Help Upgrading system for first timer

kingBLAZE · 7 Mar 2011 at 14:07

Hi guys, this is my first post so please be gentle lol

I am looking to upgrade my graphics card, my PSU and also my monitor. Ive finally got around to put £300 on a side for upgrading my current system and would like your help in upgrading.

I would like a 1gb graphics card (not sure which one though :confused:

), a PSU (not sure which wattage :confused:

) and a 23" monitor (maybe LG or Samsung :confused:

)

Wondering if anyone could help and point me in the direct direction?

this is my current system:

Motherboard Model: DQ45CB
Intel Core 2 Quad 2.66
4GB RAM
Available Memory Slots: 2
Total Memory Slots: 4
500GB HDD x 2
Soundcard: SoundMAX HD

Currently have a standard graphics card

system not been overclocked in anyway.

95thrifles · 7 Mar 2011 at 14:14

Hi, welcome to forums, I'd recomend the below

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 460 OC 768MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £124.99
BenQ G2222HDL 21.5" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £114.98
BeQuiet Pure Power L7 530W Power Supply £42.98
Sub Total : £235.80
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £11.25
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £49.41
Total : £296.46

This keeps within your budget, if you can afford a little more, then change the gfx card to the following

XFX ATI Radeon HD 6850 Black Edition 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £149.99

kingBLAZE · 7 Mar 2011 at 14:18

95thrifles said:
Hi, welcome to forums, I'd recomend the below

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 460 OC 768MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £124.99
BenQ G2222HDL 21.5" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £114.98
BeQuiet Pure Power L7 530W Power Supply £42.98
Sub Total : £235.80
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £11.25
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £49.41
Total : £296.46

This keeps within your budget, if you can afford a little more, then change the gfx card to the following

XFX ATI Radeon HD 6850 Black Edition 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £149.99

thanks for the reply, sorry to be a noob but would the graphics card and psu fit in my current system?

95thrifles · 7 Mar 2011 at 14:29

What case have you got? Do you know? As long as its a standard ATX case the PSU definitely will and you just need to measure the length of space available for the gfx card
If you dont have a standard ATX case (if its a prebuilt OEM - eg Dell, HP etc you may not) you can pick up a case for around 35 which would do, alternatively you can pick up the Coolermaster Elite 430 windowed case with 500W PSU included for about £65 iirc

kingBLAZE · 7 Mar 2011 at 14:33

i've got a standard Stone Computers case...

heres a few pics of my motherboard:

http://img63.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=imag0010vt.jpg

95thrifles · 7 Mar 2011 at 14:41

In the first picture, the long black slot on the right hand side, with the white retaining clip at the end, thats your PCI-E slot which is what the gfx card plugs into, measure the distance from the backplate (edge of case) along the black slot to as far back as it goes before it hits anything, likely to be your hard disk caddy, measure this in inches and as long as this is more than the length of the gfx card, youll be good to go

kingBLAZE · 7 Mar 2011 at 16:35

95thrifles said:
In the first picture, the long black slot on the right hand side, with the white retaining clip at the end, thats your PCI-E slot which is what the gfx card plugs into, measure the distance from the backplate (edge of case) along the black slot to as far back as it goes before it hits anything, likely to be your hard disk caddy, measure this in inches and as long as this is more than the length of the gfx card, youll be good to go

thanks, i have just measured it and there is well over 10 inches of space...i would just need to move some wires about but it should be fine...

kingBLAZE · 7 Mar 2011 at 22:28

would this be a decent enough graphics card to run majority of latest games?

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-186-XF&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=708

Reaper 392 · 7 Mar 2011 at 22:54

kingBLAZE said:
would this be a decent enough graphics card to run majority of latest games?

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-186-XF&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=708

its not going to run the latest games on maximum, but theres nothing wrong with it.

however, the number of MB is not really that big a deal with graphics cards. its the model you are interested in (eg, GTX460, or HD 5850, etc)

here is a comparison of how the card that is one level up from the one you found, and the other one that was suggested, compare: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/296?vs=315

also, i have the GTX460 768MB myself (but i went for the asus one, not the gigabyte one which seems to have disappeared). but its still virtually the same card, so i could measure it if you need me to

kingBLAZE · 8 Mar 2011 at 09:34

if you could that would be really appreciated, thanks

kingBLAZE · 10 Mar 2011 at 10:24

I should be getting the monitor later 2day, still deciding on the graphics card and psu...hopefully this decision will be made come the weekend....

Can anyone tell me how difficult it is to change the psu? I hear gfx card is simple, plug and play, but the psu looks complicated! :confused:

95thrifles · 10 Mar 2011 at 15:32

Its not too difficult, just a bit more time consuing, you just have to remove all the wires connected to it first, there may also be a few screws holding it in position, normally 4 on the outside of the case just at the back
As I say just be patient and take your time, trace all the wires from the back and make sure theyre all unplugged, and dont force it/anything, if it doesnt want to move, have another look, you may of missed a connection or it might be snagged
Good luck

smiley1987 · 10 Mar 2011 at 16:25

I'd go for this personally

Product Name Qty Price Line Total
**B Grade** MSI GeForce GTX 460 HAWK "Super-OC" 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card with FRE (GX-099-MS) £119.99
(£99.99) £119.99
(£99.99)
BenQ G2222HDL 21.5" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £110.39
(£91.99) £110.39
(£91.99)
XFX Pro 650W Core Edition Power Supply £68.99
(£57.49) £68.99
(£57.49)
Sub Total : £249.47
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £11.75
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £52.24
Total : £313.46

kingBLAZE · 10 Mar 2011 at 23:42

well i bought the LG W2361P, and been testing it...looks like a faulty screen...i have bleeding at the top and bottom of the screen when viewed on a black screen!

kingBLAZE · 10 Mar 2011 at 23:56

are there any tests i can do to check if i have a faulty screen?

kingBLAZE · 11 Mar 2011 at 09:26

guys, sorry for the stupid question but if i buy a better graphics card would it improve the quailty of my display? e.g. as i write this message i am finding it hard to read because of the grey on black textbox

kingBLAZE · 11 Mar 2011 at 09:28

also the blacks, dont feel like blacks...they feel/look more grey?

95thrifles · 11 Mar 2011 at 10:19

Have you tried adjusting all the colour/contrast/brightness settings etc?

Hagar · 11 Mar 2011 at 11:19

kingBLAZE said:
well i bought the LG W2361P, and been testing it...looks like a faulty screen...i have bleeding at the top and bottom of the screen when viewed on a black screen!

If it is noticeable bleeding, return it. You cannot resolve this using the colour, contrast settings.

kingBLAZE · 11 Mar 2011 at 11:53

it is noticeable when watching movies, but apart from that...u cant really tell unless u are viewing something with a black screen...