Everyones help/ Opinions Welcome

[mgaylor23]

I'm building a computer from scratch. I've already got the mobo combo picked out   Abit AN52V Motherboard CPU Bundle - AMD Athlon 64 X2 6400+ Processor 3.20GHz Retail, the RAM is Patriot 2048MB PC5400 DDR2 667MHz Memory, 320GB HDD, and a 650 watt PS but i need some help choosing the video card. I've got 2 PCI slot and 1 PCI express slots. Its mainly going to be used 4 gaming so i would like a card with either 256 or 512 memory. the chipset on the mobo is nvidia if that matters. price is not too much of an issue but i would like to keep it below 300. I need a card that will run games like assassins creed and elderscrolls oblivion to name a few. The video card must have Pixel Shader 3 and Vertex Shader 3. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[homer]

why did you purchase DDR2 667, why not 800?

as for the video card, here are a few under $300 starting from the best performance to above average performance.

9800gtx @ $290
8800gts 512mb @$250
9600gt @ $180.

[mgaylor23]

does it matter that they are SLI and my mobo isn't?

[homer]

nope, you just will not be able to use that feature.

[mgaylor23]

thanks now if i can find one with vga

[homer]

i believe they all come with DVI to VGA adapters. if they dont, you can simply purchase them.

[mgaylor23]

what about this one? EVGA GeForce 8800 GS Superclocked Video Card - 384MB GDDR3, PCI Express 2.0, SLI Ready, (Dual Link) Dual DVI, HDTV

[homer]

the 8800gs and the 9600gt are fairly close in price, but the 9600gt performs way better. an added note, i personally do not buy factory overclocked video cards as they tend to cost way more then the non overclocked versions. also, overclocking the video card is something you can easily do at home for free.

[mgaylor23]

this one is the same price as the one thats not oc'ed and they are both 109 at Tiger Direct. the 9600s are around 219. is there a big difference between 384mb and 512 as far as graphics wise?

[homer]

the 9600gt's are $182.95 according to tiger direct.

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3612203&CatId=3585

 i personally recommend saving up a little more and purchasing at least a 9600gt. the 8800gs, while cheaper then the 9600gt, does not even come close to the 9600gt performance-wise.

is there a big difference between 384mb and 512 as far as graphics wise?

not a huge difference, but there is a difference. as for exactly how much of a difference, i do not know. the more memory your GPU has, the better.