Can I upgrade my HP Desktop with this Power Supply?

[ibanezrg82]

Hello. This is a pretty long question(s), so my apologies, any help will be appreciated.

I recently purchased one of these average HP pavillions from Walmart, unfortunately.

Hewlett Packard Company
A4313w-b
2.3 GHZ AMD Sempron LE-1300
3.0 Gig memory
300 gig hard drive
250 Watt power supply (no good)
64 bit Windows 7 OS
Nvidia GeForce 6150 se (no good at all)

Anywho, I want to upgrade the video card to a better card, say 1 GB. So I need a decent power supply.

Question number 1 is about the power supply I'm looking at is this budget Coolmax power supply with 500 watt output. Multi ended question actually.
Part number for the power supply I want is T13-2027.
Will this be compatible with this PC, and will it fit in the case? Will it connect to everything fine?
I've never installed a power supply in a PC, but it shouldn't be that hard I've had years of ripping apart towers.

Question number 2, the whole reason I want to upgrade the video card, is in my limited PC knowledge, my CPU and memory should be fine to run the latest games at a reasonably high graphics and speed (FPS) value. Example, Oblivion. The video card I have runs it pretty crappy, the game loads on low on default, and even that's slow most of the time. It seems the 6150e is what is slowing the game down. Load times are super quick, and the game is too until there is more detail or complex lighting.

Basically what I'm really asking here, is it even worth my while to upgrade all of this, if the processor can't handle it? Looking at the specs of a budget video card under 80 bucks that has 1 GB memory, my system more that fits the specs other than the power supply. So this IS mostly an issue with the video card correct?
Again any help would be appreciated.

 

[o1die]

I recommend the phenom II denab 945 at 95 watts ($139.99 at newegg). Specific cpus aren't listed on hp's website, but your board supports phenom II. Now the bad news: most oem boards have a strict limit on cpu wattage, regardless of the power supply. This is the fastest cpu I'm pretty sure would work. If you don't want to spend that much, get a propus quad core for around $100. For the power supply, get a corsair, not coolermaster. Corsair has a single higher 12v rail rating in amps which is critical for gamers. Don't go by wattage alone. Better brands are antec, seasonic, corsair, pc power and cooling, enermax, and some ocz, which I use. If you don't want alot of extra cables to tuck in, you may look at some cable select ps, but stick with the brands I recommended. They should fit your case, unless it's a slim design.

 

[ibanezrg82]

o1die, thanks for the response.

I'm not looking to upgrade my cpu, like I said, just looking to upgrade the video card, thus power supply.

I put my current specs up there, I'm just looking to update the video card and power supply and see if my system can take it, and basically if the power supply will fit in my current model.

 

[o1die]

Even the corsair 400w will work better than higher rated cheaper brands with 500+ watts. They tend to fail under load. You're fortunate that you can even upgrade the cpu. Most oem boards don't even list cpus upgrades, but the phenom II is listed on hp's website. I bet you'll want to upgrade sooner than you think. Be sure to get a retail boxed cpu with heatsink and 3 year warranty. I use the sempron 140 am3 but it's for a spare system. My main rig is the i3 530.

 

[ibanezrg82]

Like a Corsair CX400W?

The video card I want has an optimum output for a 400 watt power supply.

It's (Corsair) about 30 bucks more at 64.99, but I hear your opinion.

Thanks o1die.
Next, the case I got does not have a vent on the top. Will this still work? Should I be worried about that?
The main thing is if it fits. So far my research has told me that most power supplies are generic it dimensions for desktop towers.

Upgrade my CPU? This is news now. I thought you didn't read what I said. That's possible on my HP machine? without replacing the entire board?

 

[ibanezrg82]

Nevermind o1die, you were right about the power supply. No vent fan on the top.

So next step, you said I can upgrade the processor without replacing the entire motherboard? I hope that's true 3.0 GHZ would be nice.

But skip that for now, if I put this Corsair power supply in my HP PC, it should be able to handle a 1GB video card?

 

[o1die]

Sure. The corsair 400w will handle most single video cards. Your board has no option for a second video card or overclocking the cpu, so you don't have to worry about upgrades. If you can find a better deal on some other brand, you do so at your own risk. Most good branded ps are heavy; a shipping weight of 4-5 lbs. If it weighs 3 lbs or less, avoid it. Some other brands are manufacturered by seasonic or ocz, so they may be ok. The problem is determining who manufacturers some of the lesser known brands. If you can find out, you may save some money.

 

[o1die]

I'll amend that last post. I would recommend at least 500-600 watts of you plan on keeping your system at least 3-5 years. I also recommend you clean all your system fans with a canned air solution at least once a year. They cost only about $5, and contain special solvents that evaporte quickly and leave no residue. I sometimes buy them at frys for 2/$5 on sale. So I would forget about the cpu upgrade for awhile. Newegg or frys.com should have at least one of the brands of the ps I recommended if you can order from them. If you're on the other side of the ocean, then you may have to use another brand.

 

[ibanezrg82]

Ive got two PCI slots free, on PCI x1 and one PCI 16x, why can't I upgrade the video card?

The video Nvidia 6150se chip is built into the motherboard, it's not a card.
And most new games ask what video card I want to use, so why can't I put a new video card in an empty slot?

 

[ibanezrg82]

Again oldie, remember I'm a step below you in knowledge. I grew up in the dos days and never had to upgrade, this is my first brand new PC.

When you said overclocking and option for a second video card, you meant linking two video cards together correct? Like I said, the PC came with the 6150se built into the motherboard. The video card I want to buy I just want to enable for games, and let the chipset 6150se continue to handle windows.

Like I said I got on free PCIx1 and a free PCI 16

Thanks again you've been some help, waiting for your next response.

 

[ibanezrg82]

Can I please get some more input on this topic? Please read entire thread. Thanks.

 

[o1die]

I actually have a 6150se msi board in my spare system and am using only the onboard video, so a 350w antec is adequate. You can go back to any ps you choose with the proper pci-e connector for your video card. You might get more responses if you listed the video card you're interested in. Just be sure your ps is 80 percent or more efficiency rated. Many newer ones are. You may also want to do some measuring of your case to see if your video card will fit. My compaq pc has a hardrive cage right next to the edge of the motherboard, but it is removable, and you might be able to move your hardrive to an empty slot under the optical drive.

 

[ibanezrg82]

Sparkle SFPX95GT1024U2 GeForce 9500 GT Video Card - 1GB DDR2, PCI Express 2.0, DVI & VGA
The big heat sink worries me

Thats one of them the other is smaller it's is:

EVGA 01G-P3-N959-TR GeForce 9500 GT Video Card - 1GB DDR2, PCI Express 2.0, SLI Support, (Dual Link) Dual DVI, HDTV, VGA Support
smaller but ten bucks more

Like I said I got a free PCI x1 slot and a free PCI 16x slot

Plus the hard drive will not get in the way, it's positioned vertically attached to the side of the case

 

[o1die]

If your 9500gt requires no connector from the power supply, then you can get by with a used sparkle or antec power supply. You can find them used on craigslist for $20. My 350w antec is getting old, but still works. The 20 pin atx connector only fits one way; chances are your 250w hp ps is only 20 pin. You can use either a 20 or 24 pin connector with your hp board. Older ps have fewer sata connectors. Since all new stuff is sata, then you have to check them carefully or buy sata adapters. So a newer ps would be better. My first suggestions were for the long run, in case you wanted to use higher end stuff later. If your 250w hp ps has the sata adapters, you can reuse them with another ps. Good luck.