Graphics Card Choice

[Ivynoxia]

Currently using a GeForce2 MX 32mb one.. really really crap but it still works reliably. But I am having some lag in ToA, especially with 2 clients up, so i'm thinking of a cheap-mid range upgrade.

Which one would you get and why?

I am thinking along these cards..
GeForce Ti4200, very cheap ~40 quid and good performance/£.
GeForce 5600, ~80 quid, dx9 and new fancy stuff i think toa's new engine has some dx9..
ATI 9600xt ~110 quid I am not sure about ATI since i've never had one. But i know there's a thread in this forum on problems with ATi9600xt and toa. It has the best performance. but i dont want to spend that much tbh (and knowing it has problems)

One thing i want to know is does anyone run daoc with Anisoscopic or antialiasing?

Edit: I have a AMD 2500+ (oc'd to 2800+), 1gig Corsair XMS CL2 ram. Maxtor 80gig hd (filled up :/)

 

[oblimov]

i used to have a ti4200 and it was really really good for the money, it ran SI and two clients and things like that amazingly on my old 2000xp

Now ive got a ti 4800 256mb with a XP2800 and it runs bloody amazing, if u run 2 clients of toa mind u you will get a wee bit of latency no matter what as it appears that the memory management of toa is a lot worse than the previous versions of daoc

my advice would be to get a 4200 as theyre dirt cheap now and still offer a good punch

if youve got more cash to spend i would try and get an odd number FX card such as the FX5900 which is possibly one of the bext directx9 cards out there, it outperforms the radeons currently (in the tests ive seen)

however a fx5900 is a bit priecy but you might be able to track one down for about 150 quid

<edit> fx5600 im sure they are just shitty versions of the MX btw so best to avoid, if i remember anything thats an even number is cack on FX</edit>

 

[Ivynoxia]

I'll look around for a cheap 4800 first and if i dont i'll get a 4200

 

[plomien]

i have a radeon 9800 all in wonder that i picked up for £150 the link is around here somewhere.......

found it the price has gone up but they have others there
http://www.evesham.com/Products/Info.asp?e=E10439D2-771E-468C-A336-A8C6A10AB3DE

 

[oblimov]

is the SE not on overclocked version of some lower card if i rememeber?

 

[Musashi]

Running DAOC/ToA with 4x AntiAliasing and 2x Anisotropic using 1024x768 resolution.
My graphics card is a Radeon 9600 128Mb, i have all eyecandy on except for shadows which are set to self only.

Hardly any permance issues, not even in the zergy situations except for swapping lag from having only 512MB ram (must remember to get more) and daoc eating upto 800Mb at times

 

[Sycho]

Geforce 4 titaniums are lovely cards, if you get a fx one get 5950(top of range but pricey :/).

I recommend the ti4200-4600 models though, low cost now and work very nicely still and drivers never have problems hardly.

 

[Damon_D]

Maybe look around for the FX5700

 

[Ssera]

Maybe look around for the FX5700

just bought one this weekend (with 256megs of ram) and really really like it.

Ofc it could also be due to the fact that I've gone from an Athlon 1.4 with 512mb ram to a P4 2.8 with hyperthreading and 1gig ram..

 

[Ivynoxia]

1 gig ram definately helps a lot with this game. well, my pockets arn't deep, I wont be going for top end cards. Ti4800 128mb if i can find one cheap 128 or 256 video mem ? anyone know performance difference?

 

[SeeN]

I have a Radeon 9600pro and have had problems with it in DAOC from day one.

Graphics is simply green! Everything has a disgusting green glow to it that makes the game look terrible. I only have this problem in DAOC and shop says there is nothing wrong with the card, it is problem in DAOC...

 

[Nalistah]

Radeon 9800pro.. i use it, and its wtfpwn-uber

 

[cHodAX]

I have a Radeon 9600pro and have had problems with it in DAOC from day one.

Graphics is simply green! Everything has a disgusting green glow to it that makes the game look terrible. I only have this problem in DAOC and shop says there is nothing wrong with the card, it is problem in DAOC...

The problem is a combination of changes in the engine due to ToA and the way ATi's catalyst drivers work. I have a 9600XT and it works fine with the Cat 3.10 driver. Your best bet is to download different versions of the Cat drivers until you find one that works, once you find one you will see that the performance is superb in ToA.

Try here ;

http://www.3dchipset.com/drivers/index.php

 

[Conchabar]

if youve got more cash to spend i would try and get an odd number FX card such as the FX5900 which is possibly one of the bext directx9 cards out there, it outperforms the radeons currently (in the tests ive seen)

i thought radeon 9800 > all

 

[Krait]

Radeon 9800pro.. i use it, and its wtfpwn-uber

Got to agree there,especially with some over-clocking and the latest drivers make it rock steady too..........it's also falling in price as well.

 

[Boobz]

i thought radeon 9800 > all

It does


I have a 9800pro. Looks great, runs smooth and is stable too.

 

[Cruhar]

Time for me to ask too...

Im buying a new PC this upcoming week and Im not much of a GFX-nerd compared to .. well ... <cough>

What I want to know, which GFX card should I get and with what CPU?

GFX:
1) ATI 9200 128mb ram
2) ATI 9600 256mb ram
3) GeForce 5200 128mb ram

CPU:
4) P4 3000
5) Athlon 3000+
6) Athlon 2800+

Obviously the 'ATI9600+ P4 CPU' is the most expensive combo, and thats around £200 more than the cheapest combo 'GeForce+AMD2800'

But just because its more expensive doesnt make it better...

Will use it mainly for DAoC

best choise would be?
1)
P4 3 GHZ
512 MB RAM DDR
160 GB HARD DISK (7200 RPM)
256 MB ATI RADEON 9600
Price: £799.90

2)
ATHLON 3000+
512 MB DDR RAM
120 GB HARD DISK
128 MB ATI R9200
Price: £799.90

3)
ATHLON(TM) 3000+ XP
512 MB DDR RAM (PC333)
160 GB HARD DISK
128 MB GeForce(TM) FX 5200
Price: £699.90

4)
ATHLON XP 2800+
512 MB DDR RAM
120 GB HARD DISK (7200 RPM)
128 MB GeForce FX 5200
Price: £599.90

The money isnt the problem, but no point paying the spare £200 which will be use along with some more cash for a bigger Telly with Surround Sound

 

[cHodAX]

Those prices are lousy, no way should any P4 system be the same price as an AMD and have a better graphics card.

 

[cHodAX]

You can get an xp2800 system with a radeon 9600xt, 512mb 400mhz ram and 160gb hard drive for around the £500 mark. If you want a nicer case or more memory then just add on a little more. Don't get hosed on those pre-built systems with un-named motherboards that give you no upgrade options.

<stupid editing time limit>

 

[Boni]

Geforce 4 titaniums are lovely cards, if you get a fx one get 5950(top of range but pricey :/).

I recommend the ti4200-4600 models though, low cost now and work very nicely still and drivers never have problems hardly.

Agree, there may be better cards out there, but driver stability is a big issue which is why ive stuck with the ti range.

 

[Dekker]

For gfx card get a Gainward Golden sample Geforce 5700 ultra, prolly pick one up for £120, they are the best mid-range card out.

As for the system, if you fancy a bit of a challenge then buy an unlocked 2500xp barton core from ebay, overclock it to 3200xp with 400 FSB, just make sure you got reasonable cooling. I built my system based around this and it runs like a dream, no problems or crashes whatsoever. Just cant remember the name of the guy who was selling the cpu's but I paid about £50 for mine