3dlabs Wildcat4 - still decent?

[eug k]

Hi,

I'm after a dual DVI card, but I don't really play games so those
ridiculously-expensive 3D cards with dual DVI ports are a bit of
a waste for me. Unfortunately, those are the only cards that come
with dual DVI, apart from the even more expensive workstation cards.

I came across a 3Dlabs Wildcat 4 7110 that is reasonably-priced, are
they still OK for 2d use nowadays? My main concern is that it doesn't
choke with HD video on a P4 3.06, or have any conflicts with Adobe
Photoshop or Premiere. If I'm not mistaken it only has DX7 support?

The drivers haven't been updated since 2004 which is a bit worrying,
although that might mean they're as solid or optimized as they can be.
(ha... ha.....)

Does anyone have this card? What do you think of it, from a video /
multimedia point of view?

I intend to run the DVI outputs at 1680x1050.

http://3dlabs.com/products/product.asp?prod=270


thanks!

 

[Mike]

Well, if your not into extreme gaming, and just typical photo editing, then
just about any video card will do. A decent video card and display is
incremental for video and photo editing. Yet for games, you pretty much need
top of the line cards.
Have you checked www.tigerdirect.com for video cards? They have pretty
decent prices.

 

[eug k]

Well, if your not into extreme gaming, and just typical photo editing, then
just about any video card will do. A decent video card and display is
incremental for video and photo editing. Yet for games, you pretty much need
top of the line cards.

Yup, i'm using a really cheap Radeon 9250 and MX440 now, after my 3-year-old
Ti4200's fan died and caused permanent overheating damage.

The problem is that over analog VGA at this resolution, I can see flicker
on certain grey backgrounds. The identical monitor next to it, connected
to the same video card's DVI output, doesn't have that.

Also, with the new docking windows in Premiere Pro 2.0, resizing anything
is a very jerky affair. I'd imagine a faster video card would help somewhat.

I suppose a card with a better RAMDAC would help the flicker problem, but
it probably wouldn't help the speed.

Have you checked www.tigerdirect.com for video cards? They have pretty
decent prices.

I haven't cos shipping it to Australia would probably cost more than the card!

I've been checking prices here quite a bit, and the cheapest video card
I could find with dual DVI is AUD$269. Quite a waste seeing that I won't use
98% of the card's 3D processing power.

 

[Mike]

I could find with dual DVI is AUD$269. Quite a waste seeing that I won't

use
98% of the card's 3D processing power.

At least you will still have the power available years down the road.

 

[rjn]

eug k wrote: >

I'm after a dual DVI card, ...

Dual-head, and not dual-link, I take it.

... but I don't really play games so those ridiculously-expensive
3D cards with dual DVI ports are a bit of a waste for me.

Looked at Matrox? They're still around, but haven't been
competitive in gaming for a few years, and consequently
haven't much mindshare these days.

Unfortunately, those are the only cards that come
with dual DVI, ...

Not so. It appears that Matrox offers dual-head down to the
G550.

... apart from the even more expensive workstation cards.

I would only look at those if I needed tweaked OGL or
even app-specific support, which isn't generic 2D.

The drivers haven't been updated since 2004 ...

Going with a new Matrox eliminates that worry, although
I do wonder if Matrox meets Vista requirements.

I intend to run the DVI outputs at 1680x1050.

That will require a card higher than a G550,
such as a P650. I don't know the entire Matrox line,
so poke about their site. Pay attention to your slot
requirements, too: AGP, PCI, PCIe.