Graphics Card Upgrade

kimbrly

Honorable
May 3, 2012
24
0
10,510
Hello,
I am looking for a upgraded graphics card but dont understand all the technical terms. I dont know anything about theinside of the tower!!


Processor

AMD Athlon™64 X2 6000+, 64-bit dual core processor ■Operates at 3.0 GHz
■2 x 1 MB L2 cache
■2000 MHz system bus



Chipset

NVIDIA® GeForce® 6150SE



Memory

•Installed: 3072 MB DDR2, 667 MHz, (PC2-5300) dual channel memory (two 1024 MB and two 512 MB modules)
•Expandable to: 4 GB (4 DDR2 DIMM slots)



Hard Drive

500 GB, 7200 RPM, SATA II hard drive
Support for up to two hard drives



Optical Drive

DVD ±RW, 18X super multi-format dual layer drive with Lableflash™ support, (up to 8.5GB) ■Write max: 18X DVD±R, 8X DVD+R DL, 8X DVD-R DL, 8X DVD+R DL, 8X DVD+RW, 6X DVD-RW, 12X DVD-RAM, 48X CD-R, 32X CD-RW
■Read max: 16X DVD-ROM, 48X CD-ROM
■Supports Labelflash™ on disc printing (req. Labelflash media)



Media Card Reader

15-in-1 high speed digital media manager supporting the following: ■Compact Flash (CF) I, II
■IBM Microdrive™ (MD)
■SmartMedia Card (SMC)
■Memory Stick™ (MS)
■Memory Stick Duo (MS Duo)
■Memory Stick PRO (MS PRO)
■Memory Stick PRO Duo (MS PRO Duo)
■Secure Digital™ (SD)
■Mini Secure Digital (MiniSD)
■Multi Media Card (MMC)
■RS Multi Media Card (RS-MMC) (need adapter)
■Multi Media Plus Card (MMC Plus)
■Multi Media Mobile Card (MMC Mobile)
■xD-Picture Card (xD)



Video

Integrated NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE graphics
•128MB of shared video memory



Audio

Integrated 8-Channel (7.1) High Definition Audio



Network Support

Integrated MARVELL 88E8056 10/100 Ethernet LAN



Modem

56K ITU V.92 ready Fax/Modem with RJ-11 ports



Power Supply
Dynex™ - 400-Watt ATX CPU Power Supply
Model: DX-400WPSSKU: 8311052
Compatible with Intel® and AMD multicore processors; ATX 12V v2.2 compliance


Add-in Card Slots

•One PCI Express ×16 (graphics interface)
•One PCI Express ×1
•Two PCI conventional



External Connectors

•One PS/2 keyboard port
•One PS/2 mouse port
•One VGA monitor port
•One Parallel port
•One Serial port
•Six USB ports (four rear, two front)
•Two IEEE 1394a port (one rear, one front)
•One RJ-45 Ethernet LAN port
•Eight audio jacks (six rear, two front)



Drive Bays

Five total: ■Two external 5.25-inch
■One external 3.5-inch (with a docking bay for optional Gateway 2.5-inch removable USB hard drive)
■Two internal 3.5-inch (hard drive)



Physical Dimensions
(H × W × D)

15.6 × 7.2 × 16.1 inches



Weight (Unpackaged)

Minimum 23.4 lbs. (varies with configuration)



 

kimbrly

Honorable
May 3, 2012
24
0
10,510
I just upgraded the power supply to the one listed (i changed it in the manufacturers list). Should I return the power supply (it is only 2 days old) and get something with continous? And if so, is the graphics card still necessary?
 

nyhcbri

Honorable
Apr 27, 2012
106
0
10,690
radeon hd 7750, running only 55w its gets power straight from the pcie slot no need to hook up to power supply. this is the fastest card you can buy that powers off the pcie slot, the next jump in speed will be the 6770 but requires a power supply of at least 450w
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007709%20600286767%20600298541&IsNodeId=1&name=Radeon%20HD%207750

edit: keep in mind that the pcie x16 is most likely 1.0 on that board and while it may be backward compatible with 3.0 cards the performance will be reduced. so you may be better off with a 2.0 card at a cheaper price

these 2.0 cards may be better compatibility and need only 350w psu, but are definitely not as good, still light years away from your onboard 6150se
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007709%20600007321%20600107097&IsNodeId=1&name=GeForce%20GT%20440%20%28Fermi%29
 

kimbrly

Honorable
May 3, 2012
24
0
10,510
Now I am REALLY confused. I use my computer to play games on the internet and requires Flash player. I noticed that when I play those games it sounds like the Fan in the power supply is going to "blow up", meaning it sounds like it is running "hard". So if I am understanding correctly.... I need 6770 450W with a 2.0 card? Sorry, but like I said, I'm not a compter person when it comes to the inside where all the technical things are. Thank you for your help.
 

nyhcbri

Honorable
Apr 27, 2012
106
0
10,690
i guess thats alot to absorb in one feeding, sorry. can you be sure its your psu fan thats making the noise, possibly the cpu or some other fan?
and you do not need a 6770 unless your playing retail games. please understand that your system is outdated by 8 years and you want to add a graphic card now. would it be completely out of the question for you to go for a new tower. what game specifically are you playing when the system gets loud.


edit: you could probably just go for a $50 motherboard that fits that cpu, that would bring you up to an onboard hd4200 among other upgrades which is fine for internet games. i used one for years
 

kimbrly

Honorable
May 3, 2012
24
0
10,510
Tha game I play ALOT is CastleVille, it's found at zinga.com. I wanted to just upgrade the graphics card but was doing some research on the internet and got the impression I needed to upgrade the power supply because it was only 300W so that is why I went for that first. They recommended going to a 400W. I dont know if it helps at all but I looked at my computer programming to see what I could find and there was an option to check my computer "score". Everything got a 5.7-5.9 except the graphics part. That got a score of 3.0-3.5. I dont know if you know what I am talking about but it was NOT a good score for the graphics!!! I understand my computer is out dated but the budget is tight so I'm trying to avoid the more costly part.
 

kimbrly

Honorable
May 3, 2012
24
0
10,510
We ended up purchasing new cooling fans, but it still sounds like they are "hard at work". Could it be that we need to upgrade whatever part it is that the fans are "cooling off"? I think that would be the processor or motherboard??