Visual Xtasy
Written: Feb 24 '03 (Updated Feb 24 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: High performance. Easy Install. Low $$. Svideo Out (TV support), DVI out, multi monitor support
Cons: Price?
The Bottom Line: I am very happy with my purchase and can recommend it highly. It is a great compromise between high end performance and lower price.
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| rorsteven's Full Review: VisionTek Xtasy GeForce4 Ti 4200, (64 MB) AGP Vide... |
Background
My Elsa Erazor X A32 graphics card started washing out on my monitor (a 23" Nokia 445Pro) so it was time for a replacement. The Elsa cost me about $80 new about 2 years ago. I have a 1Ghz Athlon machine which I use for gaming and general work. I will be upgrading the processor and motherboard sometime soon to something in the 2Ghz range so I wanted a "current" high performing graphics card.
Being averse to spending a LOT of money on the high end cards (upward of $200 for 128 MB 8x AGP products), I looked to strike a balance between high function and low price. I landed, of course, on the GeForce4 Ti4200 board from VisionTek.
SEE www.tomshardware.com/graphic/20020409/geforce4ti4200-01.html
It ranks in the top quarter on performance in moderate systems and holds its own quite well in high end systems.
SEE www6.tomshardware.com/graphic/20021218/vgacharts-02.html
Installation and Features
This board was extremely simple to install. A one sheet page of instructions worked great on my Window ME system. Basically you power off, remove the old board, slap the new one in and boot up. Windows ME notices the new board, finds the driver from the CD-Rom (supplied) and after a reboot every thing worked. I have experienced no hangs or hiccups - this is a RARE thing these days.
After reboot, a wizard completes the install and asks you a series of questions about software features provided by the nVidia Desktop Manager. You are asked if and how to do multi-monitor support, multi-desktop support (virtual desktops to keep things organized), transparent windows, fast maximize of windows... hot keys for various tasks - lots of stuff. I enabled multi-desktop support and it seems to work well.
The board itself supplies an S-Video connector for hooking to a TV, a DVI connector for connecting to a High Definition Video monitor, and a standard 15 pin analog connector. You can use two displays simultaneously if you wish - haven't tried this myself.
In addition, the board comes with PowerDVD software by Cyberlink. I did not install this as I was highly unimpressed with the version that came with an earlier product. It could be this later version on a sufficiently powered machine is a better performer.
Performance/Gaming
The adapter supports resolutions up to 2048 x 1536, 16 bits of color at 60Hz refresh. I generally use mine at 1280x1024, 16 bits at 75Hz refresh. 60Hz refresh is slow enough that I observe flicker when a light colored background is present; however, this is true for ALL cards at this rate.
I've run a couple of games with it - including Age of Mythology (REVIEW) which looks even MORE gorgeous than before. I am quite satisfied.
If you want more graphics memory the sister version to this card with 128MB board is also available for about $30 more.
Alternatives
There are so many boards on the market - and most vary in small ways as they are all built around chipsets from the 3 major chip makers: nVidia (makers of Xbox), ATI, and a distant competitor Guillemot Corporation (Hercules). I feel the dividing line is really over two things: overall price performance, and buying a proven product from a trusted source. [There are quite a few knock-off fly-by-night firms]. While VisionTek is not a hugely successful company, it is based in Illinois so tech support for US residents is a possibility. One point to note: VisionTek has apparently dropped the nVidia (GeForce) products - they are no longer featured on their website (www.visiontek.com) in favor of the Radeon series. Perhaps they are going after the over-priced Radeon board market where they can command a better profit margin.
Most of my research was done using www.tomshardware.com which I recommend (see the links above).
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 129
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Epinions.com ID:
rorsteven
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Location: Silicon Valley, USA
Reviews written: 29
Trusted by: 0 members
About Me:
Tech geek; Amateur Magician; Silicon Valley
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