Hi All,
I'm kinda interested in getting my vidcard upgraded, and I'd like to continue using a fanless card. Hopefully, with the following details, some of you might be able to help me out with some suggestions?
I use my PC primarily for two-channel audio --> M-Audio Audiophile out to a reasonably beefy 2-channel rig, so PC silencing is important. Currently, the Vidcard is a GF2MX, which is fanless but has a big honking heatsink. Last vidcard was a Voodoo3 3000, which was also fanless.
BUT: I also like to play games every once in a while, and the GF2-MX is kinda running out of steam, so I'm thinking that it may be time to upgrade. I've seen references here to Radeon 7500s running with a passive Zalman -- is this option usable for Radeon 8500s as well?
What about the nVidia side? (which I'd much rather stick with for ... other driver reasons, etc.) Are the Zalman passives (or are there other better models) suitable for say, the Ti4600? How low down the performance ladder do I have to go on the ATI and the nVidia side to be able to go with passive?
Lastly: I'm hoping (fairly strongly, actually) to find a card that has dual analog monitor outs, as I plan to be driving a pair of 21" IBM Trinitrons. I know that the nVidias have nView, and the ATIs have Hydravision -- are there high-3D-performance cards that will run passive and still have dual outs?
Thanks for any advice or info!
P.S. -- I don't do DVD seriously at all, since my system is 2-channel audio only, so 2D quality doesn't matter too much to me -- I find the nVidias reasonable, even if the ATIs are better. 3D performance for some of the newer games would be a fairly major concern, however, probably coming in only second to the need for dual analog outputs to drive the pair of monitors.
I'm kinda interested in getting my vidcard upgraded, and I'd like to continue using a fanless card. Hopefully, with the following details, some of you might be able to help me out with some suggestions?
I use my PC primarily for two-channel audio --> M-Audio Audiophile out to a reasonably beefy 2-channel rig, so PC silencing is important. Currently, the Vidcard is a GF2MX, which is fanless but has a big honking heatsink. Last vidcard was a Voodoo3 3000, which was also fanless.
BUT: I also like to play games every once in a while, and the GF2-MX is kinda running out of steam, so I'm thinking that it may be time to upgrade. I've seen references here to Radeon 7500s running with a passive Zalman -- is this option usable for Radeon 8500s as well?
What about the nVidia side? (which I'd much rather stick with for ... other driver reasons, etc.) Are the Zalman passives (or are there other better models) suitable for say, the Ti4600? How low down the performance ladder do I have to go on the ATI and the nVidia side to be able to go with passive?
Lastly: I'm hoping (fairly strongly, actually) to find a card that has dual analog monitor outs, as I plan to be driving a pair of 21" IBM Trinitrons. I know that the nVidias have nView, and the ATIs have Hydravision -- are there high-3D-performance cards that will run passive and still have dual outs?
Thanks for any advice or info!
P.S. -- I don't do DVD seriously at all, since my system is 2-channel audio only, so 2D quality doesn't matter too much to me -- I find the nVidias reasonable, even if the ATIs are better. 3D performance for some of the newer games would be a fairly major concern, however, probably coming in only second to the need for dual analog outputs to drive the pair of monitors.