Rebuilding premade HP Pavilion Elite.

[LaMaestro]

So I got my HP Pavilion Elite here and I was pretty satisfied with it's performance but as the gaming progresses so does my requirements. Basic specs are 8 GB RAM, GT 440 GPU, i7 2600 CPU, 1.5 TB HDD single Blu-Ray DVD Drive, HPDPS660DB PSU. So until games like Farcry 3 and BF3 came out it was doing fine, but now I can'y enjoy 100% gaming experience due the lack of juice. So I bought Zotac GTX 680 and found out that I have only 1 PCI cable, after Christmas I'm going to buy new PSU, also while fitting card in I've noticed that case itself is pretty tight in there and upgrading it any further may cause some differences although air ventilation is great. So I've been wondering if it's possible o take everything off the original HP case and put it in a new, more spacious one. Also if it's possible to change HP motherboard to let's say Gygabyte Assassin in the future. I don't want to completely build new Hardcore Gaming PC from scratch, I want to take as much good parts from original PC as possible and then upgrade the rest. Thanks in advance!

 

[DeusAres]

There's no need to overspend on the motherboard. A $130 motherboard from ASRock or Gigabyte would be an excellent upgrade choice. And yes, you can take your parts from the HP Pavilion and put them in a new case. As you've noticed, you'll need a new PSU though.

If you have any more questions, feel free to ask. I hope this helps.

 

[LaMaestro]

Thanks a lot and PSU is not the problem, although any suggestions what can I get in local electronics store? Also glad that I can customize my PC further, part by part it will be perfect someday. Thanks a gain for the answer and it really helped.

 

[DeusAres]

I'm not sure what your local stores offer as I'm not there, lol.

However, just look for something that is manufactured by a reputable company such as Corsair, XFX, or Seasonic. You'll also need to make sure it puts out sufficient wattage and is 80+ certified. A 500 watt PSU would be sufficient for your setup. Unless, of course, you plan on running a multiple GPU configuration. Then a 750 watt PSU would be recommended.

 

[LaMaestro]

Thanks and I prefer not to use online shops for things that I can get in store nearby. 750 W PSU seems fine, because I may use SLI

 

[DeusAres]

learn to use New egg online. Usually, prices are 20% lower, much more selection and no tax

Sometimes learning isn't the problem, bro.

Believe it or not, some people don't have access to online payment methods such as credit cards. Like me, they're forced to resort to the ancient payment method of paper money. Of course, if the OP really wanted to, he can go to Walmart and get a temporary credit card.

 

[tsnor]

Can you post your model number? You probably need a new ATX power supply to drive the GTX 680, but some of the elites (like the one I'm typing on) came with a 460W PSU that will drive the 195W GTX680. Others came with a 300W PSU and that won't cut it. I dont know HP model numbers, is the "HPDPS660DB PSU" a 660W psu? If so you have plenty of juice for the GTX680.

If you have the 460W PSU (or larger) you just need a $5 MOLEX to 6-pin adapter. Check newegg or amazon.com. Let us know if you need a link. There are also sata power to 6 pin adapters, use whichever you have extra cables.

Power supply is critical to system stability. The spec have no standards enforcement, so power supply makers can make some pretty wild claims. If you need a new PSU pick a good brand like Antec, Corsair, etc. Or post over on the power supply forum to get advice. There are some cheap good ones and some expensive bad ones.

My modded HP houses an older high wattage x58 chipset MB, i7-920 and 200W GTX 260 without any heat issues and without any additional fans. Swap cases if you want, but you probably don't need to swap to get better cooling. At least putting your old MB in a new case is far easier than putting a new MB in your old case -- all of the new case wires are labeled and so is the MB with nice pictures on HP website.

A new MB will give you very limited OC capability (only baseclock on the i7-2600 I think, but not sure... I don't OC CPUs). Not sure why you'd switch from the HP MB. Aside: HP tells you who made your MB on their support site. HP buys MBs from ASUS, MSI, etc. If you need a link post your model number.

p.s. An i7-2600 with a GTX680 will be awesome. Upgrade disk next -- either raid or SSD. Or grab a good gaming mouse.

 

[LaMaestro]

Model is Hp Pavilion Elite HPE. I'm not really looking to switch from HP but rather then upgrade case capacity. By the way when I opened PC PSU looks damn solid, metal corpus with a little hole in it from where all wires come out, so I thought that there is no way to plug addition PCI in.

 

[LaMaestro]

As for the MOLEX adapters, 2 of these came with 680. I am really new to all cabling and PC wiring so >_<

 

[LaMaestro]

So do I need PSU change?

 

[DeusAres]

Well, you can give those molex adapters a try on your PSU.

However, if I was in your situation, I would personally switch out the PSU for a better one. This way, you can avoid issues altogether.

Usually, the PSUs that come with pre-builts are tailor made for that specific case it is in. That translates into cables being shorter than normal. I don't know if this is true with your particular PSU, but it is a possibility. This would mean not having long enough cables to reach the designated areas in the new case.

 

[LaMaestro]

Yeah, after some thinking I'm getting new PSU tomorrow, thanks for the help everyone!

 

[tsnor]

Model is Hp Pavilion Elite HPE. I'm not really looking to switch from HP but rather then upgrade case capacity. By the way when I opened PC PSU looks damn solid, metal corpus with a little hole in it from where all wires come out, so I thought that there is no way to plug addition PCI in.

Hi, PLEASE DO NOT open the PSU. The caps in there can be deadly long after unplugging. (Never mess with a CRT display or tube TV either the high voltage can be deadly). To add the extra 6 pins you look at the wires leaving the PSU. Some go to the motherboard, etc. Leave those alone. Some are bundled up with a pull-tie. You will see some free 4 pin molex wires that are included for future expansion. First you cut the plastic pull-tie that bundles the wires together then you get the extra 6-pin by using some of the open molex (4-pin) wires and the 4-pin molex to 6 (or8) pin PCI adapters that came with your GTX680.

Yeah, after some thinking I'm getting new PSU tomorrow, thanks for the help everyone!

Odd are the new PSU you get will be worse, and may be a lot worse than your current PSU. Knowing your model number would help. "Model is Hp Pavilion Elite HPE. " is a partial model number. If you have an HPE-550F then you have the 460W psu and you already have all the power you need. Take a look in your case and see what it says on the sticker on the power supply. One way to cripple your system is to buy a cheap PSU.

Good luck, should be an outstanding system.

 

[LaMaestro]

I just got 650W LC6650GP3, cheap and silent, also got all the cables I need. After a lot of cable management (that HP case sucks at) I've stuffed everything in and connected 680. Working flawlessly, no problems at all. Perfect gaming experience.