A newbie wants to upgrade his graphic card :)

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razefast

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Jun 30, 2012
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Hello guys!
Greetings from singapore! :)

I've this compaq presario SR5890D and want to upgrade my graphic card. But I am scared that other hardwares will bottleneck my new graphic card.
I am choosing between gtx 550 ti & gtx 560 ti. But I am also open to other suggestions as well.
I did some research about upgrading graphic card so I think I need to upgrade my power supply as well.
Oh, I forgot to mention that I am a total newbie on DIY desktop. This is my 1st time trying to upgrade something :(
I am hoping to get some help from pros :)

This is the price list from the shop that I am planning to get from. (their price is in S$)
http://www.cybermind.com.sg/pdf-upload/pricelists/cybermind.pdf

Please suggest me which gpu and psu I should get :)
Do I need to upgrade my RAM as well? *confused*

Monitor: HP 2309m (1920x1080)
Motherboard: MCP73M01H1 (Napa)
CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9400 2.66 GHz
Memory: 4 GB PC2-6400
Graphic card: GT 130 (768MB)
PSU: 350W
Detailed Info: http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?objectID=c01686183&lang=en&cc=us&taskId=135&contentType=SupportFAQ&prodSeriesId=3880300&prodTypeId=12454

P.S. I want to play GTA IV, Skyrim, Dragon Age 2 with good FPS and graphics :)
 
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i am sorry i missed the link you posted . .
if you go for the MSI GTX560 TwinFrozr II 1024MB then the SilverStone 500W ST50F-ES is what i would recommend, it is a little larger than the minimum but that SilverStone 400W (ST400) w/PFC is just a little odd with its 12 volt rail configuration. the single 34 amps on the 500 is a true continuous reading where as the 18,18 on the 400 is a maximum reading.

those 550ti and 7770 look over priced!

does that fit in your budget?

also the 4 gigs of ram is fine but the clock speed on the Q9400 will hold you back some; are you able to gently overclock that?
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it would be highly recommended that you do upgrade that PSU. it is doubtful that the one you have in there now will have the appropriate amount of amps on the 12 volt rail to even handle a 550ti.

it would be better to make a decision about the graphics card first then see what wattage PSU would suffice, though most likely a quality 450watt is more than enough.

since you are in singapore i do not know what is available to you can you post some links please?
 
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i am sorry i missed the link you posted . .
if you go for the MSI GTX560 TwinFrozr II 1024MB then the SilverStone 500W ST50F-ES is what i would recommend, it is a little larger than the minimum but that SilverStone 400W (ST400) w/PFC is just a little odd with its 12 volt rail configuration. the single 34 amps on the 500 is a true continuous reading where as the 18,18 on the 400 is a maximum reading.

those 550ti and 7770 look over priced!

does that fit in your budget?

also the 4 gigs of ram is fine but the clock speed on the Q9400 will hold you back some; are you able to gently overclock that?
 
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jdwii

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Apr 13, 2010
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I would recommend a 7770 this would be fine on a weak PSU. Its about as powerful as a GTX 460.
 
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razefast

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yea. i know, right? after comparing this shop price with newegg.com, i feel like migrating to US ... LOL :kaola:

It still fit in my budget... i hope this graphic card won't become obsolete for next 2-3 years :D
I have to use my hard-earned $$ from part-time jobs

I am interested in overclocking the CPU, but I've never done that before.
I'll attempt to do that after upgrading GPU. (will definitely need to open another thread to ask for help :whistle: )

Btw, do I need to buy anti static wrist strap to assemble the graphic card and psu?
 
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razefast

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Hi jdwii,
I am new to DIY custom PCs so I don't know what is x6 connector :(
how to check whether I have it or not?
a quick google only shows me nokia x6 connector but i guessed that's not what u meant.

I'll take a look at the products you suggested and compare them with gtx 550 and 560.


---------------------------------
edit: oh, i didn't see your 1st post. I just did a quick check on gtx 460 performance at nvidia website and it looks good.
now i got 2 more product to my list :)
 
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you may be able to put a slight overclcok on that card and get it to 570, 7850 level which will last awhile. even at stock depending on the games you'll be fine.

it will help to look at a cpu/mobo/ram upgrade next time you can afford it :)

if you want the wrist wraps to be cautious ok but if you stay off carpet and touch the metal case before handling the components that will ground you from any static electricity.
 
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jdwii

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A lot of stock Power supply's don't come with a x6 connector

If so a 7750 is the best video card you can get. Don't worry it can max out most games on 720P and run others on medium at 1080P :)

a X6 connector is what you plug into your video card i'm 70% sure your PSU doesn't come with one if so a 7750 is the best you can get when it comes to performance/Power consumption.

 
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whoa!

did you look at the OPs price list? this is singapore. the 7750 goes for 199 and a 7770 for the same price as a 560!

it just is not a deal under that pricing.
 
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jdwii

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I agree +1 then i would get a 6670. sucks not getting stuff at newegg U.S, sorry bro.
 
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ok, now let me prod you towards why the OP might want to upgrade that PSU; because even though that Q9400 is a little old it still can handle a much better gpu than the 6670. i was thinking the 560 would balance it out but my word isn't gospel or anything.
 
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jdwii

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A 6670 will get him decent settings at 720P and low-mid on 1080P. If he doesn't want to upgrade the PSU the 6670/7750 is the best he can do if he wants to he can get a higher-end video card but he needs to upgrade his PSU.
 
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razefast

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FYI : compaq has replaced 4 graphic cards (2 GT 130 & 2 GT230) in 3 years for me (under warranty) and I don't know why it fails so often. :fou: I heard from forums that if psu is a lousy one, it can fail other hardwares.
That's why I am willing to upgrade that psu.

So if i am going to upgrade psu, gtx 560 (MSI GTX560 TwinFrozr II 1024MB & SilverStone 500W ST50F-ES ) is the best I can get for my system right? (under S$350 for GPU + any reasonable amount for PSU) :p
 
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razefast

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Jun 30, 2012
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Okay, final decision time .. :na:

Is it worth to spend S$56 more to get 560ti?

MSI GTX560 Ti TwinFrozr II OC 1024MB GDDR5 S$335

MSI GTX560 TwinFrozr II 1024MB GDDR5 S$279



SilverStone 500W ST50F-ES (S$85) should be able to handle any 1 of these right?
 
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jdwii

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Yes that PSU is fine a non ti edition of the 560 is about as fast as a 6870 and a TI 560 is as fast as the 6950. So its your pick if its worth it!

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-560-amp-edition-gtx-560-directcu-ii-top,2944-8.html

If it was me i would get a 7850 but i have no idea what the prices are in your area in the U.S its like the same cost for a 560 TI and a 7850 and a 7850 is a Way better card.
 
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razefast

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Jun 30, 2012
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My mind is set to go with gtx 560 ti.
but a guy from another forum suggests me to get SilverStone 600W ST60F-ES instead of SilverStone 500W ST50F-ES for a little margin. It's S$13 more and that's okay for me.
So what u guys think? Will that improve performance? or only for future upgrades?
 
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jdwii

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If you can get the money, then yes its worth it but it wont improve your performance any but it will give you more Amps for a possible upgrade in the future.
 
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if you know you are going going to use the 600W in a later build then it is a wiser choice. though it really doesn't matter and there is nothing wrong with spending a few more dollars; it is not as if you are considering a 800-1200 watt to step up.
the 560ti is a good choice and may i ask if you looked for a cooler for if you overclock the cpu?
 
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razefast

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Jun 30, 2012
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if you know you are going going to use the 600W in a later build then it is a wiser choice. though it really doesn't matter and there is nothing wrong with spending a few more dollars; it is not as if you are considering a 800-1200 watt to step up.
the 560ti is a good choice and may i ask if you looked for a cooler for if you overclock the cpu?
Click to expand...

I haven't looked for a cooler. Worse, I didn't even know I'll need a cooler if I am going to overclock cpu ... lol
okay..i just read wikihow article "how to overclock a PC". It says
any OEM (original equipment manufacturer) computer, such as a Dell, HP or E-machine, will be more difficult to overclock, so your best bet for overclocking is to purchase or build a custom system, but keep in mind that some motherboards can't be used to overclock.
Click to expand...
:ouch:
my one is compaq presario so will it be too much for a beginner like me or it's as simple as following step 1 2 3?
 
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ooops. most prebuilds (compaq, hp and dell) have a BIOS that will lock you out from changing the Front Side Bus to overclock. so you may be stuck at where you are now :(
 
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razefast

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Jun 30, 2012
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Thx for all the helps guys :)
I just went to local store today to buy gtx 560 ti but they changed my mind and I end up buying msi radeon 7850 twin frozr oc 2gb. I also bought seasonic 650W.
But the issue now is my monitor cannot detect anything from 7850 but it does from my on board graphic.
I've opened a new thread for this issue so I really hope you guys can help me there. T_T

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/359870-33-graphic-card-working

p.s. hi admin. please help me to close this thread.
 
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