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Greatest video cards of all time picks?
- Thread starter JohnnyFootball
- Start date
Another vote for the 9700 Pro and 8800GT owned both of these (with the 9700 Pro being in the first PC i ever built myself) best bang for buck going at the time.
In recent years the 560 Ti has filled the same gap in the market with the 970 currently filling that gap....wonder what will be next!?
In recent years the 560 Ti has filled the same gap in the market with the 970 currently filling that gap....wonder what will be next!?
TheBlackMarvel
Member
GTX 580. Card was a beast.
LelouchZero
Member
The AMD Radeon HD 7970 and 7950 are my favourite GPUs of all time.
They had great overclocking capabilities and more memory than their competitors, the 7970 also launched over a month earlier than the GTX 680.
The additional 1GB of memory is very useful in modern games and has helped with their longevity and enables them to outperform their competitors in memory intensive games.
They had great overclocking capabilities and more memory than their competitors, the 7970 also launched over a month earlier than the GTX 680.
The additional 1GB of memory is very useful in modern games and has helped with their longevity and enables them to outperform their competitors in memory intensive games.
RoninChaos
Member
Diamond 3dfx monster 3D.
This card was a game changer and it altered the pc gaming business up to this day.
FUCK YEAH. I built my first PC with one of these.
MrCunningham
Member
I never had a 6800, but I did have a 6600 with 512MB's of GDDR3, and it was a really solid mid ranged card for it's day. It was also quite reliable too. Plus Shader Model 3 made it a worthy purchase.
PLASTICA-MAN
Member
I really miss the Voodoo cards. They were the best in the markets and the pioneers. You could even have 4 of them which was revolutionary at that time. I wish they stayed.
Vigilant Walrus
Member
8800 GT. Shit was insane. I didn't have that card though.
970 has been amazing for me personally.
970 has been amazing for me personally.
Mammoth Jones
Member
Still have my 9800 Pro somewhere. That changed the game for me.
bobone
Member
For my first real PC build I used a Radeon 3870 and that thing was awesome. I got it early 2008 and it lasted all the way through the Xbox 360 era no problem.
The early Rage 128 and GeForce cards from my childhood burned out after 2 years or less; but this thing is still kicking almost 10 years later and still gets used constantly for indie Steam games and 360 era stuff by my girlfriend.
The early Rage 128 and GeForce cards from my childhood burned out after 2 years or less; but this thing is still kicking almost 10 years later and still gets used constantly for indie Steam games and 360 era stuff by my girlfriend.
World SkiFree
Member
To this day, my brother and I still use the 3dfx/Voodoo reference for comparing tech ("It's a Voodoo difference!" or "It's cool but not Voodoo or anything.") This applies to new TVs, movie CGI, etc.
I remember the "Voodoo" difference in games like Quake 1, Outlaws and the Microsoft Madness titles (Monster Truck, Midtown and Motorcross).
Going from software rendering to accelerated graphics was simply epic.
Definitely nostalgia tied to it as well but that was a big time jump in video quality and performance. (The Voodoo difference, by golly!).
That said, the leaps and bounds PC video cards have pulled off in years since continue to blow me away.
I remember the "Voodoo" difference in games like Quake 1, Outlaws and the Microsoft Madness titles (Monster Truck, Midtown and Motorcross).
Going from software rendering to accelerated graphics was simply epic.
Definitely nostalgia tied to it as well but that was a big time jump in video quality and performance. (The Voodoo difference, by golly!).
That said, the leaps and bounds PC video cards have pulled off in years since continue to blow me away.
Despite the controversy with the RAM the GTX970 has never disappointed me once. Had a blast with the Witcher 3 with it and it is the game I will ever connect to one of the best games ever created, so that's a huge plus.
Then there's the Radeon 9700 which I connect with Half Life 2, also great card, great experience back then.
Geforce 256 was the Card I had for playing Deus Ex and Unreal
Radeon HD 4850, like the GTX970 great value card, I think both are on par in terms of value and what they pushed back at their prime. I had a HD 6870 in between that served me well with games like Alien Isolation.
I truly wonder what my next best card will be, it seems like I will stick with the GTX970 for the time being.
Then there's the Radeon 9700 which I connect with Half Life 2, also great card, great experience back then.
Geforce 256 was the Card I had for playing Deus Ex and Unreal
Radeon HD 4850, like the GTX970 great value card, I think both are on par in terms of value and what they pushed back at their prime. I had a HD 6870 in between that served me well with games like Alien Isolation.
I truly wonder what my next best card will be, it seems like I will stick with the GTX970 for the time being.
Maintenance
Member
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Bitch Pudding
Member
Jup, this is the first one who just didn't want to get old.
Not the Messiah
Neo Member
The three graphics cards I've ever had all fit the bill; 9800GT (rebadged 8800gt essentially), 560Ti,970 GTX.
I'm a sucker for good bang-to-buck, it seems!
I also remember lusting after the ATi 4870X2 back in the day. I wonder how it's held up.
I'm a sucker for good bang-to-buck, it seems!
I also remember lusting after the ATi 4870X2 back in the day. I wonder how it's held up.
arts&crafts
Member
9700 lasted me so long and now my 970 still doing well.
97** forever!
97** forever!
Afro Thunder
Member
Nice throwback thread.
I never bought a videocard but as a PC technician in late 90's I saw the beginning of it all and assembled many computers with those videocards for my clients.
I never bought a videocard but as a PC technician in late 90's I saw the beginning of it all and assembled many computers with those videocards for my clients.
Krappadizzle
Member
Nvidia 8800GT
Sarcastico
Member
Another vote for the 9800 pro and 8800 GT. The latter was such a beast!
MrCunningham
Member
The Radeon 9500 is a really good pick just for that reason. I never owned one, but I remember being part of a PC gaming forum back then where people were buying 9500's just to flash them to 9700's. I could only imagine that being a hell of a deal, if you knew how to flash the BIOS. There was a time when the AMD Athlon XP line of CPU's and the ATi 9x00 series of graphics cards were top choices for PC gamers.
capitalCORN
Member
6800GT. An immediate returm to form for Nvidia. SM3.0 Baybee!
Duxxy3
Member
No, but we can still get nostalgic about cards. How long we had them. What games we played with them.
holygeesus
Banned
First post nailed it. That and the 970 for me.
NVIDIA Geforce at number 2. It was the first consumer video card with hardware transform & lighting, the third card with hardware bumpmapping, and was MILES ahead of the competition upon release.
TNT2 was an also-ran card. It was roughly equivalent to the Matrox G400 Max for games (I had both) but didn't have the features or 2D quality of the G400.
970 I'd take off of the list entirely. The VRAM limitations sunk that card early.
Yeah the 8800s were insane value at its time, I never had one though as I skipped it for the HD4850.
I wonder if there will ever be a card like those... GTX1070 doesn't really look like a value card with its high price tag atm and AMD isn't really offering more than some midrange cards that can barely be considered an upgrade to my GTX970...
The post I was waiting for.
For me, it has to be my HD6870. Before that, I was rocking an old 5670 on a shitty CPU, playing MW2, getting 30FPS or so... Once I upgraded that to the 6870 and a Phenom II 1090T, that sweet, sweet 60FPS was a true eyegasm. Felt so good, and that card lasted me for quite a long time, until it started getting long in the nose and couldn't handle newer games that well. I still have it though, it just gets no use whatsoever.
General Lee
Member
Personally my favorites of the ones I owned were Voodoo 3 2000, X1950 Pro AGP, GTX 275, 7970, 970 and now 1070.
The Voodoo 3 was the first GPU I had and it ran pretty much everyting back in the day at 800x600 or something like that. X1950 Pro was the last AGP card I owned on my A64 3000+ system iirc. I got it used for like 60€, and sold it a year later for 70€ since AGP was pretty much dead at that point and the cards were in demand. GTX 275 I got used for 130e, and it was pretty much still high end back then. The prices of GPUs during that era were fantastic, with Nvidia's top of the line at only $500 with the GTX 480. 7970 was my most expensive GPU purchase, got it new for 525€ shipped. I eventually crossfired it and changed to 280X. Great cards, but CF wasn't worth it tbh. After that I've stuck with Nvidia's x70 lineup, good performance and value, easy to update every two years or so. I've also had cards like 480MX, 9600XT, 7600GS, 4830, 6950CF but while they were ok, I don't have any particularly fond memories about them.
The Voodoo 3 was the first GPU I had and it ran pretty much everyting back in the day at 800x600 or something like that. X1950 Pro was the last AGP card I owned on my A64 3000+ system iirc. I got it used for like 60€, and sold it a year later for 70€ since AGP was pretty much dead at that point and the cards were in demand. GTX 275 I got used for 130e, and it was pretty much still high end back then. The prices of GPUs during that era were fantastic, with Nvidia's top of the line at only $500 with the GTX 480. 7970 was my most expensive GPU purchase, got it new for 525€ shipped. I eventually crossfired it and changed to 280X. Great cards, but CF wasn't worth it tbh. After that I've stuck with Nvidia's x70 lineup, good performance and value, easy to update every two years or so. I've also had cards like 480MX, 9600XT, 7600GS, 4830, 6950CF but while they were ok, I don't have any particularly fond memories about them.
MrCunningham
Member
I was using this card in my PC up til about early 2002-ish. I could even run Max Payne 1 on that card, and did.
I still have my original ASUS v6600 Geforce 256, here's some photos I took of it with my phone... It works too, but the heatsync/ cooler is ceased up, and they are a bit tricky to replace because of the two pin connector. I really need to find a replacement cooler of some kind and fire this back up. It was one of the best DX6-DX7 cards of its time.
It came in one of the best and worst boxes too...
I think the ASUS "V6800" was the 64MB variant of this card... which was pretty crazy in itself.
Yeah the q6600 + Geforce 8800GT was a powerhouse combo back in the day with some impressive "future proofing" .
JohnnyFootball
GerAlt-Right. Ciriously.
Actually Doom 3 was the first game that gave ATi fits. I remember it struggling with my 9800 Pro.
Shadowhaxor
Member
The 9500 Pro was a beast in its time and overclocked like a champ.
Mr_Antimatter
Member
3dfx VooDoo/Voodoo2: The first really "must have" cards, arriving aroudn the same time that 3d acceleration was in it's infancy. For a while, they were king, and no gamer worth their salt didn't have one. Also, shout out to the Voodoo Banshee, the first time I really remember a maker producing a built for the midrange card.