Graphics card upgrade....help please!

Hi I have been using my dell 8400 computer for about 2 years now and I have an old ati radeon x300 graphics card which is awful for a bit of casual gaming or media. Problem is I think my computer only has a 300 watt power supply so i am worried about upgrading to a more powerful graphics card that could damage my computer. The graphics card i'm interested in is a Sapphire Radeon x1550/512mb/pci-e.

Is this suitable at all for my computer or should i buy a less powerful graphics card? Please help as i dont really want to try upgrading my power supply, i have little knowledge of upgrading computers as it is.

300w powersupply WILL blow with the latest graphics cards. Even the budget ones.

I recently installed a 5200 into my grandmas computer after her other 1 gave up the goose, and it recommended 400w for "stability". Luckily she dosnt play games, but if you do, and a 5200 recommends that, then thats what you get.

These days, id recommend at least a 480w power supply for the non-cutting edge cards. And for the 8800s of this world, a 620. I know this because I recently built my new pc with an 8800 GT and it made my Tagan 520w power supply turn into sparks and fire before my very eyes. BUT because it was a Tagan, a well known brand, it had good surge protection and didnt break even 1 component. I then bought a 620w Corsair.

Dont buy a cheap power supply either! Corsair, Enermax or Tagan. Those are the best 3.

Unless you want your PC to turn into fire and PROBABLY take all the other components with it (dell probably wil use cheap power supplys to cut corners) you must a) get a more powerful power supply and b) get a well known brand.

Do not skimp on your power supply, a cheap one/unknown brand, if it blows it will USUALLY take something with it in the power surge, probably your mobo. And a cheap power supply is often 20% less peak power than advertised.

They are dead easy to install, all the power wires have different connections for the different parts that you need to plug into. Just read the manual first.

Hope that helps.

Ok thanks very much for the reply, i'm not sure if i would be able to install a power supply myself becuase apparently dell computers like this one which is quite old arent compatible with most psu's so that could be a big problem...

So do you think there would be a compatible psu i could use for my computer or should i just forgot the idea?

I have found a psu unit on the internet and its a corsair 450 watt here's the link if you could look at it please would help a lot as i dont know much about the right psu to get.http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/-/698/905/-/3476846/Corsair-VX-450-PSU-Power-Supply-Unit-450W/Product.html?searchtype=genre

I am pretty sure this will be able to handle the sapphire radeon x1550 card. Tell me what you think :)

Im not quite sure what you mean. Power is power. Unless they are talking about the design of your motherboard.

Most motherboards these days are called ATX motherboards.

620W Corsair HX Series Modular SLi PSU, ATX, EPS 12V, whisper quiet, 5 year warranty: Thats the power supply im using at the mo. Its probably overkill for what you want, but ill use it to demonstrate my point.

"Supports the latest ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 standards and is backwards compatible with ATX12V 2.01 systems. "

basically, maybe the only way to find out what your motherboard is, is to open it up and have a look. It will usually say somewhere if it is an ATX mobo.

ATX covers the voltage and the "shape" of a mobo. For example, if you got an ATX mobo, you will need an ATX case, so everything comes out where it should, and an ATX power supply, to give it power. There are other types of mobos, but Ive never used/built one because I just happen to have always used ATX since its the most widley accepted "type".

Dell are notorious for "locking" their bios, which means that replacing any component will jsut cause the system to go "wtf are you doin?". Which may be a problem for you.

Its hard to recommend really what to do. But if its an option and ur computer is quite old, maybe look at getting a new pc? And get a custom built one, or build one yourself. Dont get a brand name one. Because I built my latest PC for £750. To get a SIMILAR but slightly SLOWER pc from Dell XPS, it would cost me £999. If it is an option, support your local indipendant pc store.

If not, then you will have to upgrade your power if you want to put in a new card. And even then, I cant garuntee your bios has not been locked by Dell.

See im really not sure what to recommend. "Specification Compliance: ATX12V 2.2" is what the specs for that psu say but if your ATX is a bit older im not sure that will work. Maybe if you tell me the rest of your specs i might be able to help. Ideally, I need another forum member to check.

May sound strange, but I actually dont know much about the whole ATX thing when it comes to mobos. Because I use the latest mobos and just get the latest power supplys and they just work. Its not a problem ive ever had to look at.

But I would say that its worth finding out exactly what your mobo is to avoid problems.

I use www.scan.co.uk . They have a few places, my nearest is bolton here in the UK, I assume you are in the UK cus you are using play.com . Anyway, scan are the cheapest I find, and you can either que up and get it on the day or mail order it.

See, a p4 needs an atx 2.03 but that only supports 2.2

Its a minefield, one even Im not 100% on.

Older Dell computers, particularly those from the Pentium II and III times, are notable for using proprietary power wiring on their power supplies and motherboards. While the motherboard connectors appear to be standard ATX, and will actually fit a standard power supply, they are not compatible. Not only have wires been switched from one location to another, but the number of wires for a given voltage has been changed. Thus, the pins cannot simply be rearranged.

The change affects not only 20-pin ATX connectors, but also auxiliary 6-pin connectors. Modern Dell systems may use standard ATX connectors. Dell PC owners should be careful when attempting to mix non-Dell motherboards and power supplies, as it can cause damage to the power supply or other components. If the power supply color coding on the wiring does not match ATX standards, then it is probably proprietary. Wiring diagrams for Dell systems are usually available on Dell's support page.

Taken from ATX page on wikipedia.

Honestly mate, I dunnu what to surgest. I havnt really got much knowledge about PSUs and those that are in manufacturer PCs. Im an actor by trade and build PCs as a hobby :P.

Id say jump over to the avforums.com and ask in one of their computer hardware sections. Its where I go when Im not sure about something. Faster replies too.

Best of luck.

Thank you very much for your help, I have never in my life of using the internet come across someone as helpful as you. It was just a thought in my head today about getting a new graphics card, at first i thought you could just buy one, fit and off you go. But obviously its a lot more complicated than that in my case, so maybe i'll just have to stick with an x300 ati lol :)

Finally, is there a low end graphics card that i could fit in computer without hassle or am i asking for to much, with the sort of psu i have...

Thanks again for your help, really appreciated

Oh the specs of my pc are the following;

1 gigabyte of ram, intel pentium 4 HT, ati radeon x300 series graphics card, and its a dell dimension 8400 if that helps at all

Not a problem mate.

Hmmm. See its hard to say, cus I fit a 5200 card to my nannas pc the other day when giving her my old one and it says it recommends a 400w power supply for stability. Now that will be under load, but obviously, you will want to be playing games too.

See the thing is with Dell, they cut alot of corners to make the PCs an attractive price. And unfortunatly, here is an example. If its only got a 300w power supply, I could say upgrade to any of the budget cards of either ATI or Nvidia (figure out which slot you have, an AGP slot or PCI-Express). But they will all say in their manual that they recommend a 400w power supply, maybe more.

If your graphics card is stable at the moment then thats ok. But if you got another budget card, like, anything from the 7200 range or even 8200 or whatever the equivalent card for ATI is, Im almost certain its gonna need 400w.

I really cant say mate. I would look at any of the *200 cards from nvidia, as nvidia from 7 series up are a bit better than ATI. But that 300w power supply may mean your computer either a) crashes and reboots or b) the power supply goes pop.

If your power supply goes pop it could take other bits of your pc with it. Also replacing it could be a nightmare if your dell system is one of those "dell stuff only" systems.

Also I cant garuntee your bios wont be locked, since alot of Dells are.

Best thing to do, is take it into an indipendant PC shop, or "the tech guys" at PC World and ask them if a) your bios will be locked and b) what card could you recommend with that 300w power supply. Somebody with hands on who can read all the labels and check the bios will give you the best advice. And, if something goes wrong, you can say its their fault :P

www.shinyplastic.com/archives/12-15-2004-reviews-dell-dimension-8400-review.php

Looks like you might be able to upgrade your graphics card without the BIOS saying no. BUT, I personally would still take it to the tech guys or a small shop and ask their opinion, especially with the power supply.

Once you open the box of any computer part, you cant take it back if its "wrong". You can only get an exchange/refund if it blows up or is faulty.

Anyway, take care and best of luck.

Wait just now it looks like I may have spotted gold....There is a website showcasing a PSU called silencer 470 dell and what looks even better is that the website says it is compatible with my computer the dell dimension 8400. The PSU is 470 watts but I am not sure where to actually buy the PSU and if it really is compatible.

It has a list of online shops of "where to buy products" but I havent yet found a shop that sells the so called PSU for dell computers...if i give you the link could please give me some advice on it?

It could well work with dell computers and there is a range of PSU's for dell, from about 350 watts to the 470 watts PSU i was talking about :)

The link is http://www.pcpower.com/power-supply/silencer-470-dell.html