Upgrading my Inspiron 531, graphic card and PSU.

Well, my graphic card in my Inpsiron 531 is becoming woefully out-dated. I would like to upgrade to the 8800GT. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814133232 I am also upgrading my 300W PSU to a 600W PSU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817182032 (comes with card). My basic question is whether I need to get any adapters to hook my card up either to the mobo or the new PSU. I'm never done this stuff before so I don't really know.

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The psu is not ideal. Poor 12v rail ampage and as I heard Roswell's quality isn't the best.

Consider spending a bit more for this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817703005

Message quoted 1 times

------------------------------ Q6600@3.6ghz, GA-EX38-DS4 motherboard, 8gb 800mhz ddr2 4-3-3-12, 8800GTS(g92)@780mhz, 1TB + 1.5TB hdds, 850watt psu
Reply to dagger

Well, I'm still looking for a PSU. I just want to know if there are any adapters I'll need when hooking my 8800GT to my mobo, to the PSU. I ahve heard that the stock PSU the came with my comp doesn't even have a connector for PCI-E cards just SATA.

Reply to metatron1988

save some money no need for 600w or more. this one has 1pcie 6pin connector.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817371019

Message edited by invisik on 09-06-2008 at 12:47:40 AM

------------------------------ intel core 2 quad q6600 @3.2ghz msi p6n diamond (X-FI Extreme sound) 6gig of OCZ+CoRSAIR oc 900mhz Nvidia gtx 260 sli @ 730/1465/1250
Lite-On Blue-ray Western Digital 7200rpm 500gb Antec 500 Earthwatt Window vista 64-bit
Reply to invisik

dagger wrote :

The psu is not ideal. Poor 12v rail ampage and as I heard Roswell's quality isn't the best.

Consider spending a bit more for this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817703005

stay away from rosewill. i would suggest this one:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817341012

it's very quiet, and will provide more than enough power for you. and don't worry about the connectors, that particular model (as most others out there) has the pci-e connectors and SATA connectors, and the usual molex and 24 pin connectors.

------------------------------ ECS A780GM-A, Phenom II x3 710, 4GB Corsair @800Mhz, HIS Radeon 4850, Seagate 7200.11 500GB, Auzentech X-Plosion 7.1 Cinema, LiteOn DL-DVD w/Lightscribe, ASUS TA-863, OCZ StealthXStream 500W, Samsung Syncmaster T240, Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Reply to Nik_I

There's always the 2nd expansion psu.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817101025

Message quoted 1 times

------------------------------ Q6600@3.6ghz, GA-EX38-DS4 motherboard, 8gb 800mhz ddr2 4-3-3-12, 8800GTS(g92)@780mhz, 1TB + 1.5TB hdds, 850watt psu
Reply to dagger

dagger wrote :

There's always the 2nd expansion psu.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817101025

i think thats just overkill for the situation. especially seeing how that one costs more than twice as much as the psu i listed before.

------------------------------ ECS A780GM-A, Phenom II x3 710, 4GB Corsair @800Mhz, HIS Radeon 4850, Seagate 7200.11 500GB, Auzentech X-Plosion 7.1 Cinema, LiteOn DL-DVD w/Lightscribe, ASUS TA-863, OCZ StealthXStream 500W, Samsung Syncmaster T240, Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Reply to Nik_I

Ok, thanks a lot. I've just heard a few horror stories about Dells PSU's and wanted to be sure I wasn't wasting my money lol. And thanks also for the Rosewill warning, first time buying a new PSU.

Reply to metatron1988

Also, if anyone has any experiance or knowledge of the Dell Inspiron 531. Is the 8800GT a good fit, not too big. Will it actually fit the case, as I've heard it's a larger card. And ,stupid question, how many connectors does the 8800GT need on it.

Message edited by metatron1988 on 09-06-2008 at 03:39:28 AM

Reply to metatron1988

Sorry for resurrecting a long dead post but I've installed an 8800GT in a 531 and it's a tight, but sure fit. You'll need 1 PCI-E 6-pin connector for it and if it comes out the side of the card, forget about adding a second harddrive. Also make sure your new power supply has 4 SATA connectors (2 will be on the same line and unless that line is LONG (like the Gigabyte Odin GT 550w) you'll end up placing your harddrive up against something like the side panel (I wouldnt trust it like that)

I run the following on my 531 so e-mail me at OLP-fanatic@hotmail.com if you have ANY questions regarding upgrading the 531. I'll be running 8GB PC-6400 DDR2 in the summer as well as (hopefully) A Phenom X4 9650 and GeForce GTX 295

Inspiron 531 case, no mods
Gigabyte Odin GT 550w modular PSU (tight fit!!)
3GB (2x1GB 2x512MB) Dual Channel PC-5300 DDR2 RAM
AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (shipped with 3800+)
160GB SATA Harddrive (had to move this many times)
MSI GeForce GTX 260 Core-216 (what an adventure that was...)
factory DVD burner (LG brand, removal is necessary to install power connectors on the power supply).

The 8800GT is about a half inch shorter than the space between the harddrive rack and the back of the case, the lip on the back will prevent you from just sliding it in like the shorter 8600GT or 8400GS, but a bit of wiggling and maneuvering it around will have it in there fairly easy, being a single slot card... as for the GTX 260... it's a full inch and a half LONGER than the space between the back and the harddrives, and to add to the mess, dual slot. As mentioned before, quite an adventure.

Message quoted 1 times

Reply to mew905

mew905 wrote :

Sorry for resurrecting a long dead post but I've installed an 8800GT in a 531 and it's a tight, but sure fit. You'll need 1 PCI-E 6-pin connector for it and if it comes out the side of the card, forget about adding a second harddrive. Also make sure your new power supply has 4 SATA connectors (2 will be on the same line and unless that line is LONG (like the Gigabyte Odin GT 550w) you'll end up placing your harddrive up against something like the side panel (I wouldnt trust it like that)

I run the following on my 531 so e-mail me at OLP-fanatic@hotmail.com if you have ANY questions regarding upgrading the 531. I'll be running 8GB PC-6400 DDR2 in the summer as well as (hopefully) A Phenom X4 9650 and GeForce GTX 295

Inspiron 531 case, no mods
Gigabyte Odin GT 550w modular PSU (tight fit!!)
3GB (2x1GB 2x512MB) Dual Channel PC-5300 DDR2 RAM
AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (shipped with 3800+)
160GB SATA Harddrive (had to move this many times)
MSI GeForce GTX 260 Core-216 (what an adventure that was...)
factory DVD burner (LG brand, removal is necessary to install power connectors on the power supply).

The 8800GT is about a half inch shorter than the space between the harddrive rack and the back of the case, the lip on the back will prevent you from just sliding it in like the shorter 8600GT or 8400GS, but a bit of wiggling and maneuvering it around will have it in there fairly easy, being a single slot card... as for the GTX 260... it's a full inch and a half LONGER than the space between the back and the harddrives, and to add to the mess, dual slot. As mentioned before, quite an adventure.

I am considering upgrading my Inspiron 531 with the GTX260. Am I correct in assuming it will fit in the case albeit with some juggling.

Bob

Reply to red123456

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