Need Help with DELL XPS 400 Video Card and PSU

[WolfTigerRosebud]

Hellp everyone! I just joined, and I need help. Two or three years ago, I bought a Dell XPS 400, half a year later upgraded to an nVidia 7600 GT card, and was told at an electronics store that the XPS case makes a PSU upgrade nearly impossible. I've checked on this forum and others, and could not find a PSU that would work with my configuration. So, I was thinking that I could go out and buy a cheap case, transfer the guts of my system into that one, and in the process swap out my old PSU (375 Watts) and video card (for something that runs DX10 and Crysis, hopefully. I really don't know if this is possible, and if it's not, I'd appreciate any other advice that you think would boost my system performance. So, I'll put up my specs. Thanks to anyone who can give me a hand with this predicament.

Dell XPS 400 Specs (Retrieved from Device Manager)

-Computer: ACPI Multiprocessor PC
-Display Adapters: nvidia GeForce 7600 GT
-Processors: 2X Intel Pentium D CPU 2.80 GHz
-PSU: 375 Watts

I got the rest from the XPS 400 manual:

-1 GB DDR2 (I think it's DDR2) RAM
-Chipset: Intel 945P
-System clock 800- or 1066-MHz data rate

Thanks everyone.

 

[badge]

Welcome WTR. I would buy a new C2D/C2Q/Core i7 system and retire the Pentium D 2.8GHz. If you upgrade the video card to Nvidia 8/9/2 or Radeon 4, your system will perform poorly. Other than that suggestion, there are stand alone video card power supplys you can install, but I would recommend the first suggestion and use your current system as an internet browsing/word processing/light duty work station.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153069

 

[WolfTigerRosebud]

Thanks badge. Thats a good suggestion; i was wondering if a new PC would be the way to go. ill look into it. thanks again.

 

[angry_ducky]

I'd add more RAM, and get a Radeon HD 4670 card, which should work fine with your current PSU.

 

[delluser1]

I agree with badge that the PD system should be retired, but if that's not possible the 375w/30a psu in your machine can handle a 9800 GT without any fuss.
One other thing, the Dell psu in your machine is upgradeable with almost any standard ATX unit.

 

[jzsang]

Given the fact that we are dealing with a Pentium D, I would just build a new computer, BUT...

...if your budget is tight, I know from previous experience (I once owned on XPS 400), that a 9600 GT will work. A word of caution though, depending on the game, your processor will most likely noticably hinder the gpu's ability.