PCI Express vs. AGP?

[Mace 1,927]

Forgive me if I am asking something that's been asked. :)I've been out of the FS and hardware scene for quite a while, but some of you old fs guys from the 90's may remember me. :)I saw this review of gfx cards with FS2004:http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/dis...-27gpu2_26.htmlAnd from their test results, it looks like the AGP cards OUTPERFORM the PCI-Express cards in FS. Am I correct in this interpretation of the results?Thanks for any insight...Rhett KCGI

[John_Tavendale 453]

If you look at their test setup the AGP system is built using an AMD 64 4000+ where the PCI-E is using a Intel P4 3.6Ghz CPU.The AMD as far as gaming goes performs a little better than the Intel. This is one factor to consider when looking at the difference in frame rates. The difference in the higher end cards really isn't that big either.. 4-6 FPS.AGP is a dying technology, new cards won't be supporting AGP. So if you're building and looking to upgrade in the future, you're better off going with a PCI-E

[Reset XPDR 1,271]

PCI Express theoretically offers greater performance than AGP, but practically they perform about the same. If you are building a new system, go PCI-E because all new high performance cards that I have seen only support this interface. AGP is dying, but if your existing system is AGP and it ain't broke, don't fix it!Gary

[Mace 1,927]

>PCI Express theoretically offers greater performance than>AGP, but practically they perform about the same. If you are>building a new system, go PCI-E because all new high>performance cards that I have seen only support this>interface. AGP is dying, but if your existing system is AGP>and it ain't broke, don't fix it!>>GaryYes, thx for the heads-up..Well it ain't broke, but it's dated. My current rig is over 3 years old. It was built for FS back then and still works ok today so I must have done something right when I built it. It's a P4 1.8, 512 ram, Asus P4T-E, 40 gb IBM HD, and a 64 mb nVidia GeForce3 Ti200 (AGP)...it's all very old stuff now.

[Mace 1,927]

>AGP is a dying technology, new cards won't be supporting AGP.>So if you're building and looking to upgrade in the future,>you're better off going with a PCI-EGood info. I have been out-of-the-FS loop for so long, it used to be that nVidia cards were the preferred choice. Now it seems like all the talk is about ATI cards. Has ATI really become the vid chipset of choice for FS?

[John_Tavendale 453]

>Good info. I have been out-of-the-FS loop for so long, it>used to be that nVidia cards were the preferred choice. Now>it seems like all the talk is about ATI cards. Has ATI really>become the vid chipset of choice for FS?In *my* personal experience I have found the Image Quality to be better with an ATI card in flightsim. I did have a nVidia 6800GT when they first came out and I wasn't exactly impressed with the IQ. I changed to an X800 Pro and was far more happy.You will also find a number of people singing nVidia's praise too.My last nVidia card was a Ti4600, then I moved a 9800 Pro, X800 Pro and now the new X1800XT and couldn't be happier. Guess you could say I am an an ATI 'fanboi' :-hah

[Mace 1,927]

Hmm. Well if you're a self-described "a really excited user" of ATI (haha) then I'll take your statements re: ATI with a grain of salt. :)I for one have never built a system in the last 6 years with an ATI card, but I am open-minded, if ATI's are the best all-around with FS at this point in time, then by all means I will get an ATI card.Maybe this X1800XT you describe.Rhett

[Cee-Jaay 0]

Hi there,I agree that AGP support is going to fall away soon, but if you have a card and a system that does the business it shouldn't matter.Last month I switched from AGP to PCI. Reviews I had seen put the 7800gt 'marginally ahead of the ATI equivalent, but those tests weren't FS-specific.I was an ATI fan, having gone from the 8500 to 9800pro.If the next version of FS supports dual graphics cards, you could slot another in alongside.Cheer,C.j.MSI K8N DiamondAMD64 3200+ CPU2*512Mb Corsair xpertXFX GeForce 7800gt GPUHitachi Deskstar+Raptor SATA HDsSamsung 19" 193 LCD