Hardware Looking to upgrade my graphics card

[Gohobojoe]

What are some things to keep in mind for upgrading a graphics card?

Interface type?
Power supply?

It's a ATI Radeon HD 4600 Series in a prebuilt computer. Really old. 5 years, and it's not holding up all that amazingly to the games I'm playing right now.

I don't want to go out and buy a new one only to find I can't use it for some reason that I should have known beforehand.

 

[Joe88]

what computer is it and how much do you want to spend?

 

[trumpet-205]

It's a ATI Radeon HD 4600 Series in a prebuilt computer. Really old. 5 years, and it's not holding up all that amazingly to the games I'm playing right now.

I don't want to go out and buy a new one only to find I can't use it for some reason that I should have known beforehand.

Unfortunately you likely have to start from scratch again. Pre-built computer will most certainly means barely capable power supply. And there is the concern of whether motherboard from pre-built computer can deliver the full 75 W per PCIe slot. 5 year old CPU will probably hold modern GPU from reaching its full potential.

List your PC specification/model number and we'll know for sure what to do.

 

[Celice]

Well, "from scratch" is a bit wrong, too, as even if the PSU is paltry, a new one and a GPU aren't going to set the OP back as much as purchasing new parts for a completely new build would.

 

[Gohobojoe]

Took a while to find it... It's a Dell Studio XPS 435MT. Most of the specs I find online seem to vary a bit though...

I don't mind spending some more money for the PSU. The budget for the graphics card should be around less then $200 if possible. I'm not looking for the best, just a great upgrade to the current one.

 

[Psionic Roshambo]

Probably something from this page if your PSU can handle it.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007709 4017 600007797 600311196&IsNodeId=1

slightly under 200 bucks and should handle anything for the next 5 years, depending on your CPU and RAM situation.

Edit: If it was me for my personal machine I would get the HIS IceQ one, but that's only because the last 3 cards I have owned where from that line and all of them are still working. Not sure about anything else from HIS but those IceQ cards are nice and if I upgrade my PC soon I will probably be picking up the same card.

Edit 2: as a side note I never OC my graphics cards so that may be why I still have them... lol

 

[Celice]

What kind of games are you wanting to play?

There are some great deals over at /r/buildapcsales now and then.

 

[tickle.my.pickle]

bought a gigabyte 500w true rated psu months ago , cost me 50+ bucks... hd7770 can run in 500w.. and its plentiful enough for mid to high game settings... dunno bout the pricing of 7770 , but 200 is enough for a psu and vid card...
use cpu-z for diagnostics...

 

[Psionic Roshambo]

Those cards I linked all pretty much require a 500 watt PSU to be in the machine.

But your machine has a 360 watt PSU (at least with out looking up your service tag number on http://support.dell.com/support/index.aspx that's the best I can tell.)

You can upgrade the PSU though from what I can tell, you should maybe read this thread and see what can be done.

http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-1748821/dell-studio-xps-435mt-graphics-card-psu.html


Edit: On the service tag number thing, unless things have changed since I worked for Dell you should be able to boot into the BIOS and see the number in there somewhere.... Sometimes that's easier than unhooking 20 wires and yanking your PC out from inside a desk (if your desk is like mine with a locking door the process can be a little annoying to say the least... lol)

 

[trumpet-205]

Well, "from scratch" is a bit wrong, too, as even if the PSU is paltry, a new one and a GPU aren't going to set the OP back as much as purchasing new parts for a completely new build would.

The reason I said from scratch because I do know some cheap OEM motherboard that can't deliver the full 75 W per PCIe slot. Tried to do so will fry the motherboard.

My advise is to look for HD7770 used, or Radeon R7. Combined that with a PSU upgrade.

 

[Ericthegreat]

Took a while to find it... It's a Dell Studio XPS 435MT. Most of the specs I find online seem to vary a bit though...

I don't mind spending some more money for the PSU. The budget for the graphics card should be around less then $200 if possible. I'm not looking for the best, just a great upgrade to the current one.

http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3514/t/19488033.aspx if you have specs even close to these you should be fine.

Processor wise at least, even a i5 is more then fine for gaming.
if your using 64 bit windows, you could prob use some ram.

 

[Gohobojoe]

Why do the specs vary so much online...

Here's mine:
Never mind, I'm not gonna list it. I'm just gonna upload the html with the info from cpu-z. Okay, GBATemp doesn't allow .html to be uploaded, .txt it will be then.

And using the service number, and finding some guides from the Dell site, it's listed that the PSU in that computer is 475 W.

 

[BeastLeeX]

I think some single fan 7870s were around $110 with rebates not long ago, and keep your eyes peeled for cyber monday/sales stuff.

Great deal on a 7950 that sold extremely fast: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

Also if you need a new PSU, this looks like a great deal: http://www.amazon.com/XFX-ATX-550-P...d=1385442414&sr=8-2&keywords=xfx+power+supply