Best GPU for an Intel Pentium 4 at 2.93ghz

[ntr11023]

Hey guys,

So, I'm still fixing up my old computer, but I finally got it running again. I reformatted the hard drive, got a wireless network card, and picked up a new sound card. We are in business! The main use of the computer will be gaming, so I want it to run as good as possible. But there's a problem. It has integrated graphics... from 5 years ago! I doubt that that will get me very far in today's world. The solution? I need a new graphics card. My computer has:

Processor: Intel Pentium 4 single core @ 2.93ghz
4gb DDR2 RAM
250w PSU

Unless I can get a significantly better processor for less than $50, I do not want to upgrade that at the current time. So, my question is what is the best GPU for an Intel Pentium 4 single core processor at 2.93ghz?

I would prefer to stick with Nvidia because Nvidia cards tend to outperform the ATIs. Remember, the main use of this machine will be gaming.

I would prefer a card that could work with a 250w PSU (if such a card exists), but utilizing the full processor is more important. I can upgrade the PSU if need be.

I am on a very tight budget. I do not have the money to buy a new computer at the current time. My goal is to get the most out of my Pentium that I can.

Thanks for the help!!

EDIT: I believe I have a PCI slot on my desktop. Don't know how much that helps, but I thought I'd go ahead and throw that in.

EDIT2: The slot in my computer is PCI 32-bit. I now know that this does matter, as PCIe and AGP will not work.

 

[majin ssj eric]

Wow. That system is going to struggle both CPU and psu-wise. Your p4 will bottleneck most current gpu's which doesn't matter because just about any discrete gpu demands at least 300W anyway. You really might be better off saving up some money for a new build as opposed to throwing money away on a system that will ultimately never satisfy your gaming needs....

 

[jyjjy]

Nvidia cards do not tend to outpeform ATI cards. They do however tend to be more expensive for a given performance and usually use more power. With an old 250w PSU you are already very limited in your choices so limiting it to Nvidia cards would be quite unwise. For your situation I would recommend an HD4650. This one specifically as it has DDR3 RAM;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131360

 

[ntr11023]

Wow. That system is going to struggle both CPU and psu-wise. Your p4 will bottleneck most current gpu's which doesn't matter because just about any discrete gpu demands at least 300W anyway. You really might be better off saving up some money for a new build as opposed to throwing money away on a system that will ultimately never satisfy your gaming needs....

Ugh! I do not want a new system right now! How many times must I say it? I've done plenty of research that verifies my system can run better than it's running right now. I want the most out of my current system, not a new system (unless it's significantly better and under $50). Of course, current cards will be bottlenecked by the processor. I was thinking about an older card. What is the best card I could get for my current processor, and what power supply would I need for it to run?

 

[jyjjy]

Just get the HD4650. It's the best card I would recommend for that PSU and anything better would be bottlenecked by the processor anyway. It will be a huge upgrade over your integrated graphics.

 

[ntr11023]

Nvidia cards do not tend to outpeform ATI cards. They do however tend to be more expensive for a given performance and usually use more power. With an old 250w PSU you are already very limited in your choices so limiting it to Nvidia cards would be quite unwise. For your situation I would recommend an HD4650. This one specifically as it has DDR3 RAM;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131360

It's a possibility. I've done a lot of research on these cards, though, and NVIDIA tends to have significantly higher framerates in games. The idea is to get the best possible performance. There's no point in getting a new card if it's not going to outperform the integrated graphics.

 

[ntr11023]

Just get the HD4650. It's the best card I would recommend for that PSU and anything better would be bottlenecked by the processor anyway. It will be a huge upgrade over your integrated graphics.

So, that's about as good as my processor could handle? I've looked at it, and it's a good price and has a nice amount of VRAM. So, if I were to get this card, should I go after the 1024mb version, or the 512 one?

 

[jyjjy]

The amount of memory doesn't really matter on cards of this caliber but the speed does. So just make sure to get a DDR3 version. The DDR3 model is actually rather rare these days and most have DDR2 instead which is actually a big performance hit. You'd probably be best off just ordering the one I linked if at all possible.
The closest comparable Nvidia cards are the 9500GT and the GT 220 but both are a bit weaker than the HD4650 and use slightly more power. I'm also not seeing the DDR3 version of either for less than $70 right now.

 

[ntr11023]

The amount of memory doesn't really matter on cards of this caliber but the speed does. So just make sure to get a DDR3 version. The DDR3 model is actually rather rare these days and most have DDR2 instead which is actually a big performance hit. You'd probably be best off just ordering the one I linked if at all possible.
The closest comparable Nvidia cards are the 9500GT and the GT 220 but both are a bit weaker than the HD4650 and use slightly more power. I'm also not seeing the DDR3 version of either for less than $70 right now.

Ok. I have just one more question. The card you've showed me is a PCI Express. My desktop *supposedly* has a PCI slot. What's the difference between PCI and PCI Express, and will A PCI-e work in a PCI slot?

 

[jyjjy]

Ug, no PCI-E slot? What is the brand/model of your system and/or motherboard?

 

[computernugget]

a pci-e will not work with a PCI slot. the PCI-E uses more bandwidth than the PCI. the best you can get for a legacy PCI slot is probably an nvidia 6600 or so

 

[computernugget]

i hope this helps. this is the best you can get for 50 bucks. there arebetter ones but are way way more expensive.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130477

 

[lilotimz]

^^ i had that same card along with a celery on a similar system......

lets just say..... 10-20 FPS is what i averaged on the lowest settings in any modern game past 2006.

then i upgraded.... and i never looked back.

OP.. IIRC there was a Sparkle 8400 PCI that was made a few years back. Its very rare but somewhat better than the 6200 pci and theres also x1550 and x1300 pci's too if you can find them...

all of them are.... well... crap... but there ya go.

 

[ntr11023]

Ug, no PCI-E slot? What is the brand/model of your system and/or motherboard?

My system is an HP ordered from HP. I don't know the model, but I verified that the slots are PCI.

EDIT: Upon further research, I have discovered that the card must be PCI-32bit to work in my board.

 

[ntr11023]

i hope this helps. this is the best you can get for 50 bucks. there arebetter ones but are way way more expensive.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130477

I don't think that card will work. It has 2 slits in the gold part, but my other cards only have 1 slit. The slots in my board don't appear to allow for more than 1 slit. I did some more checking, and the cards have to be PCI-32bit for my board.

 

[ntr11023]

^^ i had that same card along with a celery on a similar system......

lets just say..... 10-20 FPS is what i averaged on the lowest settings in any modern game past 2006.

then i upgraded.... and i never looked back.

OP.. IIRC there was a Sparkle 8400 PCI that was made a few years back. Its very rare but somewhat better than the 6200 pci and theres also x1550 and x1300 pci's too if you can find them...

all of them are.... well... crap... but there ya go.

That's some good advice. I'll keep that in mind!

 

[computernugget]

I don't think that card will work. It has 2 slits in the gold part, but my other cards only have 1 slit. The slots in my board don't appear to allow for more than 1 slit. I did some more checking, and the cards have to be PCI-32bit for my board.

yeah a PCI slot will have the slit on the right side of the actual slot on the motherboard. anything that comes in PCI form will have two slits in the card itself.

PCI slots will look like this.

 

[ntr11023]

yeah a PCI slot will have the slit on the right side of the actual slot on the motherboard. anything that comes in PCI form will have two slits in the card itself.

PCI slots will look like this.

Yeah, I no doubt have PCI slots. But I have several PCI cards that only have 1 slit in them. My slot is PCI 32-bit.

 

[computernugget]

Yeah, I no doubt have PCI slots. But I have several PCI cards that only have 1 slit in them. My slot is PCI 32-bit.

i just researched a little and the 64 bit PCI has a bigger opening on the right side of the slit. its longer than the ones pictured. and the reason some PCI cards have 2 slits is so its backwards compatible with the older 3v PCI which has the slit on the left. i also found this picture here which should explain PCI a little better

 

[plznote]

To be frank, But not ignorant, It is unwise to invest anything in the system. If you are on a tight budget get a used computer for $100-$150. It's just that the PCI interface is incredibly old. If you can't get a new computer just get what ComputerNugget.

 

[computernugget]

To be frank, But not ignorant, It is unwise to invest anything in the system. If you are on a tight budget get a used computer for $100-$150. It's just that the PCI interface is incredibly old. If you can't get a new computer just get what ComputerNugget.

its funny reading my own name.

 

[mdd1963]

The old P4 is probably best left as a Quake3 system...; it is unsuitable for today's games, IMO.....

 

[nforce4max]

I agree with a few points made in this thread, since this is a 775 based system as it is using ddr2 that you upgrade to a more modern board G31 or G33 based chipset as they are dirt cheap. Then a ok card for the job would be at the low end a 5450 while at the high end a gt240 but nothing more.

 

[ntr11023]

To be frank, But not ignorant, It is unwise to invest anything in the system. If you are on a tight budget get a used computer for $100-$150. It's just that the PCI interface is incredibly old. If you can't get a new computer just get what ComputerNugget.

Well, I've been looking a lot at these PCI cards, and none of them give any significant improvement over integrated graphics (some are even outperformed). I am going to get a new PCIe board and a PCIe gfx card to go with it. Of course, once I get the machine working somewhat, I'm going to save up my money and really upgrade it.

 

[ntr11023]

i just researched a little and the 64 bit PCI has a bigger opening on the right side of the slit. its longer than the ones pictured. and the reason some PCI cards have 2 slits is so its backwards compatible with the older 3v PCI which has the slit on the left. i also found this picture here which should explain PCI a little better

Thank you for doing the research. That's very interesting. However, after reading some reviews and looking at some performance tests on the PCI gfx cards, I am going to get a PCIe board with a PCIe gfx card to go with it (shouldn't be more than about $100 for both). The next question is what kind of upgrade would I see by putting in a better processor (like the Pentium Dual-Core), what would be a better gfx card to go with it, and would the processor and *supposedly* more expensive gfx card give me a performance increase that warrants the money?