Can I use this powersupply with what card?

[shadow187]

I bought a prebuilt (I know...) around a year ago. Since the nice things (Christmas, my birthday, etc) are coming up, I'd like to know exactly what I can run in this computer. The PSU is 250W, most likely a bad brand, and probably has around 15A. I'd have to check

Here ( http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4374328&CatId=2643 ) is the build.

I could get a 40$ powersupply and a 40$ graphics card, but I'm curious as to what cards I could run now. I'm doing mainly light gaming (L4D being the most intensive game; CS:S, Gmod, Tf2, HL2, etc..), so I'm thinking around a 4650/8500gt. Both are 40$.

Also, I only have a PCI-E 1.0 x16. I've been told that this can still run the 2.0 cards, but I thought that that wouldn't work because the 1.0 gives 75W of power, while the 2.0 gives 150W. Could I still do this or not?

So my questions:
4650 > 8500GT?
250W PSU can run a 4650?
4650 will run on a 1.0 PCI-E?

 

[shadow187]

~bump~

 

[Gulli]

Well, that E1400 won't allow any serious gaming anyway, so let's just go for a small card.

From Nvidia you have the 8600GT and 9500GT and ATI offers the HD 4650 (the 4650 is the best one of these 3 cards and probably also the cheapest.)



But... if you really want to upgrade your PC then replace that E1400 by an E5200 or E5200, get an HD 4670 graphics card and an OCZ Stealthstream 400W or a Coolermaster Elite 460W PSU.

 

[shadow187]

That's why I was using that..I don't plan on doing anything serious, but I'm very tired of running all of my games in DX7/640x480.

Will a 4650 work with my PCI-E 1.0?

 

[Gulli]

It doing fine in my girlfriend's 2006 OEM machine which was even worse than yours, so I'd say yes.

 

[jyjjy]

Don't worry about the slot. Any card can use a 1.0 slot. An HD4650 will be fine, it uses very little power. Look for a DDR3 version as it's a lot better than DDR2.
The suggested cpu upgrade is a good idea as well.

 

[Gulli]

Don't worry about the slot. Any card can use a 1.0 slot. An HD4650 will be fine, it uses very little power. Look for a DDR3 version as it's a lot better than DDR2.
The suggested cpu upgrade is a good idea as well.

Yes, and do note the power consumption of the system won't go up with an E2200, E5200 or E5300 CPU (they use the same amount of power, or even less, as the E1400.)

 

[shadow187]

I'll look at a new CPU, but my upgrade paths from other computers are: 1ghz, 2ghz, 2ghz dual-core. The last one seems the best by far, even though it's POS by world standards.

I might be able to get the e5300, all depends on how my parents are. Could I simply get a 4650 and run it with the powersupply I have now?

 

[Gulli]

I'll look at a new CPU, but my upgrade paths from other computers are: 1ghz, 2ghz, 2ghz dual-core. The last one seems the best by far, even though it's POS by world standards.

I might be able to get the e5300, all depends on how my parents are. Could I simply get a 4650 and run it with the powersupply I have now?

We won't know that for sure until you can tell us more about your PSU.

 

[shadow187]

250W...how much does the 4650 need on the 12V?

 

[Gulli]

250W...how much does the 4650 need on the 12V?

The 4650 alone needs 55W, but you will need at least 180W (15A) on the 12V rail to run your system (that's with some headroom so you won't go over 80% load.)

If you already have 15A or more than you can get a 4650 and an E5200 without needing a new PSU.

 

[jyjjy]

Xbit thinks the HD4650 maxes out at around 30 watts;
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/ati-radeon-hd4650_4.html

 

[shadow187]

I'll look in my system tonight and get back to you tomorrow on this.
(Clarification) And a 4650 can run Source games in how much detail? (L4D, Tf2, CS:S primarily).

 

[jyjjy]

It depends on the resolution you plan to use but Source games aren't particularly taxing on a GPU and in general I'd think a HD4650 will do fine for those games.

 

[shadow187]

1280x1024, though I have no problem with 1024x768. (18'' monitor.)

 

[jyjjy]

It should do well with almost any game at those resolution.

 

[shadow187]

I has 15A on my 12v. 1 SATA drive, 20+4 mainboard power-connector, CPU/FAN, and I think that's it.

So all is good then?

Actually, would a 4670 have the same power requirements? I can't find a DDR3 model of the 4650 anywhere..

 

[jyjjy]

An HD4670 would be pushing things... It may work but it may not.
You might just want to go ahead and get a new PSU and then not have to worry about that. If so this is the best deal on the low end at the moment but your current PSU couldn't handle it;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121320
It's on par with an HD4670 but cheaper and is supposed to overclock quite well for even better performance.

 

[Gulli]

I has 15A on my 12v. 1 SATA drive, 20+4 mainboard power-connector, CPU/FAN, and I think that's it.

So all is good then?

Actually, would a 4670 have the same power requirements? I can't find a DDR3 model of the 4650 anywhere..

The 4670 has a TDP of 70W, the 4650 has 55W, you'd be fine with the 4650, but I recommend against getting the 4670 with only 15A.

 

[shadow187]

Well my other card I use to game with is an old radeon X700, which plays all source games on low @1280x1024. All I really care about is matching that.

Thanks for the help so far!

 

[jyjjy]

Even a DDR2 HD4650 is at least twice as powerful as an X700