Dell inspiron 530 graphics card upgrade

[HavoK188]

So, i have been looking for a graphics card for my computer for a while now and most of them are either :
A. Rubbish
B. Use to much power for my 350w psu
C. Are too much

So i have recently registered so i can at long last find a suitable one
What I want :

1. Good value for money
2. No more than £50
3. capable of running games such as TF2 , Minecraft , Terraria and Portal 2 at decent settings
4. relatively easy to install as i'm new to all this

System Specs :

Standard dell inspiron 530 with Intel core 2 Quad
3GB of RAM
350w PSU

apart from that im not really sure, but i haven't changed it

Also, I was thinking about this, would it work ? http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sapphire-11192-?ref=prid-20 ... rvi_cart_3

Thanks, Robert

[de.das.dude]

pretty much any GPU capable of meeting your requirements would need atleast 400Ws of power.
but i guess its good enough for a 6570 or a 6550. but remember that your power supply WILL be in strain.

[Solaris17]

see if you can find a 9800GT green edition.

[pantherx12]

I've got an 8800gt(512mb) that runs fine with a similar set-up ( 300w psu)

I'm after £30 for it if you are interested : ]



If you are after brand new let me know and I'll hunt around, fairly good at finding bargains!

[Jstn7477]

If you want the best card for that machine, look for a 7750 ($109). The next step down would be a 6670 or a GT 440 (preferably GDDR5 for both). Does your PC have a 6 pin connector on the PSU (the mid-2000s Dell 350w PSUs typically have one) and how many open slots are available for the card? (If BTX, there needs to be an open slot ABOVE the x16 slot for dual slot cards).

[pantherx12]

Originally Posted by Jstn7477

If you want the best card for that machine, look for a 7750 ($109). The next step down would be a 6670 or a GT 440 (preferably GDDR5 for both). Does your PC have a 6 pin connector on the PSU (the mid-2000s Dell 350w PSUs typically have one) and how many open slots are available for the card? (If BTX, there needs to be an open slot ABOVE the x16 slot for dual slot cards).

Unfortunately all the cards you mentioned are over £50.

[HavoK188]

ok thanks, i was thinking a saphire 6570 1gb, would this run well on my pc ?

[pantherx12]

Originally Posted by HavoK188

ok thanks, i was thinking a saphire 6570 1gb, would this run well on my pc ?

Well it will certainly run the games you want to run, I think they are as powerful as the ole 3850/3870 cards only they use less power.

If you can stretch a bit further though I would : ]

I recommend this webshop by the by if you going for new https://www.aria.co.uk/ great customer service and lowest prices in the UK.



Infact ! https://www.aria.co.uk/SuperSpecials...roductId=50957 BARGAIN 6670(2gb) for £50 : ]

[HavoK188]

Infact ! https://www.aria.co.uk/SuperSpecials...roductId=50957 BARGAIN 6670(2gb) for £50 : ][/QUOTE]

That will work ?

[pantherx12]

Originally Posted by HavoK188

Infact ! https://www.aria.co.uk/SuperSpecials...roductId=50957 BARGAIN 6670(2gb) for £50 : ]

That will work ?[/QUOTE]


Yup, doesn't even require an extra power connector.

Just pop it in, power up and download the drivers from the AMD website.

[HavoK188]

I contacted dell they said the system uses 320w max and the gpu uses 25w and that uses 66, surely it wouldn't have enough power ?

[pantherx12]

Originally Posted by HavoK188

I contacted dell they said the system uses 320w max and the gpu uses 25w and that uses 66, surely it wouldn't have enough power ?

It's very unlikely you'll use the maximum capacity of your powersupply unit whilst playing a game.


Even a computer like mine only uses 400-450 watts whilst gaming, and that mostly because the CPU when overclocked gobbles up power like a monster


Like I said, I've a 8800 gt ( which uses up to 150w) in a system with a 300 PSU the cpu in that system is a q6600 that's overclocked : ] and it runs games fine.



I just used this tool and they think a 261w PSU ( if such a thing existed) would do fine, I'm inclined to agree.
http://extreme.outervision.com/PSUEngine

[Jstn7477]

Originally Posted by pantherx12

Unfortunately all the cards you mentioned are over £50.

Whoops, I apologize for not reading the OP fully.

The 6570 should be good enough for a decent experience in the games you listed. Don't know what the resolution of your monitor is, but you can probably almost max out the games without antialiasing if you are running under 1920*1080. Glad you have a Core 2 Quad in there as it's pretty much essential for TF2.

[HavoK188]

so you think i should buy the card you suggested ?

also would this work : Asus AMD Radeon HD 6670 Graphics Card (1GB, DDR3, PCI-Express, AMD CrossFireX Technology)

[pantherx12]

Originally Posted by HavoK188

so you think i should buy the card you suggested ?

also would this work : Asus AMD Radeon HD 6670 Graphics Card (1GB, DDR3, PCI-Express, AMD CrossFireX Technology)

Yup it's the same card only with 1gb instead of 2gb.

If it's around £10 cheaper I'd go for it.

If you are still not sure I'll send some other folks this way to add their input.

Originally Posted by Jstn7477

Whoops, I apologize for not reading the OP fully.

The 6570 should be good enough for a decent experience in the games you listed. Don't know what the resolution of your monitor is, but you can probably almost max out the games without antialiasing if you are running under 1920*1080. Glad you have a Core 2 Quad in there as it's pretty much essential for TF2.

I actually found a 6670 for sale which was £50 on the dot soon after saying that XD

[HavoK188]

thanks

I'm just a bit nervous as i don't know much about this and don't want to waste money on something that doesn't work

[Jstn7477]

If you can find one, a 6670 GDDR5 version is better, but those always command a higher price. The DDR3 versions tend to suffer from the 50% less memory bandwidth.

[HavoK188]

to be fair i think thats beyond my price reach

[pantherx12]

Originally Posted by Jstn7477

If you can find one, a 6670 GDDR5 version is better, but those always command a higher price. The DDR3 versions tend to suffer from the 50% less memory bandwidth.

I think gddr3 would be fine for something the speed of a 3870-4830 : ]

[HavoK188]

so what do you think i should go for then ?

[pantherx12]

Originally Posted by HavoK188

so what do you think i should go for then ?

I think you should go for the one I linked to, I did ask a few people to take a look at the thread.

If you wanted you could ask the people on aria.co.uk if it will run in your system : ]

There's an ask box on the product page ( they usually get back to you within 24 hours)

[JrRacinFan]

Just throwing in my .02

Go with a 6670 and have fun!

[pantherx12]

Originally Posted by JrRacinFan

Just throwing in my .02

Go with a 6670 and have fun!

I love you Jr, love you with my mouth.

[Jetster]

6570 6670 5670 but keep in mind and GPU in the rig is going to stress the PSU and Dell does not give you anything extra to work with. There PSU arnt even active PFC or 80+ They go with the cheapest possible PSU. So for a real gaming experience you will need a new PSU and GPU and far above you current budget. If it were me I would sell it and start saving for a gaming rig

[Jstn7477]

The PSU is fine, I ran a 3.8GHz PII 955BE, 5770 + 6670 folding and crunching on the 350w (2004 dual 18a 12v from Dimension 8300/8400) units for months and they still run to this day. The PSUs may not have all the fancy features of the ones we buy, but they certainly meet their specified output unlike most of the sub $30 PSUs out there.