More help (With graphics card)

[thrash-boy]

hey. Im here to make another post that most people will probably know the answer to like the alphabet.

 

I have never upgraded anything in my pc before (hopefully that will change very soon) and im looking for advice on upgrading my graphics card.

 

I currently have a 128MB ATI Radeon X300SE PCIe x16 (you should be able to make scence of that)

 

Anyway every game i want requires atleast 1gb ram and 256mb a graphics card. Ive already sorted out what ram to get.

 

 

 

the problem is i dont know what card to get. I know it has to be PCIe x16 or whatever its called and it has to be compatible with my motherboard (i think) and my power supply has to be big enough.

 

 

 

If anyone could give me the names of some good value for money (not to expensive) atleast 256mb PCIe x16 cards or any tips on installation that would be great.

 

 

 

Im sorry im beeing such a pest but tomorrow im goin to my uncles who lives near where theres a computer market every weekend, so it might be a while before i get anything if i dont get it tomorrow.

 

 

 

Much thanks in advance! :D

[Mazurizi]

Well it really depends on your budget, but you can get a Zotac 8600GT for about ÃÆââ¬Å¡Ãâã70. That's what I've got on order at the moment.

 

 

 

But, the 6600GT's and 7900GT's are very popular for gaming (Both nVidia).

 

 

 

But yeah, depends on your budget really.

 

 

 

EDIT: I'd use this website if you're English. http://www.overclockers.co.uk/

[das1330]

Like Mazurizi said, it really depends on your budget. Without knowing it, I would direct you to Toms hardware. The article linked there explains all of the best graphics cards for a budget between 50-1000$. Any of the cards labeled as PCI-E will work just fine.

 

 

 

Also, one word about buying the card - do NOT buy it at a local shop. Computer parts are MUCH cheaper on the internet, sometimes as little as half the price. If you live in the United States, Newegg is considered to be one of the best online sellers.

[Vidi]

Mazzy ftw.

 

 

 

I have a 8600GT 256mb which runs TF2 on max settings with a 4x AA and I get good FPS, I also have Hellgate: London which is on high to very high settings and I get good FPS. The 8600GT is by no means superb, but it'll play most games on decent settings and at a decent frame rate.

[JoeDaStudd]

EDIT: I'd use this website if you're English. http://www.overclockers.co.uk/

 

No don't overclockers prices are silly on most stuff when compared to dabs.com, scan.co.uk (my personal favourite) and ebuyer.com.

 

You should be looking at atleast a 1650XT or 7600GT.

[Vidi]

I've noticed http://www.aria.co.uk is pretty good too.

[Bac_Talan]

http://www.tigerdirect.com/ has some good ones as well. Here is an 8400 GS that looks pretty good, and it's really cheap.

[Latinoking]

This site has low prices and good shipping! New Egg!

[Nadril]

http://www.tigerdirect.com/ has some good ones as well. Here is an 8400 GS that looks pretty good, and it's really cheap.

 

 

 

8400GS is crap, don't buy it.

 

 

 

 

 

Anyways if you're looking for a decent budget card my personal favorite is the 7900GS. You can easily get it for around $100-120 and its an incredibly powerful card. I use one in my current rig and it just tears up games.

 

 

 

The lack of 512mb ram will hurt you a bit in newer games, but on lower settings it will be fine.

[Doomster]

For even an upper midrange card, you may be looking at needing a PSU upgrage as well, particularly if the current unit is a 300/350W with no PCI-E (6 way) power cable.

 

 

 

Looking at ebuyer, there are several X1650 Pro models from ÃÆââ¬Å¡Ãâã29.99

 

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/132542

 

 

 

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/139141 - Or ÃÆââ¬Å¡Ãâã34.43 with an outsisde exhause / 2 slot wide cooler.

 

 

 

Not the most supercharged of solutions, but they tend not to have or need a PCI-E power feed, so may be usable on a rather average case PSU.

 

 

 

For bigger and better cards, you're probably going to need a better PSU than am unknown name 300W fitted to most cases, and some of the really cheap so called 600W units are nowhere near capable under realistic load conditions.

 

 

 

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/124927 - Good price for a "700W", gets ok reviews there - see also the 600W model which PC World were apparently selling for ÃÆââ¬Å¡Ãâã60 - the 600 may be ok so long as you don't go to a really top of the range GFX, as the amps on the 600 are a little shy of the requirements for the high priced graphics.

 

 

 

There WILL be compromises, the price difference between these and the same supposed amount of power in a respected brand PSU is not just down to the brand name, so if using a cheaper name, you have to have a bit of leeway on the watts and amps, where a good name PSU could be loaded close to maximum with reasonable confidence

[thrash-boy]

i was wondering that.

 

I pulled the side of and had a look at the label. It did have a brand name (fsp group inc.)

 

Its a 315W model number FSP315-60PNA-E(PF) which im guessing isn't to great (although it does the job atm)

 

 

 

if i was to upgrade to a 7900GT or something similar what brand/wattage of PSU would you say i REQUIRED and how much more would i be paying if i was to get a really good one so i wouldn't have to replace it again later?

 

 

 

thanks for all your advice so far!

[blade995]

i was wondering that.

 

I pulled the side of and had a look at the label. It did have a brand name (fsp group inc.)

 

Its a 315W model number FSP315-60PNA-E(PF) which im guessing isn't to great (although it does the job atm)

 

 

 

if i was to upgrade to a 7900GT or something similar what brand/wattage of PSU would you say i REQUIRED and how much more would i be paying if i was to get a really good one so i wouldn't have to replace it again later?

 

 

 

thanks for all your advice so far!

 

 

 

I would say you may be able to pull a 7900GS off with that power supply. FPS Group is a decent brand. Look at the sticker on the power supply and write down the amps on the 12, 5 and 3.3 volt rails and post them here.

[thrash-boy]

ok heres what it says:

 

+3.3v is 15 Amps

 

+5v is 25 Amps

 

+5vSB is 2 amps (im guessing thats stand by but ill post it anyway)

 

+12v is 11a (12v1dc and 12v2dc, but im guessing thats cos there 2 leads or something)

 

 

 

i dont know much about amps and volts and stuff but im guessing that aint too bad.

[Ant0n]

11A on 12v isnt good. You will never use a psu with more than 450w max as a normal user, not a gamer either. People just think that you need like 1000W psu if you got sli and a few hdds, but you DONT! http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6817104935 heres a good fsp psu.

[Doomster]

Dual 12v, 11A on each, and FSP (Fortron) are regarded as a good tier 2 (if not tier 1) name in power supplies.

 

 

 

Depending on the overall power drain of other devices, it may well be able to power a card in the upper midrange class,

 

 

 

Shouls get away with any that recommend a 350W PSU, maybe even those that recommend a 400W, as the dual 12v is well distributed, and could well be more 12v power than a lot of no-name 400-450W models have.

 

 

 

The main sticking point is overall power, and if it's a Core 2 CPU, than that gives more leeway than a power hungry Pentium 4 / Pentium D.

 

 

 

My current machine has a FSP 350W with a single 12V @ 19A, driving a Pentium 4, 2 hard drives, 2 optical drives, and a PCI-E graphics with no power connector - the PSU does not have a PCI-E power connector.