New PC and want to add a new video card...

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plaz

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Aug 15, 2004
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I just bought this PC and it just shipped...

HP Pavilion p6270z PC
• Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• AMD Athlon(TM) X4 630 quad-core processor [2.8GHz, 2MB L2, up to 4000MT/s bus]
• 4GB DDR3-1066MHz SDRAM [2 DIMMs]
• 500GB 7200 rpm SATA 3Gb/s hard drive
• Integrated graphics - ATI Radeon HD 4200
• LightScribe 16X max. DVD+/-R/RW SuperMulti drive
• Integrated 10/100/1000 (Gigabit) Ethernet, No wireless LAN
• 15-in-1 memory card reader, 2 USB, audio
• No TV Tuner
• Integrated 7.1 channel sound with front audio ports
• No speakers

I am guessing the integrated graphics will not be that good so I want to add a $100 or less video card to it and was wondering what my best option might be? I do some gaming but it is mainly the older stuff like Diablo 2/AOE/RCT, the only newer game i have been playing is Anno 1404 and would like to buy Dragon Age that was just released. The power supply is 300W.

Thanks!
 
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You'll want to avoid any card with a power connector like that 9600GT.
The HD4670 is a good choice for low resolutions. It's slightly less powerful than the 9600GT but it doesn't need a power connector and can be had for $45 after rebate at the moment;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121329

If you want to game at high resolutions you are going to need to upgrade that PSU and spend at least $110 for a card.
 
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To be perfectly honest, if you are playing Diablo 2/AOE/RCT, the onboard ATI HD4200 may be perfectly sufficient. Those games are older and the onboard ATI solution is REALLY nice, for onboard. I am willing to bet it will play those games perfectly.

Just see what it does and go from there.
 
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Honestly. You may be able to just crank those games on the onboard video. If it was the Intel onboard, it would kinda stink. But the ATI solution is pretty good to tell you the truth. For older games it will probably run them perfectly fine.
 
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I was reading reviews of the 4670 on Newegg, one said he put it into a 300 psu and worked great, later in the reviews read where the card requires a 400 psu. Is that something that I have to worry about?
 
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For that model a 4650 is available to be installed form HP. I would assume a 4670 is a safe bet as is only consumes a little more power. 400W is the total system wattage. Many times they are conservative on this requirement because they do not know what other items are you your system that are consuming power. Since you are running an Athlon x4 with few components, I would think its a safe bet. If you had an i7 with a few drives, I would stick with the 400W. Hopefully that makes sense.
 
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Yes it does

Yeah the upgrade options were:

Choices:
Integrated graphics - ATI Radeon HD 4200
512MB NVIDIA GeForce G210 [DVI, HDMI, VGA] +$50
512MB ATI Radeon HD 4350 [DVI, HDMI, VGA adapter] +$80
1GB ATI Radeon HD 4650 [DVI, HDMI, VGA] +$100
1GB NVIDIA GeForce GT 220 [DVI, HDMI, VGA] +$130
1.5GB NVIDIA GeForce GT 230 [DVI, HDMI, VGA] +$160

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I just kept reading about people just putting them in for themselves and figured I would and save some $$$ (and pehaps get a better card). I do see where I can get the above GT220 for $60 on Newegg, thats 1/2 as much as HP wanted for it.

Thanks for your help. I know I should wait to see what the onboard does, but I will probably pull the trigger on something. Wouldn't any of the upgrades that HP offered be better overall?

 
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It depends on how quiet you want really. The His IceQ is going to be the most silent. The Sapphire ones with the larger fan will most likely be. The once jyjjy mentioned is probably fine, but I've had cards with a similar ASUS fan and they had a steady hum to them. If this is in a noisy room it won't much matter. But my guess is since its an HP the fan controls are set to keep it quiet. I'd opt for the HIS.
 
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The best price/performance in 4670s is the 512mb DDR3 versions. The card can't really make use of more Vram, but if the price is close enough between 512mb and 1gb versions, it doesn't really matter. Just make sure you get the DDR3 version, as the DDR2 is crippled in its performance comparatively.

It is an excellent low power card, and an easy recommendation for those looking to upgrade from onboard graphics without having to purchase a new PSU. The PSU recommendations from the manufacturers include worst case scenarios (as pointed out above, i7 + lots of HDDs etc) and overrated unbranded PSUs. You should be just fine, as HP uses decent PSUs in their pre-built PCs.
 
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I should mention that my experience with 4670s has been limited to sapphire models, and the fan noise was never noticable to my ears, but to be fair, I have a few decades of Metal shows notched into my eardrums.
 
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Thanks, you guys have been a great help. now it just comes down to the 512 ASUS for $52 delivered versus the HIS 1 g that delivers in for $80. So is $28 extra worth it for the 1G (and maybe quieter fan), will there be that much difference in performance?
 
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The difference in memory is totally irrelevant for an HD4670. You would need a card at least in the HD4770/GTS 250 area for 1gb vs 512mb to matter and they would need to be running at high resolutions. The important difference among HD4670s is DDR2 vs DDR3 but neither of the cards you are looking at is DDR2 so that's also a nonissue.
 
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