How well will my computer run HL2?

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yeggz

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Hey, I'm getting kinda concerned. I hope to run HL2 at max specs with 30+ fps. Here are my specs.

AMD Athlon XP 2100+
ASUS A7-V333 Mobo
512MB DDR (pc-333)
Asus Geforce 4 Ti4400 128MB

Here's the catch. I have 300-400 dollars to spend on compy parts. I was considering getting a Geforce FX 5400. I'm not really sure what to do here, any help?
 
ge-force fx is pos

get radeon 9800 pro its droolarifick make sure you get the 256 edition tho
 
uhhh, I'm pretty much going best bang for my buck. Do you really think the Radeon 9800 256 is worth the 300 dollars, instead of a 256 Geforce FX 5400 for 150? :-/
 
Everything in my opinion looks pretty good.

People say "Get a new processor blah blah" but video cards do most of the work in games. Processorswill help make the game start faster though. Big deal. lol.

I got a ATI 9700 Pro with only a 1.33Mhz AMD Thunderbird. All my games run very sweet and smooth. BF1942 I get average of 60-70 FPS Full detail at 1280x1024.

But the same setup with my friends PC except his got the latest greatest CPU the framerate in the same game is barely different.

Your video card is quite awesome now but it doesn't support DirectX 9. If you really want to just buy a ATI 9700 Pro or a ATI 9800 Pro. For the 9800 Pro only get the 128mb version. The 256mb version imho is waste of money for what you get.

When buying computer parts ALWAYS get the best bang for buck. So my advise is since the ATI 9700 offers so much and it's coming down in price that's probably your best bet instead of buying the best of the best. A ATI 9800.

Why haven't I mentioned nVidia? Well ATI cards are going to own with HL2. Valve said so.
 
yeggz, do not buy FX 5400, it's not really good; especially if u have 300-400 dollars. I'd recommend you you to buy a FX 5900 or a Radeon 9800...then you won't regret what u bought :)
btw: wrong forum :|
 
i wish I had a falcon )= or better yet a voodoo :bounce: :bounce:
 
Originally posted by yeggz
Do you really think the Radeon 9800 256 is worth the 300 dollars
Click to expand...
Please post the link to the site where you found a Radeon 9800 Pro 256 for $300, thanks in advance.
 
CPUs do not just help the game start faster.
they are what sends all the information to the graphics card, so if they are not fast enough, the game will slow down.

First thing: the is not the right forum for this question.

Second thing: Valve said that a Pentium 2.4 with a GeForce 4 was their target audience. You have roughly that equivalent. If you have some money to burn, i'd get a DX9 card, and a faster processor. If you don't i wouldn't worry about it too much.
 
Heh, I don't think I can get a good DX9 card AND a processor. I think my processor is fine, I'll just get a nice DX9 card.
 
Just checked etechwarehouse, they don't even sell Radeon 9800 256 lol
 
I suggest you get the most expensive 3d card you can afford. Its guaranteed to be better than any other card. Plus you're set up for Half-LIfe 2, Doom 3, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and more games to come.

And a Radeon 9800 PRO with 256 MB is 500$
 
Originally posted by alb1221
ge-force fx is pos

get radeon 9800 pro its droolarifick make sure you get the 256 edition tho
Click to expand...

you dont know much about gfx cards do you ..........

there is no reason AT ALL to get a 256meg card....you might see 2-3 more frames in max res with aa and ansio cranked all the way up....

a 256 card is just there because people like this person always believe more is better....its clever marketing, nothing more
 
crabcakes66

I beleive a 9800 Radeon Pro 256 will be better in the long run.
With games getting more graphicaly advanced.
 
Well the Ati readon 9800 256 could be to good for the system to and get freezed up and things like that.
 
Allright, how does the radeon 9600 pro w/256 + 512mb ddr (so ill have a gig of ram) sound? I could get all that for about 300-ish
 
I got a Radeon 9800 Pro, 1024 DDR RAM, 2.0 Gigahert Processor...will HL 2 run ok on my comp...?
 
Jeez not this stuff again, Its annoying. Radeon 9600 is a stripped down 9500. You should check out reviews on the cards before you buy them.
 
Hmmm...I thought that the new drivers for the geforce allowed for dx9, I got the new driver, and a copy of dx9, and now I have full dx9 features on my geforce4 Ti4600, however, it probably only emulates Dx9, Im not sure, but I havent seen any preformance lapses with dx9 features on...what makes a card "dx9 supportive" anyway, is it the hardware, or the software?
 
Originally posted by yeggz
Bis the top card there a good deal? It's a non-pro 9800 128. What's the difference between pro and non-pro, anyway? [/B]
Click to expand...
Ehm the pro have higher ratings in the memory and the main chip. so the pro is abit fater.
 
so would a 9700 pro be better or worse than a 9800 non-pro?
 
The main difference between the 9700 and 9800 (R300 and R350) are the features. DX9 shaders have improved a little and AA performance has improved nicely in the 9800 (Pro vs. Pro, at least). So it depends on how much you care about the future. Esp. if you could OC the 9800 non-Pro, it COULD be slightly better in the long run. Though, overall, I think they'll be about even when it comes to current games. Has anybody done BMs on 9700 Pro vs. 9800 non-Pro? I haven't seen one yet. Hell, I haven't really seen a non-Pro 9800 test AT ALL (that I can remember).
P.S. again...wrong forum
 
Originally posted by theotherguy
Hmmm...I thought that the new drivers for the geforce allowed for dx9, I got the new driver, and a copy of dx9, and now I have full dx9 features on my geforce4 Ti4600, however, it probably only emulates Dx9, Im not sure, but I havent seen any preformance lapses with dx9 features on...what makes a card "dx9 supportive" anyway, is it the hardware, or the software?
Click to expand...

Good question.

The way I understand it sure the older cards with new drivers will support DX9 games. Though and it's a big though, they will not have added features. ie prettier graphics of some kind.

To take FULL advantage of DX9 Technology you need to buy a hardware based dx9 vid card.

Example: Nvidia FX Range, And ATI 9700, 9800, 9600, 9500 (i think) and whatever else. lol.
 
Originally posted by Kamakiri

The way I understand it sure the older cards with new drivers will support DX9 games. Though and it's a big though, they will not have added features. ie prettier graphics of some kind.

To take FULL advantage of DX9 Technology you need to buy a hardware based dx9 vid card.
Click to expand...

Agreed. That pretty much hits the nail on the head, to my knowledge on it.
 
I have a 9800 non-pro, I dont see a difference much to the pro version. I can run Halflife,2k3,AA,Bf1942,EQ all with 4xaa and 4xaf and get max fps. The non pro is 50mhz slower but if you want you can over clock it to pro speeds fine. Edit: By the way i can run it with higher aa and af settings but the ingame text get's messed up.
 
thanks fer all yer help guys! i think ill go w/a 9800 non-pro
 
there is no such thing as a geforcefx 5400... if your gonna get an fx card get at least the 5600... the 5200 sucks balls. or the raddy non pro 9800... its really a great card. but your gonna want a directx 9 card for hl2, (i think it uses a few dx9 features) so its best to ditch that geforce4
 
Originally posted by yeggz
thanks fer all yer help guys! i think ill go w/a 9800 non-pro
Click to expand...


hey yeggz, all the advice u received in this thread is pretty good... and seems u have made ur choice... but i think the first question u needed to ask urself is..


are u wanting to only HL2 on max performance?

OR

do u want this new piece of hardware u buy, to last u awhile and allow u to play games that will be released in the future.. (Doom3, another games already mentioned)

one other thing, if do get one of the newer cards (like the 9800 non-Pro) there is a possibility that ur cpu might "bottle up" ur super fast video card... i would at least worry about that a little if i were u, knowing i spent $300 on a card that can't run on max performance because of a slower cpu.

good luck dude
 
hrm, u really think my 2100+ will bottleneck a nonpro 9800?
 
Im not sure about that since i run the 9800 non-pro on a 2.4 ghz machine.
 
you can upgrade the processor later. It's not as if they are somehow locked together once you upgrade your gfx card. :p

EDIT: However - my personal advice is wait until September to buy. Prices always go down and if HL2 is what you want to be ready for, buying just before release will give you best value for your money.
 
probably not at all...but i´ll think i get a new oen soon :)
 
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