Upgrading Graphics Cards

[aleksandr]

G'day Everyone,

 

First of all, I've never done any computer modification before.

 

My current computer, which is just over 2 years old, has been struggling a fair bit recently (and always really), playing certain games is almost impossible due the frame rate, and I believe this mainly comes down to the Radeon HD 6450 that came with this pre-built Dell Inspiron 620MT computer (Details here: http://www.engadget.com/products/dell/inspiron/620/specs/ , its the MT Version for the most part, small differences include i5-2320 CPU @3GHz, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD. Motherboard Details here as well: http://www.findlaptopdriver.com/dell-inspiron-620-specs/ )

 

I'm just trying to work out what my angle of attack should be from here. I want to upgrade, but I am concerned mostly about these 4 things:

 

- Will a new GPU be bottlenecked by the computer

- Will it meet a fairly strict budget of around $400 (whilst avoiding spending that much anyway)

- How should I go about buying a new Power Supply (which I will almost certainly need to do given it comes with a 300W one)

- Will the new GPU fit, I was looking at a GTX 970, only to find that it would be pushing against the edges of the case in terms of size (almost certainly TOO big to fit)

 

So the ultimate question is, what's the most effective thing for me to do from here, avoiding buying a whole new computer, just upgrading in order to get much better performance, whether its a smaller graphics card not quite as new and big as the GTX 970, or whatever.

 

I have photos of the inside if you guys need.

 

And thanks so much in advance for your help guys,

 

Alex

[SuperPug]

forget the 970 it would be a waste with that cpu. get a gtx 750 ti (it wont need a new psu theres a version that doesnt even need external power) and upgrade to 8gb of ram.

You could still upgrade the psu anyway maybe wtith one of those cheap evga 500 or 600w ones.

I wouldnt recommend a gpu thats over 200usd tho...

[Cubit481]

G'day Everyone,

 

First of all, I've never done any computer modification before.

 

My current computer, which is just over 2 years old, has been struggling a fair bit recently (and always really), playing certain games is almost impossible due the frame rate, and I believe this mainly comes down to the Radeon HD 6450 that came with this pre-built Dell Inspiron 620MT computer (Details here: http://www.engadget.com/products/dell/inspiron/620/specs/ , its the MT Version for the most part, small differences include i5-2320 CPU @3GHz, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD. Motherboard Details here as well: http://www.findlaptopdriver.com/dell-inspiron-620-specs/ )

 

I'm just trying to work out what my angle of attack should be from here. I want to upgrade, but I am concerned mostly about these 4 things:

 

- Will a new GPU be bottlenecked by the computer

- Will it meet a fairly strict budget of around $400 (whilst avoiding spending that much anyway)

- How should I go about buying a new Power Supply (which I will almost certainly need to do given it comes with a 300W one)

- Will the new GPU fit, I was looking at a GTX 970, only to find that it would be pushing against the edges of the case in terms of size (almost certainly TOO big to fit)

there will be certain amount of bottleneck with that gpu but u can go for a 760 or a 750ti instead, also a better choice instead of 750ti would be r9 265...and for psu i would suggest that u go with atleast 600W for room in the future

[Altecice]

Most DELL OEM computers BIOS lock down hardware and stop you from upgrading some hardware. This could be an issue for you.... Also the PSU will be really cheap and may not have the required wattage.

[justin1234]

might be  time to do a build!!!     start saving pennies  

[Heizoel_Walther]

Well I think it might not be a bad idea with the 970 and a new PSU. He has a quad core CPU and PCIe 2.0 wont bottleneck the 970 too much. What do the others think? // Also there is a shot-PCB 970 from Gigabyte, if nothing else fits your PC.

 

The 770 is a great deal too if 970 is too much for you.

[aleksandr]

might be time to do a build!!! start saving pennies

If only I could, almost all of my money at the moment needs to be devoted to other things, however a build may be on the table later down the track once this computer becomes useless and/or I move out.

However, I do plan to use this new graphics card as part of that build in the future, but not stressing about that too much at the moment

[Dango]

G'day Everyone,

 

First of all, I've never done any computer modification before.

 

My current computer, which is just over 2 years old, has been struggling a fair bit recently (and always really), playing certain games is almost impossible due the frame rate, and I believe this mainly comes down to the Radeon HD 6450 that came with this pre-built Dell Inspiron 620MT computer (Details here: http://www.engadget.com/products/dell/inspiron/620/specs/ , its the MT Version for the most part, small differences include i5-2320 CPU @3GHz, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD. Motherboard Details here as well: http://www.findlaptopdriver.com/dell-inspiron-620-specs/ )

 

I'm just trying to work out what my angle of attack should be from here. I want to upgrade, but I am concerned mostly about these 4 things:

 

- Will a new GPU be bottlenecked by the computer

- Will it meet a fairly strict budget of around $400 (whilst avoiding spending that much anyway)

- How should I go about buying a new Power Supply (which I will almost certainly need to do given it comes with a 300W one)

- Will the new GPU fit, I was looking at a GTX 970, only to find that it would be pushing against the edges of the case in terms of size (almost certainly TOO big to fit)

 

So the ultimate question is, what's the most effective thing for me to do from here, avoiding buying a whole new computer, just upgrading in order to get much better performance, whether its a smaller graphics card not quite as new and big as the GTX 970, or whatever.

 

I have photos of the inside if you guys need.

 

And thanks so much in advance for your help guys,

 

Alex

Yes, Any new mid-high end GPU will bottleneck by your computer(CPU RAM PSU).

Two things you can do.

1. Buy a mid range GPU like 750ti. About $100-150. Use the old computer as it, until it can't use anymore. Then buy(I mean build) a new computer that you really can upgrade.

2. Save the money, then build a new computer. $1000 can build really good gaming computer (i5 + 770). I think it can run any game for at lest 2 years. 

[ComradeHX]

There is a low profile 970 coming out soon.

[-ism]

If you're really set on 970 Galax(y) has some short ones. Also even if it's bottlenecked by your CPU you can always use it in your next build.

[Strator]

Grab a ITX version of the 970 when it hits the shelves and a quality 500W psu and your set. The CPU should not bottleneck it much, if any, a quad core sandy bridge is still a very good chip.

 

I would take a close look at your case and make sure the new power supply will fit, OEM's like to use SFX or other weird for factor power supplies. Also it looks like that case only has one smallish fan on it, and while the 970 is efficent one low flow fan on a case might not be enough to get all the heat from the 970 and the other components out of the case, a new case would be good investment.

[aleksandr]

Thanks for all the advice guys. I've decided to get the GTX 750 Ti, reasons including; No need for a new Power Supply, nice and cheap, quick, temporary solution, compact enough to fit.

Plan will be to perhaps upgrade and create a new build in around 2 years or so, but what I've got now should last me until then