G-force 6800 vs newer models

sean2a · 02-07-2009, 11:04 PM

Alright, so about 5 or 6 years ago, I bought a evga nvidia gforce 6800 video card. It was pretty much top of the line when I got it.

Lately, i've been bugged by my single core processor and want to upgrade, but to do that, i need a new motherboard and i'm finding that many motherboards don't support agp (which is what my card is) anymore, so I think I may just upgrade to pcie.

In researching new cards, I've found cards like the gforce 8600. Not top of the line, but still seems very good.. an upgrade in most cases as compard to the older 6800 i have (despite it being slightly lower end). However, the prices for my card are still in the hundreds: eVGA e-GeForce 6800 Graphics adapter - 128 MB - DDR SDRAM

while I found the 8600 for only $35 here!: eParts and More

So whats the deal. I compared some of the specs based on this: Comparison of Nvidia graphics processing units - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
and the 8600 looks better in almost every respect. I'm no techy, but am I missing something? Any suggestions? Thanks

connor53 · 07-07-2009, 07:51 PM

Uhm yeah don't look at google shopping prices 1st of all.
And why would you compare a 6800 to an 8600?

It doesn't make sense whats your question?

sean2a · 08-07-2009, 01:18 AM

what do you mean? why? clearly you know something i dont. so please enlighten me. they're both higher end graphics cards, and I want an upgrade, the 8600 with newer technology looked like a cheap way to upgrade.. but I dont know enough about it to be sure. do you have better suggestions?

Anti-Trend · 08-07-2009, 04:52 AM

The descrepancy can be explained by the fact that PCIE is the current standard, and therefore PCIE cards are in mass-production. AGP is obsolete, so fewer are produced and must therefore cost more in order to be worthwhile to bother selling. That's the basic idea, anyway.

Do you plan on doing any gaming? If so, an 8-series card will leave you high and dry. Otherwise, that card is perfect for normal desktop usage.

sean2a · 08-07-2009, 05:24 AM

Hi, thanks for the reply. To answer your question, I am not a huge gamer, but i certainly wouldn't want to downgrade in that light from what my 6800 is, which seems to be a pretty good card for that. In fact, if it was PCIE and not agp, I would keep it! but since i have to upgrade the motherboard switching to pcie seems logical.

I guess I assumed that the 'series' had more to do with the time it came otu than anything, with each series containing lower end models like the 200's (something I just learned) and higher end models like the 800's. But your saying the entire 8 series isn't a very gamer friendly series?

I don't want to downgrade, ideally a little upgrade would be nice since i'm putting extra money into it. But I dont want to spend a ton and i dont need top of the line, just something that can 'handle' some newer games that just came out since this is the last card i'll buy for a while. If nothing from the 8 series, what would you recommend? Should I just throw down maybe $50 and get a pcie 6800? (thanks for that tip btw, I hadn't even thought about com type affecting price) Thanks!

connor53 · 08-07-2009, 05:46 AM

If you are looking for a new AGP card, then look at radeons they are probaly the best AGP cards you can get. I would say get a radeon

If you are looking for a new card, I would say go for any of these-
Newegg.com - VisionTek 784090025548 Radeon HD 3650 512MB AGP 8x HDCP Ready Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards
Newegg.com - HIS H165PRQ512AN-R Radeon X1650PRO 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 AGP 4X/8X Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GV-R465D2-1GI Radeon HD 4650 1GB 128-bit GDDR2 AGP 8X HDCP Ready Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards
Newegg.com - BFG Tech BFGE73512GT GeForce 7300GT 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 AGP 4X/8X Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards
Newegg.com - HIS H26XQT512ANP Radeon HD 2600XT 512MB 128-bit GDDR3 AGP 4X/8X HDCP Ready IceQ Turbo Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards (best choice)
Newegg.com - SAPPHIRE 100228L Radeon HD 3850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 AGP 4X/8X HDCP Ready Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

Any of those will be an upgrade from your current one.

Anti-Trend · 08-07-2009, 02:23 PM

I think he's looking for a PCIE upgrade though and not AGP.

In your case I wouldn't "replace" any parts per se, but build a new system in parallel. My reasoning is that obsolete parts put together into a working system have value, since the system probably works fine the way it is. On the other hand, obsolete parts by themselves will be worthless to you. That would leave your old system intact, and you could build your new rig to your exact specifications.

connor53 · 08-07-2009, 05:23 PM

O sorry my mistake I read wrong. I thought he was looking for a better AGP card, if you need help finding a new board/cpu/video card etc, let us know we can help you out.

02-07-2009, 11:04 PM	# 1 (permalink) Top
sean2a Geek Trainee Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 3 Status: Offline	G-force 6800 vs newer models Alright, so about 5 or 6 years ago, I bought a evga nvidia gforce 6800 video card. It was pretty much top of the line when I got it. Lately, i've been bugged by my single core processor and want to upgrade, but to do that, i need a new motherboard and i'm finding that many motherboards don't support agp (which is what my card is) anymore, so I think I may just upgrade to pcie. In researching new cards, I've found cards like the gforce 8600. Not top of the line, but still seems very good.. an upgrade in most cases as compard to the older 6800 i have (despite it being slightly lower end). However, the prices for my card are still in the hundreds: eVGA e-GeForce 6800 Graphics adapter - 128 MB - DDR SDRAM while I found the 8600 for only $35 here!: eParts and More So whats the deal. I compared some of the specs based on this: Comparison of Nvidia graphics processing units - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and the 8600 looks better in almost every respect. I'm no techy, but am I missing something? Any suggestions? Thanks

08-07-2009, 04:52 AM	# 4 (permalink) Top
Anti-Trend Nonconformist Geek Join Date: Oct 2003 Age: 28 Male Posts: 5,520 Times Helpful: 662 Status: Offline My Computer	The descrepancy can be explained by the fact that PCIE is the current standard, and therefore PCIE cards are in mass-production. AGP is obsolete, so fewer are produced and must therefore cost more in order to be worthwhile to bother selling. That's the basic idea, anyway. Do you plan on doing any gaming? If so, an 8-series card will leave you high and dry. Otherwise, that card is perfect for normal desktop usage. __________________ Try Linux \| Install Linux \| Visit My Server \| Support HWF \| HWF Kernel Repo \| Remember Everything

08-07-2009, 05:24 AM	# 5 (permalink) Top
sean2a Geek Trainee Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 3 Status: Offline	Hi, thanks for the reply. To answer your question, I am not a huge gamer, but i certainly wouldn't want to downgrade in that light from what my 6800 is, which seems to be a pretty good card for that. In fact, if it was PCIE and not agp, I would keep it! but since i have to upgrade the motherboard switching to pcie seems logical. I guess I assumed that the 'series' had more to do with the time it came otu than anything, with each series containing lower end models like the 200's (something I just learned) and higher end models like the 800's. But your saying the entire 8 series isn't a very gamer friendly series? I don't want to downgrade, ideally a little upgrade would be nice since i'm putting extra money into it. But I dont want to spend a ton and i dont need top of the line, just something that can 'handle' some newer games that just came out since this is the last card i'll buy for a while. If nothing from the 8 series, what would you recommend? Should I just throw down maybe $50 and get a pcie 6800? (thanks for that tip btw, I hadn't even thought about com type affecting price) Thanks! Last edited by sean2a; 08-07-2009 at 05:27 AM..

08-07-2009, 02:23 PM	# 7 (permalink) Top
Anti-Trend Nonconformist Geek Join Date: Oct 2003 Age: 28 Male Posts: 5,520 Times Helpful: 662 Status: Offline My Computer	I think he's looking for a PCIE upgrade though and not AGP. In your case I wouldn't "replace" any parts per se, but build a new system in parallel. My reasoning is that obsolete parts put together into a working system have value, since the system probably works fine the way it is. On the other hand, obsolete parts by themselves will be worthless to you. That would leave your old system intact, and you could build your new rig to your exact specifications. __________________ Try Linux \| Install Linux \| Visit My Server \| Support HWF \| HWF Kernel Repo \| Remember Everything

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07-07-2009, 07:51 PM	# 2 (permalink) Top
connor53 Big Geek Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 101 Times Helpful: 14 Status: Offline My Computer	Uhm yeah don't look at google shopping prices 1st of all. And why would you compare a 6800 to an 8600? It doesn't make sense whats your question?

08-07-2009, 01:18 AM	# 3 (permalink) Top
sean2a Geek Trainee Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 3 Status: Offline	what do you mean? why? clearly you know something i dont. so please enlighten me. they're both higher end graphics cards, and I want an upgrade, the 8600 with newer technology looked like a cheap way to upgrade.. but I dont know enough about it to be sure. do you have better suggestions?

08-07-2009, 05:46 AM	# 6 (permalink) Top
connor53 Big Geek Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 101 Times Helpful: 14 Status: Offline My Computer	If you are looking for a new AGP card, then look at radeons they are probaly the best AGP cards you can get. I would say get a radeon If you are looking for a new card, I would say go for any of these- Newegg.com - VisionTek 784090025548 Radeon HD 3650 512MB AGP 8x HDCP Ready Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards Newegg.com - HIS H165PRQ512AN-R Radeon X1650PRO 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 AGP 4X/8X Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GV-R465D2-1GI Radeon HD 4650 1GB 128-bit GDDR2 AGP 8X HDCP Ready Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards Newegg.com - BFG Tech BFGE73512GT GeForce 7300GT 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 AGP 4X/8X Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards Newegg.com - HIS H26XQT512ANP Radeon HD 2600XT 512MB 128-bit GDDR3 AGP 4X/8X HDCP Ready IceQ Turbo Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards (best choice) Newegg.com - SAPPHIRE 100228L Radeon HD 3850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 AGP 4X/8X HDCP Ready Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards Any of those will be an upgrade from your current one.

08-07-2009, 05:23 PM	# 8 (permalink) Top
connor53 Big Geek Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 101 Times Helpful: 14 Status: Offline My Computer	O sorry my mistake I read wrong. I thought he was looking for a better AGP card, if you need help finding a new board/cpu/video card etc, let us know we can help you out.

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