Graphics cards help?

[Jak]

I would agree in saying that the 4670 would be a better buy but as winfield has said it also depends if you are going to buy a new power supply. I would advise against buying on ebay, they can basically say anything and there's not much you can do. They could claim it to be new but it may not be. I would buy from Overclockers, Scan or Ebuyer.

 

[dannyfiveo]

Out of the cards that don't need additional power out of the PCiex16 slot, the 4670 is probably the best option IMO in this case. (there is also a 5770 but it's new and a fair bit more expensive). In the real world the 4670 is roughly 2-3x faster in most games over the 8400gs. Remember if you have a Quad Core Processor in there I'd be a bit hesitant to do it though

Thanks Winfield, I'll look into the 4670 as you suggested, I'm not sure if it has a quad core processor inside to be honest.. Completely clueless when it comes to specific parts..would it not say in the spec I provided on the original post ?

---------- Post added at 12:24 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:22 PM ----------

I would agree in saying that the 4670 would be a better buy but as winfield has said it also depends if you are going to buy a new power supply. I would advise against buying on ebay, they can basically say anything and there's not much you can do. They could claim it to be new but it may not be. I would buy from Overclockers, Scan or Ebuyer.

So the 4670 as Winfield suggested, I will need to buy a better power supply ?

 

[Jak]

Thanks Winfield, I'll look into the 4670 as you suggested, I'm not sure if it has a quad core processor inside to be honest.. Completely clueless when it comes to specific parts..would it not say in the spec I provided on the original post ?

---------- Post added at 12:24 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:22 PM ----------



So the 4670 as Winfield suggested, I will need to buy a better power supply ?

You can go to 'run' and type in 'dxdiag' and it should come up telling about your computer, including what kind of processor you have. If you use xp click 'start' and it should be there on the right. If you use vista/7 then when you click the windows logo at the bottom left of the screen there should be a search box that on the bottom of the box that comes up. type in there run and then type in dxdiag in that box. So if you have a quad core then it is recommended that you buy a new power supply incase your current unit can't handle the new graphics card and take out the rest of your system

 

[dannyfiveo]

You can go to 'run' and type in 'dxdiag' and it should come up telling about your computer, including what kind of processor you have. If you use xp click 'start' and it should be there on the right. If you use vista/7 then when you click the windows logo at the bottom left of the screen there should be a search box that on the bottom of the box that comes up. type in there run and then type in dxdiag in that box. So if you have a quad core then it is recommended that you buy a new power supply incase your current unit can't handle the new graphics card and take out the rest of your system

Thanks Jak, I know about dxdiag, I'm currently on the laptop so I'll check it out later and see if it's quad core processor

thanks again everyone for all your help

 

[daveo72]

Not sure if anyone can help, I have a Advent 7109a laptop. Althou the 3d pitch works and I can view games the action is very jumpy not smooth at all. Just wondered if anyone on this thread can help me. Does anyone know if this laptop can support a bigger graphics card and if so which would be the best. I have already installed 1gb more RAM to the laptop. I have added the specs below:

CPUIntel Celeron M 420 (1.60 GHz)BIOSPhoenix BIOS. Press F2 to enterChipsetIntel 940GMLMemory1GB DDR2 PC2-4200 533MHz SODIMM (2 memory slots. Max 2GB)Hard Drive60GBCD DriveTSSTcorp DVD±RWScreen15.4" Widescreen TFT (1280x800)Video CardIntel 945GM (up to 128MB shared)Sound CardRealtek ALC861 High Definition AudioModemAgere systems AC'97Network CardRealtek 8139 / 810X (Onboard)
RaLink RT2500 Wireless LAN *PC Card1 x ExpressCard/54 slot (also supports ExpressCard/34)Ports1x Microphone
1x Headphone
1x Modem
3x USB 2.0
1x ExpressCard slot
1x 4-in-1 Card Reader (supports SD, MMC, MS, MS-PRO cards)
1x IEEE1394 (FireWire)
1x LAN
1x S-Video (TV-Out)
1x VGA
1x Kensington LockPower SupplyLite-On PA-1700-02BatteryL51-3S4000-G1L1 (11.1v 4000mAh)
L51-3S4000-S1P3 (10.8v 4000mAh)
L51-4S2000-C1L1 (14.8v 2000mAh)

 

[Jak]

Not sure if anyone can help, I have a Advent 7109a laptop. Althou the 3d pitch works and I can view games the action is very jumpy not smooth at all. Just wondered if anyone on this thread can help me. Does anyone know if this laptop can support a bigger graphics card and if so which would be the best. I have already installed 1gb more RAM to the laptop. I have added the specs below:

CPUIntel Celeron M 420 (1.60 GHz)BIOSPhoenix BIOS. Press F2 to enterChipsetIntel 940GMLMemory1GB DDR2 PC2-4200 533MHz SODIMM (2 memory slots. Max 2GB)Hard Drive60GBCD DriveTSSTcorp DVD±RWScreen15.4" Widescreen TFT (1280x800)Video CardIntel 945GM (up to 128MB shared)Sound CardRealtek ALC861 High Definition AudioModemAgere systems AC'97Network CardRealtek 8139 / 810X (Onboard)
RaLink RT2500 Wireless LAN *PC Card1 x ExpressCard/54 slot (also supports ExpressCard/34)Ports1x Microphone
1x Headphone
1x Modem
3x USB 2.0
1x ExpressCard slot
1x 4-in-1 Card Reader (supports SD, MMC, MS, MS-PRO cards)
1x IEEE1394 (FireWire)
1x LAN
1x S-Video (TV-Out)
1x VGA
1x Kensington LockPower SupplyLite-On PA-1700-02BatteryL51-3S4000-G1L1 (11.1v 4000mAh)
L51-3S4000-S1P3 (10.8v 4000mAh)
L51-4S2000-C1L1 (14.8v 2000mAh)

These are the FM 11 system requirements
PC System Requirements
OS: Windows XP/Vista/W7
Processor: XP : 1.4GHz or Faster, Vista/W7 : 2.0GHz or Faster
Memory: XP : 512MB RAM, Vista/W7 : 1.0GB RAM
Graphics: 128MB Supported Chipsets - Nvidia FX 5900 Ultra or greater; ATI Radeon 9800 or greater; Intel 82915G/82910GL or greater. Earlier cards may only display 2D Match Viewer Mode and are not supported
DirectX®: Version 9.0c (included)
Hard Drive: 2GB
Sound: DirectX 9.0c compatible

What operating system do you use? The processor seems to be the main problem, it is quite poor. Also that graphics will struggle to run the 3d match engine. In general that laptop is quite poor.

 

[Tharros]

Your laptop has integrated graphics - meaning it is not meant for any sort of gaming. It is difficult to upgrade a graphics card in nearly all laptops. So I'm afraid your only real solutions are to play in 2D match view mode or buy a new computer.

 

[winfield]

You'll definitely need a new PC, no offense but it's a dinosaur. It's lacking processor power as well. It'd probably take an unbearably long time to get through a match. It'll run just really really slowly. You can upgrade the gfx but it isn't easy and it isn't cheap. Parts (if you can find an upgrade) and labor would be much more than what that laptop is worth.

So the 4670 as Winfield suggested, I will need to buy a better power supply ?

Here's what I use and a lot of other overclockers use to calculate PSU requirements. Bear in mind I'm going off only what Dell says are thr options are for the Inspiron 530 in your link
http://extreme.outervision.com/PSUEngine

1 x q9450 (all the quad core processors will have a similar wattage requirement so I've just used the highest option processor available for this PC)
2xsticks of DDR2 RAM
1X HDD
1x DVD Drive
1x 4670
2x120mm regular fans
=258w at PEAK

1x e7200
2xsticks of DDR2 RAM
1X HDD
1x DVD Drive
1x 4670
2x120mm regular fans
=234w at PEAK

You will very very rarely hit Peak (all components at 90%+ load) But it's best not to push it and have a little bit of breathing room if your nephew needs to add a HDD or connects his ipod or anything by USB or installs any other hardware down the track. So IMO even if you have a quad in there it should be ok - you're just a little bit hamstrung in the future if you want to add other devices such as a HDD or any PCI cards

Edit: I also note one of the options for the Inspiron is an ATI 2600xt. The 4670 has similar power requirements so I'm pretty confident that it should be fine either way
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-radeon-power,2122-6.html
4670 Idle wattage: 14w
2600xt Idle: 18.1w

4670 load wattage: 56.9w
2600xt load wattage: 54.4w

Hope this helps and hopefully you can make an informed decision

 

[daveo72]

No offence taken, u are all right my laptop is as the experts would say "pants"..lol. maybe look into a new one then. Come on santa u fat bearded tosspot. Ive been a good boy this year ( well apart from that little problem with the police) lol. Help me out big fella.

 

[winfield]

No offence taken, u are all right my laptop is as the experts would say "pants"..lol. maybe look into a new one then. Come on santa u fat bearded tosspot. Ive been a good boy this year ( well apart from that little problem with the police) lol. Help me out big fella.

Try to get one with an Ati 3xxx graphics chip or Nvidia 8xxx chip at a bare minimum. That will sort the 3d issue definitely. 300-500 pounds gets a whole lot of laptop these days

 

[dannyfiveo]

Winfield

Thanks again Winfield, I'll find out exactly what processor it is using and make a decision based upon that and also check both those cards you suggested..I'll have a good look through the links you provided also
thanks again

---------- Post added at 06:09 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:18 PM ----------

Out of the cards that don't need additional power out of the PCiex16 slot, the 4670 is probably the best option IMO in this case. (there is also a 5770 but it's new and a fair bit more expensive)

One more thing Winfield

Is that the 5770 you was talking about?... it's just there's a few different 5770 cards I've come across on different names like Sapphire, XFX etc and this one has HIS... Does this make a difference ?

 

[Jak]

Thanks again Winfield, I'll find out exactly what processor it is using and make a decision based upon that and also check both those cards you suggested..I'll have a good look through the links you provided also
thanks again

---------- Post added at 06:09 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:18 PM ----------



One more thing Winfield

Is that the 5770 you was talking about?... it's just there's a few different 5770 cards I've come across on different names like Sapphire, XFX etc and this one has HIS... Does this make a difference ?

Basically all the different brands of the same graphics card are the same original card. Each brand however may give their own cooler, overclock it for you to give you better performance. Really it doesn't matter which brand you get, it just depends on best deal/who you like the most. However I wouldn't recommend a 5770. They're quite expensive for the performance they give and the only positive about them is they can run direct x 11. But unless you are wanting to play the latest and most graphically intense games then that doesn't matter.

 

[Tharros]

However I wouldn't recommend a 5770. They're quite expensive for the performance they give and the only positive about them is they can run direct x 11. But unless you are wanting to play the latest and most graphically intense games then that doesn't matter.

And the fact that the 5770 isn't really powerful enough to run those games at decent settings anyway, makes DX11 compatibility a bit superfluous, really. It is a good card though - it will run 95% of games no problem on high. It is just some decisions by manufactures don't always make sense to me.

It depends how much you are willing to spend. What is your budget? We will find the best bang for buck card for you.

 

[Jak]

And the fact that the 5770 isn't really powerful enough to run those games at decent settings anyway, makes DX11 compatibility a bit superfluous, really. It is a good card though - it will run 95% of games no problem on high. It is just some decisions by manufactures don't always make sense to me.

It depends how much you are willing to spend. What is your budget? We will find the best bang for buck card for you.

A 4870 would be good, this is of course if you are going to get a new power supply. Quick search I managed to find this, compared to a 5770

At the resolution of 1680x1050 on Aliens vs Predator, the 4870 has 9 fps more than the 5770 under the same conditions

 

[dannyfiveo]

Jak & Tharros

Thanks guys, I've been suggested three cards so far ...ATI 2600xt / ATI 4670 / ATI 5770 based on the spec so far and I'm kind of struggling which to choose

Budget isn't really a problem, I just don't want to start paying big amounts as I could of just bought him a console instead but anything around £60-80 would be fine... if there is any decent ones at the price ? but if there's something slightly cheaper and is decent then I'm all for it..

 

[Jak]

the 4670 definetly

 

[dannyfiveo]

A 4870 would be good, this is of course if you are going to get a new power supply. Quick search I managed to find this, compared to a 5770

Thanks Jak think the Inspiron I have is DDR2.. Just noticed this says DDR5.. but obviously you know a **** of alot more than me.. If it's possible to get a graphics card without the power supply upgrade, that would be ideal but if not I'll look into your suggestions..

 

[Tharros]

Well, for price/performance ratio, I would have to choose the 4670.

EDIT: The only problem with a 4870 is you will need a new PSU for that as well - I have this card. It needs 2 6-pin PCI-e power connectors. So if I was to choose between only those two cards I would actually go with the 5770.

 

[dannyfiveo]

the 4670 definetly

So I should ignore the post you deleted mate and go for the 4670 ? that doesn't require a new power supply does it ?

 

[Jak]

Thanks Jak think the Inspiron I have is DDR2.. Just noticed this says DDR5.. but obviously you know a **** of alot more than me.. If it's possible to get a graphics card without the power supply upgrade, that would be ideal but if not I'll look into your suggestions..

don't worry that doesn't mean anything, the DDR5 is the graphics memory. Buying the 4670 should mean you won't need to upgrade your power supply.


Basically it's up to you really. The cheapest and by far easiest option would be to buy the 4670. It should be able to do the things you want well and play slightly older games well. Don't expect it to play the latets games on max. The 4870 is faster but more expensive and a lot more hassle (having to buy a new power supply). so really I would go for the 4670.