I'd like to upgrade my Dell XPS 8500 and it's horrible Nvidia GT620.

Danielle Spargo

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When I purchased my computer at costco, they were nearing closing time and I was getting bad reception on my cellphone, so I didn't quite have time to research all the computers properly, but it turns out I wound up with a bum graphics card. This Nvidia Geforce GT 620 isn't even an upgrade over the 4000 series integrated card the i7 comes with. It's still running DDR3 x_x I have a 460w PSI and I know if possible I can upgrade to a maximum of 750w for a cost of about 70$. Of course that cuts into my budget.
So here is my question to you: For a price of about 300$ total, what would be the best graphics card to upgrade to, taking into account that if it requires more than a 460w psu, I would need to cut up to 70$ out of my budget. I've been looking all over the place, and there are just so many cards, and half of them are just the same card being rebranded, and card lines don't follow any linear pattern whatsoever. I've really tried to UTFSE, and I know that I could do ok and find a decent upgrade, but I want to make sure I'm not making any mistakes, and that I'm getting the best that I can get. Most of the time I just play Starcraft 2, or League of Legends, but I do have a WoW account that I'd like to be able to run at max settings if I renewed it. I have the gpu running two monitors, one of which is in 1080p with the resolution set the same on most games and desktop etc. I've been playing Starcraft 2 with a couple settings on ultra, a couple on high, and a couple on medium, and I have to keep vsync and antialiasing off, and I still get a message saying the computer is slowing down the game, and that I should turn down settings.

MSI afterburner says my GPU usage, FB usage, and VID usage max out every time I play my games or even when my screensaver comes on, but everything else is fine. I have 12g ram, an i7-3770 CPU @ 3.40GHz (8CPUs), and A12 bios. Everything should be in order except that horrible graphics card. Next upgrade will have to be SSD, but one step at a time lol.

Thank you guys!

Update: I'd like to mention that only certain PSUs will fit in this tower, I came across this list:

EVGA SuperNOVA 750B1 $69.99
RAIDMAX RX-1000AE 1000W $119.99
SeaSonic SS-750KM3 750W $139.99
CORSAIR AX series AX760 $159.99
Coolmax 1200W ZPG-1200B $282.35

I prefer the nvidia since I have the drivers and whatnot, but if you have a good case for amd over nvidia for this price range, I am willing to switch. I'd also like to mention that 300$ is pushing it a touch. If I can do it for less, don't hesitate to give suggestions :p

Edit2: The newegg reviews on Gigabyte Radeon R9 280X 3GB Video Card are really really terrible. :S
 
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The main reason I started commenting on this thread, is become I also have a Dell XPS tower (8300 model). I've already converted that tower into a gaming rig, and it functions flawlessly. The Dell XPS 8300 uses the same exact tower as the 8500, but mine is white and yours is black. I can assure you that any standard size ATX PSU will fit inside your case, but again, it will be a tight squeeze.



All the GPUs listed in the graph are 1080p capable gaming cards (except the bottom three), including a card like the 620 would indeed be a joke.
The only place you're going to find a comparison is a place like gpuboss.com that compares all cards specs.
Here is your comparison. http://gpuboss.com/gpus/GeForce-GTX-970-vs-GeForce-GT-620
Take...

Danielle Spargo

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Will that fit in the case? Because my tower has an indentation for extra usb ports directly in front of the psu, I'm limited to something with a maximum length of 180mm.

So you mean the GPU he mentioned is good and just the PSU should be changed? You also recommend that radeon R9?

What makes it better than Nvidia? I would have to switch all my drivers and whatnot, and I'm mostly used to the nvidia interface by now. I can change if there's a good reason though. Also, newegg has so many bad reviews for the card, saying it runs really fast when it's working, but almost everyone had their card break in under a year, many people had problems as soon as they installed the card. The customer service for Gigabite was said to be horrible too.
 

Danielle Spargo

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Sorry, I'm new to this website and noscript had the reply button blocked. But my update was actually meant to be a question to you:
I prefer the nvidia since I have the drivers and whatnot, but if you have a good case for amd over nvidia for this price range, I am willing to switch. I'd also like to mention that 300$ is pushing it a touch. If I can do it for less, don't hesitate to give suggestions :p

The newegg reviews on Gigabyte Radeon R9 280X 3GB Video Card are really really terrible. They all seem to break very quickly, and Gigabyte's customer service is said to be horrible. I usually wouldn't care, but more than half of the reviews are negative,
 

abhisheksscorpion

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Looking at the games you play , GTX 960 can do the job for you easily,ofcourse R9 280X is a better option over 960 but it comes with more tdp , more heat and as you said you'd prefer Nvidia drivers overs Amd ones, i'd suggest you to go for that. Also it only requires a 450W psu, but if you have the stock psu, it's better if you change it. 970 would be around 30-40 bucks more than your budget but it will provide you a more future safe card than the 960. But aty requirements , 960 is a decent buy.

 


Ignore those reviews, all you should care about are benchmarks. If it breaks, it is covered under the 2-3 year warranty offered by most manufacturers (like Gigabyte).
Every single GPU will have poor reviews, along with good ones.


I didn't even think to check if it would fit, sorry about that.
However, the 280x model I selected will indeed fit in your case, but it will be a tight squeeze and you might need to move your HDD location (very easy).

If you don't want to deal with the tight fit, here is a smokin deal on a refurb 280x from sapphire which is much shorter in length than the gigabyte. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202138&cm_re=280x-_-14-202-138-_-Product

The seasonic 620w truly is a much better PSU, but it is more expensive. The Builder series (CX600) I linked is not the greatest, but it will work nonetheless. If the 280x is too expensive for you, you could drop down to either the 960 or R9 280 (and then overclock the 280 to similar 280x performance). If you dropped down to the 960, you could go with an even cheaper PSU as it requires much less power.



 

Danielle Spargo

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So I'm looking at two different cards, the PNY GTX 960 with back blower for 209$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814133579&cm_re=GTX960-_-14-133-579-_-Product
And the EVGA GTX970 with back blower for 344$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487070&cm_re=gtx_970-_-14-487-070-_-Product

It seems the difference is nearly 140$ and the difference in specs is an extra 600cuda cores in the 970, virtually the same clock speeds, twice the GDDR5 ram, and the ram is 256bit vs 128 bit in the 960.

I chose the backblower design because other people who have upgraded this tower say it has poor circulation, and heat is better directed out the back. I wonder if there's a tangible way to describe the particular benefits of each upgraded spec, and what makes it worth the extra 140$. I'm going to have to live on ramen for a month to get that extra 140! lol But it can be done if you make a convincing enough argument.

It seems I might have to change my psu either way, because apparently it doesn't have the 6 pin connecter. The 970 would then bring my total up to about 400$. That's a lot of ramen. Edit: Upon opening my box, my GT 620 is not connected to the PSU at all, just to the motherboard. And I have two additional 6 pin PCI Express cables coming from my PSU and connected to nothing. That's the one I use to hook to the new GPU, right? I think what I meant is that I don't have the 2 extra pins to extend my 6 pin connecters into 8 pin connecters.
 

Danielle Spargo

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About the reviews, one person said that their card was broken as soon as he got it in the computers, and gigabyte said that their policy is that even though he just bought a new part that was broken, he would not be given a new part replacement, but a refurbished one, which also broke within days. As for the rest of the stuff you said, see my reply to abhisheksscorpion. If I do go with the 960, which psu would you recommend?
 


Welcome to the wonderful world of benchmarks :p
This graph will explain the differences in performance.
gtx-960-sli-metro.jpg



The OEM PSU in your tower is crap, and should be replaced before purchasing a new GPU. Forget about connecting your current PSU to a new GPU, it's a bad idea.


Like I said, every GPU will have horror stories.
I'd also recommend seasonic PSUs, but even corsairs budget line (like the cx series) will work fine.
 

Danielle Spargo

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I don't think the GPU is going to have a hard time fitting, it has a ton of space. The tight fit is going to be the psu. Looking over confirmed upgrades to this rig, everyone has trouble fitting the psu in because there are two usb inputs on the top of the case, smack right in the middle, and there's an indent in the top of the case that will prevent anything from fitting past that point.

Wow, so GTX 970 performs better than TWO GTX 960's in SLI. that's pretty crazy. The GT 620 isn't even on there, probably because it would be a joke to include it with any of those GPUs, but it doesn't allow me to compare all three unfortunately. Since my mobo isn't SLI ready, I suppose I can't even get the 960 and then save up for a second one anyway.

What's the "1% low" that's being graphed? Are frames per second the only thing that's important for a gpu? I think I'm going to have to start saving up for the 970... lol

One other question, if I get an external GPU, is it possible to crossfire/SLI? I was just thinking that maybe when new cards come out and this one's price goes down, I might be able to delay upgrading again in the future if I could connect one externally.

Thank you guys so much :)
 
The main reason I started commenting on this thread, is become I also have a Dell XPS tower (8300 model). I've already converted that tower into a gaming rig, and it functions flawlessly. The Dell XPS 8300 uses the same exact tower as the 8500, but mine is white and yours is black. I can assure you that any standard size ATX PSU will fit inside your case, but again, it will be a tight squeeze.



All the GPUs listed in the graph are 1080p capable gaming cards (except the bottom three), including a card like the 620 would indeed be a joke.
The only place you're going to find a comparison is a place like gpuboss.com that compares all cards specs.
Here is your comparison. http://gpuboss.com/gpus/GeForce-GTX-970-vs-GeForce-GT-620
Take note of the passmark score, 970 = 8,624 ~~~~ 620 = 434
The 620s score isn't even higher than its name... they are incomparable with gaming GPUs lol. :p

The 1% low bars are "lag spikes" that occurred during the test that lasted for less than 1% of the test.

Unfortunately, I have zero experience with external GPU bars and known absolutely nothing about them. I have no idea how that would work with an internal GPU, if at all. If I had to guess, I would say it wouldn't work with an internal GPU for SLI.

A single 970 will play almost all of the games right now at 1080 60hz Ultra settings, unless you're planning to buy a new monitor and play at higher resolutions, a single 970 should last you quite a long time... longer than it would take to save up enough money to buy an entirely new custom gaming computer you could build from the ground up with only the parts you want.


PS As your now interested in Nvidia, I guess this doesn't really apply to you... but I will tell you anyway. AMD GPUs produce a lot of heat, this was a problem in my 8300 tower as its cooling system consists of a single 80mm exhaust fan. The temperatures inside the case, and the temps of my 7850 (R9 270x) were not ideal. I solved this by taking advantage of the front intake port of the 8300 tower. If you look at the front of your tower, there is a little "hood" at the bottom with vents in it. I stuck a 140mm fan inside the case up against that vent, to bring in cold air off the floor. This modification not only acts as an intake fan, but it also applies direct airflow over the motherboard (GOOD!). Because cold air is being pushed THROUGH the case instead of hot air being sucked out, this minor upgrade drastically improved my temperatures.
 
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Math Geek

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the dell psu is actually not that bad of a unit. you could do the 960 on the stock psu easy. i have an xps 420 with the 375w psu and i have an r9-270 installed that actually uses about 30 more watts than a 960 does.

a 970 might want a new psu, but if you have the 2 6 pin power connectors, then it will probably work as is with the stock psu as well. i would not overclock the cpu and such with the stock psu but at stock specs, you should be able to run a 970 without a new psu (assuming you have the needed 2 x 6 pins from the psu). if i can run a 100w+ cpu and a 150w gpu on 375w, you should be able to run a 160w gpu and a 77w cpu on a 460w psu of similar quality.
 


My rule of thumb is if you can't find 12v rail specs for a PSU, chance are the PSU is crap.
Just because a PSU has the required connections does not mean that PSU can supply the required power through those connections. I'm not saying I doubt your experiences, but a quality PSU would be a very wise decision when that PSU is powering a $300 investment.
 

Math Geek

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i did not bother to look for the specs, as i have some experience with these systems and basically know what they can do. i know the basic opinion of oem psu's but as i said, the dell xps ones seem to be well made and work well with upgrades. won't hurt to replace the psu but i have personally upgraded enough of these xps systems to know what the psu can do. no idea who makes these oem's but they are actually a lot better than any other oem psu's i have seen. and they are only the ones found in the xps systems for some reason. the other dell pc's do use the crap psu's everyone is so negative about.

i have no problem with the psu being replaced, especially for a gtx 970 investment, but for a 960 there is no reason to worry about it. the psu will work fine. checking the specs is never a bad idea to be sure.
 

Danielle Spargo

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I don't know if this is the information you're looking for: http://cdn6.bigcommerce.com/s-hzplip3b/products/144/images/65249/28511-DELL-FVGCW-LABEL__16369.1418091359.1280.1280.jpg?c=2

+12VA --- 18A
+12VB --- 16A
+12VC --- 8A
+5V --- 25A
+3.3V --- 17A
-12V --- 3A
+5Vaux --- 3A

Max combined power on +12VA & +12VB & +12VC is 385W

 

Math Geek

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that is exactly the info needed :) the 12v amps is what gives power to the important parts, so strong 12v rails is really more important than total watts from the psu.

you can run a gtx 960 easily as is. but a 970 would be a good idea to replace the psu. you won't need more than 500-550w from a quality unit for it, but they will provide more 12v amps by a long shot for the card and system.

just cause, take a look at the 5v amps. those 25 a is 25 * 5 = 125w available for almost nothing. little runs off it so the power is mostly wasted. but that 125w is combined into the total wattage the psu claims. this is how cheap psu's claim such high power but rarely deliver. add in cheap internal parts and a cheap psu is a liability to your system. as i have noted, the xps oem psu's seem to be good quality. i have upgraded many of these and so far no one has brought back a system i upgraded with psu problems. i have put all kinds of gpu's into them depending on price and wattage and these psu's have not been a problem so long as the gpu was within it's capabilities as a 960 would be.
 


That most certainly is the information needed.
Confirmed, PSU is crap xD

But as math geek explained, it should run the 960 without issues.

 

Danielle Spargo

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Thank you, you guys have been a huge help :) I'm going to have to see what my money situation looks like, but I'd really like to be able to get the 970. So which number in particular is too low? What do you look at to confirm a poor quality psu? Just so I'm a little more informed when getting my own. :)
 

Math Geek

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here is tom's list of psu's based on quality http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html

get something form the top 2-3 tiers at 500w or more and you'll be good to go. usually the cheapest yet still quality unit available is the xfx 550w one.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($46.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $46.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-07 15:16 EST-0500

however, with sales and rebates any given day it could be another model. but this one is normally the cheapest for non-modular units.
 

Danielle Spargo

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That is actually exceptionally cheap, as my bf is trying to build his own computer and is willing to give me 25$ for my current psu. If that will support the 970, then I'm on my way. :)

Edit: I'm just worried about the dimensions.

Over here http://www.scan.co.uk/products/550w-xfx-core-edition-p1-550s-xxb9-80-plus-bronze-1x135mm-fan-atx-psu
It says the dimensions of the XFX is 150 x 140 x 86 mm (WxHxD), but my psu was said to be (152mm x 83mm x 140mm) (WxHxD). I thought these things would be somewhat standardized, but people mix up where they put the width and height, and by comparing some of the dimensions, it seems that some of the PSUs actually have radically different sizes, but appear to be of similar sizes because the numbers are just switched. Will the psu fit on it's side or something? Or are people making typo's in their dimensions? Or are width and depth actually just loosely defined terms that can be switched to represent the same side of a PSU? I apologize if moderate intoxication has made this post unintelligible..

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139028 The corsair that is confirmed to fit says

5.9"(W) x 3.4"(H) x 5.5"(L) (150x86x140)

So even though the xfx's numbers seem to agree with the confirmed corsair, the 86 and the 140 are switched. Can the PSU be put in on its side?

 

Math Geek

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they just order them differently for some reason. it is still the same size and will fit in just like the old one did. i also wish they would order them the same way but it took long enough for the whole world to standardize the atx size overall. might take a while for the dimensions to be put in the same order everytime. :D

don't worry it will fit and will easily power the system with a shiny new 970.
 

Danielle Spargo

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The thing is, XFX specified the 86mm dimension as the depth, while corsair specified the 86mm dimension as the height. If the numbers were just mixed up without specification, that would be one thing, but it's seeming to me that what people call the depth and what people call the height is actually arbitrary. That's a pretty horrible system lol.

But I thank you for your reassurance. You guys have all helped immensely. :)