compatible power supplies and graphics cards

[ajnackman]

hi

i was wondering if anyone could give me some information on compatible graphics cards and appropriate power supplies for them (at least 500w) for my CPU. I am interested in gaming, specifically SC2. Currently, my cpu sucks for SC2 so i need and upgrade and I dont want to but a new cpu untill college.

http://bizsupport1.austin.hp.com/bi...kId=101&prodSeriesId=3823602&prodTypeId=12454

this is my exact cpu

any help would be appreciated

 

[johnb35]

What other games would you be interested in playing as that all depends on what video card you have. Also what would your budget be?

 

[ajnackman]

i am willing to spend between 150 to 200 bucks. I am mostly interested in playing RTS games because I am also a console gamer.

my main concern has to do with the PCI express slot. My cpu has a 1.0 slot and most cards now use the 2.0. I have read that with current technology there really isnt a problem running a 2.0 in a 1.0 slot. Other then that am kinda on information overload after researching the past few days.

here is a card i am currently looking at

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=graphics+card&hl=en&cid=15363656190403826783#p

thanks for the help

 

[jonnyp11]

well you say 150-200 then post a 230+ card, and you also have to get a new psu, and you didn't actually say what cpu you have in there, is it the stock e5200 or whatever, cause that almost has to go, could barely run the drivers for the gpu let alone them and the game too.

 

[ajnackman]

well my budget is loose lol. Here is the psu that i am looking at. Im almost certain the cpu can handle the card and the psu.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000X24ISU

and i put all of my cpu specs at the first link

 

[claptonman]

That PSU can handle any graphics card, so your choices are unlimited.

 

[ajnackman]

my only worry at this point is if everything is comatible with my PC. Ill just have to do more research and order everything to try it out. I can always return stuff, but it would be nice to get it right the first time.

If anyone with some more experience then myself could just double check my research and let me know if stuff is comaptible, it would be most appreciated.

 

[ajnackman]

Ive done some more research and i have found that since sc2 isnt a horrible graphics intensive game, or any rts for that matter, that I shouldnt bust my wallet open with the GeForce GTX 560 Ti DS. Now im looking at this

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&q=GTX+460&cid=4365588636534322337&os=reviews&start=10

it is cheaper and I think it will do what I need it to do. Any advice in choosing between the two?

 

[jonnyp11]

any x16 card will work and that psu will power anything, so you're fine there, but if your psu is the e5200 pentium or whatever, you really may want to worry about it first, it's a pile of dung for gaming, luckily your mobo supports c2d and q's, should look into getting like a core 2 duo on ebay, new ones are overpriced compared to modern cpus since a 180+ buck core 2 duo can't compare to a 125 buck i3 2100, just make sure to look on the compatibility chart on the page you linked to earlier.

 

[ajnackman]

so your saying my real problem is the processor, and that I should look into upgrading it. Okay, this will be fun then lol. Thanks for the help johny

 

[StrangleHold]

I would not spend/waste money upgrading the processor on a socket 775. Just get you a good power supply and video card (which will improve it even with your processor). 775 is a dead socket.

Then later on when you have the money, upgrade the board/CPU and memory. You can move the new video card and power supply into the new build.