Video Card Upgrade?

JoshB4802 said:
You raed my mind. :D I guess I give up for new video card, :(
Click to expand...

Don't worry, you will fine with new video card.

Just take more time to upgrade the motherboard and CPU, long as you feel ready and move video card to new motherboard.

My motherboard isn't new, it seems like 1-2 years old but still more benefit, such as upgrade to quad-core, thanks to Intel for not leap into new socket in short time, unlike AMD does and RAM is DDR2.

It's nice to have RAM DDR3 but performance for between DDR2 and DDR3 are in question due high latency in DDR3.
 
Foxrac said:
Don't worry, you will fine with new video card.

Just take more time to upgrade the motherboard and CPU, long as you feel ready and move video card to new motherboard.

My motherboard isn't new, it seems like 1-2 years old but still more benefit, such as upgrade to quad-core, thanks to Intel for not leap into new socket in short time, unlike AMD does and RAM is DDR2.

It's nice to have RAM DDR3 but performance for between DDR2 and DDR3 are in question due high latency in DDR3.
Click to expand...

OK, I have a good question. Is GeForce 9800GTX or GTX260 good enough for now? Maybe later in summer, I will buy whole new PC minus video card.
 
JoshB4802 said:
OK, I have a good question. Is GeForce 9800GTX or GTX260 good enough for now? Maybe later in summer, I will buy whole new PC minus video card.
Click to expand...

Yup, barely.

Don't forgot about PSU, PSU can be used on new motherboard too.
 
if you buy a new video card gf9800gtx or gtx 200 series but doesnt fit in your case, use dremel if you have it, just cut off the hard drive bay by dremel so it will fit for your video card.
 
look at the minimum amperage (a) not the wattage! will reply more when i get back.
 
Christer said:
if you buy a new video card gf9800gtx or gtx 200 series but doesnt fit in your case, use dremel if you have it, just cut off the hard drive bay by dremel so it will fit for your video card.
Click to expand...

Do Case modding, be creative to do with the case :lol:

Or find a CPU case with hdd on the front inner wall instead of bay or get a long case.

Catty
 
Foxrac said:
Socket 939 is no good for future games, it means can't upgrade to max it out, unless need new motherboard with recent socket like AM2 and GTA IV require quad core to max all it out with no lags.
Click to expand...

Ok ok man, just suggust'n :lol:

Yeah, I wanted quad core processor, it's my next thing to do list if I get plenty of $$'s.

Catty
 
JoshB4802 said:
I already have Athlon 64 X2 4800+ @ 2.4 GHz in my PC. I already check AMD Athlon™ FX-60 at EBay, whoa 200-500 bucks for that 2 years old CPU chip.
:shock: Aw shoot, I guess I need new AM2+ motherboard and AMD Phenom 9850 BLACK EDITION for new video cards.... :mad2:
Click to expand...


Why not go for AMD Quad core??

Catty
 
naishojr said:
look at the minimum amperage (a) not the wattage! will reply more when i get back.
Click to expand...

I agree! There are similiar graphic card with minimum wattage such as one with huge heat sink, Bad side is that it's taking room on 1x PCI-E or PCI slot.. I can see why some similiar graphic card have or don't have power jack on side.

I read somewhere that Intel is developing a new type of graphic chipset that will run smooth without buffer or some kind that do not demands power for the next generation PC.. I wish I had bookmarked that page!!! :(


Catty
 
Yup, gonna shed more info to the newcomers and newbies on the power supply wattage myths.

Many people get the idea instantly that bigger watt PSU = stronger. WRONG!

The number may be correct, but it is possible that the power supply cannot provide that much power at peak usage. It is merely an advertising number for some companies. When the PS gets hotter, sometimes it can't provide the same "wattage" as it originally states.

This is a pic I can describe it with:
psmyths-chart.gif


Newbies make this mistake often times, even I did a long time ago before I started researching about power supplies.

Here is a good example I can show you.

Newegg.com - Antec Basiq BP-350B 350W ATX12V Version 2.01 Power Supply - Power Supplies
Antec Basiq BP-350B 350W ATX12V Version 2.01 Power Supply - OEM

Output
+3.3V@20A,+5V@20A,+12V1@10A, +12V2@13A,-12V@0.3A, +5VSB@2.5A

This PSU has dual rails (12V1, 12V2) - Total Amperage available is 10A+13A = 23A total. Note it's 350 Watt listed.



LOGISYS Computer PS480D-BK 480W ATX12V Power Supply - Retail

Newegg.com - LOGISYS Computer PS480D-BK 480W ATX12V Power Supply - Power Supplies

Output
+3.3V@28A,+5V@36A,+12V@16A, -12V@0.8A,-5V@0.5A,+5VSB@2

This PSU has single rail (12V only) - Total Amperage availabie is 16A = 16A total. NOTE it's 480W listed!!!


Notice the distinction now? The Antec 350W will provide MORE juice (by 23A-16A = 7A) to the powersupply than this random Logisys 480W power supply!!
This is the basic to determining how much power you need. You figure out the Amperage the card requires, then you subtract that from your total PSU's amperage. After you got that, you make sure you have a few more Amps open for the rest of your system. Like a 34A (Can be Dual rail by 12V1@17A, 12V2@17A) power supply will provide enough juice for a 8800GTS that requires 24A of power at peak performance.



Next eye catcher:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817162015

Broadway Com Corp P4OKIA600-Blue 600W ATX12V Power Supply - Retail


Output +3.3V@32A, +5V@50A, +12V@24A, -5V@0.5A, -12V@1A, +5VSB@2A

Another Single rail PSU, 600 watt!! Notice WTF now? 24A on 12V only. This power supply can provide just a tiny 1A over the 350watt Antec!!!




This is what you need to keep your eye on when you buy a video card. And this is also why brand names like Antec, Fortron, Sparkle, cost MORE even though their wattage listing is less than the competitors.

Find out what AMPERAGE you need, not the WATTAGE. If you go by wattage you may choke your system in the long run after 3-4 years, when one day your video card goes kaput.

The power supply is the most important part of your system -- that is what is providing the energy to everything. It is like your blood circulation. If you don't keep it clean, it will contaminate and eventually kill other parts of the computer like motherboard, video card, hard drives, etc etc!!!

I cannot stress this enough. If you would like to learn more about this just ask.
if you buy power supply by wattage number, you are missing out on a lot of information!!!
 
naisho said:
Yup, gonna shed more info to the newcomers and newbies on the power supply wattage myths.

Many people get the idea instantly that bigger watt PSU = stronger. WRONG!

The number may be correct, but it is possible that the power supply cannot provide that much power at peak usage. It is merely an advertising number for some companies. When the PS gets hotter, sometimes it can't provide the same "wattage" as it originally states.

This is a pic I can describe it with:
psmyths-chart.gif


Newbies make this mistake often times, even I did a long time ago before I started researching about power supplies.

Here is a good example I can show you.

Newegg.com - Antec Basiq BP-350B 350W ATX12V Version 2.01 Power Supply - Power Supplies
Antec Basiq BP-350B 350W ATX12V Version 2.01 Power Supply - OEM

Output
+3.3V@20A,+5V@20A,+12V1@10A, +12V2@13A,-12V@0.3A, +5VSB@2.5A

This PSU has dual rails (12V1, 12V2) - Total Amperage available is 10A+13A = 23A total. Note it's 350 Watt listed.



LOGISYS Computer PS480D-BK 480W ATX12V Power Supply - Retail

Newegg.com - LOGISYS Computer PS480D-BK 480W ATX12V Power Supply - Power Supplies

Output
+3.3V@28A,+5V@36A,+12V@16A, -12V@0.8A,-5V@0.5A,+5VSB@2

This PSU has single rail (12V only) - Total Amperage availabie is 16A = 16A total. NOTE it's 480W listed!!!


Notice the distinction now? The Antec 350W will provide MORE juice (by 23A-16A = 7A) to the powersupply than this random Logisys 480W power supply!!
This is the basic to determining how much power you need. You figure out the Amperage the card requires, then you subtract that from your total PSU's amperage. After you got that, you make sure you have a few more Amps open for the rest of your system. Like a 34A (Can be Dual rail by 12V1@17A, 12V2@17A) power supply will provide enough juice for a 8800GTS that requires 24A of power at peak performance.



Next eye catcher:

Newegg.com - Broadway Com Corp P4OKIA600-Blue 600W ATX12V Power Supply - Power Supplies

Broadway Com Corp P4OKIA600-Blue 600W ATX12V Power Supply - Retail


Output +3.3V@32A, +5V@50A, +12V@24A, -5V@0.5A, -12V@1A, +5VSB@2A

Another Single rail PSU, 600 watt!! Notice WTF now? 24A on 12V only. This power supply can provide just a tiny 1A over the 350watt Antec!!!




This is what you need to keep your eye on when you buy a video card. And this is also why brand names like Antec, Fortron, Sparkle, cost MORE even though their wattage listing is less than the competitors.

Find out what AMPERAGE you need, not the WATTAGE. If you go by wattage you may choke your system in the long run after 3-4 years, when one day your video card goes kaput.

The power supply is the most important part of your system -- that is what is providing the energy to everything. It is like your blood circulation. If you don't keep it clean, it will contaminate and eventually kill other parts of the computer like motherboard, video card, hard drives, etc etc!!!

I cannot stress this enough. If you would like to learn more about this just ask.
if you buy power supply by wattage number, you are missing out on a lot of information!!!
Click to expand...

I read that in the past and learned that.

I kept my eye open for amps provide for 3.3v, 5v, and 12v. I have several power supply which was 250 watt and only 1 is enuf to power AMD XP Althon system that demands 300W or higher. Most importanly, be sure that mobo have the most Onboard chipsets for network, sound, graphic, and several more and EVEN turning off some hardware via BIOS that YOU DON'T use such as Serial port, Parallel Port, RAID, SATA, some USB that you don't use (if you don't have it plugged into). So basically, if you don't use certain hardwares in PC, it's good idea to turn it off if possible or unplug it in that way you allow to re-route Amperage to another hardware that you uses.

Remember, cheap off branded power supply do not offer enough power as listed. It is good idea to buy good brand or good quality power supply that provide juice as promised. I have 450W off brand "Deer" power supply which provide good amp, 28A for 3.3v, 37A for 5v, 21A for 12v. Better than nuthing.. So far, it have not crashed my system when I added new EVGA Nvidia GeForce 9400GT PCI-E card. The graphic card box said "300W or greater power supply with a minimum of 18A on the +12 rail". I have 21A on +12v rail so that's good enuf! But I have to remind myself if I decide to upgrade processor, add memory ect would eat up Amperage on power supply and upset the power balance of the system...

Remmy that if you want to use high end powerful graphic card on PCI-E or AGP, 3.3 volts or 12v power must have more amps provided by power supply. Be sure that it's enuf to provide power/amp for CPU, hdd, ect. to keep it in balance. BUT if you decide to turn on some hardwares in BIOS or adding CDrom or Hdd, It'll locks up system or crashes. Be sure that you have enuf juice from power supply to handle extra hardwares.

It is very common that brand named PC like Dell, HP, Emachine, Gateway to have subpar power supply (cus they try to cut cost.). If you add CDrom, HDD or hardware, it locks up or crashes or sometime system went on a blink. CDrw drive fail to write completely and OS locks up. It happens to my friend. I had to loan her my 450w power supply for her AMD64 Emachine with 208W power supply :eek2: (I was trying to make copy of Restoration CD in case if her hdd fails in the future, it works fine when using 450W PS.). I told her if she need to make big copy of file into DVD-r disk, She'll have to upgrade her power supply. I told my other friend who own AMD64 HP system to upgrade new power supply cuz she want to add another DVD drive. She bought Antec 500W power supply from Microcenter on sale. Her system ran much better and faster due to new power supply and upgraded memory. She gave me her old 235W Sparkle branded power supply so I used that on Althon XP system that doesn't demand much power. Works nicely even it's wussy for Althon XP.

So given idea if you want to upgrade to new graphic card, be sure that you have enuf juice on your current power supply or upgrade it. There's information on power supply sticker. It should provide you info how much Amps for +3.3v, +5v, +12v.

Catty
 
Last edited:
naisho said:
Yup, gonna shed more info to the newcomers and newbies on the power supply wattage myths.

Many people get the idea instantly that bigger watt PSU = stronger. WRONG!

The number may be correct, but it is possible that the power supply cannot provide that much power at peak usage. It is merely an advertising number for some companies. When the PS gets hotter, sometimes it can't provide the same "wattage" as it originally states.

This is a pic I can describe it with:
psmyths-chart.gif


Newbies make this mistake often times, even I did a long time ago before I started researching about power supplies.

Here is a good example I can show you.

Newegg.com - Antec Basiq BP-350B 350W ATX12V Version 2.01 Power Supply - Power Supplies
Antec Basiq BP-350B 350W ATX12V Version 2.01 Power Supply - OEM

Output
+3.3V@20A,+5V@20A,+12V1@10A, +12V2@13A,-12V@0.3A, +5VSB@2.5A

This PSU has dual rails (12V1, 12V2) - Total Amperage available is 10A+13A = 23A total. Note it's 350 Watt listed.



LOGISYS Computer PS480D-BK 480W ATX12V Power Supply - Retail

Newegg.com - LOGISYS Computer PS480D-BK 480W ATX12V Power Supply - Power Supplies

Output
+3.3V@28A,+5V@36A,+12V@16A, -12V@0.8A,-5V@0.5A,+5VSB@2

This PSU has single rail (12V only) - Total Amperage availabie is 16A = 16A total. NOTE it's 480W listed!!!


Notice the distinction now? The Antec 350W will provide MORE juice (by 23A-16A = 7A) to the powersupply than this random Logisys 480W power supply!!
This is the basic to determining how much power you need. You figure out the Amperage the card requires, then you subtract that from your total PSU's amperage. After you got that, you make sure you have a few more Amps open for the rest of your system. Like a 34A (Can be Dual rail by 12V1@17A, 12V2@17A) power supply will provide enough juice for a 8800GTS that requires 24A of power at peak performance.



Next eye catcher:

Newegg.com - Broadway Com Corp P4OKIA600-Blue 600W ATX12V Power Supply - Power Supplies

Broadway Com Corp P4OKIA600-Blue 600W ATX12V Power Supply - Retail


Output +3.3V@32A, +5V@50A, +12V@24A, -5V@0.5A, -12V@1A, +5VSB@2A

Another Single rail PSU, 600 watt!! Notice WTF now? 24A on 12V only. This power supply can provide just a tiny 1A over the 350watt Antec!!!




This is what you need to keep your eye on when you buy a video card. And this is also why brand names like Antec, Fortron, Sparkle, cost MORE even though their wattage listing is less than the competitors.

Find out what AMPERAGE you need, not the WATTAGE. If you go by wattage you may choke your system in the long run after 3-4 years, when one day your video card goes kaput.

The power supply is the most important part of your system -- that is what is providing the energy to everything. It is like your blood circulation. If you don't keep it clean, it will contaminate and eventually kill other parts of the computer like motherboard, video card, hard drives, etc etc!!!

I cannot stress this enough. If you would like to learn more about this just ask.
if you buy power supply by wattage number, you are missing out on a lot of information!!!
Click to expand...

I checked It out and it meet requirement on amperage for 2 PSU link that Josh provide it (first one in previous is +12V at 52A).
Newegg.com - EVGA 512-P3-N871-AR GeForce 9800 GTX(G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

Minimum of a 450 Watt power supply.
(Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 24 Amp Amps.)
Minimum 550 Watt for SLI mode system.
(Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 30 Amp Amps.)

I found it but not all info on newegg are list number of amperage on requirement list for video card.
 
Foxrac said:
I checked It out and it meet requirement on amperage for 2 PSU link that Josh provide it.
Newegg.com - EVGA 512-P3-N871-AR GeForce 9800 GTX(G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

Minimum of a 450 Watt power supply.
(Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 24 Amp Amps.)
Minimum 550 Watt for SLI mode system.
(Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 30 Amp Amps.)

I found it but not all info on newegg are list number of amperage on requirement list.
Click to expand...

Try 1,200 watt power supply and plug it to 240v power outlet --> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703020


Output +3.3V@24A,+5V@30A,+12V@90A,
-12V@0.8A,+5VSB@4.0A

+12v@ 90A for 12v rail :naughty: Hope it doesn't fry ur board.


Also try Ultra 2KW power supply :naughty: --> Legit Reviews - Sneak Peak - Ultra Products 2000W ATX Power Supply - Enough Power To Silence The Toughest Power Critics

If you don't mind giving your house wattmeter a whirl! :rofl2:

j/k

Catty:cool2:
 
Naisho. What if I buy EVGA GTX260, It need minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 36 Amps and 2 6-pin connectors. What's kind PSU I need?
 
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