So what's up guys, I know I've been lurking a lot lately! Anyways, I need some advice about video cards.

I recently bought a motherboard with a 915 chipset, and I need to buy a PCI Express video card. The two I'm comsidering right now are the ATi X700XT 256MB, and the GeForce 6600GT. If there is another PCI Express video card I'm forgetting, please let me know...

Anyways, the system this is going into is primarily intended for games (EQ2, Half-Life 2, etc.). I have a P4 3.4HT, 1GB DDR2 RAM, etc, so this has to be a high-end card to match the system. Price is a consideration, but honestly I'm willing to pay if what I'm getting is worth it.

So, comparisons between those 2 cards, or other suggestions on what card to get would be great! I know there are a lot of gurus out there, so clue my helpless self in, please.

Last I read lots of people were having issues with the 6600/6800 series cards and EQ2. There's a thread in the tech section of the EQ2 forums about it.

Come on guys, no one else has anything?

X700 XT's are kind of hard to find right now. X700 Pro's are more plentiful, but in the 150-200 price range, the 6600GT offers better performance. See the X700 Pro Roundup at Anandtech for a comparison between the X700 Pro and the 6600GT. Link. Personally, I'd go with the eVGA 6600GT.

As far as EQ2 goes, I know 5 people using 6800/6800GT's (Myself and Pesco included). After grabbing the latest drivers NVIDIA put out a few days after launch, things have been running smoothly for all of us.

Anyway, congrats on your shiny new machine. Hope your Prescott P4 doesn't burn your house down.

-Tok