Video Card Help

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scali

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Feb 12, 2011
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I'm wondering if I can upgrade my video card, and what would be a decent card between the $70-$100 price range I should get?



HP Pavilion a6500f Specifications
HP Pavilion a6500f specs including processor speed, network, wireless, power, sound, memory (RAM), chipset, hard drive, weight, dimensions and video specs and cpu. Find specs for all HP desktops @ Premium Geeks.

Product number
KQ495AA
Motherboard
MCP73M01H1 (Napa)
Manufacturer: Foxconn
Form factor: microATX – 9.6 inches (24.4 cm) x 8.5 inches (21.5 cm
Chipset: GeForce 7100/nForce 630i
Memory sockets: 2 x DDR2
Front side bus speeds: 800/1066/1333 MHz
Processor socket: 775
Expansion Slots:
1 PCI Express x16 slot for graphics card
2 PCI Express x1 slots
1 PCI slot
Processor
Intel Core 2 Duo E2220
Operating speed: Up to 2.4 GHz
Number of cores: 2
Socket: 775
Bus speed: 800 MHz
Socket type: 775
Memory
4 GB
Amount: 4 GB
Speed: PC2-6400 MB/sec
Video graphics
Integrated graphics using GeForce 7100
*Integrated video is not available if a graphics card is installed.
Integrated graphics using GeForce 7100
One VGA port on backplate
One DVI port on backplate
Also supports PCI Express x16 graphics cards
Networking
LAN: 10-Base-T
Interface: Integrated into motherboard
Technology: Realtek RTL8201CL
Data transfer speeds: up to 10/100Mb/s
Transmission standards:10-Base-T Ethernet
Modem: 56K WinModem
Interface: PCI-e 1.1
Data transfer speeds: up to 56 kbps for V.92 connections*
Transmission standards: V.92, V.90, V.44, V.34*
* Features must supported by the ISP at time of connection.
Hard drive
500 GB
Size: 500 GB
Interface: SATA
Transfer rating: 3.0 Gb/sec
Rotational Speed: 7200 RPM

I believe it's a 250 watt power supply, any suggestions, without me having to upgrade my power supply?
 
Solution
mactronix
Well this card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102870 would bring you bang up to date and does not need any extra power cables.
You could consider the 4670 from the older generation if your really worried about power consumption but that has about 25% less performance for a small drop in power comsumption.
Depending on which games you play and at what resolution the differance could be either not relevant or the differance between the game being playable or not.

Mactronix :)
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mactronix

mactronix

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Sep 17, 2006
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Well this card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102870 would bring you bang up to date and does not need any extra power cables.
You could consider the 4670 from the older generation if your really worried about power consumption but that has about 25% less performance for a small drop in power comsumption.
Depending on which games you play and at what resolution the differance could be either not relevant or the differance between the game being playable or not.

Mactronix :)
 
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Solution
S

scali

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I don't play anything really system demanding - World of Warcraft, Team Fortress, Counterstrike, etc. The lag is getting pretty annoying at times and I'm hoping to make my PC run these games smoother..
 
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megamanx00

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^ well the PCI-E slot provides 75W max so anything that doesn't need an external connector has to be below that :p. It's kind of crazy to think that not too long ago the 8800GTS and HD 2900 needed two PCI-E connectors to provide that kind of performance.

Anyway, the 5670 would be a good choice, so long as you don't try to stress your system with furmark and prime 95 :O. If you're really worried about it then you can go with the 5570 which uses less power and still offers decent performance. Just don't expect to play GTA 4 :non:

 
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mactronix

mactronix

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Sep 17, 2006
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Huge understatement, You wont see a differance you will think it a new PC my friend.
I just looked it up and a geforce 7100 equiped Motherboard runs Far Cry at 31 FPS at a resolution of 1024x 768 or 12 FPS at 1600 x 1200.
The 5670 will run the same game at 197 FPS for 1024 x 768 and 102 Fps for 1680 x 1050.
The 5670 numbers will b ehigher than you will get as they use top of the line CPU's when doing reviews but even allowing for that its going to be night and day differance wise.
You will be able to play games the 7100 couldnt even think about playing.

Mactronix :)
 
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jjb8675309

jjb8675309

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Feb 21, 2010
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yeah I agree, That is the main thing to take from this, I'm hoping the next generation of AMD cards will bring a 5770 or better level of performance with no pci-e connectors... that would be sweet for an htpc with real gaming capabilities
 
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mactronix

mactronix

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Sep 17, 2006
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Unfortunatly I dont think a card that would perform like that would be priced at HTPC prices.
They seem to think that a cards price should be based on its performance and not where it fits into the product range or what it costs to make taking into account the improvements in the technology etc.

A Graphics cards performance is based on the FPS it can put out at a selection of Resolutions. Over the years what is considered say Midrange performance has changed but the cards are still priced up depending on years old performance brackets.
This in my view needs to change.

Mactronix :)
 
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jjb8675309

jjb8675309

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Feb 21, 2010
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not quite following you but basically everything is relative, calling it an htpc solution I was just basically throwing a term out there, what I meant to say was just it would be nice to have a 5770 with no pci-e connections from the psu.

I agree with how midrange has changed and prices have stayed congruent with old performance brackets
 
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