Can I fit an ATI HD 6870 1GB into a HP Pro 3305 Microtower PC LH050EA?

[JarScott]

I soon plan to buy a HP Pro 3305 Microtower PC (LH050EA). It's a small microtower computer than should cope with the stuff I do with my computer. I mostly do internet browsing but also play games such as Portal and Team Fortress. I've been told that the integrated HD 4200 should be enough, but I was also looking to see the upgrade possibilities. I am aware that integrated graphics cannot be swapped but they can compliment another card. So, my question is, will the ATI HD 6870 fit comfortably into the machine along side the integrated HD 4200?


Thanks.

 

[GreenDutchAlien]

It will fit i think but the psu of 300W is not enough.

 

[JarScott]

It will fit i think but the psu of 300W is not enough.

Hmm. That's what I was worried about. Could you find me the cheapest suitable PSU that's compatible and will fit the PC? That'd be great.

 

[GreenDutchAlien]

Well, it looks like an normal sized psu, but it's hard to tell from the picture. Knowing name and type of the psu and the mobo would help.
You'll need a 500W psu with the fan facing downwards. I'll see what i can find. It's only not reccomendeble to buy a real cheap one, the psu is very important when you use high end gpu and stuff.

 

[GreenDutchAlien]

Maybe this one ; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371035

 

[GreenDutchAlien]

Wait ; you mean you want to use them both, the integrated together with the 6870. With Hybrid ? I don't know nothing about that i'm afraid so if the 6870 will work with that, no idea.

 

[JarScott]

I was told you can't remove the integrated PSU.

 

[Mousemonkey]

I was told you can't remove the integrated PSU.

No but you could turn it off.

 

[JarScott]

No but you could turn it off.

Well yes, this is probably what I'd do. But I just wanted to check if the system would cope with the new card. Buy by the looks of it, I'd need a new PSU. However, as I said, the system as it is out of the box, should cope with my needs. The extra card would probably be for a dual monitor setup, but I can live without that.

 

[JarScott]

Wait ; you mean you want to use them both, the integrated together with the 6870. With Hybrid ? I don't know nothing about that i'm afraid so if the 6870 will work with that, no idea.

Okay, I've found a few PSUs by searching "500w Active PFC". However, none of the ones I found have a fan facing downwards, nor the one you sent me. Is this important? They usually face out of the PC. I suppose I need to think how important an additional graphics card would be. I don't want to buy a PC and immediately start paying for extra hardware. Hmm. I've always wanted a dual display. But, maybe, spending a bit extra for that isn't too bad. I'll include a link to one I found below, will it fit?


Again, I'm a bit confused. The fan on this one appears to be facing upwards: http://www.overclock.co.uk/product/OCZ-StealthXStream2-500Watt-Power-Supply-Active-PFC_24984.html

 

[GreenDutchAlien]

Sorry, had to be clearer on that, i meant that the fan has to be on the bottom of the psu because of the little room there will be between ths psu and the top of your casing. But a fan on the backpanel, like the Antec, will also do just fine. Get a 80 + certified psu, like the Antec. ( it's really the best deal at the moment i believe )

 

[JarScott]

Sorry, had to be clearer on that, i meant that the fan has to be on the bottom of the psu because of the little room there will be between ths psu and the top of your casing. But a fan on the backpanel, like the Antec, will also do just fine. Get a 80 + certified psu, like the Antec. ( it's really the best deal at the moment i believe )

Okay, looking into that now. You can tell I'm new to all this PC building business! However, I'm a little confused. It says the maximum power is 430W, even though the product states 500W. Is this still enough?

 

[JarScott]

Sorry, had to be clearer on that, i meant that the fan has to be on the bottom of the psu because of the little room there will be between ths psu and the top of your casing. But a fan on the backpanel, like the Antec, will also do just fine. Get a 80 + certified psu, like the Antec. ( it's really the best deal at the moment i believe )

Also, is is likely to be noisy? I'd hope that, with a microtower, I could keep things relatively quiet. Or would this be achieved by not upgrading the graphics card in the first place?

 

[GreenDutchAlien]

You mean this ? ; The Antec EarthWatts EA-500D Green efficiently delivers 500 Watts of reliable and stable power, with dual +12V output circuits (maximum combined output of 444W) to provide unbeatably stable power to the latest multi-core CPUs and graphics cards.

Don't know where the difference between the 500W and the combined 444W comes from but as it says 500W you can count for it as being 500W. Anyway ; it will be enough.

There will be more noise from the 6870 than with the integrated one, but only when you are playing demanding games the fan will rev up. I've had a 6870 double fan and now a 560ti double fan and the 6870 was pretty decent. When you do internet and normal work you will allmost hear nothing and when your gaming you're probably to busy to notice the increasing revs anyway. The psu makes no difference with the other one i think, maybe Antec even quiter being a better brand. I would check dimensions of the Antec and your casing just to be sure btw.

 

[JarScott]

You mean this ? ; The Antec EarthWatts EA-500D Green efficiently delivers 500 Watts of reliable and stable power, with dual +12V output circuits (maximum combined output of 444W) to provide unbeatably stable power to the latest multi-core CPUs and graphics cards.

Don't know where the difference between the 500W and the combined 444W comes from but as it says 500W you can count for it as being 500W. Anyway ; it will be enough.

There will be more noise from the 6870 than with the integrated one, but only when you are playing demanding games the fan will rev up. I've had a 6870 double fan and now a 560ti double fan and the 6870 was pretty decent. When you do internet and normal work you will allmost hear nothing and when your gaming you're probably to busy to notice the increasing revs anyway. The psu makes no difference with the other one i think, maybe Antec even quiter being a better brand. I would check dimensions of the Antec and your casing just to be sure btw.

After doing some research, I found that lots of people recommend having two 6870s in a crossfire setup. Apparently it almost doubles the performance. I don't intend to do this but I was just wondering, would a crossfire setup call for a even bigger PSU, like 9000W?

 

[GreenDutchAlien]

6870 crossfire is really fast, BUT there are some minor risks, like not every game scales with cfx, there is a little chance of microstutter and indeed you'll need a much better psu. Not a 900W but still something like 650-750W is reccomended.

Anyway, this is all theoratical in your case ; you only have one pciex16 slot so no crossfire possibility !
If you're concerned about not having enough graphic power with one 6870 go for the HD6950 or GTX 560Ti. Better than the 6870 and still ok with the 500W psu. ( though they would both be a bit to much maybe, looking at the rest of the system. Better get the 6870 and maybe some extra Ram.

 

[JarScott]

6870 crossfire is really fast, BUT there are some minor risks, like not every game scales with cfx, there is a little chance of microstutter and indeed you'll need a much better psu. Not a 900W but still something like 650-750W is reccomended.

Anyway, this is all theoratical in your case ; you only have one pciex16 slot so no crossfire possibility !
If you're concerned about not having enough graphic power with one 6870 go for the HD6950 or GTX 560Ti. Better than the 6870 and still ok with the 500W psu. ( though they would both be a bit to much maybe, looking at the rest of the system. Better get the 6870 and maybe some extra Ram.

Yeah, as I said, I'm not really interested in crossfire, I just wanted to know how it was possible. Also, I noticed there's only one PCI slot. So, yeah, I'll go for the 6870 and maybe some extra ram in the future. Great, thanks for all your help. Mind if I keep this thread open in case I need further assistance?

 

[Mousemonkey]

If it gets left for so long it necro's or gets hijacked, it will be closed.

 

[JarScott]

Best answer selected by JarScott.

 

[JarScott]

If it gets left for so long it necro's or gets hijacked, it will be closed.

K. Whatever then.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey