Upgrading to Radeon HD6870, need help spotting complications

jsturm01

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Aug 30, 2011
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Hello, first time poster, so let me know if I forget any relevant info.

I'm looking to upgrade my graphics card and am becoming somewhat overwhelmed. Newegg is having a deal on Radeon HD 6870, and that's what I'd like, but I'm not sure if everything is compatible. My current system is:

Mobo: MSI 790X-G45
Processor: AMD X6 (no worries there)
GPU: Geforce GT 240
Power Supply: Orion HP485D (this needs to be upgraded, looking at this)
Memory: 4gig DDR2 (need to double check this, but should be no complications and can upgrade if 4gigs is not enough)

The deal ends tomorrow, so please help me out if you see any conflicts arising from my plans. Heaviest use is gaming, also use the system as a home theater on occasion with dual screens. Target would be to smoothly run DX11 for something like Skyrim this fall, so doesn't need to be too over the top. Thanks in advance.

EDIT: Also, how low could I safely go with the power supply? 1000W is pretty big and I'd like a smaller one, but I've never worked with PSU and don't know if 1000W is overkill.
 
Solution
For a single 6870 1000 watts is extremely overkill even for two 6870s 1000 watts would be overkill. The 6870 uses a maximum of 168 watts. Add in about 200 watts or so for the rest of the system and you get roughly what your system would pull. A good quality 450 watt PSU could handle your system with a 6870, though a good 500 or 550 watt PSU would give you a little more headroom if you want to overclock or get a more powerful GPU down the road.

Coolmax are not known for their good PSUs I doubt the one you linked to could actually deliver 1000 watts, look for a good quality brand like Antec, Seasonic, Corsair, XFX, or PC Power and Cooling
For a single 6870 1000 watts is extremely overkill even for two 6870s 1000 watts would be overkill. The 6870 uses a maximum of 168 watts. Add in about 200 watts or so for the rest of the system and you get roughly what your system would pull. A good quality 450 watt PSU could handle your system with a 6870, though a good 500 or 550 watt PSU would give you a little more headroom if you want to overclock or get a more powerful GPU down the road.

Coolmax are not known for their good PSUs I doubt the one you linked to could actually deliver 1000 watts, look for a good quality brand like Antec, Seasonic, Corsair, XFX, or PC Power and Cooling
 
Solution

jsturm01

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Aug 30, 2011
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@Supernova1138: Well, that's good to know; thought 1000W seemed too high, but the card said it required a 500W or better PSU, and I thought I might go crossfire eventually. Glad I can just bump it up to 550 or so to get the required power. Thanks.
 
If you want to crossfire two 6870s down the road you may want to go up to 600 or 650 watts. A good 550 could possibly handle it but it would be pushing the PSU close to its absolute limits, which is generally not good for the PSU. It's always a good idea to have a little bit of headroom with your power supply, they'll last longer if they are not pushed to the limit constantly.
 

jsturm01

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Aug 30, 2011
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Alright, 600 it is. Btw, do you have any idea if this mobo would support crossfire? I haven't been able to find anything explicitly stating so and don't know the signs to look for in the stats.