Hello, I'm eyeballing a EVGA 9800GX 2 at the moment but there is a problem.... I only have a 500W PSU from Cool Master

Product #: RP-500-PCAR

My Specs:
- E7200 2.53ghz C2D (OCed to 3.4Ghz)
- 4 x 1GB (DDR2 1200 mhz OCZ Reaper)
- 2x HDD (1 - 500GB Hitachi Deskstar , 1- Seagate 640GB)
- Asus P5Q mobo

I've got a few questions:

Main question: Will this setup work?
Question 2: I'm using 8800GT at the moment, is worth upgrading to this card?
Question 3: How much louder will the fans be? (will it make my computer sound like an angry monster?)

500w is cutting it close, but if it has good 12v rail ratings, it should work.
http://en.expreview.com/2008/06/24 [...] hd-4850/5/

Max temperature is high, although still lower than 4870.
http://en.expreview.com/2008/03/19 [...] 800GX2/11/
http://en.expreview.com/2008/06/24 [...] hd-4850/6/

I'm in almost the same situation, also checking on a 9800 GX2 on a 500 w coolermaster, I think the PSU can handle it, but I think even a mild OC would be out of the question (unless you are comfortable being on the edge of your PSU's specs)

And the GX2 is quite an upgrade form a 8800GT, check the new toms vga charts and see for yourself.

Personally I would upgrade the psu and sell the old video card and psu to get money for a new psu if you need to. Or put the old card and psu in another system.

I never had problems with my coolermaster 700 watt psu until I tried to go SLI with my 8800GTX ANS3 cards. Once I became more educated I got my Corsair 750 watt psu with my SLI setup and have had 0 problems.

If you recently won the lottery and still feel lucky go for it, I personally would upgrade...

Now I'm thinking that my next upgrade for my PC would be prolly in about 3-4 yrs (so say 2012)? I don't know what will happen then, but I'm thinking if I'm going to actually take englandr753's advice on getting a new PSU, what's the best wattage to get? I know the obvious answer would probably be "get the most you can afford" for future proofing my computer, but would 750W be enough or must I go for 850W or higher?

You dont need that much of a power supply unless you are going crossfire with an X2 then you would need maybe around 1000 watt. With a standard 4870 you will be fine with this one:

(overkill but a great price)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139005

With two standard cards I would do this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139006

With crossfire x2's I'd do this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139007

You may find as good of a power supply for less at the 1000 watt version. I'm partial to corsair so what can I say. PC Power & Cooling is the other option I would consider.

Okay there are 3 things to consider.
1) Most manufacturer's websites are requireing at least a 600w PSU.
2) A 6 pin AND a 8 pin PCI-e power connector are needed.
3) There is about a +100w difference between a 8800gt and a 9800gx2!!

If I read the right specs on your PSU, you only have 1 x 6 pin PCI-e power connector and NO 8 pin PCI-e power connector. Yes there are adaptors, but I dont' think you want to install a 9800 gx2 with the PSU that you have.

COOLER MASTER eXtreme RP-500-PCAR 500W ATX12V V2.01 Power Supply - Retail
GPU Power consumption list
eVga's manufacturer's product specification page on the 9800 gx2

You'd be better off getting a 4850 and a quality PSU for about the same $$.
PSU - $93 - $20 MIR = $73!!!
Corsair TX 650W ATX12V Power Supply - CMPSU-650TX
Comes with 2 6+2 Pin PCI-e power connectors, so will handle 2 x 8 pin configurations too!!!
Newegg's link for the same PSU, just a bit more $, but more details on the newegg site over the one on Buy.com that I linked with the good price.

GPU - $194 - $20 MIR = $174!!! Lifetime warranty too!!
VisionTek 900241 Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail

Total $286 - $40 MIR's = $246!! This is about $20-30 cheaper than 1 9800 gx2 and you'd be consuming 70w less than the 9800 gx2. This would severely upgrade your PSU and still give you a GPU bump too. Than when you want to upgrade your next GPU, you should be covered! If you even wanted to take a bigger jump on the PSU you could get the Corsair 750 TX w/4 x 6+2 pin PCI-e connectors!! Only $130 - $20 MIR = $110!!
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Retail

Well right now I have a 8800GT and well I don't know if I can justify myself upgrading to a Radeon 4850. How much extra performance am I actually getting? I'm still scratching my head right now because news about DX11 has already emerged as well as the new nvidia cards that will soon release to the public. I'm trying to get a deal with a guy right now to get 9800gx2 for 230 - 240 CAD and that's what's making me wanting to jump for the upgrade. I'm seriously considering if I should sell my 8800GT and go for Corsair 750TX + 9800Gx2 or if I should just lay low and wait for a better card say maybe next spring.

Theres always something better lurking around the corner. You will like the upgrade if you make the move but you may like whats coming better if you can wait.

If you're not having problems with anything atm I would recommend waiting. The prices will only get better on whats currently available and you will have a few more cards to choose from in the new releases.

I vote to wait. (unless you're having problems)

8800gt GPU is a decent GPU to have. Unless your having issues with maybe higher resolutions, than I'd wait too. You could get the PSU anyways, because you will probably need one for your next GPU, so that would be something that you could get now. Than you can save up for the latest/greatest later, if you can. I only suggested the 4850/PSU combo, because it seemed logical with the information at the time. The 9800gx2 is a nice card, but not sure it's a wise choice or not for your situation. The only thing that I'd be worried about, buying 2nd hand, is the warranty on the card. If it's not transferrable, than you might as well spend the extra $30-40 for a new one that has a warranty with it. You sometimes have to wonder why people sell their fairly new GPU's.....maybe they just want to upgrade, but sometimes it isn't clear why they are selling (maybe issues???). It's up to you to what you want to do, but if the 8800gt is working for you, I'd just wait on a newer GPU. You will need a new PSU to power the 9800gx2, so keep that in mind when your upgrading to it.