Found a pretty cool vid from PhilsComputerLab concerning pci vid cards. Looks like the Diamond Stealth 64 (S3 Trio64V+) is pretty good potion for my PC. Although It may need a s3vbe20 driver to speed up 640x480.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_5suEoXTc8&a … hilsComputerLab

I used a S3 Trio64v+ with my similar 5x86@160, it's fine - except the apparent LCD brightness part.

Most criticism about early Rage 3D cards (besides ATI driver stigma) is the expensive alpha blending in software, which a 486 can't handle. If 3d's really desired, there's capable room to shove a 3dfx Voodoo or Voodoo2 in there, damn the bottlenecks. Forsaken scaling benchmark wow numbers don't mean crap when it's DX5 capabilities on the table.

Decent PCI 2D/3D video cards came long after the 486 era and will have drivers that will choke it more than a Trio64+Voodoo2 combo. They also tend to be not too good for DOS compatibility (i.e.stuttery keen, ega text font)

Id there a workaround for the S3 Trio64v+ LCD brightness issue?

I mean honestly an S3 ViRGE might be a solid choice. They are dirt cheap but solid for 2D titles and have stable enough drivers. The abysmal 3D performance won't really matter on a 486. If 3D matters at all, I guess a Rage 128 would be a stable low cost option that would absolutely never present itself as a bottleneck.