upgrade

[SteveGTA]

xmas is coming up and im wonderin what to get for my comp.

DFI LANparty SLi-DR
AMD Athlon 64 3200 winchester w/ venus12 HSF
OCZ Platinum rev2 1gb(512x2)
160GB 7200rpm western dig HD
520W OCZ Modstream
MutantX Case
eVGA 6600gt
15" liquid video LCD monitor
5.1 speakers

uses: mostly gaming and besides that just talkin on AIM and photoshop/dreamweaver.

thoughts:

HD sucks (IDE) but i dont really care, should i?

vid card isnt holding me back but a better one or adding another couldnt hurt.

processor pisses me off when it comes to OCing the mem controller sux but it runs fine so i dont think i need to OC it.

monitor... is really bad i would like a better one. lets say that my monitor has a slow response time. will i be able to tell when gaming or does it just take longer for the monitor to display stuff.

sound - i dont have that great of speakers so i dont think a sound card is needed.

-------------------
what do u guys think

 

[chickenfoot]

Get a Serial ATA hdd; its only about 5-10 bucks more, thinner cables, and doesn't use as much power. Don't be stupid like me; I saved 5 dollars and now I'm regretting my IDE

 

[banefulassasin]

better video card. you may be dissapointed with just a 6600gt. try for a 6800 or better yet, 6800gt.

 

[Sprooty]

the 6600GT is the best budget card ATM, but it will start showing signs of ages when some new games start comming out.

 

[SteveGTA]

haha chickenfoot thats like the same thing i did. now im regretting buyin my crappy HD.

so is video card the way to go?

here are my choices:

another 6600gt
a 6800gt
a 7800gt

what would you get (keep the cost a little lower i would probably only go with the 7800gt if it is significantly better than the 68)

 

[banefulassasin]

if you can afford the 7800gt, go for it!

 

[Trotter]

Get what you can afford in the line of graphics cards.

With the new drivers nVidia has out, you can mix and match different cards in SLI.

 

[Sprooty]

Get what you can afford in the line of graphics cards.

With the new drivers nVidia has out, you can mix and match different cards in SLI.

Thats the first i have heard of this so i headed of to Nvidias Driver section to check the release notes and i think you may be wrong.

New Flexibility:


Mix and Match Graphics Cards from Different Manufacturers
Example: You can use a GeForce 7800 GTX from manufacturer ABC with a GeForce 7800 GTX from manufacturer XYZ.
Note: You must still use two graphics cards that have the same GPU. For example, a GeForce 7800 GT must be matched with another GeForce 7800 GT (not with a GeForce 7800 GTX or a GeForce 6800 Ultra).


Mix and Match Graphics Cards with Different Input/Output Ports
Example: You can use a GeForce 6800 GT with Dual DVI & TV-out with a GeForce 6800 GT with Dual DVI & VIVO.

Mix and Match Graphics Cards with Different Clock Speeds
Example: You can use a higher clocked GeForce 6600 GT 550/525 with a standard clock GeForce 6600 GT 500/500.

Mix and Match Graphics Cards with Different Memory Sizes
Example: Using Coolbits, you can use a 128MB GeForce 6800 GT with a 256MB GeForce 6800 GT.

Note: NVIDIA recommends that SLI customers, whenever possible, purchase graphics cards with matching memory sizes. When dissimilar memory sizes are enabled to work together using Coolbits (value set to 18), the effective memory size for each card becomes the smaller of the two memory sizes.

From the looks you can only mix card brands,speeds and memory but not the acutal no. of the card. It has to be 6800 and 6800, can't be 6800 and 6600.....

 

[The General]

15" monitor?

for gaming?

id shoot myself

i didnt even think they still made 15" monitors,

 

[Sprooty]

yeah i would also go with 17"+

my frnd has a 15" LCD its so small.