that. I heard something abotu a 9500 to a 9700 soft mod, but I'll have to research it further I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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