Replacement for X700

I have an X700 PCI-E which has died on me and needs to be replaced with something similar or better. PSU is only a 300W FSP (which has coped with the X700 fine). I would much prefer a passive card.

Reading around the X700 is slightly slower than a 6600GT and comparable to a HD2400Pro and X1600.

I am unsure between the following from Scan:

NVidia 8500GT
512MB XFX 8500GT PCI-E (x16), Mem 500 MHz GDDR2, GPU 500 MHz, 16 Cores, D-Sub, Dual Link DVI-I PASSIVE
£35.24

ATI HD2400XT
256MB Sapphire HD2400XT PCI-E(x16) 64Bit 1400MHz GDDR3 GPU 700MHz CrossFire D-Sub/DVI/HDTV Retail. Passive
£32.89

ATI RX1650 Pro
512MB Sapphire RX1650 Pro, PCI-E, 12 Cores, Mem 1350MHz, GPU 450MHz, Dual Link DVI/S-Video, Retail FAN Cooling
£29.49



Which would be better?

In terms of gaming performance I would say the 1650 would be the best, but it doesn't play DX10 games. The 8500GT would be similar in performance but it plays DX10 and would generally be more futureproof, but it's more expensive.

Maybe you could stretch to £40 and get an HD3650, it's capable of smoothly playing most games on medium/high at low resolutions, as long as AA is turned off.

It's quite a tough call really, depends on your budget doesn't it. If I were you I'd fork out the extra tenner and get the 3650, because the 1650 is really an old card with not much life in it anymore. The 8500GT is £35 which might be a compromise between performance and price, but really the 3650 is a fiver away. Gd luck!

if your happy with dx9, then a 2nd hand x19xx or 79xx card would be good

I don't know that the FSP 300W PSU will cope with an ATI 3650 - do you?

Reading this article I think the 8500GT JUST wins over the ATI card but it seems close.

This article touts the ATI card as the winner of the two, but mainly in a HTPC environment, which my PC is not being used for.

I *think* I'll go with the nVidia 8500GT...

That's between the 2400 and the 8500 isn't it. The 8500 should easily beat a 2400, but since the 8500 is £35 I would go for a £40 3650 which would cream it.