"Haggar" said:
I have a P4 Compaq computer and want to add an 64mb gaming card. Do the
Compaq brands use most general AGP cards?
1) Open the computer case and verify there is an AGP slot.
Generally, the cheapest pre-built computers save a few pennies
by not offering an AGP slot. Many of these users are disappointed
to find that their only upgrade option is a PCI video card.
If there is an AGP slot, carry on to step (2).
2) Find out the chipset used on the board. You can either use the
documentation that comes with the board, or perhaps use
Sisoftware Sandra or Lavalys Everest. You can get Everest here:
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=4181
3) Go to this site and look through the tables. There is a
"practical" table of AGP card types, and using your chipset
info, you can get a good idea of what AGP cards will work.
There is a separate table of AGP cards and what type they
are.
http://www.playtool.com/pages/agpcompat/agp.html
You start with the table at the bottom of the page. It maps
chipset to AGP slot type. For example, an "Intel 875" is a
"Universal 1.5V AGP 3.0 Motherboard". Scroll up to the table
with the title "Practical Motherboard And Card Compatibility".
It shows that everything except a 3.3V only card will work.
Then scroll down to the next table of video cards, and you
can see the card types. An FX5200 "Universal AGP 3.0 Card"
would work in a "Universal 1.5V AGP 3.0 Motherboard", because
the "Practical Motherboard And Card Compatibility" says so.
Note that some cards are tricky. The video cards with two
entries, are like that because the manufacturer decided to
change the GPU chip. A few users have been caught by this,
and if you buy the wrong version of card, when your motherboard
only works with a specific type, you can end up with a card
you cannot use. Generally, this is a problem only for older
motherboard users, that have a 3.3V only AGP slot on the
motherboard.
HTH,
Paul
