epicRelic

Right now I'm using an integrated video card and it is very sub-par for gaming. I'd like to upgrade to a better card but I'm not sure what would be compatible with my Dell 531 (NOT slim edition).
Unfortunately, I don't know a whole lot about what I need to worry about in compatibility.
Does anybody have a card recommendation that would suit my needs? Do I need to upgrade my PSU?

Thanks!

(Also, if someone could give me pointers on a good place to learn the nuances of video card hardware compatibility, please share.)

Tyree

I can't locate much info about the 531 but from what I can find you it does have a PCI-E graphics slot.
You will certainly need to upgrade your PSU for dedicated graphics and that will up the costs considerably.

emosun

This is probably the best you can do with 130$. There's free shipping so it'll max out your budget.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817171036
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814500062

epicRelic

Thanks for the links, emosun. I guess I should have been more specific and mentioned that the 120-130 budget was for the card alone. So neglecting the cost of a PSU at the moment, any recommendations for a video card? Or is the one you link to plenty fine?

wrench97

Is it the full size case 531 or the slim case 531s?

emosun

The power supply and card go together. The computer doesn't have a good enough power supply to support a gpu upgrade by itself.

epicRelic

emosun, I plan on getting a new PSU before I purchase a video card (probably the one you link to). I was just wondering if there were any other cards you recommend.

wrench97, no I don't have the slim edition, luckily. :)

wrench97

What is the total you would like to spend for both?

epicRelic

Probably about 180 to 200 dollars.

wrench97

The set up emo posted is a good midrange solution if you wanted to step it some more a HD4850 and 650TX would do nicely
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102824
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...9005&Tpk=650tx

Tyree

Edit: wrench97 beat me to it.

Newegg has the CORSAIR 650TX 650W on special for $90.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139005

EVGA 512-P3-N975-TR GeForce 9800 GT $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130518

You could go for a less expensive and less powerful GPU if you're not gaming.

epicRelic

The upgrades I plan on doing are pretty much is for gaming, Tyree. Right now it is almost all stock and the integrated graphics obviously doesn't cut it.

emosun

If the machine is stock guys then it's using a Athlon 64 X2 5600+ , which is basically a pentium D. Which means pretty much any high end gpu is going to be bottlenecked. Thats and it's an oem dell , not sure how well it'll take the newer pci-e 2.0 cards.

epicRelic

emosun, it is running AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4400+

wrench97

As usual Emo is correct, the 9500GT would be the best choice.

531sucker

Hey folks, I am running a BFG 9800 GT EcoIntelligence model on my Dell Inspiron 531 with the stock 300 watt power supply and it works great so far. No issues.

Phædrus2401

"EcoIntelligence" means it's the underclocked model rather than the full 9800GT, so rather than being a 125W card it's a 75W card. So it will run. For a while, at least. But I guarantee that you'll either start seeing issues within six to nine months of installation, probably failing GPU VRAM, instability in games, or the PSU just plain quitting. Or motherboard or RAM issues, though those are rarer.

emosun

So your running a 9400.... and you haven't had a fire yet......

ebackhus

I've got some GREAT oceanfront property in Arizona that's for sale.

I don't think that pc will last more than a few months as you have it configured. Aside from choosing poor motherboards, Dell is also notorious for using poor power supplies.

Phædrus2401

Here's why running a low-power video card in a system like the 531 is a bad idea.

The system has an mATX motherboard, a dual core CPU with a TDP of 89W, onboard video (the 6150 draws around 25-30W constantly, even when deactivated), RAM, a hard drive, yadda yadda. Idle, it probably draws about 60W from the PSU; under full load it probably pulls 150W. Dell provides a cheap Chinese 300W PSU. This PSU was tested at 25C, while in real life PSUs run at 40-50C, so it's actually something like a 250W PSU. So the PSU is enough to run the system for a basic user, with an ok safety margin.

Now let's add our low-power 9800GT, which draws approximately 70W from the system under load. Uh-oh! That puts us at 220W! But it's ok, the PSU is an equivalent 250W, right? Right?

No. Power supplies become "derated" over time. Corrosion of the motherboard traces and corroded or leaking capacitors (on a Chinese PSU they'll probably leak) cause the PSU to be able to deliver less current as time goes on. A quality PSU will be derated at a rate of about 2-5% per year. A low-end PSU can lose output at as much as 15% per year. But let's be charitable and say it's 10%, or 25W. That means that after one year our 250W Dell PSU has derated to a 225W PSU. But doesn't our system pull 220W under load? Whoops, there goes our safety margin! And in a couple of months after that, our system under full load might exceed what the PSU can deliver.

But wait, there's more! Power supplies suffer from what is known as "noise" or "ripple"--tiny fluctuations in voltage, happening in a cycle thousands of times per second. High end PSUs have very good noise and ripple control, so you rarely have to worry about it. A low-end unit, however, will have very poor control. This fluctuation is never enough to register on a standard voltmeter, on high end units as low as +/- 10mV, and on even the worst PSUs no more than +/- 150mV. But this irregular voltage can cause the motherboard circuitry to wear out very quickly if too high, and can damage RAM and GPU VRAM over time. Noise and ripple get worse the closer you get to the PSU's full load. Also, these low-end PSUs will have lower voltage overall when stressed; all PSUs will have voltage drops as they get closer to full load, but a high end unit will never drop below 11.8V. A low end one can drop to as low as 11.6V, which can cause extreme instability.


So there you have it. Your card will work in your Dell 531, for a while. Then it won't. And if the PSU fails before the graphics card does, you're going to need a whole new computer, because Dell PSUs often lack OVP and SCP circuits.




Mods: We might want to sticky this, I get tired of having to repeat myself.