Please please tell me what to buy!!

jibbajabba · 10-11-2009, 01:29 PM

Hi I am really struggling with a which graphics card to buy, there seems to be so many to choose from and i'm very confused!!
i have a Dell dimension 5150
305w PSU ( which i believe is not accurate)
3gb ram
plenty of everything else
my old 8600gt card died a couple of days ago with the fan packing up and it got way too hot!!
i want to play cod4 and be easily capable for MW2.
budget is around £100-£150
Nvidia or ATI?
i've just bought a HD4650 on the advice from some "expert" at my local PC World only to bring it home and realise a) i'd been screwed on the price b) it seems to be quite a low end card...am i right to think this?

Please can somebody offer me some plain and simple advice??

many thanks as always

**emosun** · 10-11-2009, 01:44 PM

A 4650 should be roughly the same speed as an 8600. Download driver cleaner , uninstall everything to do with ati and nvidia , then reinstall the 4650's drivers. When you change from nvidia to ati or vice versa you need to do this each time or the previous drivers can cause performance loss.

jibbajabba · 10-12-2009, 01:18 AM

i wanted to get a card with a bit more juice than my previous one, so i was kinda misled by the "expert"....can you suggest one which would be more powerful but still suitable for my system??

**emosun** · 10-12-2009, 02:14 AM

First try cleaning out the drivers to see if it solves your problem. It may turn out the card is better and you may not need a better one.

I will however not recommend another gpu since you only have a 305w power supply. I can help you get the 4650 working but without a better power supply in the machine you definitely cannot run better cards.

jibbajabba · 10-12-2009, 02:45 AM

hey emosun,
the fan stopped working on the old card therefore over heated and caused stalling and lag...after doing some research it seems that the DELL psu is a bit under rated and in fact is capable of running around 400w, not sure if this is true but seems to be a common thought.
and i want to get something abit quicker as the 8600gt was not quite quick enough??
thoughts?
have you heard of the problems with the 9800gt?
i run xp sp3 if this makes any difference?
cheers

**emosun** · 10-12-2009, 02:57 AM

I'm not sure where you heard dell underrates their power supplies. Because dell is know for using some of the worst cheapest power supplies in their machines. They use these cheap units to cut production costs. I would not be surprised if that power supply was only producing 200 watts.

As for the 9800 it's far beyond your machines capabilities. A 9800 actually requires a decent 600w or higher with 26amps on the 12v rail and to be 80+ cetified.

jibbajabba · 10-12-2009, 06:27 AM

ok, it's only from looking on other forums and i had noticed some comments regarding the PSU, believe me your knowledge is far far beyond mine...!
Back to the original point...i have now taken back my HD card, primarily because i can get the same card 50% cheaper elsewhere.
What should i go for now? i have a budget which is higher than the £40 needed for the HD card...is this not a situation where the more you spend the better the card?
please do not think your help is not appreciated, as without it i would be stuck!
thanks again

**emosun** · 10-12-2009, 12:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by emosun

I will however not recommend another gpu since you only have a 305w power supply. I can help you get the 4650 working but without a better power supply in the machine you definitely cannot run better cards.

trip1red · 10-12-2009, 08:55 PM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130502

10-11-2009, 01:29 PM	#1 (permalink)
jibbajabba Registered User Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 25 OS: win xp	Please please tell me what to buy!! Hi I am really struggling with a which graphics card to buy, there seems to be so many to choose from and i'm very confused!! i have a Dell dimension 5150 305w PSU ( which i believe is not accurate) 3gb ram plenty of everything else my old 8600gt card died a couple of days ago with the fan packing up and it got way too hot!! i want to play cod4 and be easily capable for MW2. budget is around £100-£150 Nvidia or ATI? i've just bought a HD4650 on the advice from some "expert" at my local PC World only to bring it home and realise a) i'd been screwed on the price b) it seems to be quite a low end card...am i right to think this? Please can somebody offer me some plain and simple advice?? many thanks as always

10-11-2009, 01:44 PM	#2 (permalink)
emosun Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: usa Posts: 6,910 OS: xp pro sp2 My System	Re: Please please tell me what to buy!! A 4650 should be roughly the same speed as an 8600. Download driver cleaner , uninstall everything to do with ati and nvidia , then reinstall the 4650's drivers. When you change from nvidia to ati or vice versa you need to do this each time or the previous drivers can cause performance loss. __________________ Gpu Benchmarks Cpu-Z Power supply information and selection Gpu-Z Video card quick list

10-12-2009, 01:18 AM	#3 (permalink)
jibbajabba Registered User Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 25 OS: win xp	Re: Please please tell me what to buy!! i wanted to get a card with a bit more juice than my previous one, so i was kinda misled by the "expert"....can you suggest one which would be more powerful but still suitable for my system??

10-12-2009, 02:14 AM	#4 (permalink)
emosun Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: usa Posts: 6,910 OS: xp pro sp2 My System	Re: Please please tell me what to buy!! First try cleaning out the drivers to see if it solves your problem. It may turn out the card is better and you may not need a better one. I will however not recommend another gpu since you only have a 305w power supply. I can help you get the 4650 working but without a better power supply in the machine you definitely cannot run better cards. __________________ Gpu Benchmarks Cpu-Z Power supply information and selection Gpu-Z Video card quick list

10-12-2009, 02:45 AM	#5 (permalink)
jibbajabba Registered User Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 25 OS: win xp	Re: Please please tell me what to buy!! hey emosun, the fan stopped working on the old card therefore over heated and caused stalling and lag...after doing some research it seems that the DELL psu is a bit under rated and in fact is capable of running around 400w, not sure if this is true but seems to be a common thought. and i want to get something abit quicker as the 8600gt was not quite quick enough?? thoughts? have you heard of the problems with the 9800gt? i run xp sp3 if this makes any difference? cheers

10-12-2009, 02:57 AM	#6 (permalink)
emosun Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: usa Posts: 6,910 OS: xp pro sp2 My System	Re: Please please tell me what to buy!! I'm not sure where you heard dell underrates their power supplies. Because dell is know for using some of the worst cheapest power supplies in their machines. They use these cheap units to cut production costs. I would not be surprised if that power supply was only producing 200 watts. As for the 9800 it's far beyond your machines capabilities. A 9800 actually requires a decent 600w or higher with 26amps on the 12v rail and to be 80+ cetified. __________________ Gpu Benchmarks Cpu-Z Power supply information and selection Gpu-Z Video card quick list

10-12-2009, 06:27 AM	#7 (permalink)
jibbajabba Registered User Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 25 OS: win xp	Re: Please please tell me what to buy!! ok, it's only from looking on other forums and i had noticed some comments regarding the PSU, believe me your knowledge is far far beyond mine...! Back to the original point...i have now taken back my HD card, primarily because i can get the same card 50% cheaper elsewhere. What should i go for now? i have a budget which is higher than the £40 needed for the HD card...is this not a situation where the more you spend the better the card? please do not think your help is not appreciated, as without it i would be stuck! thanks again

10-12-2009, 08:55 PM	#9 (permalink)
trip1red Registered User Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: La Posts: 79 OS: vista	Re: Please please tell me what to buy!! http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130502