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Recommend me a New Graphics Card for Fallout 3?
Tour86Rocker
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So, I'm playing Fallout 3 with the graphics dialed way down so that it'll even run and The Pitt looks TERRIBLE and barely runs. My computer was constructed in the winter of 2006, not intended as a gaming rig, but has been used a lot for gaming!
I have some Best Buy store credit and am mulling a graphics card upgrade. I'm pretty sure what I have is a BFG GeForce 7600 GT OC (one of those nVidia types, see here) and I'm trying to figure out what would be a step up from this.
Do I need to fear brands like Galaxy and PNY? I see some good deals on GeForce 8400 and 9400 cards. Is 512 DDR2 memory a step down from what I have right now, which is 256 GDDR3? I'm guessing not, but am not sure.
I'm strongly considering this PNY - NVIDIA GeForce 9400 GT
I haven't used this desktop in months...I foolishly removed my CPU's fan while dusting with CO2 and bought a replacement. I'm not sure if Fallout 3 is "acting" the same as it used to.
I have some Best Buy store credit and am mulling a graphics card upgrade. I'm pretty sure what I have is a BFG GeForce 7600 GT OC (one of those nVidia types, see here) and I'm trying to figure out what would be a step up from this.
Do I need to fear brands like Galaxy and PNY? I see some good deals on GeForce 8400 and 9400 cards. Is 512 DDR2 memory a step down from what I have right now, which is 256 GDDR3? I'm guessing not, but am not sure.
I'm strongly considering this PNY - NVIDIA GeForce 9400 GT
I haven't used this desktop in months...I foolishly removed my CPU's fan while dusting with CO2 and bought a replacement. I'm not sure if Fallout 3 is "acting" the same as it used to.
Tour86Rocker on
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Anyways, you need to list what else you have for parts and what your budget is.
Make the 9500GT/HD3850 your absolute minimum starting point.
I remember Futureshop selling a 8800GTS (G80) 640mb for $600 and a 8800GT (G92) for $160 on the same shelf. Hilarious.
Can trade TF2 items or whatever else you're interested in. PM me.
My current HD4850? $150. Crazy.
As a general rule, buying the high-end card from a one or two generation old series is a good idea if you don't want to spend a ton. They're still very powerful cards, they just lack some newer features.
Yeah, but my Best Buy store credit is the only thing making this happen...I'm hoping to pay around $100 to get me something that will make Fallout 3 run better.
Here are some other things about my system. I have a Core 2 Duo, 4 gb of DDR2 RAM, and I run two monitors. In hindsight, disabling one of the monitors probably would have made my game run a little smoother, but in my defense, I had tried this before and it wasn't by much.
Also the fact that you're coming from a 7600GT makes me think that your computer doesn't have the necessary power supply connectors or 12V output to support any of the really shitfuckawesome cards.
My suggestion - Sell or trade the $100 credit to a friend for cash, and use the money to buy a better card from Newegg.
Can trade TF2 items or whatever else you're interested in. PM me.
EVGA and XFX make really really good cards, and have just as great return policies
My 8500GT was from EVGA and the fan died and the card overheated and died, I sent it back, and a week later I get a shiny new 9600GT for free
I'd personally recommend EVGA. They make some excellent cards and guarantee their products. One thing you may want to try is just going to newegg.com and browsing through some cards in your price-range. Read lots of user reviews. Might give you some ideas about which companies are more reputable. I haven't looked at video cards in a year or so, so I am a bit out of the loop as far as manufacturers go.
Actually my enclosure is an Antec TX640B, which appears to have what it calls an "ATX12V v2.0 power supply".
Currently working on that, actually!
I didn't realize that nVidia's numbering scheme was so confusing...
The first number is the generation of cards it comes from. The second number tells you if it's a budget or higher card. X400 is crap. X600 is midrange. X800 is high end. That's as I understand it anyway.
Single PCIe power plug is enough to run up to the 9800GT or HD4850 level, which is now an "average" card rather than "shitfuckawesome" which require either 2x6-pin or 1x8-pin+1x6-pin. But either of those (9800GT/HD4850) will be a huge leap from a 7600GT.
Awesomesauce.
Can trade TF2 items or whatever else you're interested in. PM me.
Mine too
and it runs left 4 dead, everything on full, perfectly.
It's not like fallout 3 is the best looking game either.
PNY is the only company that makes the quadro (pro grade) nvidia cards. They have a monopoly and thus, they can do whatever the hell they want. Jerkwads.
For retail cards, xfx, bfg, and evga (mostly evga) are the best. Best warranty, best rma, ect. Since the cards are all pretty much stock parts (at times OC'd) support and warranty are what counts.
The thing is, don't blame PNY for that. nvidia has batches of cards that just fucking break, end of story. It happened with the 7900gt, and it's happening with g92 (so any 8800gt, any 9800, and any 250gts).
none of these companies actually make the cards. They just slap a cooler and a sticker on it and bundle it. certain series of cards are more prone to failure, but not certain brands.
But yeah the 200 series are dirt cheap for the performance and have all the latest features. I'd go with that.
That card held up for a couple of years I think, until I decided to upgrade. I said I wouldn't buy PNY again, but my instant gratification took over and I bought one at Best Buy, a 6600 something or other. Took it home and it was fucked right out of the box. It kept overheating and artifacting, even though heat sink and fan were attached and working. I returned it and bought an MSI 6800 Ultra from Newegg, which I'm still running 4 years later.
Generally ATI cards are the best value for this generation but a good deal on 9800GTX+/GTS250 might fit what you need as well. Your 400W PSU should handle a 4850 which is a nice card and a huge upgrade for you.
If you buy online you could get a quite nice 4850 for about $100. In the recent past they were seen for $85 or lower but that seems to have stopped.
Something like this should be your baseline for value.
(Please do not gift. My game bank is already full.)