Video Card Recommendation

[cjofatl]

Hi:

I have an older machine, a gateway 504 GR. Given the small power supply (350W) I am limited on what video card i can put in it. Right now I am running a Geforce 6600 LE which is supposed to be crap but is really not that bad. I'd like to upgrade if possible.

Can anyone recommend the best video card that would work with my system? PCIe x16.

And no, right now I can't afford to replace the whole machine or the power supply.

Thanks...CJofATL

 

[-Fran-]

But you still have a budget, right?

Give us that number and we can work our magic 8)

Cheers!

 

[shadow187]

Assuming you have a mid-tower machine, an HD5670 would be your best bet. If it's slim or half-size, nab an HD5570, as the 9800GT/9600Gt would be too much of a power strain.

Incidentally, is your processor oudated?

 

[cjofatl]

Good questions. Yes, have a budget, but really would like to stay under $100. The lower the better.

Here are a few specs that might help:

rocessor Brand Intel®
Processor Class Pentium® 4 Processor with Hyper-Threading Technology
Processor Speed 3.0 GHz
Bus Speed 800 MHz
Cache Size 1 MB
System Chipset Intel 915G Express Chipset
Memory Speed PC3200 (400 MHz)
Memory Technology Four DIMM sockets that support the following:
2.5 V (only) DDR SDRAM DIMMs with gold-plated contacts
Unbuffered, single-sided or double-sided DIMMs with the following restriction:
Double-sided DIMMS with ×16 organization are not supported.
4 GB maximum total addressable system memory.
Minimum total system memory: 128 MB
Non-ECC DIMMs
Serial Presence Detect
DDR 400 MHz and DDR 333 MHz SDRAM DIMMs
Support for dual channel memory mode

 

[jay2tall]

If I am correct you have a PCI-E x16 slot which the current 6600 LE is using. With an OEM 350W You would probably get away with a 5670 at most. A 5570 might suit you also, depending on what you are doing with this. If you are doing some light gaming I'd go for the 5670.

What is your reason for upgrading?

Edit: man everyone beat me while I was typing o-so-slow. If you are in the US here is a 5670 under $100 with a MIR as well. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131334&cm_re=5670-_-14-131-334-_-Product

 

[cjofatl]

Light gaming. DDO mostly.

 

[cjofatl]

I just looked them up and the minimum power supply for the 5570 is 400 Watt and for the 5670 it's 450 Watt.

 

[AsAnAtheist]

I dont think that power supply will hold up. We had a a lot of customers bring in older gateways, and newer emachines for power supply failures. Anyways I will be glad if it can handle an HD 5670.

 

[jay2tall]

I just looked them up and the minimum power supply for the 5570 is 400 Watt and for the 5670 it's 450 Watt.

Most of the manufactures list 400W for either card. However, it is total system power and he has an ordinary P4 system. I think he can get away with a 5670, or 5570 if he needs to drop the price a little. If the PSU fails its because it was a bad or going bad unit. Sure the video card might cause the issue to crop up quicker, but still. So you replace it and move on.

 

[-Fran-]

Ugh, the P4 will choke (literally) anything above a 7800GTX... He's better off with a cheaper 4650 or 5470.

Cheers!

 

[shadow187]

Agreed with Yuka, your processor needs a desperate upgrade. I'd get an HD5570 right now.