http://www.diamondmm.com/2600PRO512PE.php

 

Anyone know much about this company? I've got a 7600GT but with direct X10 coming it's time to look at upgrades.

 

What do you think of this card or should I stay with nVidia. Please say why you like either of the other company.

 

Basically I'm looking for a pros and cons geek thread I can learn from and make an educated (somewhat) decision.

 

Thanks!

Just so you know, Nvidia and ATI make the graphics processing unit(GPU) and set out the specifications. A third party manufacturer, like diamond or gigabyte, buys the GPU's, puts all the other pieces together and markets it.

 

Before you pick your manufacturer there are a few other things to consider. How much do you want to spend? Does it have a good warranty (my 7800GT dies and a warranty claim got me a new one 8))How long do I need it to be useful? How fast does it need to be? How much power does it draw? Can my PSU cope with those power concerns? Will the thing actually fit in my case (new cards are really long)?

 

If you are planning on going widescreen then now, when you are swapping graphics cards, is a perfect opportunity to do so. You should probably check out http://www23.tomshardware.com/graphics.html if you haven't already done so along with http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/08/06/the_best_gaming_video_cards_for_the_money/. I believe, with this new generation, that the ATI cards are for the low -> mid high end markets whereas the Nvidia cards are across the whole market. This means If you are planning on buying a a really high end card(say >$750) then you will have to go with a Nvidia based card. A nice tool to get an idea of price and who stocks items is, http://www.staticice.com.au/advanced.html.

 

EDIT: Voted

Nedlands raises some excellent points. Not much point spending a lot if you're playing on a small monitor or with other specs that will bottleneck the system.

 

ATM I'd get an (nvidia) 8800GTS 320mb for bang-for-buck. ~$350

Alternativly, just wait until you cannot go without DX10 support and go from there. My plan is to work my 7900GT like a dog until it either dies or I *have* to get a DX10 card to play a new game. It will be at least 6 months before that happens and that gives me heaps oof time too save up for it.

 

As for nVidia vs ATi, I'd go nVidia merely because I know them like the back of my hand. My personal prefference for nVidia stems from more regular updates than ATi. ATi updates their drivers once in a blue moon, anywhere from 3-9 months apart, with nVidia its once a month, 6 weeks max

8800GTS if you have an LCD that is either a 17",19" or 20".

I'm bias. Love nVidia.

8800GTS if you have an LCD that is either a 17"' date='19" or 20".[/quote']

 

+1 for the 320mb flavour......Cant go wrong and huge bang for buck.

 

Take your pick for under $400

http://www.staticice.com.au/cgi-bin/search.cgi?q=8800+gts+320mb

I have a big fat back breaking 21 inch CRT.

 

I'll keep it as long as I can get away with it!!!

 

Or the gf lets me get a very large LCD.

 

Nice signature Chickenhawk!

You won't need any DX10 horsepower until you get Vista. If you haven't got vista then it's probably best to keep it that way(at least until they iron the serious bugs out). So you are probably looking at like up to 6 months until you get Vista. You should therefore be asking this question a little later unless you need some more horsepower for your current games. In 6 months time the likelihood is that Nvidia and ATI will have brought out a whole new generation of cards and that there will be some proper DX10 games. In essence... Patience mate!

9x series cards should be here by november/december...meant to offer a lot more in terms of power over the 8x cards.

9x series cards should be here by november/december...meant to offer a lot more in terms of power over the 8x cards.

 

Really? I know what I'm buying in Malaysia/Sinagapore in January then

Good ol Singapore, I got a stupid cheap copy of Il2, too bad it was the wrong version............

that cards using 512 of DDR2, the nVidia 8600GT uses 256 of DDR3 and they're available for under $150. If you're going to get a low-end DX10 card forget the ATi jobbies. Seriously though, stick with your 7600 for a while yet, people playing Bioshock are losing 20 fps by going to DX10 mode and from the screenshots I can't tell any difference.

 

http://www.staticice.com.au/cgi-bin/search.cgi?q=8600GT

9x series cards should be here by november/december...meant to offer a lot more in terms of power over the 8x cards.

 

Really? I know what I'm buying in Malaysia/Sinagapore in January then

 

 

HEY chicken,Dunkirk lives in singapore,you should give him a pm before you go there-I believe he knows where to get the good tech bargains,and (as far as I know)speaks the lingo.

I'm running Vista ultimate on a 8800GTX, I have to say iron all the bugs out and your laughing. It's a shitload more stable the XP. I've installed and unistalled so many times, that the HD are hating me for it. Yet I haven't had to defrag for the last few months. XP I remember doing so every month.

 

I've got Bioshock and finished the game. Its absouletly fantastic. Everything on high and running at a smooth 120fps on a 22inch widescreen at 1600x1200. As for the graphics card. Radeon 2xxx series have more features on then any nvidia card will ever have. They're cheaper and only 10% less performing on average compared to Nvidia 8x series.

 

So if you want your PC to be Multimedia+Gaming go Radeon

Pure gaming the nvidia 8800GTS Overclocked

 

As for DX10, if your fussy in details and want the most out of your PC. Then go DX10 all the way. You will be impressed by the level of detail and performance you will get. In short, no longer is your CPU used to do graphics, its all done by the GPU freeing your kick ass quad or duel to work on the AI or dynamic effects. Making it one sweet ass game, providing it supports DX10

 

Im soo peeved that Supcom or COD4 arn't DX10

 

To anyone else, Want a new machine, upgrade go Vista ultimate or you'll suffer badly. Get DX10 and Vista supported Hardware, update all your Drivers, Download Updates for Vista. Get patches for all your games. Bobs your uncle. You shouldn't really have ANY problems, if you do then you've obviously done something wrong allong the way

 

I've done 3 (and my own) gaming rigs PC, with Vista and I've had no problems with them yet. Hell, So far I've had more problems with XP Pro

I had Vista for a while. Had no real issues other than it feeling so slow.

 

It was fine at first, but after a month it just became tedious and chuggy.

 

I'll wait for SP1 before I go back.

new PC? or was it pre Vista Hardware. Because really Vista is the same as XP Pro when it first came out. Everyone was really resisted using it. Then over time it became default and everyone thought it was O.K. Vista same diff.

I only ever though XP was "OK" when the service packs came out. First off it had terrible mem leak probs, it couldn't function reliably and chugged like a fat biatch on a tricycle in the sun on a good day.

But with anything it takes time to iron out the bugs.

Which is what beta testing is for, too bad most companies nowadays do a slack ass job of it.

 

BTW ATi do 1 month driver updates and have done so for a long time, they had a big pr blitz about it and nvidia eventually followed suit

BTW ATi do 1 month driver updates and have done so for a long time

 

I stand corrected. Last time I had an ATi card was close too 2 years ago. Since then its been in the family comp

I'd admit there is a bitch of problems to begin with. I've never had so much crap in my life with a PC. But when you know what your doing, and your good at PC's.