My pc...upgrades?

[MRC390]

hey guys It's time for an upgrade! I'm going to ncix in a few days and I wanna upgrade my pc.

Here is what i currently own:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883109035&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-RSSDailyDeals-_-na-_-na&AID=10521304&PID=4176827&SID=tj4ctukmr0d1

I recently added in a 8500 GT that I got for free, but I want something a little more. Its the 256mb DDR2 version.


Current psu: 250W
CPU: Athlon II x2 215
RAM: 3GB DDR2
500GB HDD

gaming on a 1336x768 resolution monitor, VGA.

I'm going to look for a cheap mid range card for some light gaming. Nothing major like battlefield 3, but some light-mid gaming. I'd like to hear suggestions for cards that will work with my 250W PSU without severe bottlenecks.

I really dont wanna spend over $120. also, is my 2.7GHZ cpu enough for gaming? its just a dual core. I just wanna get a card so i can increase performance. Maybe play some guild wars 2 if possible.

Thanks for your help in advance. If I need to upgrade my PSU I'll see if i can pick up a cheap one, will a regular sized PSU fit in my case?

 

[quilciri]

Sorry to say, you'll need a new PSU before considering a modern graphics card.

With adding a current graphics card to a pre-built machine, one issue that invariably comes up is the sub-standard PSU's used. Your machine appears to have a 250 watt PSU,and I wouldn't trust it to be able to consistently supply even that wattage.

currently your system draws (under full load, approximately)
CPU - 65w
mobo/RAM - 50w
Hard drive - 30w
optical driver - 15w
CPU/case fans (5w ea) - 15w (covers 1 cpu fan, 2 case fans)

175w total.

wit the rest of your system specs, a 7750 or 7770 would be a solid pairing with your CPU and target resolution. The 7750 can draw up to 75w on it's own (the 7770 pulls more, and would need a 6 pin cable which you PSU almost certainly doesn't have). drawing 250w from that PSU is dangerous to put it mildly.

I reccommend the corsair builder 430w
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139026&Tpk=corsair%20builder%20430

good luck!

 

[MRC390]

Thanks for the reply! I can get a 430W PSU, hard drive, full tower case and maybe a intel dual core cpu from my uncle for free, so the rest can go into a decent mobo/gpu. Thanks!

 

[quilciri]

You're welcome!

Be sure to check the wattage on the +12v rail of the PSU, that's the most important number when picking a PSU for a gaming system.

good luck!

 

[MRC390]

Best answer selected by mrc390.