Predator G3610 PSU

[Bozzan]

Can I install a GTX 970 with the supplied PSU which states 450W max and 500 Peak values?

 

[logainofhades]

Get a proper PSU, tier 1 or 2. OEM PSU's tend to not be very good units. http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html

 

[Bozzan]

Thank you for the response. A new PSU tier 1 or 2 plus a GPU would cost around 500 so the question that arises is, is it worth upgrading in the first place or simply change the whole setup, needless to say the latter would require another 500 or so!

 

[logainofhades]

Why would it cost $500? This combo would work. I chose the Zotac card, as it is a shortest card, with dual fans. OEM systems can be quite cramped.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 970 4GB Video Card ($305.89 @ OutletPC)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($55.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $361.88
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-02-09 11:49 EST-0500

Or if you want modular
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 970 4GB Video Card ($305.89 @ OutletPC)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $370.88
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-02-09 11:53 EST-0500

 

[Bozzan]

Question - My present PSU is also Bronze certified by FSP Group Inc. 500W peak (450 Max), does it count? Many thanks for your help

 

[logainofhades]

I believe if you use one of the mini-itx 970's, you will be ok, with that PSU. Depends on what kind of PCI-E connectors you have though.

 

[Bozzan]

PCix16.

I have a Predator G3610 with i7 3770 processor, 16GB Ram and AMD Radeon HD7670 2GB (Win 10). I recently purchased a Nvidia GTX960 to upgrade my GPU.

However when installed the computer only displays the ACER on screen and does not move further from there. It remains frozen therafter. I have checked the GTX960 on another system and it is working. I have also upgraded my PSU to 750W.

Have I overlooked something? What could the error be? Could it be that the motherboard does not support the card, which I feel should not be so?

Any advice and help will be appreciated.

 

[logainofhades]

Check for any bios updates, for your system. OEM's and upgrades can be tricky.

 

[Bozzan]

Thanks for your continued assistance. Since the BIOS is from 2012 there seems to be no upgrades since then. In your opinion could that be the most probable reason?

 

[Bozzan]

Question, how to check which motherboard it is and BIos? From the bootup screen or is there another app. I used Belarc Advisor which got me this

Board: Acer Predator G3610
Serial Number: 114224700004191
Bus Clock: 100 megahertz
UEFI: American Megatrends Inc. P03-A1 02/17/2012

 

[logainofhades]

Any bios updates you would have to get from Acer. You could try a CMOS reset as well.

 

[Bozzan]

What would a CMOS reset do and help with? How is it done? Any risks??

 

[logainofhades]

Resetting the CMOS, resets the bios. Sometimes when making hardware changes, the motherboard hangs on to what the old system configuration was. Being an OEM, you would probably need to remove the battery. Make sure the system is powered down completely, and unplugged before you do it.

 

[Bozzan]

Thank you. any risk of losing data etc.?

 

[logainofhades]

Only thing you lose is old bios settings, that you may have changed, prior, like boot priority. If you have changed nothing, then there isn't anything to worry about. Just make sure you touch the case, before you touch the battery, just to be safe, in the event of static electricity. Typically, after I shut down the system, I unplug the power supply, then hit the power button, just to make sure any stored electricity is gone, also.

 

[Bozzan]

Thank you. Appreciate your help. If that does not work, and I have checked that Acer no longer supports my system so there is no hope of getting BIOS update from there, would this mean that I have no option left but to change the whole setup?

 

[logainofhades]

Yes, you would then have to look at a new system. You could probably rebuild yours with a new case, motherboard, possibly cpu cooler, and copy of windows though, to save some money. OEM motherboards and GPU upgrades can be problematic, at times. They would rather you buy another one of their systems, vs upgrading.

 

[Bozzan]

Thank you for your time and effort.

 

[Bozzan]

I just noticed something else. My BIOS is PO3-A1 2012/17/2 while on the Acer website I found these BIOS's for my system

PO2-A2 2011/11/14 BIOS (for device with USB 3.0 supported)
PO3-A3 2012/5/14 BIOS (for device with Ivy Bridge & USB 3.0 supported)

Since one of them is dated before my BIOS I am looking at the later one i.e. PO3-A3

Will it be ok to update my BIOS with this one and what are the risks?

 

[logainofhades]

You could try the later one. Bios updating can be risky. If it fails, and can make your board useless.