I have a hp computer with a P4 3.04G processor. I just installed Half Life 2 and it doesn't handle it too well. What is a mid grade G-force or ATI card that will be a nice upgrade without costing too much. Thanks
How much do you want to spend, I would go for a midrang radeon xt800. I currently have one and love it shouldnt be more than 160 on www.pricewatch.com
forget all those.. video cards are insanely overpriced.. Nvidia 6600 GT, its sub 200 bucks, actually you can probably get it for around 150. PCI-E all the way. I have that card, and run HL2, BF2, Quake 4, FEAR, etc.. with no problems. 128 megs on board, ddr3. Like Alex said, 6800gt, well its the younger sister to that and i think the best for the buck card on the market. Know about 4-5 people with it, also if your looking for a budget card, and want proof on this 6600, here: http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/01/05/squeezing_value_out_of_lower_end_cards/
you might check out the higher end stuff at zipzoomfly.com or newegg since they usually have good prices. You can usually catch the last gen stuff with significant discounts. maximumpc or computer gaming monthly should have listings on their sites for the newest and last gen cards too, or at the very least reviews.
I have not heard of a 3.04, but if its a 3.06, it's probably an AGP mobo, so PCI-ex is prolly out, and you can't really put "without costing too much" and SLI in the same sentence, so I don't think we'll have to worry about him goofing and getting an SLI setup (additionally I think SLI is PCI only). Here's a link to AGP card reviews. You can check the charts, check pricewatch, and get an idea of how fa$$t you want to be. http://www.tomshardware.com/2005/07/05/vga_charts_vii/index.html In the event you do in fact have a PCI-ex system you can look here. http://www.tomshardware.com/2005/12/02/vga_charts_viii/index.html Personally right now I think Nvidia is a bit ahead of ATI in the graphics race, and their drivers are more stable. Good luck and happy HL2ing.
www.newegg.com has some good prices. The card that was bulit for the game is the Radeon 9800 pro, which is what i have.
Nvidia 256mb 6600GT, will be your best bet! For gaming on a budget! But, stay away from the brand "Chaintech" they are crap! I am currently running two 256mb 6600GT on my gaming rig!
Just to throw this out, I have a new 256mb 7800GTX going into my new pc. This of course out performs 2x 256mb 6800gt's
I scanned my system last night on crucial.com and then went to the hp website. I apparently don't have an agp board. its the asus "goldfish" with the intel 910gl express chipset that supports pci express; so it looks like I'll go that route. I'll prob have to upgrade my memory too because it's only 256 x 2, they could have at least put a 512 in there. thanks for all the advice, I'ts been a while since I've kept up with all this stuff. I had to quit playing on the pc because I was a Counterstrike junky for a couple of years.
Your right! Thats why, I am about to upgrade to a dual 7800GTX setup! But for the money, you can't beat the 6600GT!
LOL, Hey Alex I'm not trying to out do you, I just HATE LAG and like to play my games at the highest settings! I think i'll wait a few months before I upgrade to the dual 7800GTX, They are still going for around $450 right! How much and where did you buy yours?