[SOLVED] GPU upgrade from an AMD radeon HD 6450

mineclj2000

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Hello! I am wondering what GPU will be a good upgrade in regards to an AMD radeon HD 6450. Would prefer a GPU that could run solid games like CSGO/Fortnite at 60 fps ish. Here are my specs:


Processor: i3-2100
MOBO: Dell 0GDG8Y MICRO ATX
Some 1TB Western Digital Caviar HDD
PSU: Unsure. Somewhere between 200-300 if I am correct.


My budget: 100-150


Curious Question: Why is an AMD graphics card running with an Intel based motherboard? (Aren't they like competitors?)
 
Solution

You should definitely find out exactly what kind of PSU you have. Open the side of your case (ideally with the system powered off) and it will likely be printed on the side of the PSU somewhere. If it's around 250 watts or more, that will likely be good enough for a GTX 1050 / 1050 Ti, which should draw around 70 watts while gaming. Less than that, and you probably wouldn't want to go with anything more powerful than a GT 1030, which should draw around 30 watts, similar to the power used by your existing HD 6450. The GT 1030 is a lot newer though, so it should be multiple times as fast. A 1050 is about twice as fast as a 1030 though, so if your PSU has the power to run...
Since you have a small PSU you will be limited, but pretty much any gpu will be a huge boost over what you have. If it is a 300 watt psu you could probably easily do a GTX1050 or 1050ti (the ones that dont require 6 pin connectors). If its below that then all I would put in there is a GT1030 (the one with DDR5 Memory) or a RX550.

Can you find out exactly what PSU you have in there, or what the model of your computer is?

Another issue may be your i3-2100 as well, I would upgrade to a i5-2500 or i7-2600. Having only two cores is extremely limiting.
 

You should definitely find out exactly what kind of PSU you have. Open the side of your case (ideally with the system powered off) and it will likely be printed on the side of the PSU somewhere. If it's around 250 watts or more, that will likely be good enough for a GTX 1050 / 1050 Ti, which should draw around 70 watts while gaming. Less than that, and you probably wouldn't want to go with anything more powerful than a GT 1030, which should draw around 30 watts, similar to the power used by your existing HD 6450. The GT 1030 is a lot newer though, so it should be multiple times as fast. A 1050 is about twice as fast as a 1030 though, so if your PSU has the power to run it, it would be a better choice if you are aiming for steady frame rates in those games. And a 1050 Ti should be somewhere around 25% faster still. The 1030 tends to be decent enough for resolutions around 720p, while the 1050 and 1050 Ti are better suited for 1080p. CS:GO and Fortnite are less demanding than many games though, so you "might" be able to manage decent frame rates at 1080p with a 1030, if settings are lowered enough.


Intel doesn't currently even make dedicated graphics cards (though they apparently have plans to within a couple years). Even if they did, it's perfectly normal to have components from competing companies together in a system, since graphics card and most other components are designed to be compatible with one another. A company like Dell simply selects which components they feel will go best together for a system at a given price point.
 
Solution

mineclj2000

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Oct 13, 2018
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4,510


 

mineclj2000

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Oct 13, 2018
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Yes I can find out. The model of my PC is a Dell Inspiron 620. REG Model D11M. (Refurbished)

Unsure on the PSU. All I know is it probably is not over 300 watts.