Need next nVidia card upgrade suggestions

[Thetargos]

Hello all.

I'm at the verge of overhauling my computer, and since I only use Linux, I thought I'd ask you directly in this forum. I'm on a rather tight budget and am having a bit of trouble deciding which card to get (my upper limit would be about ~$200 for the video card, as this is a major overhaul). Just to give you a bit of background from what I'd be upgrading from, here's what I currently have:

• CPU: AMD Athlon64 S754 2800+
• RAM: 1 GB PC2700
• Video: GeForce FX 5900 128Mb
• Motherboard: VIA based K8M800, onboard NIC, sound, etc.
• 2x80GB S-ATA WD HDDs
• 1x120BG ATA Seagate HDD
• DVD-RW
• CD-RW

Needless to say I urgently need to migrate from AGP to PCI-E, I pretty much have all the components worked out, except for the graphics. I was wondering what would be the best bang for the buck given my tight budget for the card. I was considering either a 8600GTS GDDR3 part or a 7900GS, since I 'm on Linux I have not much of a need for DirectX 10 , however, I might be missing on other features... Would the trade off justify going with a previous generation product instead of a more current G80 part?

I even considered getting a lower end prev. generation card like a 7600 so to allow me to save up some more for a serious graphics upgrade, with the 9 series seemingly around the corner, the top of the line 9 series product will surely cost me at least as much as my full system upgrade (as I live outside the US and prices usually double)... And I'd need to start saving... But my question remains, for primarily using Linux only (with the fancy stuff like compiz-fusion, of course) what would give me the best price/performance ratio?

PS: It is not a secret that running demanding 3D applications while running Compiz/Beryl has quite a toll on the performance department, anyone been able to play demanding games like ET:QW with the effects running? (only a morbid question, as turning them off yields instant performance gain )

Thanks in advance.

Edit
Corrected a typo.

[mooninite]

7950GT - fanless

Quiet and fast. I will never again make the mistake of buying a top-end video card with a fan. You will enjoy it, too. You won't have the fan constantly going up and down in RPM when you're using Compiz Fusion -- it gets annoying on a card with a fan.

ET: QW runs very well on max settings on my 7950GT fanless.

I also don't use Windows, so DirectX 10 is also meaningless to me, and I'm not worried about future support for about a year.

Edit: It retails now for $200, but since they are hard to find right now... I'll help you out.
http://cgi.ebay.com/XFX-512-MB-7950-...QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-XFX-NVIDIA-G...QQcmdZViewItem

[Thetargos]

Wow! That XFX 7950GT looks really nice! I already asked one seller how much would it be for shipping down to Mexico. The other only ships to continental US.

[starcannon]

Originally Posted by Thetargos

Wow! That XFX 7950GT looks really nice! I already asked one seller how much would it be for shipping down to Mexico. The other only ships to continental US.

I'm running the XFX 7950gt x2 sli mode.
Single they are blazing fast, sli, insanely fast.
Bang for buck under linux the 7950gt is as good as it gets at this time.