ATi or Nvidia - need help deciding

[Beamish417]

Getting ready to upgrade me and my girlfriends video cards this weekend and in an effort to avoid the ever so popular 15% restocking fees I was wondering which drivers are less botched up on Windows 7 64-bit at present?

We both have 9600 GT's (G94) at the moment but I'm leaning towards ATI since we just upgraded our motherboards and it has the 780G chipset. No intrest in hybrid crossfire, just vaguely remember hearing nvidia and ATi don't mesh well together. Not rulling out Nvidia all together on that alone though.

The 9600GT's we have are both 512 DDR3 with cheap stock reference coolers. From what I heard it's better to have a higher amount (1GB) of slower (DDR2) memory with larger monitors than less (512mb) of faster (DDR3) memory. Is this true?

Here's the two cards Im looking at,

SPARKLE Calibre Series 9600GT:
Newegg.com - SPARKLE Calibre Series P960GGBOX GeForce 9600 GT 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

MSI Radeon HD 4850:
Newegg.com - MSI R4850-T2D512 Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

 

[noel55]

i would recommend ati

 

[splxtreme]

Nvidia

I would say, what ever you can get the best deal on. I personally like Nvidia. I have used ATI in the past, and didn't have the best of luck with them. Nvidia is probably the best option for the money. The card I'm currently using, is the 8800 GTS 512 G92. It works really well, and should be a good price now. If you are looking for the best, get the GTX295

 

[Beamish417]

If you are looking for the best, get the GTX295

Maybe if I was single Buying everything two at a time gets expensive quick. Hoping to stay in the 150-200 dollar range (per card). My main concern is sticking an Nvidia card ontop of the ATi chipset and the driver compatibility with Win7. After reading through the forums some more last night they both seem to have their equal share of problems.

 

[skunksmash]

Getting ready to upgrade me and my girlfriends video cards this weekend and in an effort to avoid the ever so popular 15% restocking fees I was wondering which drivers are less botched up on Windows 7 64-bit at present?

i have suffered 0 compatibility issues with nvidia drivers on x64 W7000, i cant speak to the ATI drivers as i ''personally'' have no experience, just what i hear......it goes with out saying nvidia's drivers are more stable, ATI do have issues with certain component configs, but they have a new driver out i currently know nothing about...

We both have 9600 GT's (G94) at the moment but I'm leaning towards ATI since we just upgraded our motherboards and it has the 780G chipset. No intrest in hybrid crossfire, just vaguely remember hearing nvidia and ATi don't mesh well together. Not rulling out Nvidia all together on that alone though.

The 9600GT's we have are both 512 DDR3 with cheap stock reference coolers. From what I heard it's better to have a higher amount (1GB) of slower (DDR2) memory with larger monitors than less (512mb) of faster (DDR3) memory. Is this true?

well you'll struggle to find any GFX card with DDR2 now days.....

im not really sure what your saying here....but more RAM is beneficial to a higher resolution, (bus width permitting)

Here's the two cards Im looking at,

SPARKLE Calibre Series 9600GT:
Newegg.com - SPARKLE Calibre Series P960GGBOX GeForce 9600 GT 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

MSI Radeon HD 4850:
Newegg.com - MSI R4850-T2D512 Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

well, the 4850 is the faster of the 2, the 1gb version of the 9600GT is a gimmick, the 256bit bus width limits ''useable'' access to 512mb, it shows NO gains over its little brother... save the cash


if your working with 1680x1050 or above i would recommend at least a 9800GT, this is more comparable to the 4850..

im a nvidia fanboy so i dont want to just preach about ''team green''

if someone chucked the 4850 & the 9800GT on a table & said ''choose'' i'd probably take the 4850, given that its slightly faster than the 9800 & i have a CFX mobo....

but don't let your motherboard capability be the only deciding factor, i have a CFX board & all my nvidia cards have run flawlessly.....





SK

 

[Beamish417]

Thanks that was just the info I was looking for. Sorry if that question wasn't clear about the size vs speed, was falling asleep when I posted the thread, you got the gist of what I was trying to ask though.. is 1Gb DDR2 better than 512MB DDR3 for larger resolutions?

I was curious because last time I was in Bestbuy the salesman tried to sell me this BFG 9500GT 1GB DDR2 claiming more DDR2 was better than less DDR3. Never trusting a salesman I didn't buy it.

Found this while I was grabbing the link above, think I may just get a couple of these and be done with it. BFG 9800GT OC 1GB GDDR3

 

[skunksmash]

Thanks that was just the info I was looking for. Sorry if that question wasn't clear about the size vs speed, was falling asleep when I posted the thread, you got the gist of what I was trying to ask though.. is 1Gb DDR2 better than 512MB DDR3 for larger resolutions?

I was curious because last time I was in Bestbuy the salesman tried to sell me this BFG 9500GT 1GB DDR2 claiming more DDR2 was better than less DDR3. Never trusting a salesman I didn't buy it.

Found this while I was grabbing the link above, think I may just get a couple of these and be done with it. BFG 9800GT OC 1GB GDDR3

again the 9800GT with 1gb of VRAM is pointless, just grab the 512mb version

the G92 or G94 with 1gb of RAM was just a pointless refresh for nvidia, im sure they just had buckets of RAM ICs lying around & thought they'd produce another card :sarc:

the 9800s are super cards though...... they will still get close to MAX settings on most games @ 1680x1050.... & there's a plethora of drivers for them...

oh & the 9500GT is a POS you should march back down there & abuse him for trying to offer you that over a 9600GT...lol





SK

 

[Beamish417]

again the 9800GT with 1gb of VRAM is pointless, just grab the 512mb version

the G92 or G94 with 1gb of RAM was just a pointless refresh for nvidia, im sure they just had buckets of RAM ICs lying around & thought they'd produce another card :sarc:

the 9800s are super cards though...... they will still get close to MAX settings on most games @ 1680x1050.... & there's a plethora of drivers for them...

oh & the 9500GT is a POS you should march back down there & abuse him for trying to offer you that over a 9600GT...lol





SK

Sadly that's the only 9800GT they have, they do have 512mb 9800 GTX+ for $220 or a 9600 GSO for $99, everything else in my price range isn't in stock, no Ati cards either except for the 4870 X2 for $550.

Meh, not going to let bestbuy suck me in, I can wait a week on shipping for a better deal. This one looks perfect.
XFX HD 4850 512MB

 

[skunksmash]

Sadly that's the only 9800GT they have, they do have 512mb 9800 GTX+ for $220 or a 9600 GSO for $99, everything else in my price range isn't in stock, no Ati cards either except for the 4870 X2 for $550.

Meh, not going to let bestbuy suck me in, I can wait a week on shipping for a better deal. This one looks perfect.
XFX HD 4850 512MB

great choice..... XFX have recently taken on ATI cards to everyone's delight, they're a GREAT company, & its got a lovely non reference dual slot cooler to keep the temps down...


enjoy the cards...



SK

 

[Ex_Brit]

I switched from ATI some time ago because I was having endless problems with their drivers and now I'm having similar problems with nVidia. Are you saying ATI/AMD is now better?

 

[skunksmash]

I switched from ATI some time ago because I was having endless problems with their drivers and now I'm having similar problems with nVidia. Are you saying ATI/AMD is now better?

well there's certainly a lot less horror stories, im sure their drivers have improved a great deal since the release of the 4000 series.....

the problem i always find with ATI is not the H/W itself, (they produce powerful cards) its the fact they only tweak issues with compatibility once evry few months, whereas nvidia will release a whole new driver for any little niggle they find, which is the reason there are LESS horror stories from nvidia

everyone's rig is different, & all work at different frequencies & have different components, with a lac of drivers your forced to keep backtracking till you find one that works.....& in ATI's case every time you backtrack its a couple of months each time...

don't get me wrong many ppl have 0 issue with compatibility, its just the luck of the draw im afraid...



SK

 

[Ex_Brit]

Well my rig is getting rather old in the tooth, like myself, but unlike myself, it can be replaced and I will most likely go for the rig that gives me the biggest bang for my buck - whatever combination of parts it has.

 

[Beamish417]

don't get me wrong many ppl have 0 issue with compatibility, its just the luck of the draw im afraid...

I've only owned one ATi card, it was a Connect3D X800 GTO, this was some time ago, it would never post with my 6150 chipset mobtherboard, sold it to a friend with a VIA chipset and it worked fine for him. This is what led to one of my original concerns about nvidia and ati not playing well together.

 

[skunksmash]

I've only owned one ATi card, it was a Connect3D X800 GTO, this was some time ago, it would never post with my 6150 chipset mobtherboard, sold it to a friend with a VIA chipset and it worked fine for him. This is what led to one of my original concerns about nvidia and ati not playing well together.

the 6150 chipset & the X800GTO are both pretty old components , those sort of problems will have been nulled out for a long time now....

(i have a powercolor X800GTO, WHAT A GREAT CARD!!)




SK

 

[Beamish417]

My friend seemed to like it but he had been using the onboard chrome IGP Think I messed with it for about a week trying to get it to post before selling it to him and getting a 8600 GT. Using the 6150 during that time was...unpleasant.

The local pc shops are getting ready to open, think I'll call around and see what they have before I grab that XFX.

Can't seem to pull up any sites to check since according to google every site atm "will harm your computer". :huh:

 

[Beamish417]

One last thing, almost forgot to mention my PSU.

TR2 RX 450W PSU W0146RU

What's the limit, as far as GPU's, that this power supply could handle? Contemplating just getting a couple 260 GTX's, one this week one a bit later, but would hate to find out I'd need to upgrade the PSU along with it.

Think I'd be ok with the 9800/4850 in regards to having enough power on the 12v rail, but what about a 260?

 

[Firestrider]

I'm currently using a HD 4850 1GB from Gigabyte: GIGABYTE - Product - Graphics Accelerator - Overview - GV-R485MC-1GH, and haven't had any problems what-so-ever. It's a great bang for buck card, and after putting a 80mm fan on it my temps haven't gone past 60*C full load. Most of the complaints I've heard are coming from crossfire configurations with more than 4 GB of RAM on Vista x64.

If you go decide to go with Nvidia I would get one with a 55 nm core such as the GTX260-216 or 9800GTX+

Also that power supply might not be able to run your configuration. I would recommend at least a 550W PSU from Corsair, FSP, PCP&C, Antec, or Silverstone.

I'm already pushing my 460W Forton Blue Storm with my setup.

 

[Beamish417]

Well after fighting traffic all day Here's what I found.

One store had a Sapphire 4850 512mb for $220
another had a XFX 9800 GT 512mb and a ASUS (silent) for $200
the rest had really old cards still priced like they were still new.

Bestbuy had a worse selection than what was on their site, no ati cards what so ever. They had a 9800 GTX+ on the website for $200 but none in stock that I could see.

I ended up getting a couple PNY 9800 GT's for $200 while I was there and according to Everest it's also a 55nm G92 core.



Don't see the card on bestbuys site but heres the old newegg link..
PNY VCG981024GXEB 9800GT 1GB 256-bit GDDR3

 

[skunksmash]

nice cards...... i was not aware the 9800''GT'' was manufactured with a 55nm G92..??
i thought the 9800''GTX+'' was where the die shrink began....hmm learn something new every day

they should OC pretty well.....
that PSU should be fine with the 9800, that's about as much as it will take though...... it wouldn't of ran a GTX260 i don't think...



SK

 

[Beamish417]

Well looks like the PSU isnt up to the job. Seeing the normal warning signs, lower FPS, games crashing, graphical anomilies, etc.

Here's the output table for the W0146RU:

The girlfriend is againt taking back the cards and paying the restocking fees on $430 so I'll be heading back to Bestbuy to pick up a couple new PSU's.

Was looking at the Antec EarthWatts 500 but after a little research there appears to be two versions of it, one has Dual +12v @22A the other one has Dual +12v @17A, not sure which one they have a BB betting its the 17A.

They also have this one but I can't find ANY info on it whatsoever, it's not even listed on the BFG site:
BFG - 550-Watt ATX Modular Power Supply