Stumped on what RAM and Video Card to buy... read in to see why...

[LiquidCell]

Alright, I used to be involved in computer hardware and such long ago and I just got out of it because for some reason I got bored. Anyways, my PIII 1GHz died on me last week so I am stuck using a crappy PII computer. Here is what I have ordered together the other night:

http://cancomputer.com/index.php?sku=2841 <-Motherboard

http://cancomputer.com/index.php?sku=1946 <-Processor/CPU

My question is... what video card should I get in conjuntion with the board and CPU that will let me run games such as, say Doom3, Quake4, FEAR, FarCry, Black&White2, and any other games that rely on the video card to be really good...? I am DEFINATELY looking at the ATI Radeon X800XL card, but I hear for some reason that nVidia makes better video cards, after taxes and whatnot, my budget is $350.00 for the card.

Also, with this motherboard, what RAM should I get?


Thanks for any advice/help given.

[ProfessorChaos]

some value DDR2 PC4200 if u don't want to overclock

i'd go with a sapphire x800gto2 and flash the bios to a x850xt pe...

[goofball]

I would recommend you go with the P5LD2 and a 630 or 640 processor instead.

NCIX has a good deal on the Abit AL8-V and some Mushkin PC4200 (1gb) for 186 + GST + shipping. Good buy.

[LiquidCell]

I already ordered the motherboard+cpu. All i need now is suggestions on the Ram and Video Card

I saw a OCZ stick for about 130+shipping from cancomputer.com

seemed like a good deal, havent ordered yet as I have to watch my money plus my Visa

[ProfessorChaos]

I already ordered the motherboard+cpu. All i need now is suggestions on the Ram and Video Card

I saw a OCZ stick for about 130+shipping from cancomputer.com

seemed like a good deal, havent ordered yet as I have to watch my money plus my Visa

you want 2x512mb for dual channel...

[goofball]

You want DDR PC3200 at least, not DDR2 as previously mentioned. That board appears to use DDR, not DDR2.

link to what you are thinking of buying?

[LiquidCell]

http://cancomputer.com/index.php?sku=2649 <-that

OR

http://cancomputer.com/index.php?sku=2452

what is dual-channel, if its 1024MB DDR DUAL CHANNEL, do you get 2x512MB DDR sticks ?

[Cafe_333]

It's actually the other way around. ATI gives better video cards on the dollar. The X800XL for example is cheaper than its competitor the 6800GT anywhere from $54 to as much as $110 dollars depending on the manufacturer. But of course Nvidia does have its advantages, like shader 3.0 which will make games look better if it supports the feature. But at the price difference, it's up to you if you feel it's justified.

[Cafe_333]

Well, 1gb in dual channel is two sticks of 512mb ram. stick with 2x512mb of ram. dual channel is the best solution for your needs.

[LiquidCell]

so ifi can grab an X800XL w/ PCI-Express on it, would I be able to say, run doom3 and all those other games @ maximum graphics settings? thats what I want personally, and maybe ill save the extra $ and get a card with Shader 3.0...

[Cafe_333]

well for a budget of $350, I think your best bet to play the games you like is to buy a used videocard from the BST forum. You can pickup an even better X850XT for that amount or if you really want a card with shader3.0 then a used 6800GT would do.

[Phaelen]

You can also get a Sapphire X800 GTO2 and easily mod it to a x850XT with nothing more than flashing the bios.

http://www.tweaktown.com/articles/827/
http://www.techpowerup.com/articles/overclocking/vidcard/127

[Cafe_333]

You can also get a Sapphire X800 GTO2 and easily mod it to a x850XT with nothing more than flashing the bios.Actually the default clocks on that card is 400core/490memory and when flashed to 16pipes it will only be equivalent to the X800XL. 3dmarks tests confirm this as well having the same score. From there you'll have to overclock it to higher speeds which btw will get the card really hot since its stock cooling was never made for X850XT and up speeds. Anyway, these cards are next to impossible to get now. Anyone who hasn't gotten one by now is better off finding something decent over in the BST forum!

[anabeces]

don't buy retail, if you have a budget of $350, check out this link.

http://www.redflagdeals.com/forums/showthread.php?t=172156

ATI X850XT - $360 shipped. I would get that if I had $350 to spend on a gpu.

[anabeces]

disregard my last post, those games you listed show better benchmarks on nvidia cards.