Need help upgrading old prebuilt gaming desktop

[SuperShermanTanker]

Hello I have my old prebuilt gaming desktop which I keep at a family member's house to use when I stay over their house, and the machine is getting a tad bit old now and since its 2016 I was wondering what parts I should consider to upgrade the machine.

The machine is a 2012 model Alienware x51 it has a Intel Core i3 3220 socket LGA1155, the graphics card is a OEM Nvidia Geforce GTX 645 Kepler architecture graphics card with 576 cuda cores 823mhz core clock and 1gb of video memory, the machine also has a 1tb 7200rpm Seagate hard drive and 8gb of GSkill Ripjaws ram that I recently upgraded from the 6gb of ram that the machine came with

heres a few links to the parts that are in the machine so anyone looking at this post can get a bit more detail on what I have in the machine: Processor: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80637i33220

Harddrive: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seagate-internal-hard-drive-st1000dm003 

Video Card: http://www.geforce.com/hardware/desktop-gpus/geforce-gtx-645-oem 

Ram: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231428

Notes: The system has a ITX board in it and it needs a blower style card in it because of the limited air flow in the machine also the Alienware uses a power brick (yes a actual giant power brick) that is 240W and I can buy a upgraded power brick from dell (http://accessories.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&cs=19&l=en&sku=332-1432) that is capable of 330 watts that is capable of supporting gpus as power hungry as the gtx 970

Also a little side note I don't mind shopping for used parts

and one more thing I need a BLOWER style video card because the computer has no exhaust fans and I tried a 750 ti with a non blower cooler and it just overheated the machine

[Guest]

What are you asking us for help with? Only 2 links are showing.

 

Are you trying to add a GT 645?

[ELSknutson]

If I were you I would trans plant that system to a new case. 

[SuperShermanTanker]

2 minutes ago, Pearsonia said:

What are you asking us for help with? Only 2 links are showing.

 

Are you trying to add a GT 645?

I'm trying to upgrade the machine from the 645 that came with the machine and I want to upgrade the existing machine in the little part above part with the links it shows whats currently in the machine

[SuperShermanTanker]

5 minutes ago, Pearsonia said:

What are you asking us for help with? Only 2 links are showing.

 

Are you trying to add a GT 645?

I'm trying to upgrade the computer and the 645 is whats already in the machine heres the parts

 

The machine is a 2012 model Alienware x51 it has a Intel Core i3 3220 socket LGA1155, the graphics card is a OEM Nvidia Geforce GTX 645 Kepler architecture graphics card with 576 cuda cores 823mhz core clock and 1gb of video memory, the machine also has a 1tb 7200rpm Seagate hard drive and 8gb of GSkill Ripjaws ram that I recently upgraded from the 6gb of ram that the machine came with

[don_svetlio]

A 330W Power Brick will NOT be enough for a 970, it can barely power a 960 properly. I'd say get a new case with a proper PSU

[SuperShermanTanker]

3 minutes ago, don_svetlio said:

A 330W Power Brick will NOT be enough for a 970, it can barely power a 960 properly. I'd say get a new case with a proper PSU

I dont know if I can even put it inside of a new case due to the power connecters

[Sat1600]

Does the motherboard have a 24 pin power connecter in addition to the dc jack? (It would look like the picture below)

 

 If so you can place the board with the cpu and memory into a new case. Add a power supply and you can add whatever video card you want.

 

(Don't use the 24 pin and the power brick at the same time)

 

This is what I would do

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/hvWvgs
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/hvWvgs/by_merchant/

Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 950 2GB Video Card  ($129.99 @ Micro Center) 
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case  ($34.99 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  ($16.98 @ Newegg) 
Total: $181.96
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-02-18 19:01 EST-0500

[don_svetlio]

@Sat1600 I would not recommend the EVGA W1 series. Very unreliable and poor quality units. I'd say a SeaSonic Eco 430W or S12II 520W is vastly superior and guaranteed to last longer and provide stable power

[Sat1600]

18 minutes ago, don_svetlio said:

@Sat1600 I would not recommend the EVGA W1 series. Very unreliable and poor quality units. I'd say a SeaSonic Eco 430W or S12II 520W is vastly superior and guaranteed to last longer and provide stable power

It's a tier 3 psu. Score of 8 on jonnyguru. It's safe and reliable,  just not for serious overclocking or high end gaming rigs.

 

You make it sound like a logisys. The seasonic is four times the price. The psu should match the price of the build. Of course a cheap garbage psu is dangerous and can destroy your system. The evga is not that kind of psu. It's fine for an old occasionally used second system. At $17 it can't be beat.

[don_svetlio]

6 minutes ago, Sat1600 said:

It's a tier 3 psu. Score of 8 on jonnyguru. It's safe and reliable,  just not for serious overclocking or high end gaming rigs.

 

You make it sound like a logisys. The seasonic is four times the price. The psu should match the price of the build. Of course a cheap garbage psu is dangerous and can destroy your system. The evga is not that kind of psu. It's fine for an old occasionally used second system. At $17 it can't be beat.

Yes, yes you can beat it. A 15$ CX is better. the EVGA W1 are essentially the cheapest units HEC Compucase could produce for EVGA. They are unreliable and borderline unsafe

[Sat1600]

3 minutes ago, don_svetlio said:

Yes, yes you can beat it. A 15$ CX is better. the EVGA W1 are essentially the cheapest units HEC Compucase could produce for EVGA. They are unreliable and borderline unsafe

Cx is good too. I think the $15 promo ended. They are about the same. Jonnyguru rates the Cx a 9 but I think Toms hardware has it at tier 4. They're both fine for op's system.

 

I'm am not a psu tester or reviewer. I just rely on reviews from experts.

[don_svetlio]

Just now, Sat1600 said:

Cx is good too. I think the $15 promo ended. They are about the same. Jonnyguru rates the Cx a 9 but I think Toms hardware has it at tier 4. They're both fine for op's system.

 

I'm am not a psu tester or reviewer. I just rely on reviews from experts.

CX are anything but good. JohnyGuru rates based on price more than on the actual PSU. If we factor out the price, CX are a 4/10 and the W1 are a 2.5/10 - W1 failed their rated power at 30*C temp IIRC

[Hamsterdam]

52 minutes ago, SuperShermanTanker said:

Hello I have my old prebuilt gaming desktop which I keep at a family member's house to use when I stay over their house, and the machine is getting a tad bit old now and since its 2016 I was wondering what parts I should consider to upgrade the machine.

The machine is a 2012 model Alienware x51 it has a Intel Core i3 3220 socket LGA1155, the graphics card is a OEM Nvidia Geforce GTX 645 Kepler architecture graphics card with 576 cuda cores 823mhz core clock and 1gb of video memory, the machine also has a 1tb 7200rpm Seagate hard drive and 8gb of GSkill Ripjaws ram that I recently upgraded from the 6gb of ram that the machine came with

heres a few links to the parts that are in the machine so anyone looking at this post can get a bit more detail on what I have in the machine: Processor: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80637i33220

Harddrive: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seagate-internal-hard-drive-st1000dm003 

Video Card: http://www.geforce.com/hardware/desktop-gpus/geforce-gtx-645-oem 

Ram: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231428

Notes: The system has a ITX board in it and it needs a blower style card in it because of the limited air flow in the machine also the Alienware uses a power brick (yes a actual giant power brick) that is 240W and I can buy a upgraded power brick from dell (http://accessories.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&cs=19&l=en&sku=332-1432) that is capable of 330 watts that is capable of supporting gpus as power hungry as the gtx 970

Also a little side note I don't mind shopping for used parts

and one more thing I need a BLOWER style video card because the computer has no exhaust fans and I tried a 750 ti with a non blower cooler and it just overheated the machine

SuperShermanTanker, to understand accurately the parts you can upgrade to on your computer, you may need to start with researching the model of the motherboard in your computer, since that was not mentioned. If you are able to find the model of your motherboard you will be able to identify the original parts on your computer and a provided list of other parts maybe mentioned which your motherboard can support as well as it features. From this point you maybe able to find upgraded parts in the process of rebuilding. Based on the computer you mentioned, there are similar products with the LGA1155 socket which are branded with different hardware from Alienware. Secondly, you may need to consider the power consumption of the parts you are willing to upgrade too and it always advisable on having a little more power on the PSU as a rule of thumb. Of course there are other things to be considered but this is a start . Hope this helps!

[Sat1600]

1 hour ago, don_svetlio said:

CX are anything but good. JohnyGuru rates based on price more than on the actual PSU. If we factor out the price, CX are a 4/10 and the W1 are a 2.5/10 - W1 failed their rated power at 30*C temp IIRC

I meant good enough. This is a system that is occasionally used at a relatives house. It has to be good enough to not start a fire.

[don_svetlio]

7 hours ago, Sat1600 said:

I meant good enough. This is a system that is occasionally used at a relatives house. It has to be good enough to not start a fire.

Hence why I state the W1 are not good enough - their protections aren't what I'd call "good"

[Sat1600]

2 hours ago, don_svetlio said:

Hence why I state the W1 are not good enough - their protections aren't what I'd call "good"

Maybe moot. Op doesn't know of he has a 24 pin connecter.

[don_svetlio]

Just now, Sat1600 said:

Maybe moot. Op doesn't know of he has a 24 pin connecter.

True I guess.

[SuperShermanTanker]

8 hours ago, don_svetlio said:

True I guess.

I cant check if the computer has a 24 pin connector until next time I visit that family member