Right i have a desktop computer dell inspiron 531 and i want to upgrade my graphics card. currently my desktop has a 256mb nvidia geforce 8600gt and i have no clue what so every with what graphics cards are compatible. i have bout £100 for the graphics card plus and i am prepared to invest more for other parts if needed. can anyone recommend a graphics card to me and if i need anything extra to be upgraded in my desktop for it to work if? if anymore information is needed just post and i will respond asap thxs.
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Help with upgrading my graphics card
- Thread starter coz_ukuk
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Soldato
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What are the specs of your power suppy unit (PSU)? There should be a sticker on the side of the PSU with a lot of good information, a photo/transcription of this sticker would allow us to determine what level of graphics card it can power.
Also, how much room in the case have you got for a new card? More powerful cards are usually longer than lower powered ones like a 8600gt - so you will need to check you have the room to upgrade. Also, most (if not all) decent cards use dual slot coolers these days, so ensure this will also fit in your system.
Also, what are the rest of your system specs? (ie CPU, Motherboard, RAM) Much of this info can be found using the excellent tool CPU-Z.
Also, how much room in the case have you got for a new card? More powerful cards are usually longer than lower powered ones like a 8600gt - so you will need to check you have the room to upgrade. Also, most (if not all) decent cards use dual slot coolers these days, so ensure this will also fit in your system.
Also, what are the rest of your system specs? (ie CPU, Motherboard, RAM) Much of this info can be found using the excellent tool CPU-Z.
psu= is 300 watts, ram= is ddr2 2gb-(aiming to upgrade as well), processor= AMD athlon(tm) 64*2 dual core processor 5000+ 2.61ghz, i managed to find a bit of info bout the motherboard dont know if any of this is useful but here we go----
name= dell inspiron 531 motherboard amd ry206
socket= am2
expansion slots= PCI- 2 slots/PCIe *1: 1 slot/ PCIe*16(graphics) 1 slot
video= onboard
sound=onboard
supported memory= DDR2
Maximum memory= 4 dual channel DIMM
anything else needed just post and i will try my best to get the information required.
name= dell inspiron 531 motherboard amd ry206
socket= am2
expansion slots= PCI- 2 slots/PCIe *1: 1 slot/ PCIe*16(graphics) 1 slot
video= onboard
sound=onboard
supported memory= DDR2
Maximum memory= 4 dual channel DIMM
anything else needed just post and i will try my best to get the information required.
Soldato
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Unfortunately, that PSU won't power a graphics card which is much better than your current one.
Unfortunately, dell usually don't use standard size ATX PSUs, so you won't be able to just swap it out for a nice new one like this. Therefore, you will need a new case, new PSU as well just to upgrade the graphics card.
Unfortunately, dell usually don't use standard size ATX PSUs, so you won't be able to just swap it out for a nice new one like this. Therefore, you will need a new case, new PSU as well just to upgrade the graphics card.
that some of the info bout the power unit is there anything close that i could replace it with with higher watt
This desktop power supply is used and has been tested for proper functionality.
This power supply will fit the Inspiron 531 Tower. It is 300W and has the 24 and 4 pin motherboard plugs as well as 4 Sata Power Connectors and 1 floppy power plug
This desktop power supply is used and has been tested for proper functionality.
This power supply will fit the Inspiron 531 Tower. It is 300W and has the 24 and 4 pin motherboard plugs as well as 4 Sata Power Connectors and 1 floppy power plug
Soldato
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Apologies, on further investigation it looks like this PSU is in fact an ATX PSU. Therefore you can replace it with one of the lovely ones on the OCUk shop. Personally, I would recommend this or this one.
As for a new graphics card option - what is your buget for the card (considering you need a new PSU) and how long can a graphics card be before it will not fit in your case (tape measure may be required)?
As for a new graphics card option - what is your buget for the card (considering you need a new PSU) and how long can a graphics card be before it will not fit in your case (tape measure may be required)?