Graphics Card Recommendations?

l'm looking for a decent performance card, ...use for internet, photo editing, maybe HD video, etc... need HDMI out... i've had nvidia products so far, ..don't know much about ATI Radeon chipsets..

card is for a PCI-e x16 slot.. my current card is a geforce 9800GT

what do you guys think?

geforce GT 430 ?? heard of cooling problems w/ thermal paste?
geforce GT 440 ??

radeon HD 6660 ??
radeon HD 6750 ??

nvidia vs. ati radeon, ... reliability, driver issues?

 

*snicker

 

I would say Nvidia all the way. They are usually leading the way when it comes to new tech. As far as which card, I haven't been in the loop of it lately so i can't really comment.

 

i knew this thread would be like chumming the waters...

what can i say, i'm a cheapskate...

 

If you're not a hardcore computer gamer go with the GT 430.

 

yep, i've been using nvidia for a long time now, ..been through a couple cards,.. one failed on me... one thing is getting their drivers installed seems like a PITA nowadays... curious if the radeon cards have friendlier drivers/reliability...

 

Go ATI 6770 (cheaper) or GTX 460

I recently went from the 8800GT to the 6770 and love it.

 

I used to be a huge ATI fan, but then I feel in love with Nvidia. I prefer Nvidia cause it's way easier to tweak the cards performance wise (IMO).

Get a GTX460 and overclock it. It'll run like a 560 and you'll save some cash. I'm currently doing this in my laptop that I'm using right now and I have ZERO stability issues. Actually I think I'm running it faster than a 560 to be honest.

A good secondary maker of Nvidia cards is EVGA. If you get one of theirs you will not be disappointed. I have twin 8800 GTS's in my desktop. Runs everything like Buh-tah!

 

I was all Nvidia ... until they screwed the pooch on DirectX 11 and the 300 series chips. Plus I had a Nvidia chip in a laptop go out on me prematurely & I didn't like how they handled it. Lost my support. Personally I think ATI is much better now that they are owned by chipmaker AMD. Currently run an ATI 5870 which has been churning along nicely coming up on 3 years now without incident. Still a great card.

 

ati drivers pretty stable?... any compatibility issues w/ flash, web browsers, etc?.. seems nvidia has been problematic w/ some of these, i try to keep drivers updated every 3-6 mo., but seems like the newer batches of nvidia drivers suck..

 

No problems. I'm not an early adopter though. Stability matters more than cutting edge.

 

i'm not a hard core gamer, ..really don't play any games...

gtx series = over my budget

i think i'm looking for single-slot...

what do you guys think of this one, ..also any opinions on Zotac
http://www.zotacusa.com/eco-geforce-gts-450-zt-40508-10l.html

 

What's wrong with your 9800GT right now? There are simple adapters that will convert DVI to HDMI.

Zotac is a brand of PCPartner, a large board mfr in Hong Kong. Its ATi cards are branded as Sapphire, which you may have come across in listings. Zotac is "good enough".

ATi's driver control panel (called Catalyst Control Center) runs on .NET Framework and is slow as shit. (i.e. you click on a checkbox to change a setting, and the interface takes 2-3 seconds to update)

 

the 9800 GT is pretty good i think (2-3yrs old?), ...but i need something w/ HDMI out, so i can pipe audio up to my monitor over HDMI.. i guess i could get one of those converters but for like $50+, the cost of a converter, i figure might as well get a new card?? plus i think w/ HDMI 1.4 you can get up to 7.1 digital audio, whereas you're putting 2ch. stereo into a converter...?

 

I put the Sapphire Radeon 6850, which can be had for less than $150, in my last system build. This is an an excellent card and is one of the "best bangs for the buck" out there.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102908

 

what do you guys thing of this?
sapphire flex hd 6770

http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentation/product/?cid=1&gid=3&sgid=1073&pid=1194&psn=&lid=1&leg=0#

says you can run 3 simulatenous monitors w/out the "eyefinitiy" thing... i just have Windows XP MCE, do you think this would work ok? i may run a 3 monitor setup like this in the future (Left: monitor Middle: LCDTV monitor Right: monitor)

 

the best card you can get without upgrading your power supply would be an ATI Radeon HD 5770.

 

i have a corsair HX650 (650W PSU). will that be enough for the HD 6770?

 

nvm i was talking like a stock 450W power supply

 

ok, so now i'm not sure the radeon is the way to go, ...seems that the "eyefinity" thing for multiple monitors won't work w/ Win XP... so, i'm not confident the sapphire flex would work either...

now, leaning toward this: back to nvidia, ..but this one says it supports 3 monitors (which i think is good planning ahead) on one GPU. i may just have to increase my budget a little

http://www.zotacusa.com/geforce-gtx-550-ti-multiview-zt-50403-10l.html