eber Posted March 12, 2005 Share Posted March 12, 2005 Hi everyone. I currently have a GeFore MX400 64 MB card and it suited me find but it's beginning to lag and become choppy with MVP Baseball 2005 unless are turn everything down to its lowest quality. I only play Madden and MVP (or whatever baseball game will come out next year), and may occasionally (very rarely) dabble into first person shooters--but I guess I've never wanted to play them since my current video card limits me playing them in the first place. Can anyone recommend a good card suited for those games? My budget is less than $100 and I'd like to spend as little as possible. I've seen cards like the GeFore FX5500 256 MB that go for ~$80 from buy.com but that seems a little overkill for those games--if anything I'd want something ~$50. Also, I've read on these forums that some people with ATi cards have been having problems running the game smoothly, so I'd like that to be kept in mind. Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eber Posted March 12, 2005 Author Share Posted March 12, 2005 After asking around a bit, I've was recommended a ATi Radeon 9550 128-bit for ~$70. Anyone have problems with this card? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edm Posted March 12, 2005 Share Posted March 12, 2005 that's a fairly tight budget for a gaming card, but if that's all you can get I can understand. You can find the 9600 for $81 at newegg. And if there's any way you can up your budget to around $120 you can get a nvidia 6600. Which performs about 2x better than that card. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmats100 Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc....-408&depa=1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldensuitcase Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 What about for PCI? I'm looking into getting one for around $200. What would you people suggest? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mdchap Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 PCI 6600 GT $200.00 Newegg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldensuitcase Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 Why that one over all the rest? What is the main thing I should be looking for when buying a video card? What are the qualities I should want it to have? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edm Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 PCI or PCI-e? there's a big difference. If you need a PCI card, the 6600GT won't work because it's is PCI-e (not PCI). It's a bit dated, but the best card that supports PCI is probably the Nvidia 5200. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eber Posted March 13, 2005 Author Share Posted March 13, 2005 My budget is tight for a gaming card since I really don't play games too much (only Madden and MVP). Also, my CPU is only a XP1600+ so any awesome card would really be overkill. I don't plan on upgrading my CPU or RAM (512 MB) anytime soon since it runs everything else well (except for MVP with my lowly MX440). Now since you know my system specs, does that change any recommendations? Thanks for the help guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldensuitcase Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 I have a basic video card that comes with my computer, a Dell 2400 Dimension. It's almost 3 ghz, has 512 MB and an 80GB hard drive. So what card do I need to make my players not look so white and where I am actually able to enjoy what I look at like most of you do? A regular PCI card under $200. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moser316 Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 [shameless plug]I'm selling a nVidia GeForce 6600 on eBay right now (because my computer doesn't have a PCI-Express slot on my motherboard) if anybody's interested[/shameless plug] My brother ended up getting a GeForce FX 5500 card for his computer, and suggested I do the same. I got mine earlier this week, and it'll give you a lot of bang for the buck. It also helped that he works for a certain electronics store chain (which will remain nameless) and got me $50 off on it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edm Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 My budget is tight for a gaming card since I really don't play games too much (only Madden and MVP). Also, my CPU is only a XP1600+ so any awesome card would really be overkill. I don't plan on upgrading my CPU or RAM (512 MB) anytime soon since it runs everything else well (except for MVP with my lowly MX440). Now since you know my system specs, does that change any recommendations? Thanks for the help guys. either this 9600 or the 9600pro posted above by rmats would be good choices for you. http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc....-305&depa=1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAM Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 My budget is tight for a gaming card since I really don't play games too much (only Madden and MVP). Also, my CPU is only a XP1600+ so any awesome card would really be overkill. I don't plan on upgrading my CPU or RAM (512 MB) anytime soon since it runs everything else well (except for MVP with my lowly MX440). Now since you know my system specs, does that change any recommendations? Thanks for the help guys. if you are mainly just using the pc for ea sports games, i recommend the MSI radeon 9250 128 mb agp card it can be had @ newegg for around $40. i had to replace my fried 9600xt and i'm on a college budget so i picked one up locally for $50, it works excellent for the game. i plan to upgrade again in the next month or so, but this card works great for the $$$, and is a great hold over. for you i think it would fit your needs and budget perfectly. it's a no frills card that'll get the job done. http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc....-148&depa=1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Filthy57 Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 I have a basic video card that comes with my computer, a Dell 2400 Dimension. It's almost 3 ghz, has 512 MB and an 80GB hard drive. So what card do I need to make my players not look so white and where I am actually able to enjoy what I look at like most of you do? A regular PCI card under $200. If you're looking for a PCI card, I have a GeForce FX 5200 and it runs MVP Baseball and Halo and Doom 3 really well. The rest of your system is better than mine, anyway, so that's what I would recommend and it's pretty cheap as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eber Posted March 13, 2005 Author Share Posted March 13, 2005 if you are mainly just using the pc for ea sports games, i recommend the MSI radeon 9250 128 mb agp card it can be had @ newegg for around $40. i had to replace my fried 9600xt and i'm on a college budget so i picked one up locally for $50, it works excellent for the game. i plan to upgrade again in the next month or so, but this card works great for the $$$, and is a great hold over. for you i think it would fit your needs and budget perfectly. it's a no frills card that'll get the job done. http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc....-148&depa=1 Thanks...that's the type of advice I was looking for--someone who has played the game with the card. I'll consider that 9250 and am considering the 9600/9600P. It's crazy how much I know about these video cards considering I knew nothing about em before this. I've gone crazy looking at benchmarks and reading reviews and asking for opinions all over trying to decide the best card in terms of bang for buck. Right now, I'm leaning towards a used 9500 Pro. Thanks again, everyone, for all the advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAM Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 cool... but BEWARE!! my 9600 xt was used and was the one that fried on me! i normally NEVER buy used electronics or pc hardware, but due to the above mentioned budget i rolled the dice... needless to say i lost LOL! so, if the difference between the cards is only a couple of bucks i'd go with a new one, it'll make replacement a lot easier. of course there's the occassional deal you just can't pass on, or maybe a local shop will guarantee the card. but just to reiterate, the 9250 runs the game fine all details maxed etc and runs same clock speed as 9550. either way you go it'll be a huge difference in performance and visual, good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GenAlpha Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 I have a radeon 9600SE with 128 megs of ram It works well, i have all the graphics and video effects at maximum. My PC is a pentium 4 1.8 gigahertz with 512 MB ram and 80GB hard drive. The card costs $100 at Fred Meyer (Didn't want to pay for shipping, plus, I get discounts there. Thec ard was $90 after discounts) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eber Posted March 13, 2005 Author Share Posted March 13, 2005 cool... but BEWARE!! my 9600 xt was used and was the one that fried on me! i normally NEVER buy used electronics or pc hardware, but due to the above mentioned budget i rolled the dice... needless to say i lost LOL! so, if the difference between the cards is only a couple of bucks i'd go with a new one, it'll make replacement a lot easier. of course there's the occassional deal you just can't pass on, or maybe a local shop will guarantee the card. but just to reiterate, the 9250 runs the game fine all details maxed etc and runs same clock speed as 9550. either way you go it'll be a huge difference in performance and visual, good luck Oops...I meant a new 9500 Pro--but an OEM type (card only, nothing else). I'm really considering that 9250 but am debating whether it is worth it to pay the extra for the 9500 Pro so that it would last a little bit longer. The 9500 Pro seems like a good compromise and I've read lots of good stuff about it and its overclocking abilities. Most benchmarks for the 9500 Pro show it rivals the 9600 Pro and it blows away the 9550. I'm still thinking about it all...it seems my options are 1) new 9550 from newegg, 2) go thru hassle with eBay and get a 9500 pro. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eber Posted March 14, 2005 Author Share Posted March 14, 2005 OK thanks everyone. My quest has finally ended as I went the eBay route at got a new 9500 Pro for $81 shipped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lineshot Posted March 16, 2005 Share Posted March 16, 2005 I'm also looking for a new video card for under $100. I am having the problem where I can't change the player detail setting from low even after using 3DAnalyze. It's probably about time to get a new card anyway. Along with my old Geforce MX400 128 mb card, I have a slower machine - 800 mhz, 256RAM. I'm considering getting a GeForce FX 5200 128mb card. What I'm wondering, is even after I upgrade the video card if I'll still have the low player detail lock problem because my machine so slow? Anyone know? Anyone have a card like this (FX 5200) on a machine with similar specs to mine? If so, are you having any troubles running the game? Any help greatly appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mflv Posted March 16, 2005 Share Posted March 16, 2005 I have a radeon 9600SE with 128 megs of ram It works well, i have all the graphics and video effects at maximum. My PC is a pentium 4 1.8 gigahertz with 512 MB ram and 80GB hard drive. The card costs $100 at Fred Meyer (Didn't want to pay for shipping, plus, I get discounts there. Thec ard was $90 after discounts) I have that one too. Works great. My game was crashing with my old nvidia. I think I got my radeon 9600s for around $79 at Micro Center. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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