Wayfarers of Veeshan

OK folks.... I have finally gotten around to deciding on how to upgrade my PC so that I can upgrade my woefully underpowered VIDEO card. When I bought my new PC last christmas, I didn't realize that the MB had a proprietary vid card. I also didn't think to look for extra slots in the MB in case I wanted to upgrade the current vid card. As a result I was left with a horribly laggy PC that had approx 5MB of usable video RAM for the game.... yes it has been a sacrifice.

Now I have the MB on order, I am reusing my processor and RAM... the question is... what Video card should I buy to put in the MB. Any reccommendations? I would prefer not to pay 300 dollars for the card. I am not really strapped for cash and christmas is coming up, but I don't wanna spend that kind of money simply for a game... even a game as addictive as EQ.

Thanks

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Xandamir - 57th level Templar (Ranger Rezzor)
Perisai Troublemaker - 56th level Sacrificial OUTRIDER
Pulkaria - 54th level Beastlord (Furry Ranger)
Nealyn Prae - 43rd level Druid (Ranger Wannabe)
Calithe - 47th level bardling (Never wanted to be a ranger)
Nessah - 37th Level Ranger Mezzer

I would only go with nVidia cards and the price range is large. YOu can get a 64mb card for around $60 all the way up to a screaming 128mb DDR for tp to $350.

I would however recomend going with a card like the following for $179.

128 MB DDR nVidia GeForce 4 TI4200
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications ... =E145-1060

The best would be a nVidia TI4600 also with 128mb DDR. But the above is a great board in its own right.

Me am usin a GForce II MX 400 wit 64MB. It be doin real gud but wud go wit Ferrer's suggestion ifn possible as me tinks dis wun be gettin closer ta da limit o it's usefulness wit da gamin environment. So da range o cards dat is useable is large but yas wud be better goin wit da biggest an bestest dat ya ken afford ta accomodate longer usefulness. Me card is in me secund box now an will keep swappin ta any new system till it not does da trick any more.

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Surphat, Dragon Rider!

Surphat (DH) Paladin of 52 Seasons
Surfeedar Monk of 55 Seasons
Surhinlain Shaman of 62 seasons
Srailkat Rogue of the 52 Seasons
Sursadan Cleric of 57 Seasons
Surailadan Ench of 56 Seasons

I have the same card Surph has more or less, but my next card will be a tough decision between ATI and nVidia. They are both making very good cards right now with ATI in position to take the lead for a while. Xin got a 128mb ATI Radeon 8500 for around $130 six months ago, and now with the 9700's on the market they are probably even cheaper. Check out http://www.tomshardware.com and http://www.arstechnica.com to read some reviews and see some numbers on them. In my opinion either is a very good card and if you aren't drawn towards a certain chipset just look for the best deal you can find (try http://www.googlegear.com or http://www.compgeeks.com). That was a lotta words to tell you basically nothing eh?

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Trapped in Veeshan. Send food.

One thing to keep in mind is ATI has lots of problems with Everquest (Or is it Everquest has lots of problems with ATI). Sony does not list ATI as a supported video card. So if you run into issues with it Sony will not provide any support what so ever. If you remember we had some posts in here not to long ago about someone who got a real nice ATI card installed it and came to find he could not play EQ with it. That is the main reason I would say to go with nVidia. Who knows what the will happen with ATI and Sony but for the moment they are not working together real well.

Ohhh btw the card I listed above is a good almost middle of the road nVidia card. Like I said they go clear up to $350 for a GeForce 4 TI4600 with 128mb DDR. I think the card listed above is an excelent buy however. The 4200 line is the first in the TI line. Below the TI line is the MX line. IT is not as powerfull as the TI but is a good chipset. You can get the MX line for quite a bit less then what I show above. A MX with 64mb of ram would run you about $60-75.

I totally agree with Zbik on this. If u go to Tom's or Ars's sites you'll find some really great info there. Big hint is if u dont understand or want to view all the technical stuff then just scroll & click on the "conclusion" or "sumary" part to see which card is the best for your price range. My personnal preference is N Vidia tho. Im sure you'll be able to tell that not all video cards are the same i.e. a few different companies make N Vidia cards,so it also depends on which companies card u get. But those guides are really helpful tho & im sure you'll be more than able to find a card in ur price range there.

I had a video card (ATI) with 64 mb memory. I upgraded to a GeForce 128 mb one - it made all the difference in the world. I also upgraded my processor, though, so I'm sure that helped.

Thanks... I will take all the info under advisement... and then promptly show this thread to the hubbie and let him make the call.

Hehehe

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Xandamir - 57th level Templar (Ranger Rezzor)
Perisai Troublemaker - 56th level Sacrificial OUTRIDER
Pulkaria - 54th level Beastlord (Furry Ranger)
Nealyn Prae - 43rd level Druid (Ranger Wannabe)
Calithe - 47th level bardling (Never wanted to be a ranger)
Nessah - 37th Level Ranger Mezzer