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Hellfire
Rated XXX
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 3473
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 Posted: Thu, 18 May 2006 07:51:56 Post Subject: |
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Unless you truely are an expert, I'd probably shy away from the DFI Expert. There are many issues with it at this point from not reading the temps correctly, to ram incompatibilities, and the hardware on it is very picky (I've not run into this but have heard from others that have).
That being said, I've had good luck with my DFI Expert. I've only run into two issues so far.
SLI is very picky on it, on both of my other boards, it's simple. The DFI took me a bit to get it to work properly.
The second is ram incompatibilities. Tried two sets of 2gb ram kits on it, and neither would work properly. My older 1gb kits work great though.
Oh, and the DFI Expert has a different power requirement than most other MB's. Instead of the 4-pin power, it has an 8-pin power. |
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Little Bruin
Boo Boo
Joined: 07 Apr 2003
Posts: 667
Location: Pic-A-Nic Basket |
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mrweasel
I can haz cheezbrgr?
Joined: 13 Jun 2005
Posts: 1444
Location: Pasadena, MD
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| Posted: Thu, 18 May 2006 09:12:17 Post Subject: |
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| Dr. EvilCheeze wrote: | Unless you plan on doing SLi I would go with an ATi X1800XT instead of the 7900GT. You are going to get better performance at a cheaper price.
If you're looking to do SLi then the 7900GT would probably be a better approach (as I think you'll end up spending less). |
I might have to disagree with that statement:
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=542
With almost no price difference between X1800XT and 7900GT graphics cards it simply comes down to which offers the best performance. Of course availability is also an issue and currently it is much easier to locate a 7900GT graphics card. The only weakness of the 7900GT was its FSAA & Aniso performance, which let it down just enough to allow the Radeon X1800XT to become threatening. Although there was no real noticeable advantages of using either graphics card, the Radeon X1800XT is technically faster.
Nevertheless, when it comes down to the bang for your buck factor I feel the GeForce 7900GT is probably a better option. As I have said, they are easier to find and will continue to hit shelves in droves. Then there is the overclocking potential of the 7900GT core, which is immense. Although this was not investigated in this article, the overclocking potential alone will be enough to sway most towards the green side (NVIDIA). Furthermore, the reference 7900GT design features a small single slot cooler that does its job without sounding like a vacuum cleaner.
The only thing to differentiate, the X1800 series supports OpenEXR HDR and antialiassing at the same time, and the 7900 GT overclocks like crazy.
And don't forget that the ATI card does Crossfire
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dwalden
Rated PG-13
Joined: 17 May 2006
Posts: 35
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mrweasel
I can haz cheezbrgr?
Joined: 13 Jun 2005
Posts: 1444
Location: Pasadena, MD
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| Posted: Thu, 18 May 2006 11:20:37 Post Subject: |
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no doubt, it'll be my next upgrade...I HATE ATI. I've never had a card that didn't give me grief at some point.
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dwalden
Rated PG-13
Joined: 17 May 2006
Posts: 35
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| Posted: Thu, 18 May 2006 11:31:18 Post Subject: |
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| highonv8splash wrote: |
very very few games show real benefits from 2GB of RAM, you'd probably be better off going for dual channel 1GB and a lower latency. |
FYI - This system will be used 99% of the time in 2006 for Battlefield 2, Battlefield 2142 and Quake Wars. |
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johndoe
Rated PG
Joined: 15 Mar 2005
Posts: 11
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| Posted: Sat, 20 May 2006 09:35:05 Post Subject: Re: Advice on building a new system |
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| dwalden wrote: | Hey Guys,
I'm building a new system this week and I was hoping some experts could give me some suggestions on it.
This is what I'm getting:
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+
MOBO: ASUS A8N32-SLI Deluxe
GFX: XFX NVidia GF7900GT 256MB 550MHz
PSU: Enermax Liberty 500W
SOUND: Creative SB X-Fi Xtrememusic
CASE: Antec P180B
The HDs and memory are coming from my previous system.
Questions:
1. I have 1GB of Corsair PC4000 DDR (4x256MB) that I was going to use. Would it be better to get 2GB of a low latency PC3200 for the new system, or just use what I have?
2. I can't really spend much more than I already have decided on, but do you have any suggestions / changes for the above shopping list?
FYI - This sytem is mostly for gaming.
Thanks |
how about you skip on the creative BS card, skip the amd/athlon altogether, buy a conroe with a nice compatible mobo coming out pretty soon
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BeerCheeze
*hick*
Joined: 14 Jun 2003
Posts: 9285
Location: At the Bar
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| Posted: Sat, 20 May 2006 10:53:01 Post Subject: |
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Actually I kinda like ATi... but I'm in no way a fan boy of either. Just right now, I like ATi's picture quality better than nVidia's.
I also didn't forget about the Crossfire, I just think nVidia's SLi is a better implementation, and cheaper, than ATi's Crossfire.
Also, what about their dual monitor support do you not like?
MRW - what problems have you had? I know YEARS ago they had driver issues, but they resolved those in the 8000 - 9000 series.
EITHER way, they are both good cards. I just think as of right now, the ATi x1800XT offers a better value over the nVidia 7900GT, for a single card. Dual cards, the nVidia SLi is a much better approach right now.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102698
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150144 |
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Little Bruin
Boo Boo
Joined: 07 Apr 2003
Posts: 667
Location: Pic-A-Nic Basket |
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staraxan
Rated PG
Joined: 21 May 2006
Posts: 3
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| Posted: Sun, 21 May 2006 03:28:16 Post Subject: |
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| Dr. EvilCheeze wrote: | | Actually I kinda like ATi... but I'm in no way a fan boy of either. Just right now, I like ATi's picture quality better than nVidia's. |
Have you tryed Nvidia's Digital Vibrance? After adjusting digital vibrance on my video card, I have always enjoyed the picture quality of my Nvidia card a LOT more then any ATI card I have ever tryed. And not only does it improve the monitor picture quality, but it also improves the tv-out picture quality. Until hell freezes over, or ATI actually comes out with the same feature (seems like hell will freeze over first), then I will not use ATI cards. |
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stratus
Rated PG
Joined: 29 Mar 2005
Posts: 16
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
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dwalden
Rated PG-13
Joined: 17 May 2006
Posts: 35
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| Posted: Mon, 22 May 2006 13:52:24 Post Subject: |
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| stratus wrote: | | I think the RAM should be adequate for your purposes for now, but I'd consider getting 2GB of Corsair XMS or Mushkin Redline if you're a serious gamer. It's pretty cheap on Newegg right now too. |
Yeah, I'm looking at that right now. $139 for 2 GB. I think I'll pick that up in a few weeks. |
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