new computer, need new graphics card

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prowler09

New Member
I just bought a Compaq SR5550f. It has a GeForce 6150 now. Im looking at this GeForce 8600. Would this work for me? I dont want to spend any more than $100 and I dont want to have to replace my psu or anything. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
 
Yes it will work based on looking at this.

As you have a on board graphics chip with shared memory getting a dedicated card would speed up your system slightly and improve gaming.

As Cohen said what is it you want to with it? Gaming, Media, Internet/Word Processing or all.
 
If you're getting the 8600GT you may want to look at a new PSU. If you can't upgrade your power supply you might want to look at the 8500GT. The 8600GT recommends a 400W power supply (if I remember right) with ~18A on the 12V rail. My stock PSU was 250W and had 14A on the 12V rail. Not a good idea to run any card (unless it's reaaallllyyy bad) unless you upgrade your power supply.
 
i am mainly interested in just Internet/Word Processing, but i also want to be able to play a few games such as madden, ncaa, and other sports games. the computer is plenty for everything but gaming. im no crazy gamer, i just wanted a fairly basic computer that will still be able to play a few games.

i know it has a 250w psu, and wanted to get a card that didnt need to have anything bigger. how do i know how many watts the card recommends have?
 
They usually show the minimum system requirements on the manufacturer's website. The 8500GT and the 8400GS both apparently require 300W with 18A on the 12V rail. It would be best to get a new power supply with the new video card but you might be able to get away with an 8500GT on that PSU. If the onboard graphics work fine though, it may be best to stick with that. Not only does the video card require more power, but it makes more heat. Unless you're serious about upgrading the card, maybe adding some case fans, and a new PSU, I would try to see if you can manage without a video card. When I added my 8800GT I put in a 500W PSU with an 120mm fan and 2 case fans.
 
I agree with kookoo-i'd upgrade the power supply-i had an emachine and added a 8500 gt but it had a 300 w psu that i upgraded to 400w.
 
I ran my amd sempron at 2.6ghz(2.1 stock)and 2 hard drives a disk drive and a 8600gt all on my 300watt psu. Plus my 8600gt is overclocked. Stock is 540/400 on ddr2. My mem is 450 and my core is 670. If you upgrade the psu go for a card like a 9600gt. u can get them for about 100$
 
Yeah I agree with Bob, except for the fact that you ran all of that on a 300W hahaha. If you get an 8500GT you have to get a new PSU, but if you get a new PSU you might as well get a better card.
 
yea, i wanted to build my own computer, but i dont feel like i know enough to pick out my own motherboard and processor. it just seems a little overwhelming to me. everything else im ok on though. thanks for all the feedback! i think i will see how well it performs as is, and go from there. if i need to upgrade psu after all, oh well lol. :D
thanks!
 
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