Graphics Card?

[Project_Gmax]

Hi
After 3 years and a few problems ( Windows ME  >:( :-/) i have decided that its time to change graphics card. I have a Hercules 3D Prophet 4500 and even though it is a few years old i have to say its still gives good frames. I have all the sliders at max and play at 1152x864 and i get around 9FPS up to 30++.I have been researching and found some good cards but i would like to have some feed back from anyone who has the following cards, or knows of them...

Asus V8170DDR/SE/T/P/128M GeFORCE4 MX440SE 128MB AGP TV-OUT

Sapphire Ati RADEON 9100 128MB DDR TV-OUT+DVI RETAIL

I have chosen these two becasue they both seem good competitors and seem to have good system specs. The added fact that they both have 128MB ram is good (ATi has DDR). Another factor for choosing these two is the price which is just above 100Euros

Feedback or any comments would be really helpful  :D

PG

[congo]

Check out this excellent benchmark comparison.

http://www6.tomshardware.com/graphic/20 ... ts-02.html

For my money, the Gf4 TI4200 64mb cards are worth looking at. As seen in the benchmarks, the 64mb cards are sometimes faster than their 128mb sisters.

This is because they use faster RAMDAC memory chips.
When buying a video card, the graphics processor engine and the speed of the ramdacs on those cards are more important to me than the manufacturer.

I don't see the radeon 9100 in the list, but the difference between the 9000 and the 9000 pro is staggering, so get the right card if you go Radeon.

If you can find a GF4 MX460 or a GF4 TI4200, it will be an improvement over the MX440.

Look around carefully, there is always a cheap 64mb TI4200 lurking somewhere, and don't worry about it not being 128mb, you won't even notice the difference, in fact, it could be faster, try to locate a cheap "special edition" or "overclockers" GF4 TI4200 64mb card with fast RAMDACS.

Good Luck

[Project_Gmax]

Well after a bit more of research and help from the website supplied above i was able to find a graphics card i thnk is perfect  :D .....but....the problem is now, that i have to convince my dad to buy it  :( and i have to upgrade from my 230W power supply to a 300W? i have got a AMD Athlon 1000MHz. I also decided to upgrade my RAM from 384 to 512MB. What else do u reccomend? have i missed any crucial things out?
Below is the specs of the graphics card


Vidio Card SPARKLE GEFORCE4 TI4200

Price:

[congo]

You are on the right track getting a new power supply.

Your RAM upgrade is a good idea but get the video card first. Your system is becoming slightly dated and I wouldn't spend any more money on it. The new video card is going to go into your next computer!

The Sparkle is undoubtably a good graphics card, but that price tag is frightening. Seems like U.K. prices are  inflated when it comes to graphics cards.

I tried to be subtle, but now I'll be blunt. The 128mb GF4 TI4200's are slower than the 64mb versions and cost more. So, they are a bad choice for the budget conscious gamer. They are better for non gaming applications.

Also, 8X AGP is a waste of time in the GF4 chipset because it's not supported properly and your motherboard doesn't have 8X AGP anyway.
You also pay for the privilage of having 8X AGP that doesn't work.

Look for "old stock", a 64mb, 4X AGP model, it will perform better and you might get one at a much reduced price.

Big online stores are the go. They discount the products which are no longer trendy, and this is exactly what you want.

Here are a couple cards to look for........

http://www.gamingillustrated.com/xfx4200.php

http://www.explosivelabs.com/reviews/ga ... 4mb&128mb/

These are very interesting albeit old, links. There is much to learn there. Note the benchmarks carefully for comparisons and you'll see what I'm on about. (you'll see the "next page" links at the bottom of each page)

Happy Shopping

[Project_Gmax]

Man u know a lot of stuff, thanks for the help and now i agree im gonna go for a :
CREATIVE LABS
3D Blaster 4 TI4200 64MB DDR AGP TV DVI
Scheda Video con chip GeForce4 TI4200 AGP 2X 4X NVIDIA;mem. 64Mb DDR a 500Mhz;T&L;uscita TV-VGA-DVI;processore grafico a 256-bit  
at 182 Euros

thats the best offer i was able to find so far...

but i guess thats good
thanks again

PG

[congo]

Ouch! That's US$200! In the US, the TI4200's are US$115. That's 104 euros!

It's the same deal here in Australia, We have to pay AU$275 or US$170. Someone is having a go at us!

I'm a little better off at 153 euros here.

Now be nice to DAD and tell him I said Hi and how important this is to your future as a pilot!