80-100w Graphics card for m-itx system?

mcwildcard

mcwildcard

mcwildcard

Soldato
Joined
29 Jun 2005
Posts
4,668
Location
London
I currently have a 120w Mini-itx system with the following spec:

In-Win case (Built in 120w psu)
Zotac 9300 wifi mobo
E8400
2 x 2GB DDR2
320GB 3.5" HDD
Slimline DVD drive

But I notice that In-Win now have almost identical cases with a 200w built in PSU.
So I was considering grabbing one of those and installing my components into it, plus adding a graphics card in the PCI-e x16 slot to use the 'spare' 80w+.
I figure the on-board GPU that I can switch off uses around 20w or so, which means I've probably got about 100w to play with.

The question is, what's the most powerful low profile graphics card I can realistically install, that will use no more than 100w?
 
Hmmm, looking at the 200w case, it looks like it's quite different internally.
A dual slot card would probably fit fine in my current case, but i suspect the new case would be a different story. I think I'll need to give it more thought, thanks guys!
 
Last edited:
Hmm... the plot thickens.
Doing a little nosing online and it seems the TDP for a 6570 is 44w, I'm wondering if I've got the overhead to give this a go on my current case with the 120w PSU.
I know it sounds like a bit of a risk, but I remembered the below thread from ages ago and doing the maths it would suggest that I'd have enough power to just about get away with it!

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18027035

What do you guys reckon?
 
I think I need one of those power draw plug thingies, can anyone recommend a cheap one I can get from toolstation, screwfix, or RS components?
I live near all three, so could go grab one asap!
 
I got a power testy plug thing today and tried it out, my system idles at just under 60w, but under prime it goes up to 105w.
At a guess I'd say the onboard 9400 GPU draws around 20w, so I've got no chance of sticking the 6570 in there currently.
Looks like I'll have to get that case with the 200w PSU afterall.
Ah well, it was worth investigating anyway!
 
Monkeynut said:
You tried undervolting components to save power? You will find you can go a bit lower on the volts to save a few watts without compromising stability.
Click to expand...
I considered it, but I'd want to get down to 90w, is it feasable to save that much power through undervolting?
I'm not really enthused about underclocking my E8400 to ensure stability, but as an interim measure, I might consider it.
I can only really afford either the card or the new case this month, so if I could get the card running, then the case next month, that would deffo be the better option!
 
In the end I went with the Sapphire 6570 Ultimate, I like how quiet my system is in the new case and I didn't want to spoil it!
A shame I missed the OcUK deal on it last week though, ended up getting it for £60 without the copy of Dirt 3, not that I care too much, I'm not a fan of driving games, but I could have still sold it on for a few quid.
Looking forward to it's arrival so I can get it up and running, been about 5 years since I had a gaming PC of any sort! :D
 
Well that didn't work out, its pretty gigantic for a low profile card (to the point I'd say it isn't) and there wasn't even a low profile bracket in the box. Back it goes, looks like I might grab the Asus 6570 afterall.
Wakinglimb, any chance you could get that pic of it in your system?
Also, are you able to measure how fat the card is (i.e. From PCB to top of cooler)?
Either would be much appreciated! :)
 
I'll be running it natively on my telly to start off with, so 1366 x 768, nothing particularly taxing. Plus I'm not too fussy about frame rates, as long as it's sticks close to 30fps I'm happy.
 
It runs Crysis at highest settings quite credibly on my telly, with an obviously choppy framerate, but not a slideshow. Mind you, I've only had time to look at it on the night bit at the beginning, I'd imagine the card will struggle a bit more when it's dealing with well lit foliage and shadows!
 
Couple of interesting updates...

Firstly, I was just tinkering inside my case and noticed to my surprise that the PSU included in my new In-Win case was actually 300w instead of 200w! Pretty impressive when you take into account the case size and how very quiet it is.

Secondly, after doing some gaming on my new snazzy HD6570 card, I've checked the power monitor and it's only ever peaked at 126w, which suggests I might've been able to get away with it on my old case afterall. I'm happy regardless, but figured the info might help someone else out in future :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom