Radeon 9550 any good?

[jimm57]

Hi all,

Im running FS9.1  with Win XP home on an Abit mo-bo, with an Intel P4, 3 gig processor and 1 gig of ram. It seems OK, but was wondering if the ATI Radeon would be OK for a cheap upgrade since it has 128 bit graphics and 256 Meg of RAM. The onboard intel 82865G graphics controller has 96 Meg ram and does OK, but the sim does bog down sometimes. What kind of better resolution would I be seeing with a better board? My flat panel HP L1730 monitor is running maxed out at 1280 x 1024 pixels. Do I really need to buy a $200 video card?

[Sukhoi_37]

If you are going to play at 1280 x 1024, you'll need a better card. The 9550 is quite outdated, although I couldn't see why you couldn't play FS on it. If I were you, I would go for either of these:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814122206

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814131010

If those don't suite the bill, try the 9600XT or 9800 Pro.

[ctjoyce]

The 6800XTs are only about $180. Look at one of those.

Cheers
Cameron

[Sukhoi_37]

The 6800XTs are only about $180. Look at one of those.

Cheers
Cameron

Actually, they are more like $147.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814150157
That one is pre overclocked.

[ctjoyce]

Would you look at that. Yes anyway, buy that. Quite the little card, for pocket change.

Cheers
Cameron

[jimm57]

OK, Thanks for the good info. Went out today and bought the XFX 6800 at a local place for $140. Wow, nice card, very impressed. My frame rate is way up and so are all the effects and details. The big heavys fly much more smoother too, not choppy as before. My spitfires zip smoothly as they should too!  :D Thanks for the replys and help. Just what I expected from this great board!

Jim

[congo]

Nice choice. Enjoy!  :D