Nvidia card for Suse & XGL...?

[junkyarddog22]

Hi. I'm buying a new computer. I decided to go with an Athlon 64 dual-core 3800 & a Gigabyte K8NSC-939 motherboard. The motherboard has an "Nvidia Nforce3 250 GB" chipset.

I need to get an Nvidia video card for this. I don't play games, but I'll be running Suse and with XGL when it finally works properly this summer. I like to watch movies sometimes and will probably make my own DVD on this machine at some point soon.

Pricewatch has a bunch of GEforce video cards listed (http://www.pricewatch.com/video%5Fcards/). I'm looking to spend about $50-$60, but I don't know what I'm looking at. There's a "GEforce4 128MB" for $49; there's a "geforce fx 5500 256mb" for $56; a "geforce 6200 agp 256mb", and so on...

So I see "geforce#", "geforce fx ####", and "geforce ####" (without the 'fx'). Can someone explain to me the difference here and recommend what is appropriate for my interests?

Thanks in advance...

[techieMoe]

Pricewatch has a bunch of GEforce video cards listed (http://www.pricewatch.com/video%5Fcards/). I'm looking to spend about $50-$60, but I don't know what I'm looking at. There's a "GEforce4 128MB" for $49; there's a "geforce fx 5500 256mb" for $56; a "geforce 6200 agp 256mb", and so on...

So I see "geforce#", "geforce fx ####", and "geforce ####" (without the 'fx'). Can someone explain to me the difference here and recommend what is appropriate for my interests?

Thanks in advance...

Basically you're looking at 3 different model years. The Geforce4 is generally considered a rock-solid stable card and is the oldest of the bunch (approx. 2002), followed by the less highly-acclaimed Geforce FX series (approx 2003-2004) and the newer 6000 series. There is also a very recent 7000 series but I don't know if there is a low-end card for it yet.

You'll get essentially the same features in all of them but the 6000 series is newer, and therefore will not become obsolete as fast. I personally have had wonderful performance from the Geforce4 and Geforce 6000 series and only marginal success with the Geforce FX 5000 series, but your mileage may vary.

[junkyarddog22]

Thanks for the feedback. How important is the maker? Is there a difference between these two?:

http://www.allstarshop.com/shop/prod...20T8TDSS16CRPD

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130278

Thankx again...

[antidrugue]

If you want to compare performance:
http://www.rojakpot.com/showarticle....rtno=88&pgno=1

Look at the section "GPU Performance".

[junkyarddog22]

Is there a difference between who makes it? If you click on the two links of my last post, it's the same model (geForce 6200 256MB DDR) but the card looks different and the brand name is different, too. Is there any difference between makers of the same model? Is there a better one of the two I linked?

Thanks again, the feedback has been helpful...

[techieMoe]

Is there a difference between who makes it? If you click on the two links of my last post, it's the same model (geForce 6200 256MB DDR) but the card looks different and the brand name is different, too. Is there any difference between makers of the same model? Is there a better one of the two I linked?

Thanks again, the feedback has been helpful...

I used to say it didn't matter, but after having a very nasty experience with Apollo (a Geforce FX5900 that wouldn't post) I've decided perhaps it does indeed matter who manufactures the board. I generally stick to brand names I know such as MSI, Gigabyte, or eVGA. I have a Leadtek right now that has done well. I've also heard good things about BFG, though I've never personally owned one.

[junkyarddog22]

OK. Awesome. I went with an eVGA...

I'm all set, awaiting the parts! Thanks again for the help...

[antidrugue]

I generally stick to brand names I know such as MSI, Gigabyte, or eVGA.

Plus, different corporations have, huh, different ways to honor waranties.

Such manufacturers like the ones named above do it good, plus I would add Asus to that list.

[techieMoe]

Plus, different corporations have, huh, different ways to honor waranties.

The place you buy the card from can also help if you end up with a bad card. I've had no trouble returning dead cards (I've only run into a couple over the years) to Newegg.com and Fry's Electronics.