HD 3650 on 250W PSU?

[eilif]

Okay, i found a great deal on the Sapphire Radeon HD 3650 512mb. I just ordered it, without thinking much.
I made sure it fit, it is supposed to be able to fit an AGP 4x slot, and everything should be compatible.
BUT
I didn't find much about it running on a 250W PSU.
And i'm quite concerned, as the card require an external power-connector.
It says on their web-page that it requires 300W.

I have a 250W PSU from Astec, and it is very old. It came stock with my computer, and I actually believe that it is about 10 Years old. (i'm just having fun with an old system to see if it can run the latest games when i'm finished)

So here are the problems:
- The card requires 300W + an external power connector.
- My PSU is 250W, 10 years old (must have degraded) and only has 10-11 amps on the +12V rail.

So.. Am i going to be able to run this card?
In worst case, what will happen if the card needs more power?
Will i ruin my computer?
Will i just have frequent crashes and such?
Will my PSU be blown out?

It doesnt cost much for a new PSU though, but i'd prefer not having to buy a new one, but should 350W with 14A on the +12V1 rail and 16A on the +12V2 work with this card?

Oh, and let's ignore all the problems for a while.
Let's just pretend that everything works.
Will i be able to run CoD4, Crysis, DaO and some other games on decent settings?

My system:
Pentium 4 Northwood 2.8 GHz ( No HT)
1.5 GB of RAM
70GB HDD
250W PSU
HD 3650 512mb (currently a GeForce 6200)
Windows XP Home

Thanks for reading

 

[Uther39]

I really think it will be to much for a 250w psu, plus i dont reckon you will be able to play crisis at anything but low res low settings.

 

[Rusting In Peace]

I doubt this going to work.

In the worse case your computer will just not switch on, or perhaps worse, the machine will crash when trying to run any 3D tasks (when the GPU demands more power).

So you will not "ruin" your computer but random crashes are not very good. The PSU should not explode if you ask it for more power than it can deliver.

 

[eilif]

Uther39: I am not going to play games on high graphics. I know it already can handle Crysis demo with 15-20 FPS with the 6200, and that was with a 2 GHz Pentium 4.
Will i see an increase?

Well will it harm my computer if i try? Should i get a new PSU if it starts crashing?

 

[PinkJazzX]

This would probably be the PSU you need:
http://www.sysfob.com/antec-earthwatts-ea380d-green-power-supply-380-watt.html

Remember that a good quality PSU with a lower advertised wattage can often be equal or even better than a low quality PSU with a higher advertised wattage. The Antec EarthWatts 380w 80 Plus Bronze PSU would be perfect for your needs.

 

[popatim]

It cant hurt to try imo. Weren't those agp cards keyed to the amps on the 3.3v rail?
<Scratches head>

Ps - what did you pay for that card? I've got one sitting on the shelf at home...

 

[eilif]

I paid $45 that's VERY cheap here in Norway. HD 4650 AGP is over $100.
They only sell HD 4650, HD 4670 and some millenium-dual-head-mac-****-stuff (or something like that)
The 4670 is over $140.
AGP cards are VERY overprices here as they are hard to get and not many people buy'em
PunkJazzX i live in Norway but i can get a 350W with 14A on the +12V1 and 16A on the +12V2 for about $58
Is it going to be enough?

 

[eilif]

Popatim: i don't know. But i've got 14A on the 3.3V rail of that's any help?