video card upgrade

[gahbahj]

i have an msi 850 pro5 (6545) MBd which has a 4x agp slot - 400fsb p4-478 1.8G 512L2, 1G 800 Rambus, 350W maddog PS which has 2 fans built in, case has 2 fans top/side. cpu/case temp is ~40/30 @ 30-40%cpu, ~45/35 @ 100%cpu with only side case fan on according to MbMon5.

i'm using a cheap saphire radeon 7000VE that i would like to upgrade for dvd/video playback (and encoding if graphics cards will help with that). from what i've read so far i like geforce 62/66/6800 cards for price and performance, and that comparable ati cards run hotter and require more power. i understand that an 8x card will only run at 4x - are there 4x/8x cards that will do better in a 4x slot? given the limitations of my system, is it a waste of $$ to get a 128/256bit card or DDR3 like the 6800 - or even one of the 7xxx series? i saw that cards in the same series will have different chipsets - LE/GT/GS etc - are there some to stay away from - such as an EVGA GeForce 6200 - 256-A8-N341-LX - or is it only that performance and price go hand in hand? i'll stay away from anything named "turbo" relying on "sharing" system memory.

i'm planning to build a new system sometime next year (duo core, pci-e, etc) so i'd like to get a card under $100, and $40-60 would be nice, of course. i'm not a gamer, so if there are cards more suited to video i'd appreciate any advice/recommendations. thanks

[edcentric]

You have a lot of options. A X1650 would do fine, or a 7600GS would be a real workhorse. These cards are about $80.
My wifes machine just has an old R8500 in it and it handles video well enough.
If you really want to go cheap then look at this for $43:
SAPPHIRE 100562L-GN Radeon 9600PRO 256MB 128-bit DDR AGP 4X/8X Video Card - Retail

[gahbahj]

im not seeing a 7800gs at that price, just 6800xt (an XFX card that looks good). but still would like some feedback about whether its even worth it to go for a 6800 or 7800. from reading thru the vga charts @ tomshardware it looks like my system will use less than half the ability of cards like the 9600pro on up. i have since read some reviews of the evga 6200 calling it junk. thanks again for your suggestions

[edcentric]

7600GS, not 78.
Heck even that 6800 that you are looking at would work fine.
When you don't game video is easy.

[primesuspect]

For what you are wanting to do, you may want to consider ATI's Radeon HD 2400 series of cards. $90 at newegg, and an excellent hardware video encoder/decoder.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814103046

Cheap, and high performance.

The HD 2400 series is DirectX10, very modern, and it is kinda made for exactly what you're doing. It is more of a dedicated HTPC / Video encoder / decoder than a gaming card, but it sounds just right for you.

[GHoosdum]

What kind of gaming performance does that card provide? Where does it compare in the nVidia ranks?

/me loves passive cooling.

[primesuspect]

According to Tom's (http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/10/01/the_best_gaming_graphics_cards_for_the_money/page6.html#conclusion), it looks like it would fall somewhere in the realm of the 5900 series.

Not stellar, but passable.

[primesuspect]

I don't know why I said passive cooling. Maybe an errant picture on newegg? Either way, it's not passively cooled. Sorry :-/

[GHoosdum]

It linked me to something different on Newegg earlier, and I think it was a 2400-series passively-cooled GPU.

[primesuspect]

I could have sworn it did too :confused:

ffs.

[gahbahj]

yes it looks like the Radeon HD 2400 is made for what i want, but a review @ anandtech suggests its a poor performer. and the reviews on the visiontek model @ newegg are pretty bad too. (some of these PCIe cards do have massive heat sinks instead of fans). thanks for the tom's link - the chart is a handy reference - but can someone tell me what "Go" means ? generic ?

[primesuspect]

Go generally means "mobile"

I think reviewers are trying to review the card as a gaming card, and that's why. Reviewers tend to focus on a card's FPS rate in certain games as the only benchmark that matters.

The HD 2400 / 2600 are indeed made for what you want to do. They are not stellar gaming performers, but then you said that's not important to you anyway.

I read those Visiontek reviews on Newegg. I wouldn't worry about them too much as the drivers are several revisions newer now.

[gahbahj]

the anandtech review is not about gaming but video - since i cant post links yet, u can google "HD Video Decode Quality and Performance" which should pop up the anandtech article #3047. what i read at newegg, driver complaints continue on the 2400 reviews from this month. maybe i'll buy something cheaper and wait until i build a pc to pick a hi-end card for video processing.

[Leonardo]

Hey guys, his board has AGP interface. The cards you've been recommending - are they AGP?

[gahbahj]

yes indeeeedeee - they are

[Leonardo]

OK, I remember now about the 7600 still being made in AGP configuration. I've got a 7600GS in one of my home computers and a 7600GT 512MB in one of my work computers. Get an Nvidia 7600GS AGP. They are great performers in their class, and the drivers are rock solid. Compared to what you have now, you'll think you're dreaming.

[Jokke]

I have an Readeon 9800 pro 256 in my old comp. Will I be having the same dream in an eventual upgrade?....

[joytime360]

Hey I suggest you google some guidence before you do that . I used to foound many good suggestions there .

[joytime360]

Hey I suggest you google some guidence before you do that . I used to foound many good suggestions there .

Here I got one for you ;
http://www.videocardupgrade.com/
Hope this helps.

[Jokke]

Umm, I know how to upgrade my card. I've built the computer myself. I'm asking if my computer would perform better if I did.