video card

[snomobiler24]

hey guys i have a compaq 5000 series and i need to upgrade my video card....but the one problem is that i dont have an agp slot. which would be the best card out there for this type of computer?

Thanks

 

[cell567]

Ummm...my friend has a similar problem. May i suggest to save up and buy a new mobo with an agp slot? There aren't anyg good pci cards out at the time that I know of.

 

[Jorsoft]

Yeah, the problem with PCI is that it can't transfer information nearly as fast as AGP can. PCI works at (I think) 33 Mhz, while 4x AGP goes at 266 Mhz (8x at 533 mhz if you've got it). The result? Any PCI card will perform slower than its AGP counterpart. My below post will contain the best available PCI cards for you!

 

[Jorsoft]

The two best PCI video cards I could find are:

VisionTek Xtasy 9200 SE 128MB PCI Video Card- $79.99-$99.99

PNY GeForce™ FX 5200 128MB PCI Video Card- about $119.99

I would recommed the PNY Geforce TX 5200, as it is fast than the other card and only a little bit more expensive. Upgrading your MOBO is very time consuming (you may have to reinstall your OS) and expensive ($100-$130 for the board, possibly more for new memory/processor), so you might not want to do it. If you really want to and don't want to get your hands too messy, you should buy an nForce 3 board. They come with an integrated video (DX8/9 compatible, I believe) and the best integrated sound in the business (as good as a SB Live!) and it comes in a convenient, low priced package which is easy to configure (it comes with an open AGP slot for a new card). As an added bonus, it costs just a little more than a regular MOBO without such features.
Sorry for the longwinded response, but at one time I did a lot of research into computers and video cards before I bought my own!

 

[The Merlin]

The thing is, if you bought the computer as a package, whether you can upgrade that mobo is the problem...... I had a prob once because a HD from an HP wouldn't work in a custom PC, so unless I'm completely wrong you might want to consider that

Those PCI cards aren't too bad though, better than the PCI cards I used to have