Replacing the GPU on my old Setup...

[tamiboi360]

Hello to All!

I'm new here, so here it goes!

I have a very old setup here. i think the only thing that's not that old is my PSU. bought it just last year.
But the rest of the components is from 2007-'08.

Here's the complete setup:

Intel Core 2 Duo E4400 2.0Ghz Processor
MSI 945GCM5-F V2 Motherboard
4Gb 667Mhz DDR2 Kingston RAM
Inno3D Geforce 9500GT 1Gb DDR2 128bit GPU
500Gb x3 Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM Sata HDD
Seasonic S12II 520w 80Plus Bronze PSU
Just an old generic case from 2007

Now my Brother from the US just bought me a Brand New GTX 650 OC Edition 1gb DDR5 128bit GPU.
I know it's a fairly recently released card from Nvidia but it's not that powerful. isn't it?
I'm thinking of just unscrewing my old 9500GT from the board and just shoving the new GTX650
right in there

Is that alright to do or i also need to replace some other parts? Well, i guess
the obvious one is the CPU. it's old and lacks power i know. and maybe the motherboard itself and
the system memory? the problem is i don't have the budget right now for an overhaul. Because
i just recently bought an HDTV for my PS3.

I'm not going to do alot of heavy gaming coz i usually play on my console.
I'm fine if my PC would run and play decent HD movies and videos. And some vid and pic editing programs.
But a little Black Ops and far Cry 3 at low to medium settings on a KB/M setup every now and then would also be nice

Here's what i'm thinking, If the whole setup would just bottleneck the New GTX650 GPU
then i'm thinking of trading/swapping it for a much lower end GPU. One that will greatly match my old setup.
One that will give the old setup a new life so to speak (graphics wise).
one that will give/show improvements.

Need advice on what GPU to get. the best GPU available that my old setup can handle. Nvidia or AMD either of the two.
Or should i just keep the GTX650?
Lastly, i have a spare, working Pentium Dual Core E5400 2.7Ghz Processor. that fits prefectly in my old Motherboard. (Socket775)
should i replace the E4400 with it or not? Which of the 2 CPU's is much better for gaming?

I hope you'll find the time to answer all my noobish questions.
Thanks in Advance Guys and More Power!

 

[clutchc]

The GTX 650 is about the most powerful card you can use with your 2GHZ C2D without experiencing a lot of CPU bottleneck. But the E5400 would be a tad faster than the E4400.

There are a few things you need to know before swapping cards and/or CPU. Your motherboard may not recognize the E5400 without a BIOS update. In fact, I don't even see the E5400 listed as being supported for your board: http://www.msi.com/product/mb/945GCM5-F-V2.html#/?div=CPUSupport
Before you remove your old gfx card, uninstall the gfx driver first. It may save some headaches later. After installing the new card, install the latest driver for that card.

 

[samb_ch]

I agree with Mr. clutchc
GTX 650 vs. your old 9500gt is so far different. See the link:

http://www.hwcompare.com/13593/geforce-9500-gt-ddr2-vs-geforce-gtx-650/

It nothing better if u plan for very high card because of your cpu. U still need to play games in medium setting.

 

[tamiboi360]

Best answer selected by tamiboi360.

 

[tamiboi360]

Thank You Very Much Sir @clutchc.
Your answer means alot sir! i almost sold my GTX650. i thought it will not perform well on my old setup.

i already replaced the E4400 with the E5400.
at first boot windows automatically searched for drivers, then it said that the "Intel Pentium Dual Core E5400 2.7Ghz is ready to use" then it asked for a reboot. i did, and now i'm using it. do you really think i need to update the BIOS?

the problem is i don't know how

 

[tamiboi360]

Thanks Also to Sir samb_ch!

 

[clutchc]

Thank You Very Much Sir @clutchc.
Your answer means alot sir! i almost sold my GTX650. i thought it will not perform well on my old setup.

i already replaced the E4400 with the E5400.
at first boot windows automatically searched for drivers, then it said that the "Intel Pentium Dual Core E5400 2.7Ghz is ready to use" then it asked for a reboot. i did, and now i'm using it. do you really think i need to update the BIOS?

the problem is i don't know how

No, you don't need a BIOS update. I was only concerned that your original BIOS would not recognize the newer processor. But you proved it did. You are good to go. And, you'll be pleasantly surprised at how well the system games with that newer card.

 

[tamiboi360]

Thank You Very Much Sir @clutchc.
Your answer means alot sir! i almost sold my GTX650. i thought it will not perform well on my old setup.

i already replaced the E4400 with the E5400.
at first boot windows automatically searched for drivers, then it said that the "Intel Pentium Dual Core E5400 2.7Ghz is ready to use" then it asked for a reboot. i did, and now i'm using it. do you really think i need to update the BIOS?

the problem is i don't know how

No, you don't need a BIOS update. I was only concerned that your original BIOS would not recognize the newer processor. But you proved it did. You are good to go. And, you'll be pleasantly surprised at how well the system games with that newer card.

Thank you very much sir! Good thing i don't need to update the BIOS anymore
By the way, my brother bought me another card, now it's a GTX 650 Ti
so far i'm lovin' it! playing BF3 on High to Ultra Settings in 1080p

More Power and Happy Gaming!