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Not good with PCs - Graphics card this time ( me again sorry)!
Well, after my delight at going from 32 bit xp o 64 bit windows 7, I have gathered the strength to change my graphics card as it is rather outdated. I currently have an Nvidia 8600 GT.
Now for my silly questions. How on earth do i know what i can or should buy!?!?!? I spent hours trying to figure out how to add more RAM to my PC, so after reading on the internet about changing graphics cards, I am truely lost beyond belief. So I was hoping some of my dear friends at mmorpg.com could hit me with some knowledge.
Thanks all,
Pompey
Comments
What kind of motherboard do you have mate?
Its not the motherboard that's a concern. If it can use a GeForce 8600, then its a PCI-e x16. The real question is the PSU. Chances are it doesn't have an adaquette 12v rail or the right plugs if its from an OEM like Dell.
Pretty much the motherboard can host any video card. Right now the ideal picks are purely AMD because nVidia didn't reduce prices in the wake of the HD5870.
Havent got the foggyest what my motherboard is, cant find it on my order form from years ago! All i know is it only had 2 ddr2 slots which was a pain. I can tell you it has 450 watts power if that helps?
Edit:
just found this booklet in my files. it says:
conroe1333-d667 by asrock. is that the motherboard?
If so can i get some fairly cheap good options? would be much very helpful.
Thanks,
Pompey
Found this info in booklet:
1 x PCI express x 16 slot
1 x PCI express x 1 slot
2 x PCI slots
1 x HDMR slot
does this help?
It helps a lot but the problem here is the fact that your PSU (power supply) is a tad bit low, it can just run your 8800 card. If you want a good card you will be forced to change it also. There are some better cards than you have around of course but the really good ones needs a lot of power.
so, the question is: Will you consider changing PSU also or just GFX card?
He doesn't really need a new PSU. Considering the method AMD has been forcing on the video card market, there really is very little need to upgrade your PSU after it has reached a certain point. His PSU should be able to handle an HD5770.
Yea a 5770 would be a good buy. They do recommend atleast a 450w psu however, they draw less power than a 4850 so I think it would be a good choice.
Question is whats the budget.
Play.com www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/12068850/Sapphire-ATI-Radeon-HD-5770-1GB-GDDR5-PCI-Express-2-0-Graphics-Card/Product.html
Has them at about £140 although I reckon you could find one for 125
Thanks for the awsome replies guys. That card is very nice, and is a tad over budget, however its cheaper than another card and a PSU so might be a good buy. Thanks very much
Think this one will work ok guys?
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/175978
Thanks
Yep that's the same one I'm planning on getting for Christmas
Hope my PC can handle it, now if anyone has a 100 quid around the place im open to donations!
I never saw you saw what CPU you are using.. what do you have in there?
Wait till nVidia comes out with their new GPU before getting a new GPU. Prices will drop.
Still looking at March at least for this prospect though.
Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU E6750 @ 2.66GHz (2 CPUs), ~2.7GHz
This is my CPU