Can I upgrade my PC Advent DT1411 with R9 270X GPU?

[Fozzy786]

Hi everyone, This is my first post so hopefully I don't make too many mistakes 😀.

Noticed that this website is quite helpful with PC advice and gets a lot of responses so thought I'd seek some advice on here.

So basically, I have a PC which I bought a couple year ago and I am looking to upgrade the graphics card in order to play some of the newer games.

My PC specs are:

Advent DT1411. (Small form factor, not sure exactly what it is called).
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium, 64bit.
Motherboard: Foxconn H61MXL/H61MXL-K. (Expansion: 2x PCI-E x1)
Processor: Intel i5-2320 @3.0Ghz.
Graphics Card: AMD HD6670 2GB GDDR3.
RAM: 8GB (4GB + 4GB), DDR3, 1333Mhz.
HDD: 1.5TB, 7200rpm SATA.
PSU: 405W (I think?)


So my questions are:

Can I upgrade to this GPU with no issues?

Will my current motherboard even be compatible with it?

Will I have enough room to but the card in? As PC is smaller than a standard tower.

Will my CPU/RAM or anything for that matter bottleneck the performance of the card?

Guessing I will have to upgrade the PSU too, any recommendations, and again will it it fit?

What is 'modular' PSU and do I need it?

And finally, will cooling be an issue?

Read another post where this GPU didnt work with the Motherboard. Does it have anything to do with the 2x PCI-E x1 expansion slot. Don't these cards need PCIX16? http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/131922-need-some-help-with-a-motherboardgraphics-card-problem/


Originally I wanted a graphics card for under £100, even if it was used in order to get a better one. But after doing some research, it looks like the performance of the R9 270x is really good for the money. I have found one for £130 which is slightly more than what I would want to pay but I guess it is new and it does come with warranty so that's a plus and also 2 free games. Here is the link to that: http://www.novatech.co.uk/products/components/amdradeongraphicscards/amdr9270xseries/11217-01-20g.html

And in general, would you recommend this card or is there something else I can get for cheaper/better performance?

Keeping in mind that I need to buy a PSU as well, I would like to save some money on that if possible. Any recommendations?

That's about it guys, sorry if I dragged it on too much or gave unnecessary information.

Let me know if there is anything else I need to provide.

Looking forward to hearing your suggestions and advice. Thanks in advance! 😀

 

[PandaBear270]

The card will fit on the tower but that PSU will hardly handle it.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R7 265 2GB Video Card ($152.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($47.99 @ Micro Center)
Total: $200.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

The R7 265 is a steal for its price. Stills have 1024 shader cores and 256 Bit memory bus. You can't go wrong. Everything else on your PC is good enough.

 

[Fozzy786]

The card will fit on the tower but that PSU will hardly handle it.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R7 265 2GB Video Card ($152.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($47.99 @ Micro Center)
Total: $200.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

The R7 265 is a steal for its price. Stills have 1024 shader cores and 256 Bit memory bus. You can't go wrong. Everything else on your PC is good enough.

Thanks for your quick response.

Isn't the R9 270X better in performance though? I would like to future proof myself for a little while longer which is why I thought that would be a good card.

Now my main concern is that the card isn't compatible with my motherboard.

I've read another post where another user was struggling to get their card to work and they have the same board as me.

Does it have anything to so with the 2x PCI-E x1 expansion slot. Don't these cards need PCIX16? http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/131922-need-some-help-with-a-motherboardgraphics-card-problem/

Thanks for your input, really appreciate it .

 

[PandaBear270]

Yes, now I see is not compatible. But do not worry, just replace the motherboard with something like this: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-b75mdgsr20

Will fit in your case. There is no need at this moment to replace anything else.
Regarding the 265 vs 270x, there is a difference, but is not big. Both will provide fantastic performance.

 

[Fozzy786]

Actually now that I think about it, my motherboard does have PCI-E x16. They probably missed out the '6' from '16' on the website i saw it on... lol sorry my bad. Still not 100% certain that it will work with the card though :s.

 

[PandaBear270]

PCI-E 1.0/1.1/2.0/2.1/3.0 works with 1.0, 1.1, 3.0, etc... So it will work without problems.
Just replace the PSU because the one you have is not enough good for a high-end card.

 

[Ytyoussef]

It seems like you could, but you will need a more powerful PSU, a 550w for example.

 

[Karsten75]

You could ascertain the dimensions of yur current card vs the dimensions of the card you plan to use, you also should evaluate the difference in power requirements and whether the new card requires a specific power pin that is provided by your PSU. Compare the power requirements of the old and new to ensure that you have enough wattage in that PSU.

The final item is to figure out what type of PCIe slot you have and whether it's compatible with the requirements of your new card.

 

[Fozzy786]

Thanks for the responses guys.

OK so I will definitely need a PSU, that's fine. I've set aside around £30/£40 for a 500w PSU.

Now my only concern is... Do I need to upgrade the motherboard or is my current one OK. I really hope I don't have to change it as then it would mean another cost and the whole hassle of moving the CU over and making sure everything else is compatible... :S

 

[PandaBear270]

Thanks for the responses guys.

OK so I will definitely need a PSU, that's fine. I've set aside around £30/£40 for a 500w PSU.

Now my only concern is... Do I need to upgrade the motherboard or is my current one OK. I really hope I don't have to change it as then it would mean another cost and the whole hassle of moving the CU over and making sure everything else is compatible... :S

If you are just adding a PSU and a Videcard, keep the motherboard. It will suffice. Is not top quality but does the job.

 

[Ytyoussef]

The only thing I'm worried about is that it motherboard might not support the graphics card for some reason as I've found another thread with the same problem as the one listed above: http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18540654
P.S. : Again, I'm saying for some reason, as I don't understand why it wouldn't with a fully functional PCIE X16.

 

[Fozzy786]

Great news! That's a load off my mind, thank you very much.

So I was thinking of getting this PSU http://www.ebuyer.com/253900-coolermaster-elite-power-500w-fully-wired-efficient-power-supply-rs500-psapj3-it

It says it has 4+4 pins, I think the GPU needs a 6 pin??? Can I not switch out the connectors or something or are there other PSU's around a similar price that I can use straight out the box?

Says it has 500w and Coolermaster are a decent brand if I am not mistaken? Don't want to spend more than £40, the cheaper the better really.

And any recommendation on alternative GPU's? Or is the one that I picked out a good deal and should I stick with it if I want to play games at good settings at 1080p?

 

[Fozzy786]

The only thing I'm worried about is that it motherboard might not support the graphics card for some reason as I've found another thread with the same problem as the one listed above: http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18540654
P.S. : Again, I'm saying for some reason, as I don't understand why it wouldn't with a fully functional PCIE X16.

Hi mate,

Yeah I read that post too which is why I was asking if my motherboard was compatible. Seems like a few users have had problems with the same motherboard and the same graphics card.... 🙁

 

[Ytyoussef]

The biggest problem here is that none of those that have actually managed to upgrade it have followed up, because I saw like 6 threads where people were supposed to upgrade but then didn't say how it turned out for them.

 

[Ytyoussef]

Great news! That's a load off my mind, thank you very much.

So I was thinking of getting this PSU http://www.ebuyer.com/253900-coolermaster-elite-power-500w-fully-wired-efficient-power-supply-rs500-psapj3-it

It says it has 4+4 pins, I think the GPU needs a 6 pin??? Can I not switch out the connectors or something or are there other PSU's around a similar price that I can use straight out the box?

Says it has 500w and Coolermaster are a decent brand if I am not mistaken? Don't want to spend more than £40, the cheaper the better really.

And any recommendation on alternative GPU's? Or is the one that I picked out a good deal and should I stick with it if I want to play games at good settings at 1080p?

The r9 270x is really good, and for 130 GBP I think you have a great deal ^^

 

[Fozzy786]

The biggest problem here is that none of those that have actually managed to upgrade it have followed up, because I saw like 6 threads where people were supposed to upgrade but then didn't say how it turned out for them.

You're right, and I don't want to be the 7th! 😛

I'm tempted to buy the components anyway but if they don't work then I am screwed and have burned through over £150 for nothing... Then Id need a new motherboard and god knows what else.

Was hoping someone on this site might be able to shed some light on the specifics and be would know for certain if this is doable or not.

 

[PandaBear270]

The biggest problem here is that none of those that have actually managed to upgrade it have followed up, because I saw like 6 threads where people were supposed to upgrade but then didn't say how it turned out for them.

You're right, and I don't want to be the 7th! 😛

I'm tempted to buy the components anyway but if they don't work then I am screwed and have burned through over £150 for nothing... Then Id need a new motherboard and god knows what else.

Was hoping someone on this site might be able to shed some light on the specifics and be would know for certain if this is doable or not.

Just buy a B75 chipset motherboard to be sure you will not experience any problems. They are cheap and good quality, like the ASRock I gave to you before.

For the power, you will need two 6-Pin connectors. Good news, if your PSU have two 4-Pin molex connectors, you will only have to plug the included adaptors (those that come with the GPU).

That CoolerMaster already haves one PCI-E connector, so you will only need a 4-Pin molex.

 

[Ytyoussef]

It wouldn't be for nothing, the parts would still be usable, and if it doesn't work out, you could just return them if your shop has a good return policy.

 

[Fozzy786]

Right, so summary so far.

Coolermaster PSU, Additional 4 pin molex, the GPU and a B75 chipset motherboard?

Looks like I need to do some online shopping to find the cheapest of the bunch.

Also need to make sure the motherboard fits in my case as I have a small form factor tower. That screws me over even more and really don't want to buy a new case too....

Original upgrade budget of £150 is completely blown out the water lol.

 

[PandaBear270]

It wouldn't be for nothing, the parts would still be usable, and if it doesn't work out, you could just return them if your shop has a good return policy.

+1 and I am really sure the card with work with the Foxconn board. There are no reasons to say otherwise.

 

[Fozzy786]

It wouldn't be for nothing, the parts would still be usable, and if it doesn't work out, you could just return them if your shop has a good return policy.

+1 and I am really sure the card with work with the Foxconn board. There are no reasons to say otherwise.

I was going to order it from the online link I posted. Don't know what their return policy is but yeah. If it doesn't work I have spare parts but I wouldn't be using them any time soon. I've got this same post on another tech website and on there a user has said that this motherboard didn't support the card... So I'm in two minds here.

I think I might go for it, so long as I can find a decent but CHEAP motherboard to switch to in case the doodoo hits the fan.

Can I get motherboards for under or around £30 that will support my current components with the addition of the 500w PSU and GPU?

 

[PandaBear270]

Probably. Take a look at the Asrock H61M-VG3. It costs 36€ in my country. In pounds might be 30.

 

[Ytyoussef]

Motherboard that PandaBear suggested: http://www.amazon.co.uk/ASRock-H61M-VG3-Motherboard-Express-Extreme/dp/B00AYNWPN8
The same R9 270X for cheaper :O : http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sapphire-Dual-X-Radeon-GDDR5-Graphics/dp/B00FL8H49Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1405693811&sr=1-1&keywords=r9+270x
And this PSU seems to be better: http://www.amazon.co.uk/EVGA-500B-BRONZE-Power-Supply/dp/B00DZ6R9GE/ref=sr_1_3?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1405693914&sr=1-3&keywords=500w
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story6&reid=351

 

[PandaBear270]

I love the design of ASRock motherboards, they are beautiful.

 

[Ytyoussef]

Indeed, which is nice especially at this price point, but I must say I'm an ROG fan, those boards are amazing 😱