PCI GPU for Windows 98 gaming
Posted by timmun90@reddit | retrobattlestations | View on Reddit | 13 comments
I'm planning on building a system for windows 98. I've found small system with a case, mainboard and memory.
It's got a Xcel 2000 mainboard Sis 620 chipset and an Pentium 3 550mhz cpu in slot 1.
The mainboard seems to have a 32-bit PCI slot.
Are there any recommended GPU to fit in there that can do the more popular 3d games for Win 98?
Are geforce 6000 or Voodoo 2 cards fast enough?
eiche2k@reddit
I have a Geforce4 Mx 4000 PCI in my Windows 98 setup (a Dell Optiplex Gx110). Runs pretty well.
Kenohel@reddit
With your specs in think a Matrox G400 or G450 from 1999 would be a good and accurate PCI graphic card.
majestic_ubertrout@reddit
Those are in two different tiers of performance, and Win98 really spans different eras.
For starters, the GeForce 6000 series is from the end of the AGP era - really Windows XP cards. They're among the most powerful options for 3D gaming and will have no problem running 3D games from the 98 era.
A Voodoo 2 is really designed for late Windows 95 / early Windows 98 gaming and won't be happy with anything after 1999 or so. It should run Unreal Tournament or Half-Life at low but period-accurate FPS on a CRT. As a general rule a Voodoo 3 is about as fast as a SLI Voodoo 2 pair - and much cheaper still.
timmun90@reddit (OP)
Good information, thanks a lot. Maybe I was a bit confused by the pci and pci-, the 6200 I see for sale seems to be PCI-E so you're right.
I don't have to have a beast of a card to run everything at max but just being able to at least run up to the latest games for win 98 at least smoothly is fine.
majestic_ubertrout@reddit
I have a PCI Voodoo 3 2000 in my Pentium 2 350 with only PCI. They aren't cheap but they're well loved for a reason - I paid $120 or so for mine but you'll need to look around for one around that price point on PCI.
You can find a Radeon 7000 PCI pretty readily for cheap.
thegreatboto@reddit
At the time I got my first own computer (vs the family computer), an eMachine with a 800Mhz Celeron running WinME, I picked up a PCI Radeon 7200 32mb and was very happy with its performance and compatibility at the time.
Crafty_Shop_803@reddit
Seems like you'd want something of the era, like a geforce 2. I used to have a celeron 400mhz with a geforce 2 mx 200. Not the greatest pair but it could run all the games back then, up to let's say warcraft 3 and battlefield 1942.
Or else you could get something more recent then have the graphical horsepower to run the games at max.
timmun90@reddit (OP)
Yeah seems like I misinformed myself about the 6000 series. Perhaps a card like that would be a good option!
I don't really have the need to play everything at maximum graphical options, my only wish is to play them at least smooth, all the way up to the latest win 98 games.
Crafty_Shop_803@reddit
If you're not worried about being period accurate any video card will do I suppose. Looks like the fx 5200 is the latest to support windows 98.
timmun90@reddit (OP)
I found a complete system for sale nearby with 98 and XP on dual boot. It has a fx 5200, 1gb ram and an Athlon xp 2400+.
Thanks for the help.
timmun90@reddit (OP)
Hopefully I'll find one! There are a few for sale but all AGP. Perhaps it's better to get another mainboard with agp.
ThruMy4Eyes@reddit
You're going to hit CPU bottleneck quicker than any GPU bottleneck, so I would say grab a Geforce FX5200 PCI. They're cheap as hell to get and buy, and will be more than fast enough.
isecore@reddit
I had two Voodoo2's in SLI back in '99 and that was basically as badass as it got for me with Windows 98 gaming.