Hello

I'm looking to upgrade to an nvidia graphics card with AGP 8x/4x?

My motherboard has an AGP socket that can handle 4x/2x.


Can I use this card on my motherboard? Am I correct to assume that the card will just run at 4x when installed?

Thank you

Most probably you will have voltage problems with 4x/8x card on a 4x/2x AGP slot. I am not sure if this is right, but AGP 3.0 is backward compatible but the motherboard must be 8X m/b and the card may be an older one.

hmmm, I had my suspicisions about that!!

Could be time to grab a more up-to-date motherboard!

Thank you

Try to get a mobo with a universal AGP 3.0 slot. That way I think that you can use most video cards safely.

Hmm, just found the manual for my old MSI motherboard, AGP slot is a 1.5v, same as card, so should be ok.

Useful link:

http://www.neoseeker.com/Hardware/faqs/kb/10,63.html

Technically, no doubt...

However I have always refrained from using the newer AGP 3.0 (8X) cards with my old AGP 2.0 slot. Anyway if you get an AGP 8X card then why would you want to use it at 4X mode?

Note: I have experienced random (and quite frequent) freezing issues with my Gigabyte Radeon 9600 Pro (which is an AGP 3.0 card) with even with an AGP 3.0 slot ASUS A7V8X-X m/b. Apparently these manufacturers have different standards even within AGP 3.0, so it's best to check very carefully before proceeding.

Edit: Does your nVidia card come with a fan and a separate power supply?

Edit: I have just read the page on the link that you have kindly provided. According to the site, you can safely use 8X cards in an older AGP 2.0 motherboard, but there is no guarantee of system stability. In that case, your video card needs to be universal AGP 3.0 compatible! Apparently there are issues with the signalling voltage as opposed to key voltage.

As I said, best to go for universal AGP 3.0 mobo and avoid all these confusing issues.

OK, here's the deal in plain terms:
[list][*]AGP 3.0 (8X) cards are compatible with 1.5 V slots.[*]The signal voltage is where the incompatibilities arise...[*]Apparently only universal AGP 3.0 video cards are fully compatible with older motherboards. Other AGP 3.0 video cards will have serious stability issues when used with the older 1.5 V slots.[*]Therefore, for the best stability and performance, use an AGP 3.0 video card with an AGP 3.0 slot.[/list=0]

Thank you for the detailed advice. Very much appreciated. I will do my 'homework' and pick up a suitable motherboard.

You're welcome... glad you found my suggestions useful.

In my opinion, I think that such subtle incompatibilities with hardware are often the most frustrating. We end up scratching our heads if we land up with problems and then end up blaming the poor ole OS for all our troubles. If a device didn't work straight out, then we can junk it. If it works well, then keep it. If it gives periodic or random problems, that's what makes us tear our hair out.

As the saying goes, experience comes cheap at any price!