Seeking Guidance on PCIe x1

dj2786

Distinguished
Dec 22, 2011
1
0
18,510
Hello, I am attempting to upgrade my pc graphics card. This pc (my secondary rig for my wife) is a hp pavilion slimline s5610f.
The hp link showing the motherboard is here: http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?objectID=c02479710&lang=en&cc=us&taskId=115&contentType=SupportFAQ&prodSeriesId=4269980&prodTypeId=12454

I believe it has two PCI Express x1 slots.
I am attempting to play Star Wars: The Old Republic with it.
I am planning on upgrading the ram to two 4gb sticks.

Any ideas of a good graphics card that would fit those slots (1gb would be great, but others could work)? Possibly available at Best Buy or an inexpensive online retailer? Also, is there the possibility of using two 512mb graphics cards, one in each slot?

I've upgraded other pc's before, but I've definitely lost knowledge over the years - Thanks! :hello:
 

Skyyr

Distinguished
Dec 8, 2011
4
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18,510
For all intents and purposes, you're not going to be able to upgrade it. Well, you could upgrade it to something like an AMD HD5450, but the performance would be not much better than what you have now. The problem is that you're limited to PCIe 1x video cards due to your 1.0x PCIe slot, whereas the standard graphics slot is a PCIe 16x slot. The 1.x slot will bottleneck gaming graphics, therefore cards designed for PCIe 1.0x are severely underpowered compared to a 16x (standard) card. The big drawback though is that even if you did find a card, your computer's power supply is a bare-minimum 220W, which means that you'd probably be pushing it if you could find a PCIe 1.0x card that would work.

If you really want to play TOR with as little money invested as possible, your best bet is to go with the cheapest 1155 motherboard you can find (with IGP support) (~$90), decent (yet inexpensive) power supply (~$35-40), cheap case (~$35-50 - your preference), 8GB memory (~$40), Windows 7 Home Premium, ($95) and then put in an i5 2500K processor ($220) and overclock the IGP (integrated graphics chip). You can re-use your DVD/RW drive, your hard-drive, and most anything else you need from your old PC. Your cost out the door should be under $500 WITH Windows 7 ($400 or less if you have a Windows 7 disk that you can re-use). It's enough to run low-mid graphics settings in SWTOR on low-resolution with 30FPS decently.

Inexpensive motherboards: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007627%20600093976%204027%20600158412&IsNodeId=1&name=Intel%20Z68

Inexpensive PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182076

Intel i5 2500K: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

You can play SWTOR on minimalistic settings until you save up for a discreet graphics card, which the new system and PSU should have room for.
 

DM186

Splendid
I don't see any PCIe x 16 slots period. You won't be able to up grade at all. That system is for web surfing and doing your income tax on. Even if you do up grade with what he said everthing will be tight and the heat will kill you. Your best bet is to build a new computer because after you buy all that good stuff and put into that little computer, Heat and more heat I am sorry . any way Good luck