Hi team,I'm currently running an Nvidia GeForce FX5200 which gives me good frames in the 2D cockpit but stuttery frames in the VC. See my signature for other specs.Can anyone offer a suggestion for a good graphics card upgrade? I'm aware that video card isn't the main consideration in FS but my current card isn't exactly A-grade so I'd hope for SOME improvement.Besides, when I'm not flying, a game like Doom 3 or Battlefield Vietnam runs poorly on my current card.My budget is about $300 NZD or $135USD odd.Current contenders that I've looked at are:ATI Radeon 9600 XT NVidia GeForce 4 FX 5700 UltraWhat chipset (?) is best for FS? Radeon or GeForce?Any advice appreciated.

I have a Radeon 9800 Pro and has been satisfied with this. If it's an issue for you the ATI Radeon chards are making less noise than the GeForce chards.CheersLars

I used a 5700 but have now moved to a 6800GT. They're good cards BUT I'd urge a little caution. Now I'm no expert by any means but be careful you don't get a card and find the CPU won't deliver enough grunt to feed it! FS9 + PMDG eat resources. My own experience was that upgrading the processing power had more effect than upgrading the video card though it clearly depends on what environment you want. The VC will give you a huge hit in terms of performance. Many people seem to run the 2d cockpit and have smooth and full performance. Even with my current setup I still keep with 2d cockpit. Suffice to say I think you'll have poor frame rates after changing the card. The people with all the sliders up, 1600 x whatever resolution, full traffic, VC have serious processing power and still end up with sub 20 frames at reasonably sized airports. Personally I put great store on smoothness so I'm looking to trade off some quality to get 18 frames plus wherever I can.I'm sure that there are many more qualified to give you a more evidence based opinion! Have a look at 3dguru - there's rather a lot of info there.Now AMD64 3000+ on a K8tNEO, 1gb and XFX 6800GT - both overclocked and I still can't get enough frames if I crank the lot up!Good luck.

Go the 9600XT :)

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