Hi AllI asked the following question at comp-usa.I have an Asus P4PE which has a 4x AGP. Will the 9800 pro work and if so, how much would really be lost without an 8X AGP slot? He could not answer so decided to try you guys. Also is the 256mb version worth the price? Also, there are a number of manufacturers using the ATI chip. Any advice on a manufacturer?Talk to you soonBob G

ok you have come to the right place. 9800 Pro is the best choice for high end gaming right now, it OWNS nvidia crap. anyways, i have the P4PE and you will notice NO difference between 4x and 8x because current games dont even use all of the bandwidth available for 4x so there is no noticable difference. but for FS2004 you might notice a difference depending on how big the textures are that will be going from your HD through the NB and to the video card, so i reccomend for future proofing, get AGP8x, but for current games your P4PE is fine. now, for manufacturers, buy the Hercules 3d Prophet 9800 Pro, it sports these neat little copper ramsinks, now if you have the extra money by all means BUY THE 9800 PRO 256MB version!!! GO FOR IT! you wont be sorry either. i have a picture of it on my school binder as a matter of fact :-)

Wow.. thanks for the input. I knew it was a good board but no experience with the details. Thanks again and I will keep my eye out for the hercules. I had heard before that hercules made a great board. The last hercules board I bought was a monochrome board about 14 years ago (showing my age). Anyways, thanks so much for your input it is really appreciated. By the way, going to the 256 mb board.. any improvement to be had there for fs2002? Well I guess I will have to call you Mr. British Airways eh? -:)RegardsBobG

Bob,You can't go wrong w the 9800Pro. I love mine. As far as the 256 Meg version goes, yes it would be wise, if you have the money to spring for it. Will provide for faster texture loads as well as allow you to run future Games (ie Doom3) at extremely smooth framerates.As far as manufacturers go, it's really not neccesary to spend the money on the hercules card when a retail ATI board will provide the same numbers. Yes the Herc board will overclock farther usually although my Retail ATI 9700 ran all day at 400/371 w just Mem sinks and a HS upgrade.Also, the new 5900 from Nvidia is also a very good board contrary to some peoples comments about Nvidia Crap..LoL. Will run neck and neck w the 9800 although w a lesser degree of Image quality.Bobby

Thanks Again BobbyGoing to do it pretty soon. Take care and happy frames.BobG