Looking for upgradation of my old graphics card for Alienware X51 Desktop

[sumanh]

Hello

I have a Black Alienware X51 Desktop machine purchased in 2011. After 6 years my Nvidia Geforce GTX 555 1GB G DDR5 is not working and have a problem in the card.. i call dell customer support they said they have stop manufacturing of this product in INDIA..so thay cant give any solutions...

Right now i want to buy a new upgraded version of Nvidia Geforce GTX ..But don't know which graphics card will support in my alienware X51 Desktop machine..This time i will buy a good one and also i have a good budget for buy it.. My Alienware X51 desktop configuration are as below:

Processors - Intel Core i7-2600 CPU @ 3.40GHz ( 8 MB Cache)
Installed Memory - 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 SDRAM 1333 MHz Memory
System Type - 64 bit
Power supply - 330 watt

Waiting for valuable response

 

[bfcallan]

First of all, what is your motherboard, and second of all how big is your case? Does it support a full sized videocard?

Next with a 330watt power supply you're going to be a bit limited to the choices you can make with graphics cards.

It looks like your best options would be a 950 as the majority of them require 350w or below. These should work as long as you update your bios, but sometimes that can be a difficult process. There are video tutorials on the subject though.

You can also look at a card like the 750 TI.

What exactly do use this computer for though?

 

[refillable]

Wow... GTX 555, that was one outlandish card back in 2011.

I am baffled that they use a 330W "Okay-ish" PSU with a relatively power hungry card like the GTX 555. Even the 950 will be a great upgrade, with the 555 running fine I'd say a 950 would too. You can get a 500W PSU (Some Cheap, Excellent Seasonic units are below $50) and upgrade to the class of a 970 or 390.

 

[sumanh]

First of all, what is your motherboard, and second of all how big is your case? Does it support a full sized videocard?

Next with a 330watt power supply you're going to be a bit limited to the choices you can make with graphics cards.

It looks like your best options would be a 950 as the majority of them require 350w or below. These should work as long as you update your bios, but sometimes that can be a difficult process. There are video tutorials on the subject though.

You can also look at a card like the 750 TI.

What exactly do use this computer for though?

just today i check your message.. I am Sending the machine information:

Bios information -

Product Information - 07/25/2012
Product Name - Dell Alienware X51
Bios Ver - A06

Memory Information

Total Memory - 8192MB
Memory Speed - 1333MHz

CPU Information

Intel core i7-2600 CPU @3.4 GHz
Processor ID - 206a7
CPU Speed - 3400 MM2
Cache L2 - 1024 K
Cache L3 - 8192 K

Power Supply - 330 Watt

Previous Graphics Card - Nvidia Geforce GTX 555 1GB G DDR5 (Not Working its damaged)

I can't find the motherboard configuration, it will be better if you guide me how to find the motherboard details, what step to follow if i want to upgrade the power supply from 330 watt to 550 watt and upgrade of nvidia graphics card from 1GB to 2 GB.

By my profession i am a graphics designer and fashion photographer.. i have to work on many large files size and have to rendered many raw images and 3D art works..

Waiting for better Solutions.

 

[niconh]

I have the same spec and I'm also looking to upgrade my GPU, so thought I'd hijack this thread.

My main question after reading about upgrading the X51 is, is it worth getting a new PSU in order to get a better graphics card? My budget for now is happier with the 950 (or 960) but I'm trying to figure out if it's better for me to invest more now and have it last longer. Would getting a PSU and the 960 make a big difference compared to the 950, or should I aim for a 970 if I'm upgrading the PSU anyway? I guess if I don't get a new power supply the 950 is my best choice?

I don't play any too graphic heavy games (only playing Overwatch at the moment) and I'm ok with not using the highest graphic settings. However I would like it if I could still run new games a couple of years from now and have them look ok without upgrading again... Also, (as you can tell) I don't know much about hardware and don't know how difficult it is to change the PSU, if this is something I'd manage on my own or not.

To the question about the size of the video card, I don't think all full sized fit in the X51 case. I've seen people say 9.5 inches is the maximum length of the card and seen some upgrade their R2 with this http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-GeForce-Dual-Link-Graphics-02G-P4-2962-KR/dp/B00T4BWGBM/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1428101855&sr=1-2&keywords=nvidia+geforce+gtx+960

Thanks!

 

[DustinV]

The x51 uses an external power brick like a laptop. 330w is the best power brick you can get for it.

With the 330w, the x51 supports up to 150w tdp graphics cards, gtx 960 is 120w, gtx 970 is 145w for example
And you need a blower style card (like reference cards) so it will cool properly in your case

Please read this thread and ask if you have any more questions
(on the other thread)
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-3080130/upgrade-graphics-card.html

 

[niconh]

Ahh it makes much more sense now, thank you so much! I was getting so confused about the power thing, I know about the brick obviously (it's hard to miss lol) but since hearing about upgrading the power supply I wasn't sure that was all there was to it.

I'm still a bit confused about why those graphic cards have a minimum power requirement and still work with the X51, but at least now I know they're working.

I think I'm gonna go for the 960. Would this work one work? https://www.amazon.co.uk/EVGA-Nvidia-GeForce-Superclocked-Graphics/dp/B00SNVOUKE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1465312298&sr=8-2&keywords=gtx+960+evga
I still don't understand entirely which cards are blower style and not.. Is there any 960 card you would recommend me?
Thank you!

 

[DustinV]

Blower style is what reference cards are (from nvidia, but there are aftermarket versions)they sucks air in a single fan and blow it out of the case.