Graphics Card Upgrade?

[iKozzChaos]

Hello. I don't know that much in the computer part world so please bear with me. I currently have a Dell XPS 8500 that I currently use for gaming. I am considering buying a graphics card and a new PSU to put in it and I have a few questions. The graphics card is either going to be a GT 740 4GB DDR3 (http://amzn.com/B00KJGYOBQ) or a GT 740 2GB GDDR5 (http://amzn.com/B00KO3GJVC). The PSU I am considering is a EVGA 430W (http://amzn.com/B00H33SDR4).

Will these cards fit into my pc?

Is there a performance difference with these cards? (If so, which would you think is the better buy?)

Will I need more components (cables etc.) to use these cards?

Is the PSU I listed able to power these cards with no issues?

An answer at your earliest convenience would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

[MakoRuu]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Dell systems are proprietary and will not support the replacement of an aftermarket power supply.

Not only with the power supply itself not physically fit into the system, but the pin header for the motherboard is wired differently, and it may not even turn on.

Also; did you mean XPS? EPS yields no results in a search.

 

[iKozzChaos]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Dell systems are proprietary and will not support the replacement of an aftermarket power supply.

Not only with the power supply itself not physically fit into the system, but the pin header for the motherboard is wired differently, and it may not even turn on.

Also; did you mean XPS? EPS yields no results in a search.

Yes I meant XPS. Sorry my mistake. So am I even able to upgrade my PC?

 

[MakoRuu]

Sorry, but no.

If you can scrape together some money I can show you a good build for less than $250. But you'll need to be able to buy things on eBay.

 

[iKozzChaos]

Sorry, but no.

If you can scrape together some money I can show you a good build for less than $250. But you'll need to be able to buy things on eBay.

In the Owners manual it tells how to replace your PSU. Are aftermarket PSU's different? Im not really understanding since the manual tells how to replace and remove it.

 

[MakoRuu]

With another Dell power supply, yes. But not an aftermarket one like the EVGA you mentioned.

Let me see what I can dig up. You may be able to use the GT 740 on the XPS power supply.

There is always hope!

 

[soldier5637]

I do believe you are wrong Makoruu, sorry. I replaced the old 350 watt PSU in my optiplex 960 with a CX 430 a couple years ago. Never had a problem.

 

[jediTT]

Not all Dells are proprietary PSU. Even if it is I'm sure it has at least a 300w PSU in it now. If it does you could stick a GTX 750 or 750ti in there as it only requires 300w. It's better performing than the GT 740, has lower power requirements and costs about the same depending on where you get it.

 

[iKozzChaos]

Not all Dells are proprietary PSU. Even if it is I'm sure it has at least a 300w PSU in it now. If it does you could stick a GTX 750 or 750ti in there as it only requires 300w. It's better performing than the GT 740, has lower power requirements and costs about the same depending on where you get it.

It has 385W in it but the 740 requires 400w. I'm not sure on what the 385W rails has so thats not much help.

 

[MakoRuu]

That's why there's always hope, mate.

But you can't wantonly go around telling people to switch parts out, and then have them fry their entire PC.

Caution is better than hope, in most regards.

But, after some digging I found this, and yes, it looks promising.

But it's going to require some light modding.


http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2054046/dell-xps-8500-video-card-psu-upgrade.html

 

[iKozzChaos]

That's why there's always hope, mate.

But you can't wantonly go around telling people to switch parts out, and then have them fry their entire PC.

Caution is better than hope, in most regards.

But, after some digging I found this, and yes, it looks promising.

But it's going to require some light modding.


http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2054046/dell-xps-8500-video-card-psu-upgrade.html

Im not sure if that guy's 8500 was stock or not but mine is a different version. Mine came with 8gb of ram and an Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1 GHz. So I don't know if anything inside was different than mine.

 

[jediTT]

Not all Dells are proprietary PSU. Even if it is I'm sure it has at least a 300w PSU in it now. If it does you could stick a GTX 750 or 750ti in there as it only requires 300w. It's better performing than the GT 740, has lower power requirements and costs about the same depending on where you get it.

It has 385W in it but the 740 requires 400w. I'm not sure on what the 385W rails has so thats not much help.

Do you already have the GT 740? If not, why that specific card?

 

[iKozzChaos]

Not all Dells are proprietary PSU. Even if it is I'm sure it has at least a 300w PSU in it now. If it does you could stick a GTX 750 or 750ti in there as it only requires 300w. It's better performing than the GT 740, has lower power requirements and costs about the same depending on where you get it.

It has 385W in it but the 740 requires 400w. I'm not sure on what the 385W rails has so thats not much help.

Do you already have the GT 740? If not, why that specific card?

No I haven't bought the card yet. I chose the card because it was cheap and had good reviews. I want one that will be good for HD gaming with no lag if possible and is cheap. So from $100 to $200. And if possible not having to upgrade the PSU but I will probably have to do that.

 

[MakoRuu]

Wait dude. The dell XPS 8500 has a 460 Watt power supply...

That's more than enough for a GT 740. (Don't know what the hell I was thinking.)

Hell, you could probably put a 960 in that bitch. (Given that you had the 6 pin PCIe adatper.)

Just upgrade your motherboard bios.

 

[iKozzChaos]

Wait dude. The dell XPS 8500 has a 460 Watt power supply...

That's more than enough for a GT 740.

Hell, you could probably put a 960 in that bitch. (Given that you had the 6 pin PCIe adatper.)

Heres my sticker.

 

[iKozzChaos]

I posted a thread similar to this close to two years ago and was told my PSU was 385 and decided to wait. Now that I know my PSU is 460 it will be easier to find a card. Now with my questions.

Is there a better card I could get for a little more money?

If not which card of the two performs better?

 

[MakoRuu]

Yeah, bro.

Upgrade your motherboard BIOS. You'll be fine. The GTX 950 is coming out on August 17th. It'll retail for about $125 - $140.

And require only about 92 watts with a Six pin PCIe adatper.

However ~ The GT 740 is a great budget card for low profile systems, and you can find them for about $80 if you get lucky on Amazon or eBay.

Though the 950 and the 960 would literally be hundreds of times more powerful. And the GT 740 new is like $119.

http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-960-vs-Nvidia-GeForce-GT-740/3165vsm13294



Check this out~

This guy put a 960 in his XPS 8500, but it wouldn't post.

EVGA told him it would work if he upgraded his motherboard BIOS.

https://www.evga.com/support/faq/afmviewfaq.aspx?faqid=59550

 

[maxalge]

Not all Dells are proprietary PSU. Even if it is I'm sure it has at least a 300w PSU in it now. If it does you could stick a GTX 750 or 750ti in there as it only requires 300w. It's better performing than the GT 740, has lower power requirements and costs about the same depending on where you get it.

It has 385W in it but the 740 requires 400w. I'm not sure on what the 385W rails has so thats not much help.

Do you already have the GT 740? If not, why that specific card?

No I haven't bought the card yet. I chose the card because it was cheap and had good reviews. I want one that will be good for HD gaming with no lag if possible and is cheap. So from $100 to $200. And if possible not having to upgrade the PSU but I will probably have to do that.

you can run a gtx 750 ti


just make sure it is a version that runs on the power of the pcie slot alone

some require extra power from pcie power cables


never get gddr3 video cards.

 

[iKozzChaos]

Yeah, bro.

Upgrade your motherboard BIOS. You'll be fine. The GTX 950 is coming out on August 17th. It'll retail for about $125 - $140.

And require only about 92 watts with a Six pin PCIe adatper.

However ~ The GT 740 is a great budget card for low profile systems, and you can find them for about $80 if you get lucky on Amazon or eBay.

Though the 950 and the 960 would literally be hundreds of times more powerful. And the GT 740 new is like $119.

http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-960-vs-Nvidia-GeForce-GT-740/3165vsm13294



Check this out~

This guy put a 960 in his XPS 8500, but it wouldn't post.

EVGA told him it would work if he upgraded his motherboard BIOS.

https://www.evga.com/support/faq/afmviewfaq.aspx?faqid=59550

I actually am considering the 960 but will it fit in the case? And also could I update the bios now? Or do I have to wait till I actually install the new card?

 

[MakoRuu]

You could update now. It won't hurt anything. It only takes a few minutes.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487093

This is the 960 that I bought. (But mine was on sale for $189.)

My review is fourth down (GTX 960 Superclocked is Superwonderful~)

If you're not gaming over 1080p save some money and get the 2 GB version. Unless you absolutely have to have it.

Mine can max out GTA V, Dragon Age Inquisition, The Secret World, New Vegas with tons of mods including HD Textures and ENB, Guild Wars 2, Archeage, Final Fantasy XIV: ARR, the list goes on and on. I've put this thing through the ringer.

I'm forced to game at 1400x1050 but it runs all my games 55 - 90 FPS. Some go well over a hundred. (FF, GW, NW.)

And mine even came with a free copy of Batman: Arkham Knight. But the game runs like crap, and the PC Patch isn't being released for a while. I'm told September, but it may be sooner. It's playable, but it caps at 30 FPS with lots of drops and slow downs.

As for the size, I have a Dell Precision T3500 and it fits just fine. The card is less than seven inches long.

BUT MAKE SURE YOU HAVE AT LEAST ONE SIX PIN PCIe CABLE.

I have no experience using Molex to PCIe adapters, so I can not safely recommend them.

 

[iKozzChaos]

Thanks everybody for the helpful responses.