GF 4 MX 460 Pro

bstimp · TweakNOOB Joined: 22 Jan 2003 Posts: 3

Hi all, Im new here, and maybe you can help
Im not an expert at video cards but I am torn between Radeon and Nvidia here.

This is my delima:

I have a Hercules 3D Prophet Radeon 8500 128 MB AGP Card (Not the LE)
and also a Abit GF 4 MX 460 Pro 64 MB.

Everyone is saying " Use the nVidia Card!!

When running the 3D Mark 2001 SE with the Hercules Card all goes well, Test top a score of 9925, however, when I run it with the GF 4 MX 460 Pro I get some test that cant be performed, Nature Test and some texture tests. Why this is I dont know and the score is not as well as the Radeon Card, at best it gets 7701.

My question is, is there a way to tweak the MX 460 to run all test and get a better score. I like the score on the Radeon, however, games (BF 1942, MOHAA, Unreal Tournament, etc.) seem more smoother with the GF 4.

My system is:
Albatron Pentium 4 845 PE Mainboard
Corsair PC 2700 DDR 512 MB
Pentium 4 2.4 GHz Northwood
Windows XP Home Edition w/Service Pack 1
Direct X 9.0
with the Radeon card, I am using the Catilyst 3.0 Drivers
with the Nvidia, the 41.09 reference driver from nvidia

Any helps and tips would be greatly appreciated..

Thanks!

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[TN] Nathan · ALMIGHTY PWNER! Joined: 14 Feb 2002 Posts: 7406

The 8500 is by far the better card out of the two and it is no surprise that it scores better.

You can look for tweaking tools like rivatuner on the net and it will allow you to overclock your card, but in my estimate, it still will not be even at par with the 8500.

I don't know who stated to go with the Nvidia MX (budget) card over the 8500 (High end). Not a smart choice in my books and I would question their opinion in the future.

Just my 2 cents worth
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bstimp · TweakNOOB Joined: 22 Jan 2003 Posts: 3

Thanks for the information. :)

I did some researching and found what you said to be exact...The Radeon 8500 128 MB Version is still one of the biggest selling cards on the market and from what I see on benchmarks, the only card that nvidia sports that is considerably better than the 8500 128 MB version using the Cat. 3.0 drivers is the Ti 4600 in overall benchmarks. Now there is alot of variables in these benchmarks and notice I said overall you nvidia fans!

I guess nvidia is just so well known in the US and with Radeons earlier driver problems nvidia users are apt to say "use the nvidia card". I have played a few games today as well running them in all/higher resolutions and notice the GF 4 MX 460 Pro doesnt compare at all.

So, that in mind, I learned alot today and will be sticking with the Radeon. Besides, the blue pcb matches everything inside my tower.

what a way to spend a day off, now if Hercules will just release the 9500 Pro in the US...Id be a happy camper!!

Thanks again, you were a big help!

[TN] Nathan · ALMIGHTY PWNER! Joined: 14 Feb 2002 Posts: 7406

Hey bud, my pleasure. It's my job.

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jadison · Guest

Hey bstimp - welcome to TweakNews! :)

Glad Nathan got ya situated, I have to agree with what he said.

First of all, I haven't had personal experience w/that particular card but from the various reviews I have seen on it and the GeForce4 MX series, the ATi is quite superior. The MX line of cards for the GF4 model in some cases loose ground to the GeForce3 Ti series...showing that this budget model isn't even comparable to the Radeon 8500 128MB v.

Looks like you've made a wise choice.

And, if you come across a Radeon 9500 - look into doing this mod stated in this thread (notice the link to DesignTechnica's mod) http://www.tweaknews.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=251 -> it's definitely worth looking into if you have the chance.

As for me - I seriously need to upgrade my measely card - 32MB GeForceMX 400

bstimp · TweakNOOB Joined: 22 Jan 2003 Posts: 3

I'll sell ya a GF 4 MX 460 Crap Card..... Cheap to!!

Let me pick ya heads a bit:

Hercules GF 3 64 MB, (not a Ti card)
or 8500 LE 64 MB..?
Its for my wifes pc. I have the GF 3 in it now, but came across a Hercules 8500 LE 64 MB cheap.

By the way, I got the Hercules 8500 oc to 300/300 mhz from 275/275 using Hercules' Tweak Program, and the temperature isnt any different, trust me I have a temp monitor on the ram hs and the core as well just to make sure, runs a 10863 on 3D SE.

[TN] Nathan · ALMIGHTY PWNER! Joined: 14 Feb 2002 Posts: 7406

I think the decision is easy bud, VERY easy.

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