[SOLVED] Dell XPS 435MT Graphics Card upgrade possibilities

[jackmf84]

Hello.
So, my friend has a Dell Studio XPS-435MT prebuilt system from 2008/2009 that he received from a family member for cheap as he doesn't have a PC.
He is looking to upgrade the power supply and graphics card, and I have confirmed for him that the power supply upgrade should be fine, but he is looking to upgrade to an RX 570/580/590 dependant on his budget over the next couple weeks.
Now I need some confirmation from anyone who has upgraded the same system, that a graphics card upgrade would 100% work in his system as I have read from a few different threads that "it's not possible because the BIOS doesn't support some newer cards/the newer cards require a UEFI BIOS to boot" ect.

I just need some confirmation as I'm getting mixed results which doesn't leave me with too much hope, my friend is really relying on me to help him with these upgrades as he isn't 100% with PC hardware and the sort.

BIOS will be upgraded to the latest possible, rest of system is perfectly functional and performing as expected.

If any additional info is required, don't hesitate to ask.
Thanks in advance.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

What is his budget?

What are the exact specs of his PC?

 

[jackmf84]

EDIT - I just want some confirmation from a same-system owner that a GPU upgrade would be compatible with this PC as I don't know off the top of my head.

His budget is around £300 which can get him all the components he needs.

Exact specs are as follows.

CPU: Intel Core i7-920 running @3GHz.
Motherboard: OEM Dell 0R849J LGA 1366 Motherboard.
RAM: 8GB Triple Channel DDR3 @ 1300MHz (2,1,1,2,1,1)
Power Supply (at the moment): OEM Delta Electronics 375W Power Supply
GPU (At the moment) Asus GT 730 2GB Passive Cooled Graphics Card.
HDD/SSDs: Sandisk Ultra 2 480GB SATA SSD + Western Digital 500GB Hard Drive.
Uh, think thats it really, fairly barebones system - He got it for £50 GBP

 

[NightHawkRMX]

Well, delta makes decent power supplies, but the 375 watts is not enough for a 570 or above.
Likely the PSU doesn't have the required PCIE connectors aswell.

I have seen newer cards working on older C2D systems, so it should work ok.

I would suggest upgrading the PSU to a Corsair CX450 and then purchasing an RX570.

 

[jackmf84]

Well, delta makes decent power supplies, but the 375 watts is not enough for a 570 or above.
Likely the PSU doesn't have the required PCIE connectors aswell.

I have seen newer cards working on older C2D systems, so it should work ok.

I would suggest upgrading the PSU to a Corsair CX450 and then purchasing an RX570.

Thanks for confirming this. He intends to get an EVGA 600W 80+ bronze unit and an RX 590. Just was unsure whether the motherboard would support the Graphics Card.
Thanks

 

[KhouhenStercie.Bacus]

Well, delta makes decent power supplies, but the 375 watts is not enough for a 570 or above.
Likely the PSU doesn't have the required PCIE connectors aswell.

I have seen newer cards working on older C2D systems, so it should work ok.

I would suggest upgrading the PSU to a Corsair CX450 and then purchasing an RX570.

Agree here, or your friend can option to GTX 1050 ti or 1650 without needing to have a PSU since it draws power to the PCIE slot.
But if money's not an issue then you can go ahead with the RX 5XX series however get a decent PSU like you mention earlier the EVGA is good.

however would the i7 920 bottleneck if you go for RX 570 or higher right?

 

[NightHawkRMX]

First generation i7s still hold up well today. A 570 and i7 920 is actually a good pairing.

 

[KhouhenStercie.Bacus]

First generation i7s still hold up well today. A 570 and i7 920 is actually a good pairing.

Yes it does I checked it on a youtube video impressive for how old for that CPU is.

 

[jackmf84]

Yeah they are damn impressive chips for the age, I was shocked when my bud said he got the entire PC with a monitor (albeit not a great one) for such a cheap price. I've taken the total system power draw into account and I believe a 600w unit would be spot on for what he needs. Thanks guys, here's to hoping theres no issues 🤞

 

[NightHawkRMX]

A good quality 500w or more should be fine.

 

[jackmf84]

A good quality 500w or more should be fine.

Good shout, thankyou mate, appreciate the help