Help with Graphic Cards: What to Choose?

[Guest andreikwan]

RIGHT NOW THIS ARE MY SPECIFICATION:Intel® Core DUO E6850 @ 3.00GHz4Gb RAM160Gb + 160Gb Hard DriveCurrent Graphic Card: NVIDIA GeForce 7300GTWindows Vista SP1 32bitFS2004 with UpdateI feel that my graphic cards' performance is no good. The distant scenery seemed to be showed in blocks.What best graphic card should I buy? any suggestions?Thanks in advance for the reply

[Guest D17S]

Anything beyond an 8800GT will is not useful in FS. However Crysis is a whole 'nther story. The GTX260 is the one to get for that. $125 buys the 88 and $250 gets the 260 . . . and they're going lower.You Will benefit with that 8800GT. The 260 is for other games.

[jackcnd 0]

The 8800GT is a nice value card, just note its single slot fan can be on the loud side, and its performance can fall off with AA/AF turned up at 1900x1200 and above. Consider looking for a used 8800GTX / or Ultra too,if you have room in the case for it and the price is right. For FSX and more, the new GTX280 and GTX260 are nice, again both big cards so check for fit :)

[Guest D17S]

Running at 1920x1080 (1080p) there is no difference in performance between the GTX260 and the 8800GT (8xAA 16xAF). The 260 is = or > the 8800GTX/Ultra in every metric. I'm currently running the 260. I was hopeful, but the 260 is going back.

[Guest Jeffhew]

The biggest problem with the GT, IMHO, is not so much the noise but the fact that the fan blows down into the case. This could be an issue if you don't have good cooling. These cards can run pretty hot. The card I have, the newer 8800 GTS(512 MB) version, doesn't cost much more than its' younger sibling and performs flawlessly for me, thus far. It is a dual slot card which expels the heat out the back of the case. I run two monitors, a 24" widescreen @ 19x12 and a 17" @ 12x10. The GTS handles them both with no complaints. Because of the improved design over the older 8xxx series cards, It performs on par with the 8800 GTX and isn't much slower than the ultra expensive Ultra. I think the 8800 GTS is the sweet spot for graphics right now from a price/performance standpoint.Best Regards, Jeff

[Guest D17S]

I'm seeing that GTX260 at $225 these days. That's something to consider too. But be advised, it disables vista's sleep function and will disable any second non-SLI Vcard. I'm staring at 2 blank monitors. FS performance is the same, so the GTX is going back and the 8800GT is coming back. Agreed though, about the 8800GTS. I haven't had the side cover on my box in years so trapped heat is not an issue for me. That 55nm 9800GTX is about the same, but will clock higher. That's a consideration too.