Need Help Selecting a Replacement

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nick91

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Hello,
I have an older Dell Dimension 9200 that I'm trying to use a media center. It's been working fine directly connected to the TV with computer speakers on the side, but I've recently purchased a home theatre system and I'd like to get the computer to send audio and video information through an HDMI port (right now I'm using a DVI to HDMI adapter). So I'm looking for a graphics card with an HDMI port that will allow my computer to connect easily to my home theatre system.

As far as I know I need a card with a PCIe x16 connection that will work with a 375W power supply.
My CPU isn't amazing, it's a dual core with 2.4GHz. I read somewhere that a slow CPU is not good for higher end graphics card.

I've also read that I may need a BIOS upgrade from Dell in order to use a v2.1 card? ( http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20120402095546AAum01E ).


If anyone can help me out by pointing me in the right direction of a suitable graphics card I'd really appreciate it. It was a confusing task to gather than information alone, now I'm just completely lost when selecting a card.

Thanks!

- Nick
 
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nick91

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are these graphics cards compatible with this motherboard?

Manufacturer Dell Inc.
Model 0CT017 (Microprocessor)
Chipset Vendor Intel
Chipset Model P965/G965
Chipset Revision C2
Southbridge Vendor Intel
Southbridge Model 82801HH (ICH8DH)
Southbridge Revision B0
BIOS
Brand Dell Inc.
Version 2.5.3
Date 11/22/2007
Click to expand...

i'm just concerned because of what that one guy said on yahoo answers about the BIOS. I've never had to upgrade the BIOS before.
 
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nick91

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i'd definitely want to use a card that uses less power, since I do have an older system and I wouldn't want to put too much strain on anything.

it's just the fact that I am using an older system makes me hesitant on buying a new PCIe x16 3.0 card for it.
like the card i'm using now is a nVidia 8600 GTS so all of these suggestions seem like a drastic change for my computer. i'm hoping that my slower processor will be able to cope with one of these suggestions.

is there anything more I should look at before actually buying the card? this is my first time ordering a graphics card online and swapping it myself so i just want to make sure i know everything i need to know before committing.

Thanks a lot!

- Nick
 
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bigshootr8

bigshootr8

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A 8600 GTS doesn't have sound transferred over HDMI? The only thing that will happen possibly is that you will hit a wall graphically because of the speed of your CPU. I can help you find a card that is a bit older if you would feel more secure with that. The slots are backwards compatible with 2.1 being the evil douche!
 
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nick91

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the 8600 GTS doesn't even have an HDMI port. Just two DVI's.

i'm not incredibly knowledgeable when it comes to actually building a computer so I'm just looking for the best card I can get (with an HDMI port) that will not cause me any issues.

does 'hitting a wall graphically' mean that the graphics card will need to wait over a split second every now and then for the CPU to catch up? Because I don't think it'll be that much of an issue as I just primarily use this computer to watch downloaded and streamed material. And iTunes. That's about it.

Thanks a lot for all the help you're providing,
- Nick
 
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bigshootr8

bigshootr8

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It means that your graphics card will only go as far as your cpu will :) The newer graphic cards come with audio over HDMI. Back when I had a 8800gts the 320mb model I had to use a HDMI header on my motherboard and I had a little cable to connect to get audio from HDMI. Newer cards not so much anymore :)
 
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nick91

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ok, i'm kind of stuck between those two. I want to get the order in tonight so theres a chance it gets shipped tomorrow before the weekend. so i'm about ready to type in the paypal info haha.

anything you can say to help me decide between the two? like honestly I'm just looking for an easy installation - no grief. this graphics card I have now handles everything I want to do quite well - it's purely for the audio over HDMI that I need this.

thanks again for all your help!

- Nick
 
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bigshootr8

bigshootr8

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Well you wont feel a difference between the 2 given your system. So I would suggest whichever is cheapest for you :) I would go with EVGA and if you into into issues evga has amazing customer/technical support and the forums has a ton of people that could help.
 
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nick91

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alright i'm ordering it.
i feel like space won't be an issue because my PCIe slots are mostly unoccupied and the Dimension 9200 case is fairly large.

thanks a lot, you really helped me out here.

- Nick


edit - it says the card is out of stock on the canadian website. are they going to get more stock in or should i grab something else?
 
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nick91

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ok wait is it ok to run a graphics card that says 400W minimum on a 375W power supply? cause I just realized all versions of that graphics card say they need a 400W power supply minimum...
 
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bigshootr8

bigshootr8

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The power draw of your system is lower then the rated minimum requirements. You should be just fine. Although if you are worried you can try a evga 630 given you probably aren't comfortable upgrading your power supply :p the gtx630 uses a min of 350w and does not use a pci-e power connector so it will use less power then a 550ti or 650ti or 650 for that matter.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130792
 
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nick91

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100% getting that card. it fits everything that I was concerned about (power supply and PCIe v2.0 x16). the card, itself, doesnt look extremely big and this looks like a really straight forward installation.

ordering now! thanks a million!

- Nick
 
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bigshootr8

bigshootr8

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Yup it looks like it its the bill. Didn't know the 630 was 2.0 now I do :) It's very straight forward you plug in you connection your display adapter DVI, VGA, or HDMI to your monitor or TV and bam :) You will need drivers installed for audio and you may need to set that up changing sound options but it will get the job done :)
 
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bigshootr8

bigshootr8

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From DDR3 to GDDR5 you will see a substantial jump in memory clock speed. Its essentially twice as fast going from 1600mhz to 3200mhz.

For a sec I thought you were comparing ram ram. Which in that case the difference is that video card memory is attached differently then regular ram making it easier to get something like GDDR5 ram where as most systems today are using DDR3 but you weren't asking that :X
 
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