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What graphics card should I get for a Dell Optiplex 7020

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patrickfeeneytamayo

Joined
May 6, 2018
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Hello,
I just got a Dell Optiplex 7020 MT. It has an i7-4790, 16 ram ddr3 (4 sticks), 500 sata ssd 3d nand, 290 watts power supply. It's a fullsize tower.
I would like to get a graphics card for it. I think I should go second hand and get something like a Gtx 1070 or something with similar performance. I think I could buy it from ebay. I live in Ireland btw.
I also would need a new power supply. I think 500 watts would be fine. I would need to buy a 24 pin to 8 pin cable for the motherboard because the motherboard of this PC uses 8 pin power instead of 24 pin because its proprietary.
I plan to use it for college work, gaming (I don't play very demanding games), streaming and some light video editing 1080p.
Right now I've got 3 monitors. 2 of which are Dells 1280x1024 75hz and the other one is a Aoc 1920x1080 60hz
If you need any extra info please ask me.
Thanks in advance!
 
RX 6500XT or RX 6600
 
They use SFF which is hard to come by
 
For streaming, you'll want to start at an RX 6600 as the 6500XT doesn't have an encoder. FYI I use an RX6400 for light gaming only (no streaming) in almost the exact same system as yours but a 9020, with the original power supply.

For a second Dell 9020, I picked up an EVGA BQ 500 and this cable to adapt the PSU to the Dell proprietary power connector:


But I have yet to put an actually good GPU in it, with just a GTX 1050Ti and GTX 745 in there, neither require a PSU connector. I have a 5600XT which will soon make it's way in but not yet.

The Dell PSU is a standard shape, the EVGA slotted right in and the screw holes were compatible.
 
Lew Zealand said:
For streaming, you'll want to start at an RX 6600 as the 6500XT doesn't have an encoder. FYI I use an RX6400 for light gaming only (no streaming) in the exact same system as yours with the original power supply.

For a second Dell 9020, I picked up an EVGA BQ 500 and this cable to adapt the PSU to the Dell proprietary power connector:


But I have yet to put an actually good GPU in it, with just a GTX 1050Ti and GTX 745 in there, neither require a PSU connector. I have a 5600XT which will soon make it's way in but not yet.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your reply. Yes heard about the 24pin to 8pin. I didn't know that the 6500xt didn't have encoder, thanks for that. So what graphics card would you recommend? I think the rx6400 wouldnt be too powerful.
 
patrickfeeneytamayo said:
Thanks for your reply. Yes heard about the 24pin to 8pin. I didn't know that the 6500xt didn't have encoder, thanks for that. So what graphics card would you recommend? I think the rx6400 wouldnt be too powerful.
Click to expand...
No the 6400 is worse, like the 6500xt but less powerful. Honestly the 1070/Ti is a good choice and IMO a 1660 Super would be a perfect match with the CPU as it will only be a bottleneck in a very few games. That's why I want to try the 5600XT as it's a bit more powerful again than the 1660S, to see if it hits the CPU bottleneck too often. Assassin's Creed: Odyssey is too much for this CPU and Horizon Zero Dawn will bang against the CPU in heavy botmatches.

The 6600 would also likely end up being a bit too powerful as it's just that much more ahead of the 5600XT. Whichever of these 4 or 5 GPUs you can find at a decent price would be good. The 1070/Ti might be a nicer match if only because you'll be getting those used, like the PC.
 
Lew Zealand said:
No the 6400 is worse, like the 6500xt but less powerful. Honestly the 1070/Ti is a good choice and IMO a 1660 Super would be a perfect match with the CPU as it will only be a bottleneck in a very few games. That's why I want to try the 5600XT as it's a bit more powerful again than the 1660S, to see if it hits the CPU bottleneck too often. Assassin's Creed: Odyssey is too much for this CPU and Horizon Zero Dawn will bang against the CPU in heavy botmatches.

The 6600 would also likely end up being a bit too powerful as it's just that much more ahead of the 5600XT. Whichever of these 4 or 5 GPUs you can find at a decent price would be good. The 1070/Ti might be a nicer match if only because you'll be getting those used, like the PC.
Click to expand...
Ok thanks. I'll buy something depending on the prices. What about the PSU?
 
I'd just shoot for a 500W or so unit of good repute. I'm not very knowledgeable when it comes to the different designs and advantages of PSUs but for an older used machine, a well-reviewed Corsair or EVGA should do the job without being overly expensive for a machine of this provenance.
 
Lew Zealand said:
I'd just shoot for a 500W or so unit of good repute. I'm not very knowledgeable when it comes to the different designs and advantages of PSUs but for an older used machine, a well-reviewed Corsair or EVGA should do the job without being overly expensive for a machine of this provenance.
Click to expand...
Ok thanks man. Cheers
 
You can not gone wrong with a 5600xt. Sure they have only 6gb vram but they make up for it performance . The 1070/1070ti have 8gb and it does help.Is the card 12 or 14gb memory model?
 
I have an Optiplex 7050 MT (in system specs) and I can tell you that the PSU form factor (external dimensions) are either proprietary or possibly TFX - I have not measured, but a standard ATX will not fit and will have to sit outside of your case.

It looks like your 7020 "MAY" support a full ATX or at least SFX PSU, but you will have to measure it to confirm.

Another option is to go with a GTX 1650 - it should not require a PSU swap. It is less powerful than the 1070, but it is slightly better than the RX 6400 and has video encoders in it.

Link 1

Link 2

Link 3
 
outpt said:
There are two different models one having 12gbs and the other having 14gbs.
Click to expand...
But models of which card

Count von Schwalbe said:
I have an Optiplex 7050 MT (in system specs) and I can tell you that the PSU form factor (external dimensions) are either proprietary or possibly TFX - I have not measured, but a standard ATX will not fit and will have to sit outside of your case.

It looks like your 7020 "MAY" support a full ATX or at least SFX PSU, but you will have to measure it to confirm.

Another option is to go with a GTX 1650 - it should not require a PSU swap. It is less powerful than the 1070, but it is slightly better than the RX 6400 and has video encoders in it.

Link 1

Link 2

Link 3
Click to expand...
Hello,
Thanks for your answer.
As far as I know a normal power supply would fit. I can measure the space tho.
I think I should go for something better than the 1650. Or do you think that it would be enough
 
Count von Schwalbe said:
I have an Optiplex 7050 MT (in system specs) and I can tell you that the PSU form factor (external dimensions) are either proprietary or possibly TFX - I have not measured, but a standard ATX will not fit and will have to sit outside of your case.
Click to expand...
Now I'm super curious as I have a Dell Precision from the Skylake era (same age as your 7050) with an i5-6600 in it but the case is identical to the 9020 sitting next to it, with the exception of the front panel. However I haven't specifically looked at the Precision's PSU to see if it's non-standard size. And I won't see that machine until Monday, here's hoping I remember to have a look.
 
patrickfeeneytamayo said:
But models of which card
Click to expand...
When these cards came out they were equipped with 12gbs memory. Nvidia counter with their rtx2060 by dropping the price.AMD released a bios update to enable a boost in memory speeds to help. Not all makes could support the increase in speeds. Some like sapphire and so forth could do the higher speeds others not. Later all brands could use greater memory speeds and stated so the box the gpus came in.
 
outpt said:
When these cards came out they were equipped with 12gbs memory. Nvidia counter with their rtx2060 by dropping the price.AMD released a bios update to enable a boost in memory speeds to help. Not all makes could support the increase in speeds. Some like sapphire and so forth could do the higher speeds others not. Later all brands could use greater memory speeds and stated so the box the gpus came in.
Click to expand...
I'm lost man. Can you say the specific model that you are talking about.

Maybe I'm just dumb. It's late for me.
 
Mine looks like this on the rear, but with a single-slot R7 450 GPU as well - I swear Dell was just trying to make in as much of a PITA to work in as possible. Note the almost square and tiny PSU in a space that could have taken so much more. I really want a GTX 1630 Low Profile by Gigabyte to put into it (so I can drive all three screens off of dGPU), but it is a work computer and I am not sure how quick that will happen.

1660092054356.png


OP's computer should look like the one below; it looks to me like a full-sized ATX PSU. If not, it should be easy to adapt a SFX PSU into it without much difficulty - given that the OP is willing to do that sort of thing. That being the case a more powerful GPU is in order. @patrickfeeneytamayo what games do you play? It will be easier to recommend a GPU with the specific games.

That being said, I play AC: Origins on a GPU below minimum spec* and the framerates are not an issue to me.
1660092240651.png


*Quadro M620 Mobile
 
In other words, the very first production run of Radeon RX 5600XTs had slower speed memory (12 vs 14 GB/s) and also had lower power draw and clocks IIRC, though many of those got a quick BIOS update to run at the higher speeds of all subsequent production runs. Mine is a Pulse 5600XT and is likely a 2nd production run or later as I bought later and it was 14GB's and 132W from the factory.
 
Lew Zealand said:
In other words, the very first production run of Radeon RX 5600XTs had slower speed memory (12 vs 14 GB/s) and also had lower power draw and clocks IIRC, though many of those could actually do the higher speeds of all subsequent production runs with a BIOS update. Mine is a Pulse 5600XT and is likely a 2nd production run or later as I bought later and it was 14GB's and 132W from the factory.
Click to expand...
This
 
Count von Schwalbe said:
Mine looks like this on the rear, but with a single-slot R7 450 GPU as well - I swear Dell was just trying to make in as much of a PITA to work in as possible. Note the almost square and tiny PSU in a space that could have taken so much more. I really want a GTX 1630 Low Profile by Gigabyte to put into it (so I can drive all three screens off of dGPU), but it is a work computer and I am not sure how quick that will happen.

View attachment 257495

OP's computer should look like the one below; it looks to me like a full-sized ATX PSU. If not, it should be easy to adapt a SFX PSU into it without much difficulty - given that the OP is willing to do that sort of thing. That being the case a more powerful GPU is in order. @patrickfeeneytamayo what games do you play? It will be easier to recommend a GPU with the specific games.

That being said, I play AC: Origins on a GPU below minimum spec* and the framerates are not an issue to me.
View attachment 257496

*Quadro M620 Mobile
Click to expand...
Thanks a million for adding pics. Yeah I'm almost 100% sure that's it's a full-size PSU.
I play Minecraft, valorant and stuff like that. No AAA titles.
 
Yeah looking for psu it's a sff kind which I hate to say Dell PC's are the worst when upgrading
 
Lew Zealand said:
In other words, the very first production run of Radeon RX 5600XTs had slower speed memory (12 vs 14 GB/s) and also had lower power draw and clocks IIRC, though many of those got a quick BIOS update to run at the higher speeds of all subsequent production runs. Mine is a Pulse 5600XT and is likely a 2nd production run or later as I bought later and it was 14GB's and 132W from the factory.
Click to expand...
Ok thanks for specifying. If I buy one of those I'll be sure to check. How would I make sure that a 5600xt has the new bios or can be upgraded.
Cheers

theFOoL said:
Yeah looking for psu it's a sff kind which I hate to say Dell PC's are the worst when upgrading
Click to expand...
So a normal sized one wouldn't fit?
 
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