What is there for us with 2X?

nebagakidnebagakid
Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
With all the new graphics cards, I wanna get one. I have an AGP 2X slot, however, and I have noticed that many of these cards do not support it. What is avaliable for me, and others, who want to get a new high-quality graphics card but lack the 4X AGP slot?



thanks! :confused: <img src="graemlins/hmmm.gif" border="0" alt="[Hmmm]" />

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 13
    applenutapplenut Posts: 5,768member
    ATI Radeon 7000 and Radeon 8500
  • Reply 2 of 13
    enderender Posts: 353member
    ... and the GeForce 2 MX (and any GF2 on the PC side if you feel adventurous) and the GeForce 3 Mac version (it says only 4x, but it has been confirmed that it works in 2x systems).



    If you are looking for a nice card for your AGP 2x system without having a huge hole in your pocket, get the original Radeon 32 MB DDR graphics card. It's more powerful than the 7000 and has a nice feature set for low cost.



    I have that Radeon in my G4/500 DP and it works great. Even in Giants (huge power hog) in OS X 10.1.2 I get 25-45 fps, which is not bad in that game.



    -Ender
  • Reply 3 of 13
    serranoserrano Posts: 1,806member
    listen to ender, you're not gunna have much of an option with the brand new gpu's since your 2x slot will be a limiting factor on their performance, let alone compatibility.



    if you want the best card go looking for the mac gf3, but if you want the most bang for your buck i would seriously look into the original radeon, an exceptional card- especially for its price.
  • Reply 4 of 13
    bungholebunghole Posts: 47member
    The ATI 8500 for mac supports both and I got it for $255 from MacMall. That seems like a pretty good option to me. Everyone is discounting the the 8500, when it is a very good card with all the hardware for great gaming.
  • Reply 5 of 13
    nebagakidnebagakid Posts: 2,692member
    what features does the 8500 have? <img src="graemlins/smokin.gif" border="0" alt="[Chilling]" />
  • Reply 6 of 13
    enderender Posts: 353member
    Well, speed, for one. For most things, you can stick it firmly between the GF4 Ti and the GF3 in sheer pixel pushing performance. ATi also has the best algorithm for detecting polygons that are obscured from view (i.e., behind other stuff) and not drawing them, and the 8500 continues in that trend. I believe it has the dual monitor thing on board, with one DVI and one VGA output (don't quote me on that, but I think that's what I heard). 64 MB DDR RAM (PC version has 128 :mad .



    From the PC benchmarks I've seen, the 8500's FSAA options are far behind the GF4 Ti (and GF4 MX), but who knows if the mac versions of either card will have that support anyway... :confused:



    So if you play lots of games at super high resolution, this may be the card for you even if your system is only on a AGP 2x bus (with a midrange processor... about 400-600 MHz). I still suggest the much cheaper Radeon 32 MB DDR for most needs though. Works for me.



    -Ender
  • Reply 7 of 13
    nebagakidnebagakid Posts: 2,692member
    what are the advantages of a faster proccesor other than games?
  • Reply 8 of 13
    airslufairsluf Posts: 1,861member
  • Reply 9 of 13
    enderender Posts: 353member
    You talking about a faster processor in the computer, or a faster/more powerful graphics card?



    I would think that the advantages of a faster processor are obvious...



    :confused:



    -Ender
  • Reply 10 of 13
    cdhostagecdhostage Posts: 1,038member
    Radeon 8500 all the way, baby , Best 2X AGP ard= iyout there.
  • Reply 11 of 13
    nebagakidnebagakid Posts: 2,692member
    do all the features have work with Mac OS X? video out and dual monitor support?
  • Reply 12 of 13
    bungholebunghole Posts: 47member
    Umm why not just go to the card manufacturers site and read the specs, I mean there are really only two of them, instead of having someone else read it and post it for you. A little work for you is a lot less work for us. Damn
  • Reply 13 of 13
    nebagakidnebagakid Posts: 2,692member
    [quote]Originally posted by BungHole:

    <strong>Umm why not just go to the card manufacturers site and read the specs, I mean there are really only two of them, instead of having someone else read it and post it for you. A little work for you is a lot less work for us. Damn</strong><hr></blockquote>



    Sorry, I read a-hole. I am just trying to get some more information from people who actually use these cards and have experience with them. A little shuting the hell up for you is a lot less pain in the arse for us
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