New MacPro 3GHz... But what Video card should I get??

[Anto38x]

Hi there.... I have decided to purchase the new MacPro 3GHz and I have other threads on here seeking advice about the accompanying Display and RAM. One other issue that I don't really have knowledge about is the video card. I curremtly have a PowerMac G5 2.0GHz Dual with the ATI Radeon 9800 Pro Card with 128MB of DDR. I could be going for either the 23" or the 30" ACD. What card should I choose when I go to configure my new MacPro in the Apple Store. Your advice would be greatly appreciated.

Here are the Apple Store Options:-
NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB (single-link DVI/dual-link DVI) [- Eur 360.00]
2 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB [- Eur 210.01]
3 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB [- Eur 60.00]
ATI Radeon X1900 XT 512MB (2 x dual-link DVI)
4 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB [+ Eur 90.00]
NVIDIA Quadro FX 4500 512MB, Stereo 3D (2 x dual-link DVI) [+ Eur 1,320.00]

Yours sincerely,
Anthony
MacUser and MacAddict

 

[xUKHCx]

Hi there.... I have decided to purchase the new MacPro 3GHz and I have other threads on here seeking advice about the accompanying Display and RAM. One other issue that I don't really have knowledge about is the video card. I curremtly have a PowerMac G5 2.0GHz Dual with the ATI Radeon 9800 Pro Card with 128MB of DDR. I could be going for either the 23" or the 30" ACD. What card should I choose when I go to configure my new MacPro in the Apple Store. Your advice would be greatly appreciated.

Here are the Apple Store Options:-
NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB (single-link DVI/dual-link DVI) [- Eur 360.00]
2 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB [- Eur 210.01]
3 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB [- Eur 60.00]
ATI Radeon X1900 XT 512MB (2 x dual-link DVI)
4 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB [+ Eur 90.00]
NVIDIA Quadro FX 4500 512MB, Stereo 3D (2 x dual-link DVI) [+ Eur 1,320.00]

Yours sincerely,
Anthony
MacUser and MacAddict

I personally think that the X1900 is the sweet spot with price/perfornamce. Unless you are doing seriously heavy lifting then it is not worth the extra pounds to step up to the 4500.

 

[iGary]

ATI Radeon X1900 XT 512MB (2 x dual-link DVI)

 

[FFTT]

I totally agree with iGary.

Even so, keep in mind that the ATI BTO card option will delay your shipment by as much as 5 weeks or so.

If you're in a hurry, you can order a stock system and buy the ATI kit later, but it will cost you more.

http://www.apple.com/macpro/graphics.html
http://www.barefeats.com/quad05.html

 

[amin]

That's what I did. Buying on the edu site, the upgrade kit is $50 less, so after selling the 7300 GT for a few dollars, it won't cost all that much more.

 

[quruli]

Hi there.... I have decided to purchase the new MacPro 3GHz and I have other threads on here seeking advice about the accompanying Display and RAM. One other issue that I don't really have knowledge about is the video card. I curremtly have a PowerMac G5 2.0GHz Dual with the ATI Radeon 9800 Pro Card with 128MB of DDR. I could be going for either the 23" or the 30" ACD. What card should I choose when I go to configure my new MacPro in the Apple Store. Your advice would be greatly appreciated.

Here are the Apple Store Options:-
NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB (single-link DVI/dual-link DVI) [- Eur 360.00]
2 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB [- Eur 210.01]
3 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB [- Eur 60.00]
ATI Radeon X1900 XT 512MB (2 x dual-link DVI)
4 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB [+ Eur 90.00]
NVIDIA Quadro FX 4500 512MB, Stereo 3D (2 x dual-link DVI) [+ Eur 1,320.00]

Yours sincerely,
Anthony
MacUser and MacAddict

It would be important to know what you are doing with this machine.