Euh... video card help? Pwease?

[RapidPad0]

I was going to buy a nifty laptop that can also handle most games, but decided that'd be pretty stupid seeing as I just upgraded my PC's RAM and all my crucial applications are on this computer already. But the problem with my computer is it has a crappy outdated 64mb video card (Intel Extreme? lol) that makes 3d gaming a headache at best... if not downright impossible sometimes.

My roomie has an ATI Radeon (9000 or something?) card and my god does it make me turn all green and envious when I watch her game. So I'm looking to buy an ATI or NVIDIA brand card that's all purty and stuff.

But... I don't think video cards are as installation easy as RAM is and I want to make sure everything is compatible and stuff...

How do I make sure it's compatible and what should I look for? My budget is something under $250 and at least 128mb, and I dont want anything too fancy or over the top, just something that can handle 3D games very well and 3D applications like Maya and Lightwave.

Halp!

[MadMike]

Actually, it's quite easy to install cards. It's just about as easy as installing RAM, although there might be a few minor extra steps.

First, you need to find out what type of slots your machine has. You should be able to find this info in the manual that came with your machine. If not, Google is your friend.

Most machines have several PCI slots, which hold cards such as sound cards, modems, network cards, etc. This is most likely not where your video card is plugged into. PCI video cards do exist, but I believe they stopped making them years ago, and you wouldn't be able to find any of those that would be good for gaming.

These days, there are two types of slots for video cards. AGP is probably the most common, and has been around for awhile. Judging by the fact that you have a 64mb card, I'm guessing it's AGP. This slot is slightly smaller than the PCI slots.

The other kind is called PCI-Express, which is not to be confused with the regular PCI slots, as they are not compatible in either direction. This kind is fairly new, but will probably be the standard some day.

As far as NVidia vs ATI, I'd go with the ATI. I have an NVidia, and it's been giving me trouble with some of my games. It worked just fine for awhile, and then it started crashing the whole system. I'm guessing they released a screwy driver in their updates, because I seem to have better luck with an older driver. I've used several ATI cards before this, and had no problems with them.

I'm not sure of a model to recommend, but if you go to the Hardware Discussion and Reviews forum at www.dslreports.com (http://www.dslreports.com) and post your question, you should be able to get the help you need.

Once you've determined what type of slot you have and picked out a video card, just do the following:

1. Uninstall any drivers and software related to the card you're removing.

2. Shut down the machine and unplug it. Disconnect the monitor from the computer, because the connector is on the back of the video card.

3. Open it up, and pull out the old card.

4. Insert the new card.

5. Reconnect the monitor, plug the machine back in, and fire it up.

6. Install the drivers and software for the new card. You'll probably have to adjust the resolution to where you want it.

[LostMyMind]

Go with Nvidia. ATI will give you driver hell as well as compatibility problems. The uninstall video drivers step is a very important part to prevent crashes.

If you have "issues" with ATI or Nvidia, go and make sure you have the latest drivers. If those give you problems, download the next to latest driver and so on until you get a stable system.

I've have and use both Nvidia and ATI video cards. The main problem I have with ATI is; depending on who "manufacture" the card, the driver from ATI may or may not work.

[gbm85]

Here's what I would recommend

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?p=AT-AIW800X&c=pw

I have to lend my support to ATI as well. I've been buying 3D cards since the Voodoo3, owned many cards from many brands, and ATI is the only type I've never had a problem with.

[MadMike]

Go with Nvidia. ATI will give you driver hell as well as compatibility problems.

As I said, I never had any problems with ATI. But we all have our preferences. To each his own.

If you have "issues" with ATI or Nvidia, go and make sure you have the latest drivers. If those give you problems, download the next to latest driver and so on until you get a stable system.


Agreed, although when a new driver actually breaks something, and is still broken several revisions later, it doesn't exactly instill a sense of confidence in me. It's apparently a fairly common problem, as I've managed to Google quite a few reports of the same problem I'm having. For the record, mine is a PCI-E 6600GT. Maybe something newer wouldn't have that problem, I don't know.

The main problem I have with ATI is; depending on who "manufacture" the card, the driver from ATI may or may not work.

The only time I ever ran into one of their drivers not working was when it wasn't really "their" driver, but one that come up in Windows Update. It made the whole system run slow and choppy. Once I removed that one and downloaded what was supposedly the same driver from ATI, everything was fine.

[Dreamstalker]

Certain games are also "optimized" for Nvidia cards (meaning that if they see an ATi card they won't even consider working; no clue why, but I've seen it happen).

[MadMike]

Certain games are also "optimized" for Nvidia cards (meaning that if they see an ATi card they won't even consider working; no clue why, but I've seen it happen).

I had one game -- Thief III, that recommended NVidia and Soundblaster for video and sound, respectively, and even showed splash screens for them when the game started up. However, it still worked just fine with my ATI video and onboard sound.

Never saw that on any other games.

/threadjack

What games did you see this happen with, just out of curiosity?

[LostMyMind]

Oh, I believe heroes of might and magic III crashes with ATI (my friend's computer). I could list off alot of older games that will only work with voodoo cards :lol:

Both brands have series that have problems. I would not suggest ATI All-In-Wonder type cards. If you really need your computer to be a TV then go ahead, but expect driver issues with more sensitive games.

@MadMike
Yeah, I heard of problem with the 6000 series. Mine is the 7800 PCI-E. I hate the ATI that comes with laptops, you almost can never get a driver update for those (sadly, my laptop has ATI).

[RichS]

I hate the ATI that comes with laptops, you almost can never get a driver update for those (sadly, my laptop has ATI).

I've got a laptop with ATI's 9600 graphics, and am running the latest Catalyst Mobility 6.8 drivers from ATI. I agree, their driver support is limited, but I haven't had a problem lately getting the latest driver. A couple of years ago, however, there was no support, so I used the ATI drivers from OmegaDrivers (http://www.omegadrivers.net/), and never had a problem from them. You can try ATI's Verification software (https://support.ati.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=894&task=knowledge&folderID=27) to see it you can use the ATI driver.

As far as choice, I've always chosen the card that does what I want it to, regardless of the manufacturer, and hardly ever had a problem with any game or application I've wanted to use. If I do, there's usually a patch or driver update coming to fix it - the game/program companies know it'd be financial suicide for their program to only work with one companies' graphics processors.

[Dreamstalker]

What games did you see this happen with, just out of curiosity?
All my Myst games said I didn't have DX9 when I know it was installed (and dxdiag checked out). That was with an ATi card. Got an el cheapo NVidia, it works :confused:

Unless the Catalyst drivers were somehow fubared; I'd heard about issues with those games and the drivers, but never really delved in to check it in detail.

[Cvstos]

I'm guessing you're looking at an AGP card, which limits your selection as most new cards are PXI-Express x16. But, just about anything you could get will be light-years ahead of Intel integrated graphics.

In general, I recommend nVIDIA cards, especially if running two screens. nVIDIA's drivers, IMO, are superior.

The best AGP board available from nVIDIA is the 7800, but those will run you just over $250 (usually around $275). If you want to spring for the extra dough, you can get one of those.

Otherwise, I'd aim for the 7600. They aren't as fast as the 7800 but they'll be able to run anything you throw at them (HL2 will even run in HDR with enough RAM and a fast enough CPU - I recommend at least a 3.2Ghz P4 and 2GB of DDR-400 or DDR2-667 RAM). Plus, you can get an eVGA or XFX 7600 AGP card for under $150! Take that extra $100 and buy a GB of Crucial Ballistix RAM! :D

For more detailed advise, please post the following:

CPU Type and Speed
Motherboard or exact Computer Manufacturer Make and Model#
RAM type, including speed and # of pins
Available Graphics Expansion Slot (AGP 4x, 8x, PCI Express, etc.)

I'll let you know what your upgrade options are, how much it'll cost, and how to increase your bang per buck (hint #1 is to shop NewEgg).

[Der Cute]

I have a 9600 Radeon I'm willing to sell, it's got 128 MB RAM, and it's an 8x AGP.

PM Me.

Cute

[RapidPad0]

Update

Sorry guys I've been pretty busy and kinda forgot about this. My friend's bf is selling me his Radeon 9800 for $70 and is going to come over and take a look at my computer to make sure I have all the right stuff. I'm probably going to have to get more RAM though. So yeah everything is hunky dorey with the video card issue.

Thanks for the replies and offers and sorry I took so long to reply :(