Power Supply and Graphics Card Upgrade

[Caraisin]

I currently acquired an HP Pavilion a6745f Desktop computer. The Graphics Card is integrated into the Motherboard. Fortunately I have One PCIE x16 and Three PCIE x1 open slots. I want to get away from the integrated graphics [ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics (256 MB dedicated)] since I do play games like COD. Integrated graphics for the games I play just doesnt do it. Slow Frame Rate, very choppy. I would like to add a Graphics Card to my system. A friend suggested an NVidia 9600 but said that I would have to upgrade my power supply. I currently have a 300 watt power supply which came with the computer. http://h30038.www3.hp.com/assets/usen/datasheets/HP_Pavilion_a6745f_Special_Edition_PC.pdf Question 1: What Graphics card would be best for my system for optimal performance? Question 2: What would be the best Power Supply for my system that is compatible to meet the needs of a Graphics Card? I have 4 slots for RAM. I am running 4GB (1GB per slot). [4 DIMM (240-pin, DDR2) (occupied)] Since it is a 64 bit OS I am allowed up to 16GB of RAM. (I know that Sony has just released a 4GB Memory stick. I have not seen it in stores.) Question 3: What do you suggest for my system to upgrade the RAM? Call of Duty Gamers for TWO anticipating your response.

 

[Bluescreendeath]

Get ATI Radeon 4670, it's equal to an Nvidia 9600GSO but is a low-power consumping card. It should be able to play COD4:MW or COD:MW2 just fine on nearly max settings on good resolutions.

Anything more than 4GB total of DDR2 RAM is useless...you won't notice any difference whatsoever.

 

[Caraisin]

Thanks Bluescreen, I will investigate further based on your answers.

 

[dirtmountain]

+1 ^ I'd stick with 4GB of RAM and install a 4670. If you decide you want a more powerful graphic card then any standard ATX power supply will fit in that HP case. Ones i've used before are the Antec earthwatts 430w, 500w and a Corsair 450w. A long graphic card MAY block a SATA port so you may need to get 90 degree cables to use them.

 

[Caraisin]

Excellent feedback. You guys are great.

 

[jaguarskx]

Actually, the fastest card you can install with your current power supply is the HD 5750. It is just as powerful as the HD 4850, but uses less power than a HD 4670. Just don't run FurMark which will push power consumption to 60w.

Source:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/radeon-hd5770-hd5750_5.html#sect0

I'll have to dig up the charts for the HD 4670...

 

[jaguarskx]

HD 4670

Source:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/powercolor-pcshd4670-512mb_5.html#sect0

 

[Caraisin]

I guess the next question is.... How will this effect my Frame Rate?

 

[jaguarskx]

Call me crazy, but I think a more powerful video card usually increases frame rates...

The links I provided includes some benchmarks. Click 'n read...

 

[jaguarskx]

^^^

He already did. Actually, it was a link to the HP Pavilion specs. He could have used paragraphs to make the link easier to see though.

 

[Caraisin]

Actually I did make paragraphs (sentence structure) to make my plea for help. Unfortunately my question was not posted in the manner of which it was initially intended.

There are two people that did address the issue and I have found it to be a great help.

Thanks guys, you know who you are.

 

[sabot00]

I'd get a 4670 like they said, ATI's 5XXX series is out-of-stock in most places and the price is being hugely inflated. Stick with the 4GB RAM unless you game dev, 3D model, virtual OS's, or massive multitasking.

 

[sabot00]

Jag, I have to correct you, the 5750's power consumption is irrelevant. It needs a 6-pin nonetheless.

 

[jaguarskx]

Jag, I have to correct you, the 5750's power consumption is irrelevant. It needs a 6-pin nonetheless.

Yes, it does need a 6-pin power connector, but that does not negate the fact that X-bitlabs' power consumption test does show that the HD 5750 does indeed consume slightly less power than the HD 4670.

Peak power is 61w based on the newly included FurMark test for the HD 5750. How much does the HD 4670 consume using FurMark? Unknown since they did not re-test the HD 4670. FurMark represents the worst possible situation because it is designed to stress the entire GPU (or as much as possible) at one time which does not occur during gaming conditions. Additionally, I believe the PCI-e port provides up to 75w of power, therefore the 6-pin connection is an added safety measure especially if someone decides to OC the HD 5750 which could push the HD 5750 to consume more than 75w under the most stressful situations.

Additionally, how is power consumption irrelevant?

 

[sabot00]

Would the card start without the 6-pin connected?

 

[jaguarskx]

Most likely not. It is there as a safety measure. While the PCI-e slot can provide up to 75w of power it is generally better to balance out power draw from more than one source if a card is capable of drawing a lot of power so that one source is overly taxed. "Capable" does not equate to "will".

X-bitlabs' tests indicates how much power the video cards are likely to draw under typical gaming situations. The FurMark test does not represent typical gaming situations because it is designed to stress the entire card (or as much as possible) all at once.

Can the HD 5750 consume more than 43w? Yes, but the same argument can be made about the HD 4670 consuming more than 47w.

 

[sabot00]

That's what I'm saying, as it's a 300W PSU I doubt it has a 6-pin, thus the card won't start no matter how much it actually uses.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

i'm running the 4670 in my dell which has a 320 psu.it works perfect!

 

[sabot00]

4670 in a HP with a 250W, no nuts no glory!

 

[jaguarskx]

That's what I'm saying, as it's a 300W PSU I doubt it has a 6-pin, thus the card won't start no matter how much it actually uses.

There are HD 5750s out there that do come with an adapter, HIS for instance...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161307&cm_re=hd_5750-_-14-161-307-_-Product

It's rather small, but the following is a picture which shows the power adapter:

Another example of a HD 5750 with a power adapter is from Sapphire:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102859&cm_re=hd_5750-_-14-102-859-_-Product

 

[Caraisin]

Wow, you guys have gone far beyond an answer that I would have expected. Its obvious to me that an HD4670 or HD5750 are in order.

Since the 6 pin has become an issue, this has caused me some concern. I will have to go with the one that does not have it since most of you agree that my system does not carry a 6 pin. Not really sure if I want to go with an adapter as Jaguar mentioned.

I am trusting your judgement on this.

I will send updates as soon as I do the upgrade. Unfortunately it will have to wait until the Holidays are over.

Thanks again for such knowledgeable output.