Dawg Bonz Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 My vintage (96) 8500 Mac is coughing and sputtering. Signs of imminent morbidity. In searching the intermediate options for OS9 CM compatible machines, I am looking at a: iBook 900MHzG3 / 128MB / 40GB /COMBO / E / 56K / 12.1TFT * "Stunning graphics with ATI Mobility RADEON 7500" Does anyone know for a certain FACT that the ATI Mobility RADEON 7500 (32MB?) video card produces "High Quality" dust & fog (without psychedelic color problems) in all 3 (OS9.xx) CM titles on this iBook 900MHzG3 ? Thanks, 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schrullenhaft Posted January 20, 2004 Share Posted January 20, 2004 I can't say for a 'certainty', but I'm under the impression that videocard/chip should give you high-quality graphics. It shouldn't down-sample, alpha-blending effects should be good (dust, smoke) and there shouldn't be any 'psychadelic colors'. Down-sampling has been seen with the GeForce family on the Mac and, I believe, some of the newer Radeons on the Mac. The 'psychadelic colors' were a problem with the Radeon 9x00/8500 family (that bug has since been corrected with a beta driver) and the alpha-blending problem still exists with the Radeon 9x00/8500's ('high-quality' smoke still appears opaque) even with the beta drivers (and unfortunately doesn't appear likely to get fixed). I'm not sure if other videocards on the Mac had alpha-blending problems or not, but I had heard reported in the past that 32Mb Radeons had worked fine with no problems in CM. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawg Bonz Posted January 20, 2004 Author Share Posted January 20, 2004 Thanks for the feedback Schrullenhaft. Appreciate your insight as always. What you report as your impression agrees with what I can gather from reading the forum for information. I can confirm my 32MB Mac Edition PCI Radeon card looks great in all 3-CM titles. I can’t see down sampling, no psychedelic color problems and the dust & smoke look great in high quality. The ATI Mobility RADEON 7500 is 32MB and 2xAGP. Hoping an iBook 900MHz G3 owner(s) with hands on experience can confirm high-quality graphics for this videocard/chip combination. Thanks again Schrullenhaft. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tar Posted January 21, 2004 Share Posted January 21, 2004 I have a Titanium PowerBook with the Radeon 7500 card and 32MB VRAM. It works great with the CM series of games. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawg Bonz Posted January 22, 2004 Author Share Posted January 22, 2004 Thanks for the feedback Tom. Much appreciated. I just learned of the rumored release of new PowerMac G5's: Single 2, Dual 2.3 and Dual 2.6 on January 24! This Apple release might drop the old iBook price even more. Now that I know the 32MB VRAM Radeon 7500 card works great with the CM series of games, this will help my purchase decision. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Emrys Posted January 22, 2004 Share Posted January 22, 2004 Originally posted by Dawg Bonz: I just learned of the rumored release of new PowerMac G5's: Single 2, Dual 2.3 and Dual 2.6 on January 24! This Apple release might drop the old iBook price even more.Those all sound like desktops. Why would they effect the price of an iBook? :confused: Michael 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawg Bonz Posted January 23, 2004 Author Share Posted January 23, 2004 Michael, I used the term "might" based on a computer friends hunch. He has more knowledge of Apple’s business practices than myself but his "hunch" is just that. Sorry for any misunderstanding. BTW: Didn’t you say in a post you have the NVIDIA GeForce4 Titanium 128MB video card in your Mac? How does that card work in the CM trilogy in your machine? Dust & Smoke looks good? What kind of desktop are you using? Just asking in case those 'old' G4-1.25 Duals drop in price as well... One can hope. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Emrys Posted January 23, 2004 Share Posted January 23, 2004 Originally posted by Dawg Bonz: BTW: Didn’t you say in a post you have the NVIDIA GeForce4 Titanium 128MB video card in your Mac?Yep. How does that card work in the CM trilogy in your machine? Dust & Smoke looks good?Yeah, it looks okay, though all the nVidias seem more prone to downsampling than the Radeons. Smoke and dust are pretty good. About the 4Ti though, I wouldn't advise getting it just for CM. I had an earlier 2MX with 32MB that worked just as well. Although a good card, the 4Ti was a lot of money that in practice didn't buy me anything I didn't already have. What kind of desktop are you using?A nearly three year old G4 Graphite 733MHz, 512MB, etc.,etc. It's a beautiful machine that does nearly everything I could ask of it. The only thing the new machines have that I really miss is an earphone jack at the front of the machine. But I suppose that when CMII appears I'll need something faster... Michael [ January 23, 2004, 12:08 AM: Message edited by: Michael Emrys ] 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ales Dvorak Posted January 23, 2004 Share Posted January 23, 2004 Originally posted by Michael Emrys: Although a good card, the 4Ti was a lot of money that in practice didn't buy me anything I didn't already have.Sorry to hear that.. Ales 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Emrys Posted January 24, 2004 Share Posted January 24, 2004 Originally posted by Ales Dvorak: </font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by Michael Emrys: Although a good card, the 4Ti was a lot of money that in practice didn't buy me anything I didn't already have.Sorry to hear that..</font> 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawg Bonz Posted January 24, 2004 Author Share Posted January 24, 2004 Thanks for the feedback Michael. If Apple really does drop prices, I may get a "new"… old machine. I would love to get a Dual G4 but the G3 iBook may have to do for now. I hope this purchase will last me for at least a 2-3 year period and be at least basic CMII capable. "when CMII appears I'll need something faster..." IF the RUMORS are right, the PowerPC 976 4GHz+ may ship in mid-2005 and the single-core PPC 980 5GHz+will be Apple's workhorse high-end processor beginning in early 2006. I would expect these machines to be a bit pricey compared to the ‘old’ G4 that you aptly describe as, "a beautiful machine that does nearly everything I could ask of it." Who knows when CMII will ship but the BFC game should be blazing and beautiful on these Macs and a 20+" display. Thanks again for the feedback Michael. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Emrys Posted January 24, 2004 Share Posted January 24, 2004 Originally posted by Dawg Bonz: I would expect these machines to be a bit pricey compared to the ‘old’ G4 that you aptly describe as, "a beautiful machine that does nearly everything I could ask of it."You could be right, on the other hand, for the last few years Apple has steadily held the price line on their range of models. That could of course change without notice, but barring a serious meltdown of the economy, I actually wouldn't be surprised to see prices come down some, say 25%. Michael 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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