8800 or 8900 on Dell E520?

[bigdogdan2]

Hi,

I'm pretty new to gaming and hardware so I could use some help.
I have a Dell E520, would a geforce 8800 or the future 8900 video card fit in this system and would it be able to be powered by the power supply that currently comes with the system?

If not, can the power supply in a Dell system be swapped out for another easily?

Thanks,
Dan

 

[Track]

Yes, u have a PCIe slot so its possible.

You can double check what CPU u have in order to know if would be a bottleneck or not. But its not going to matter too much anyway, cause it wouldnt be enough of a bottleneck to bother u.

 

[bigdogdan2]

The processor is:
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor E4300 (1.8GHz, 800 FSB)

What about the power supply, does that need to be upgraded? Any normal Power supply will work?

thanks,
Dan

 

[IcY18]

Power supply most definitely needs to be replaced. You want a power supply that is a over 500W with atleast 30A on the 12V rails.

 

[Track]

Wich one is it? You may have to open the case to find out. Copy the data written on the side.

About the CPU - its the best CPU in the history of the world. You are a very lucky man!
EDIT - u may not be able to overclock the CPU on a Dell PC. Im very sorry.

 

[bigdogdan2]

I ordered the Dell PC yesterday without thinking about the PS, but it sounds like I will need to upgrade the PS regardless. I was just hoping that I didn't need to buy a Dell PS and a normal PS would work.

When I get the machine I'll put down whats written on the side of the PS.

Oh and Dell doesn't let you overclock? No wonder everyone hates dell! But I can't complain about their prices, its cheaper than what I can buy the parts for.

thanks,
Dan

 

[drummerdude]

pc power and cooling make dell replacement psu's: link

 

[Track]

Oh and Dell doesn't let you overclock? No wonder everyone hates dell! But I can't complain about their prices, its cheaper than what I can buy the parts for.

thanks,
Dan

That is actually not true. The whole is not cheaper than the parts, thats a misconseption. Infact they charge u more money for the warranty (wich u dont need because each component has it's own warranty), the building, and of course the name (wich is always a very good buy :lol: ).
But even if it was a little cheaper, u now having to replace everything makes it a whole lot more expensive.

But I guess im not helping, am I? As its already too late..

 

[Track]

pc power and cooling make dell replacement psu's: link

Too bad none of those PSU's are powerfull enough even for an 8800 GTS.

 

[drummerdude]

yea, i know. the best you can do is 26 amps on the 12v rail

 

[bigdogdan2]

Its probably more of the frustration if parts don't work. But heres what I got.
$399 - E4300, 2gigs 677MHz Ram, 160GB hd, cdrw/dvd player, vista home premium
I'm not very fond of all Dells proprietary junk though...

If I went and purchased the stuff myself, I figured I'd pay:
Case-$30, Memory-$100, HD-$50, CPU-$150, dvd-$20, Motherboard-$50, OS-$100 = $500

The worst part is the OS, I'd have to wonder why I'd pay $100 for buggy software, heh.

Track, your right about all those Dell PSU's, I'd have to look into something else for a 8800.

 

[darkangelism]

Its not true that the whole is more then the parts...I got an XPS 410 with a 6300, 1GB DDR 667 7300 LE 250GB hard drive 375W PS, case, motherboard, mouse, keyboard, vista home premium for $475

 

[delluser1]

bigdogdan2, your machine does not have the room for an 8800 series video card,there is no extra slot above the pcie slot for the exhaust and not enough room between the heatsink and the slot for the cards fan unit. As far as power supplies you can use any standard ATX 2.2 but there will be a gap since Dell's psu is taller than normal ( 3.9 inches as opposed to 3.4)

 

[bigdogdan2]

DellUser1, now looking at it, your right it doesn't have the space for a 8800. Would it fit a 7900GS/7900GT or the upcoming 8600GS? Trying to find a decent card for the system, doesn't have to be the latest / greatest.

As far as power supplies goes, will either of these work in the Dell Dimension E520 system without modification to the cable? Also which one would you recommend?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153028

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817104954

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817159040

Also, how can you tell how many Amps it can handle/output?

Thanks,
Dan

 

[bigdogdan2]

Also does anyone know if a Dell E520 can overclock the processor? I'm guessing Dell would have disabled this through the bios, but how about through external software?

 

[dortmund371]

Sorry mate, I have a friend with a E510 and his power supply does not have any 6 pin PCI-E connectors. Seecondly, he only has one molex. Lastly, The case does not provide enought space for a 12 inch+ card, it has about a 9 inch card and due to the fact that it is a weird version of BTX, it can not use 2 space cards. This i am sure of.

 

[drummerdude]

Also does anyone know if a Dell E520 can overclock the processor? I'm guessing Dell would have disabled this through the bios, but how about through external software?

nope

 

[bigdogdan2]

Sorry mate, I have a friend with a E510 and his power supply does not have any 6 pin PCI-E connectors. Seecondly, he only has one molex. Lastly, The case does not provide enought space for a 12 inch+ card, it has about a 9 inch card and due to the fact that it is a weird version of BTX, it can not use 2 space cards. This i am sure of.

I posted the links above for a new PS. Thouse would include a 6 pin PCI-E connector right?
12 inch+ card, whats this referring to?

The 7900GS/7900GT/8600GS don't all of these only use 1 space card?
What do you think is the best card I could get for this E520 machine if I swap out the PS?

 

[Track]

Either find a better PSU or buy the one with 26A and an 8600 GT.
In any case, its going to cost u a hell of a lot more than if u hadnt bought from Dell.

 

[Track]

Its not true that the whole is more then the parts...I got an XPS 410 with a 6300, 1GB DDR 667 7300 LE 250GB hard drive 375W PS, case, motherboard, mouse, keyboard, vista home premium for $475

Thats a pretty OK price actually. Course u cant overclock or upgrade, so ur pretty much fucked.