Urgent

**Henry of Grosmont** · December 10, 2006, 05:20 PM

Guys, it's very urgent. I'm buying new computer:
MotherBoard:
Gigabyte M57SLI-S4 AM2, NF 570-SLI, DDRII 800, 2xPCI-E
CPU:
Athlon™64 4200+ (Socket AM2) X2 DualCore
RAM:
(DDR II 800) 1GB Kingston HyperX x 2
HD:
Maxtor 320GB 16MB, SATA II.

What VGA card should I buy to play M2TW without any problem? Keep in mind, I'm a graphic designer too. Thanks

Update. Is Sapphire Radeon X1950 Pro 256MB, DDRIII, DVI, VIVO, PCI-E good? Is it better than Powercolor Radeon X1950 Pro Extreme 256MB, GDDRIII, 2xDVI, VIVO, PCI-E?
And is Sapphire Radeon X1950XT 256MB GDDR4, 2xDVI, VIVO PCI-E worth additional 100$?

Guys, please, can somebody help me?

**Spork Wielding Spartans** · December 11, 2006, 08:08 PM

The first two are about the same. I don't know if upgrading to the X1950XT would be worth it.

**Henry of Grosmont** · December 11, 2006, 08:15 PM

Thanks alot, man. That was my only concern. I was over by 200$ already ,so it will safe me some money.

**Incinerate_IV** · December 11, 2006, 08:41 PM

According to newegg.com, the X1950XT 256mb should only be $50 more expensive than the X1950Pro. I just recently got a X1950XT 256mb and I can tell you than it plays M2TW very well, all settings on max. That card is currently the best bang for the buck right now. If you really can't spare $50 the X1950Pro is a pretty good deal also.

Check the PC Hardware Buyers Guide sticked on this forum for more options.

**Henry of Grosmont** · December 11, 2006, 08:51 PM

Well, I'm still confused about Powercolor X1950 Pro and Sapphire X1950 Pro. Which one would you recommend?
And I'm buying my computer offline, so it's a 100$ more(X1950XT).

**Hadrian** · December 11, 2006, 09:09 PM

I personally have had great luck with Sapphire, but to be honest, they're really the same VC with different names. Choose the cheaper of the two with the best warranty. Both are Radeon VC's, just different OEM's. Both of the OEM's are reputable with long track records.....

Get the X1950XT and don't look back, graphics programs and M2TW are both very demanding.

**Henry of Grosmont** · December 11, 2006, 09:21 PM

Originally Posted by Hadrian

I personally have had great luck with Sapphire, but to be honest, they're really the same VC with different names. Choose the cheaper of the two with the best warranty. Both are Radeon VC's, just different OEM's. Both of the OEM's are reputable with long track records.....

Get the X1950XT and don't look back, graphics programs and M2TW are both very demanding.

If I'm getting X1950XT, I'll have to buy only 1Gb RAM, and is it worth it?

**Hadrian** · December 11, 2006, 10:29 PM

Originally Posted by Rufats

If I'm getting X1950XT, I'll have to buy only 1Gb RAM, and is it worth it?

Yeah, it's worth it because once you've purchased the VC, that's the one you're going to have for a while so get the best you can. You can always purchase another 1GB dimm of RAM. Why get a lesser VC and 2GB of RAM and then your stuck with the weaker VC and no area for expansion or upgrade? JMO

If you have to have 2GB of RAM now (you can never have too much RAM) get 2GB of cheap budget RAM to hold you over until you can afford some name brand RAM....

**General Sun** · December 11, 2006, 10:19 PM

No, take the cheaper graphics card and more ram.

**eyescreaman** · December 12, 2006, 01:43 PM

If you can afford it get the x1950xtx this is a 400 card that totaly kicks. You can play Oblivion with everything turned way up and Medieval II perfectly.

**mercja** · December 12, 2006, 02:05 PM

I am more of an Nvidia person myself, but how much money are you willing to spend.

**Incinerate_IV** · December 12, 2006, 02:45 PM

Right now, 1 gig vs 2 gigs of ram makes no difference at all.

**General Sun** · December 12, 2006, 05:56 PM

Incinerate, I am running two computers, I can feel the difference between 1 gig and 2 gig. It might've made no difference two years ago when 64 bit was first introduced, but certainly so now.

The difference between graphics cards are also meh. Both will be outdated soon anyway, so take the cheaper.

**Henry of Grosmont** · December 12, 2006, 06:10 PM

So, General, you advise to buy X1950 PRO, not X1950XT?
I'm lost here guys

EDIT. Forgot about power supply. I'm getting:
Chieftec
550W Active PFC, 12cm Fan (24pin)
Model GPS-550AB-A
AC Input 115V~ 10A
220V~230V~ 5A
Frequency 47-63
Is this one good?
EDIT2.

Originally Posted by Shaun

What the . . .? Am I the new TWC "I wanna upgrade" Guru? Will do.

Didn't you know that? Well, yeah, you're one of them. In my opinion, at least. Thanks, anyway.

**Shaun** · December 12, 2006, 02:57 PM

Originally Posted by Rufats

Guys, it's very urgent. I'm buying new computer:
MotherBoard:
Gigabyte M57SLI-S4 AM2, NF 570-SLI, DDRII 800, 2xPCI-E
CPU:
Athlon™64 4200+ (Socket AM2) X2 DualCore
RAM:
(DDR II 800) 1GB Kingston HyperX x 2
HD:
Maxtor 320GB 16MB, SATA II.

What VGA card should I buy to play M2TW without any problem? Keep in mind, I'm a graphic designer too. Thanks

I am sorry, but going AM2 is currently a waste of money. Either go budget with skt 939, or go Core 2 duo with LGA775.
The E6300 is around the same price as the 4200 X2, yet easily beets it. You should go Core 2.
On your RAM, it is excellent RAM, but do you really need DDR2-800? The fastest you need unless your going to OC is 667, or even only 533!

And get the X1950XT if you can afford it, or the X1950pro if you cant.
If you can afford the almightly X1950XTX, dont buy it. Spend an extra $200 and get a DX10 card like the 8800GTS or GTX.

**Henry of Grosmont** · December 12, 2006, 04:40 PM

Hmm. Shaun, unfortunately, I already ordered everything except for VGA card. I, probably, will order it to my cousin's US adress at newegg.com (cheapest price), and it's gonna be SAPPHIRE 100186L Radeon X1950XT 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 VIVO PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - Retail.
If it won't work, I'll go for X1950 PRO.
And after all, will my computer be a good one? Will it be enough for my job AND M2TW (I'm not thrilled to play it on low settings)?

**Shaun** · December 12, 2006, 05:34 PM

Yes, it will play M2TW, on the highest settings. I was advising you simply to get a Core 2 Duo because of the futurproofing.

**Hadrian** · December 12, 2006, 06:28 PM

Get the X1950XT if choosing between the Pro and the XT. Shaun and Incinerate will probobly agree. Ya'll in Europe get totally different PSU's to select from than we do here in the States so someone more familiar with the European PSU's will have to advise you on that....

I agree with General Sun on the need for 2GB's these days so if you gotta have 2GB's then get the cheapest budget RAM you can, and upgrade as soon as it's feasable. That way, you still get the best VC and have an open upgrade path....

**belson** · December 13, 2006, 03:37 PM

If you are not going to overclock or could wait a few months, I would get the better graphics card and buy 2GB of mediocre/budget RAM. Then as soon as you can buy 2GB of good RAM and resell the old stuff. Besides, like Shaun said, getting really good RAM like you are only helps if you overclock.