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2 years, 6 months ago

PC video card newb question?

I don't know much about computers or video cards at all and I need to upgrade. Recently my brother gave me his Sony 42" Plasma FWD-42PX2 to use for my PC monitor. My current video card is a 256 MB ATI Radeon X1300 Pro and the resolution on the monitor is terrible. My power supply is 305 w and I have one PCI Express x16 164 pin full height slot. I am looking to boost the resolution on the plasma. I also run dual monitors so I want this capability also. I'm not a gamer but I do want to have crisp images for photos and video. Can anyone help me out and give me a good recommendation? Any extra input you can give would be appreciated. My budget is around $200 so I think I can get a decent card for that amount. Thanks
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johnsonaaron | 2 years, 6 months ago
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Since you not gaming, you don't need to spend anywhere near $200 to get a card that will do what you want. I would go for one of the older midline ATI X1600 or higher cards. Because you can get them on ebay for like $50 or less.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Dell-ATI-Radeon-512MB-2600XT-PCI-E-Video-Card-Dual-DVI_W0QQitemZ380176932124QQcmdZViewItemQQptZPCC_Video_TV_Cards?hash=item58844f9d1c

To be honest, your single output should look decent on the plasma. My bet is that you are running your resolution that is not optimal for the resolution settings for the television.

See if you can get the manual for the television and see what resolutions are supported.

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danielt876 | 2 years, 6 months ago
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I have a Nvidia GeForce 8400 GS in my computer. It has VGA, DVI, and HD S-Video outputs. Not made for serious gaming, but does really well with the lower end games. Nvidia still sells, and supports this card aswell. It costs about $30. I would deffinately recommend this to someone who just wants to hook up a few monitors, show some pictures, and play some videos. I'm not sure what the maximum resolution is though. I have mine set on 1024x768 because thats my monitor's maximum. I'm sure it could go higher though. Also supports CUDA, and stereoscopic 3D.

P.S. I have the 512 MB version, not the 256 MB version.

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dakotamoonstar | 2 years, 6 months ago
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You could go with an Nvidia 9600 or higher, which are easily found for under $200.00, however when you get into the higher cards you may need to upgrade your power supply. Most online shops that offer video cards will tell you what power supply is required to run the card your looking at. If your planning on going for a higher card for better video and photo quality then it would be very important to upgrade your power supply at the same time. Most Nvidia cards allow for dual monitor support as well, especially the 9600 and above models.
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