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HP Pavilion a6230n graphics upgrade help

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Hello! I have a HP Pavilion a6230n and I would like to upgrade to the ATI Radeon HD 6770 graphics card. Here are my specifications:

Motherboard: M2N68-LA (Narra2)

Expansion Slots:

1 PCI Express x16 slot for graphics card
2 PCI Express x1 slots
1 PCI slot (Available. There are really 2, but the modem card uses one.)

Processor: AMD Athlon x64 Live! x2

Memory: 3GB (going to upgrade to 6GB) DDR2 SDRAM dual channel 240-DIMM socket

Power Supply: 300 Watt ATX

Current Graphics: nVidia GeForce 6150SE nForce 430 Chipset

Operating System: Genuine Windows Vista: Home Premium (32-bit) (Going to upgrade to Windows 7: Home Premium 64-bit)

For a full list of specs, see http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Docume...

I can buy a new PSU, but I prefer not to. I want to save money, as I am putting alot in already. Any help is appreciated. I do not have the resolution, as I am moving it to a different room, with a different monitor after Christmas.

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acerace said:
Well, if you want to use 6770, you have to buy a new PSU. Since you don't want to, you've to get 7750 instead. It's the most powerful graphics card without the need of PCI-E power connector. (read = no PSU upgrade)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... for $100.


Now, how does a 7000 series model use the PSU I have, but a 6000 series model not? It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but I guess that's AMD for ya. I will look into this.

[EDIT] I only have PCIe 2.0 I don't have the PCIe 3.0 to run that card. Said computer isn't that up-to-date.

spock9000 said:
Now, how does a 7000 series model use the PSU I have, but a 6000 series model not? It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but I guess that's AMD for ya. I will look into this.

[EDIT] I only have PCIe 2.0 I don't have the PCIe 3.0 to run that card. Said computer isn't that up-to-date.


Each generation is more power efficient than the last. So a 7770 will be more power efficient than a 6770. PCI-E 3.0 is backwards compatible with 2.0.

spock9000 said:
Now, how does a 7000 series model use the PSU I have, but a 6000 series model not? It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but I guess that's AMD for ya. I will look into this.

[EDIT] I only have PCIe 2.0 I don't have the PCIe 3.0 to run that card. Said computer isn't that up-to-date.


AMD has a naming scheme for their GPU. Try looking at this article. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radeon

Now, we comparing between 6770 and 7750. Based on the naming scheme provided, 6770 should be more powerful than 7750, hence the more power consumption.

Also, PCI-Express is backward compatible. So it should work with any version.

... Well, this is interesting. If PCIe is backwards compatible, then, it should be easier than I thought. So, if 7750 is less powerful, will it still run games like Garry's Mod, Half-Life 2 (all episodes), Black Mesa: Source, etc.
And games like X-Plane 9, Microsoft: Flight Simulator X, etc. Or are these too graphics-needy? It sounds like a 7750 would work exceptionally well for all of those, when I know someone running all of those very well on a GeForce GT 9000 series, which is unsupported now. I have a GeForce GT 7200 from the old PC, but I doubt thet will work for what I want.

acerace said:
7760 will run that games no problem. But to make it playable, you've to adjust/lower the graphical setting until there is no noticeable lag.

Edit: 7750, my bad.


Well, see, that is what I would have to do with any card. So, if that will work, then I will look into this more and figure out the best version for my system. Thank You! If you think of anything else, let me know.

[EDIT] There is a flaw in your knowledge. Backwards compatible means 3.0 will run 2.0. Not 2.0 will run 3.0. So, that card WILL NOT work.
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