Any suggestions for cheap video card?

saydaysago

Honorable
Jun 16, 2012
8
0
10,510
Hey!

I am looking to be able to watch HD videos on my older system:
(specs here: http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c00585745&tmp_task=prodinfoCategory&cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en&product=1818343#N956 )

I bought an asus hd 5450, but it wouldn't run, I'm guessing because of my 300w psu? I took that back to the store, but they had no other suggestions for me. it actually runs 720p videos fine (most of the time) on the current geforce6200se that's in there, but i'd like to be able to watch 1080p stuff. not looking to spend much.. was hoping for a 30-40$ card..
 
Solution
That graphics card should work, but it's only slightly better than what you already have, so I honestly think you would be better off getting a better CPU if you can find the upgrade information for your motherboard. You can get a core 2 duo for $20 sometimes maybe a little less if you're lucky on ebay or amazon. Check out these links as just a general reference. I don't know if this CPU will work in your system but it's very likely.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Core-2-Duo-E6700-2-66GHz-4M-1066MHz-775-CPU-SL9ZF-/171091379659?pt=CPUs&hash=item27d5d745cb
http://cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core2+Duo+E6700+%40+2.66GHz
http://cpubenchmark.net/cpu_lookup.php?cpu=Intel+Pentium+D+2.66GHz

Here we have 2 CPU's with the same socket type...

swilczak

Distinguished
If all you plan to do is watch 1080p videos you could add something like the gt 610. It's not a fast card but it's about 7 times faster than what you have according to passmark ratings. You really should get a better processor, like a core 2 duo if your motherboard supports it. Video playback has a lot to do with how fast the processor is. I don't see why the 5450 didn't work, it will run with a 300 watt PSU. Maybe it was a faulty card.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130815
 

saydaysago

Honorable
Jun 16, 2012
8
0
10,510
Nope, the 5450 ran fine in my other computer, so it wasn't faulty. I couldn't figure out what the problem was either.. I posted a thread on here about it and got no ideas, so I took it back. Other than insufficient PSU the only other idea I had was that my pci-e 1.0 slot didn't like the 2.1 card.. i've heard of some people having trouble even though they are supposed to be backwards compatible
 

swilczak

Distinguished
That graphics card should work, but it's only slightly better than what you already have, so I honestly think you would be better off getting a better CPU if you can find the upgrade information for your motherboard. You can get a core 2 duo for $20 sometimes maybe a little less if you're lucky on ebay or amazon. Check out these links as just a general reference. I don't know if this CPU will work in your system but it's very likely.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Core-2-Duo-E6700-2-66GHz-4M-1066MHz-775-CPU-SL9ZF-/171091379659?pt=CPUs&hash=item27d5d745cb
http://cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core2+Duo+E6700+%40+2.66GHz
http://cpubenchmark.net/cpu_lookup.php?cpu=Intel+Pentium+D+2.66GHz

Here we have 2 CPU's with the same socket type and the same clock speed and the one is 3 times faster.
 
Solution

saydaysago

Honorable
Jun 16, 2012
8
0
10,510
I'm very much an occaisional hobbyist at this kind of stuff, so forgive me, but what kind of 'upgrade information' would i need to find for my motherboard? I'm not sure what I'm looking for. Also, I'm curious, how much better is 'slightly better'? cause that's really all i need. right now, a 1080p mkv file will play on my card, but it will skip and pause ever couple minutes or so, and as i said, 720p files already play nicely, so even a slight increase in capability may be enough. I'm just not sure which specs you are looking at to say it's slightly better. all i was looking for was something that said it was hd capable, like this 8400 does.

also, i'd totally be willing to buy this cpu for $20. i'd even be down to get the video card and the cpu (the hdmi output on this / any newer card is also a big reason i want it over my current, even if i should get this new cpu), i just need to know exactly what information i need to discern whether it'll work with my motherboard. I looked up the manual for my motherboard, if that helps: http://www.ctechinfo.net/documentation/manuals/emery_manual.pdf
 

swilczak

Distinguished
Since you have a 775 socket and since your manual lists that your motherboard FSB speed will go up to 1066, the cpu I listed will work. It can be hard to find specific upgrade info for a certain PC model, but I've upgraded enough Intel PC's to know this will work and if for some reason it doesn't just do a BIOS update and it will. The only benchmark comparisons I can find for the two video cards are the passmark scores which are usually accurate and basically it says the card you want to buy is about 3 times faster but still extremely slow. I think the biggest thing is that you really could use the 512mb of dedicated video memory for video playback especially if you are running Windows vista or 7. However I don't know if the video card upgrade alone will play your videos smoothly, so the CPU upgrade is highly recommended.

http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/video_lookup.php?gpu=GeForce+8400+GS
http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/video_lookup.php?gpu=GeForce+6200SE+TurboCache
 

saydaysago

Honorable
Jun 16, 2012
8
0
10,510
Okay, perfect. Well, I am getting the 8400 tomorrow for $30 from a local store. I'll install and make sure it works, see how the 1080 videos run. If there is still an issue, and it seems likely there will be, I'll try to find a cheap core 2 duo. Unfortunately, the link you posted from ebay doesn't seem to ship to canada, but i messaged the seller to double check. i'm having trouble finding a deal like that from any seller that does ship here, but I'll keep looking around.

Thanks so much for your help, it's very appreciated.
 

swilczak

Distinguished


Glad to be of help good luck