I think the time has come to replace my trusty nVidia FX5200 and to get something more powerful. I dont want to break the bank as I want a new processor aswell but I just wanted to know your opinions on the card I am after.

The graphics card I have seen is: 128MB Inno3D GeForce 6600GT, seen here. 1000mhz memory clocking speed

All I want to know is has anyone got it? is it good value for money? and can it run demanding games ok?

Thanks and I hope to hear some replies.

First of, I'm not sure you are in the right section of the forum.

I have used this card before and it should have no problem running most games nowadays, so I guess this will fit your needs for now.

My friend is using one, and I've seen the card in action as well. In Need For Speed 2, with all of the options turned to the highest, the graphics, are just amazing.

We also tested it on splinter cell chaos theory, again with all options turned to the highest, graphics came out very nicely.

Hello Bulb,

If you're looking for a good price and great performance, the 6600 will be just fine. But if your budget can afford it, you should consider a 6800 as well. They are both considered obsolete now, so the prices have fallen a lot. I believe you can purchase the 6800 for around $250 to $300 U.S. now.

As you may know, the 7800 GTS has been out for a short time, and already the next version of 7800 is coming out, with an 1800 MHz clock speed, and a big boost on video power (I don't remember what it's at). It is also coming with 512 MB of RAM. The previous clock speed of the first 7800 was 1200 MHz, with 256 MB.

Overall, the 6600 or even 6800 would be a good choice for prices. But this also depends on what games you play. A few good place to check out would be www.tomshardware.com, www.geek.com and www.maximumpc.com for tons of useful information.

It depends what you want to do - the 6600GT is great value, and always had been, although now it's getting on a bit in terms of age. I don't think the 6800 is really that worth it, considering the 7800 (GT especially) is only about 25% more, but gives more than that back performance wise. If a 6800 it would have to be a 6800GS as it's the cheapest, but still gives a decent performance.

Anyway - I believe most of the 6600GT's (though you got some 256mb ones now) are pretty much identical so just go for the cheapest.

I would stick with a evga GeForce 6800GS, and there are couple of solid reasons for that:

1. You can always try to unlock the missing 4 pipelines and achieve GT speeds or even higher.
2. It has very good overclockability
3. Price is about 100 bucks less than any 6800GT