Correct PCI card for Mediator

[AltRN8]

I'm trying tomato sure to get the right video card for my Mediator 4000D. I'm worried that I might get the wrong card if I don't confirm with someone that a particular card is compatible. If I'm understanding correctly you need to use 5v cards for the Mediator 4000D. Is this correct? How can I tell if the video card is 3.3v or 5v?

I've seen mixed opinions on whether to get a Radeon or a Voodoo card. This is for a classic system no PPC at this point. Planning on running OS 3.9. Any opinions with details on which direction to go?

[Iggy]

For a basic set up I would get a Voodoo3.
The Radeon 9200 is a nice card, but its better suited to PPC software.
The extra memory of the Radeon is not really that useful.

[AltRN8]

The next question is going to be where to source a Voodoo3 card from them seem impossible to find. At least the Voodoo3 3000 PCI one.

[Iggy]

The next question is going to be where to source a Voodoo3 card from them seem impossible to find. At least the Voodoo3 3000 PCI one.

I have a Voodoo3 2000 PCI I am not using.
And Voodo3 cards are pretty common in the US.

Where are you located?

[mongo]

I'm trying tomato sure to get the right video card for my Mediator 4000D. I'm worried that I might get the wrong card if I don't confirm with someone that a particular card is compatible. If I'm understanding correctly you need to use 5v cards for the Mediator 4000D. Is this correct? How can I tell if the video card is 3.3v or 5v?

http://digital.ni.com/public.nsf/allkb/5F0F91CFE6A09B9286256CAD0075457F

[amiadudeorwat]

For a basic set up I would get a Voodoo3.
The Radeon 9200 is a nice card, but its better suited to PPC software.
The extra memory of the Radeon is not really that useful.

I don't know what you mean that the Radeon 9200 is better suited to PPC software?  The Radeon 9200 works fine with 68k machines.  The Radeon also runs much cooler than a Voodoo 3 which might be a concern for an A4000 desktop.  I agree that the extra memory of the Radeon is pretty much useless.  

The main benefit of a Voodoo 3 over Radeon is that it has Warp3D support, though it might be argued that is too slow on 68k to be of much use.  
The benefits of a Radeon over Voodoo 3 is lower temperature output and DVI support.  And DVI support is nice if you want to use HDMI as only a simple adapter is required.  Also cost; a Radeon 9200 you should be able to find around $20, a Voodoo 3 lately can be anywhere from $50-100.  Though if you have to buy 2-3 Radeons before you find one that is 5V only you didn't save anything.

[icbrkr]

http://digital.ni.com/public.nsf/allkb/5F0F91CFE6A09B9286256CAD0075457F

Basically, this.

I used this exact page and then searched ebay for a used Sapphire 9200.  Most had pictures of the card, and I found the correct one based on that image.  I think I ended up spending something like $20.

[amiadudeorwat]

The only problem with that is that only indicates what the board is keyed for.  You can have a board that is keyed for universal as in has the notches indicating that it supports both 3.3V and 5V but the manufacturer might not actually include the components to convert the 5V to 3.3V.

The easiest thing to do is just search for known good 5V versions and buy one of those like the Sapphire cards.  
Like this one:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ATI-Radeon-9200-SE-128-MB-DDR-SDRAM-PCI-Graphics-Card-/222084321649

[jack-3d]

For 68k system I would take Radeon because Warp3D does not have much sense without PowerPC (unless you plan Sonnet Crescendo 7200 G3/G4 PCI card ;o)

[Acill]

Finding a Voodoo 3, 4 or 5 in PCI is very difficult now a days, at least on ebay too. They go for a lot because of the vintage game collectors are building classic PC systems with them. The market is a lot like the Amiga Market when they pop up and I see them go for over $200 most of the time, its stupid.

I would grab this one fast if I were you. Its 100% mediator compatible and warp3d as well.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3dfx-3Dfx-Voodoo-3-V32316G20-16-MB-PCI-Graphics-adapter-/162037445667?hash=item25ba2f3423:g:EZoAAOSwpoJXDo5N

I run this in mine as well as a Radeon, the 5500 in a mediator only uses one CPU, but all the RAM. You wll get like 32+ MB for the system If I remember right even.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3DFX-Voodoo-5500-PCI-Video-card-/301939255157?hash=item464cfb6775:g:J0EAAOSws8ZXHQkh

[AltRN8]

Any major differences between the 2000 and 3000 in regard to performance when in an amiga?

[amiadudeorwat]

Any major differences between the 2000 and 3000 in regard to performance when in an amiga?

Not that you would notice.  You might see an extra 1-2FPS in something like Quake, but the 3000 will output a bit more heat.

[Acill]

I would get that one for $75 while you can. You can see the 5500 has gone from $10 to over $120 since I linked them. You dont see them last long these days here in the US. Not sure about Europe.

[AltRN8]

I did in fact purchase a similar card for $70 thanks for the pointer to ebay.