Help with upgrading GPU on very old PC with $40-$60?

[dovle505]

Before anyone says the whole PC is awful and i need to buy a new one or spend serious money, please don't bother. I am aware it is crap but i do not want to invest money in a computer at the moment and i just want it to run the game "Path of Exile" on minimum settings without crashing/major fps issues.

As it stands, the game is able to run with minimum settings, but there's serious issues. FPS drops at inconvenient times (Boss fights, crowded areas), i get random crashes and especially during load screens, textures not loading, and game is also crashing when minimized.

I strongly suspect the graphics card is the issue because I've looked at CPU usage during crashes and it's usually not over 50%. Plus I've seen weird graphical glitches in other, older games which suggests there's something seriously wrong with it. Here is my current build taken from Dxdiag:

Operating System: Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i3 CPU 530 @ 2.93GHz (4 CPUs), ~2.9GHz
Memory: 4096MB RAM
System Manufacturer: Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd.
System Model: H55M-S2H
Power Supply: I didn't really know how to check this so i opened up my pc and looked at the label on the PSU. This is what it said - ATX12V; Product No.: TM-420-PMSR; Max output power: 420W
And my current graphics card: NVIDIA GeForce GT 240

Bonus optional questions:
1)I was also thinking about changing the fan on my CPU, could you link one that would fit on it? Obviously going for the budget option again.
2) Should i also bother adding more RAM or is it pointless?

P.S. Sorry for bothering you with dumb questions like these but I'm just brainless when it comes to hardware.

 

[volkgren]

Path of Exile is an old game and you are right that it should be able to run well with a GPU upgrade. Your i3 is old but it has hyper-threading which gives each core 2 processing threads to total 4 logical processors.

You don't need a new CPU fan unless yours is loud to the point it bothers you. You could and should however change the thermal paste. Use cotton balls/paper towel with rubbing alcohol (the stronger the better, 70% or 91%) to clean off the old, then apply a small dot of the new. Look up tutorials if necessary.

Thermal compound options - https://pcpartpicker.com/products/compare/6RrG3C,HBXfrH,sX4gXL/

You could and probably should add more RAM if you want to continue gaming on this system. Buy matching RAM to what you have already (same speed, voltage, & timings), and stick with increments of 2. So if you have 1 stick now, buy 1 stick the same as that. If you have 2 sticks now, buy 2 sticks to match them. This way you can run all your RAM in dual-channel to increase memory bandwidth.

Your power supply says 420W, but it only has 16A on the +12V rail, which is only 192W for your main components. That might be enough to run a low-end GPU such as your GT 240 or a GT 1030, but that's awfully low and signifies a low quality unit. I would recommend investing in a PSU upgrade. The EVGA 450 BT is one of the cheapest units available today, but it would be much more reliable than the one you have. Just don't go trying to pair a high-end GPU and system with it.

A GT 1030 is something you could consider. It is a very low power GPU and would work with your current power supply. But there are faster options that you could get for cheaper if you buy used, and you would need to upgrade your power supply with the other options. Either way you really should upgrade your power supply since you are gaming on it and it is already so old.

Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GT 1030 DDR4 2GB Video Card ($78.50 @ Newegg Marketplace)

Other GPU Options -
The GTX 750 Ti is a bit faster than the GT 1030 and is also a good option if you don't mind buying used. The 750 Ti uses slightly more power than your GT 240. You might get away with your current power supply but I would upgrade it.
EVGA GTX 750 Ti SC $74.99 - https://www.ebay.com/itm/EVGA-GTX-750-Ti-GPU-2GB-GDDR5-CR41/183431667665?hash=item2ab5611fd1:g:FeoAAOSwHWJbl8vP

The GTX 660 is faster than the GT 1030 and almost as fast as the GTX 750 Ti. You will definitely have to buy the power supply to use this. This is actually a really good buy. Act fast or it will be sold. I would get this and the power supply if you can.
EVGA GTX 660 SC $54 - https://www.ebay.com/itm/EVGA-GeForce-GTX-660-SUPERCLOCKED-2048MB-GDDR5-Graphics-Card-02G-P4-2662-KR/153179958846?epid=140613476&hash=item23aa3cae3e:g:cQwAAOSw~p1bmyrD
Power Supply: EVGA - BT 450W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ Amazon)

Install a program like Speccy to find out your RAM specs. https://www.ccleaner.com/speccy

*Edit: Here's a comparison of the GPUs I mentioned in a newer game PUBG so you can see their performance difference. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd4ogkxe8G8

 

[rcald2000]

dovle505 The advice that volkgren provided is first class. The one addendum to his advice, is: Do NOT buy that specific version of the GT 1030, if you opt for that GPU. Definitely get the GDDR5 version, which is twice the performance of the DDR4 model (below).

Gamer's Nexus: GT 1030 DDR4 vs. GDDR5: A Disgrace of a Graphics Card
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CazEXejPCU&t=2s

EVGA GeForce GT 1030 SC, 02G-P4-6332-RX, 2GB GDDR5, Passive, Low Profile
$69.99
https://www.evga.com/products/product.aspx?pn=02G-P4-6332-RX

SeaSonic S12II 520 Bronze 520W
$44.99 ($29.99 after $15.00 rebate)
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151094

What I would do: (1) buy used EVGA 750 Ti SC off Ebay for no more than $75 (including shipping). (2) buy used or new additional 4 GB of RAM; I'm guessing that yours is DDR3, but you should verify this point. (3) Eventually upgrade the power supply to a higher quality unit. I liked the Seasonic S12II 520, or you could wait for the modular version (M12II 520) to go on NewEgg sale sometime in the near future.

 

[volkgren]

Wow, I didn't realize they started making a GDDR4 version of the GT 1030. Thanks for that.

You have a good idea also with the 750 Ti and then the power supply. The SeaSonic is better quality and would be a better investment.

 

[dontlistentome]

I played Path of Exile for a long time with a 1gb GTX 650 Ti at medium to high settings 1080p and it ran very well. Yes there were drops during big fights but those were brief and didn't make the game unplayable. So I'd say anything of that level or better is all you need.

The advantage of older used cards is greater compatibility with your older system. The advantage of a new card like the 1030 is it uses far, far less power. Get yourself a decent power supply and you have lots of options.

 

[dovle505]

Brilliant answers, thank you

 

[volkgren]

The Gigabyte requires a 6-pin PCIe power connector.

I see this Palit there that would work the same as the EVGA because it does not require a power connector. https://www.kupujemprodajem.com/Kompjuteri-Desktop/Graficke-kartice/Palit-gtx-750-ti-65146111-oglas.htm?filter_id=6913028

I don't think you mentioned what kind of case you have. Hopefully it's not a small-form factor.

 

[dovle505]

The Gigabyte requires a 6-pin PCIe power connector.

I see this Palit there that would work the same as the EVGA because it does not require a power connector. https://www.kupujemprodajem.com/Kompjuteri-Desktop/Graficke-kartice/Palit-gtx-750-ti-65146111-oglas.htm?filter_id=6913028

I don't think you mentioned what kind of case you have. Hopefully it's not a small-form factor.

I don't know which case i have but it's definitely not the small-form factor one, it's quite bulky. My guess is it's a CoolMaster one, kind of looks like http://images.bit-tech.net/content_images/2008/06/building-a-400-gaming-pc/cm-8.jpg
The Palit GPU you linked is sadly damaged and not in working condition. I've split into two threads because i thought you couldn't reply to this one after picking the solution. In the other thread you've said this one will work fine so i think I'll go with that. https://www.kupujemprodajem.com/Kompjuteri-Desktop/Graficke-kartice/GTX-750-Ti-2-Gb-gddr5-66096072-oglas.htm?filter_id=6913028

 

[Sagar_20]

I agree with rcald2000. The DDR4 model of GT 1030 is not worth $80. It's worse than you might think. I had mistakenly bought DDR4 and ended up replacing it with DDR5 for ~$100. It was from Palit. As i know pretty much every brand except zotac makes a DDR4 version GT 1030, so i highly recommend to go for Zotac. Don't worry about the size. It can fit inside almost any desktop. Palit is a bit long but fits well inside my dell inspiron 620s leaving ~1 cm of headroom. I have a slightly better processor i.e. i5-2310, so it's hard to say whether ddr5 over ddr4 is worthwhile for you but but nonetheless there's point in getting DDR4 when you can get DDR5 for a few extra bucks.