# Upgrading a graphics card



## Shoorik (May 26, 2012)

Hello, I have never modified a computer and need some help/advice. I currently have a 64 bit Windows 7 operating system installed into a Compaq HP D7700 Ultra-Slim computer. It has 3 GB of ram and has the Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU; 6300 @ 1.86 GHz 1.87 GHz. I believe the graphics card comes integrated with the motherboard; I have the Intel(R) Q965/Q963 Express Chipset Family. 

So, I am just curious, what would be a nice and cheap graphics card upgrade for this system? 

The current specs on the graphics card are: 

Adapter Information 

Chip Type: Intel (R) GMA 300 
DAC Type: Internal 
Adapter String: Intel (R) Q965/Q963 Express Chipset Family 
Bios Information: Intel Video BIOS 

256 MB of Graphics Memory 
0 MB of Dedicated Video Memory 
64 MB of System Memory 
192 MB of Shared System Memory 



Thank you guys.


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## claptonman (May 26, 2012)

What budget do you plan on spending? For a new card, you'll also need a new power supply.


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## Shoorik (May 26, 2012)

Somewhere under 50$. What kind of a power supply would I need, and how much do they run?


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## claptonman (May 26, 2012)

Very minimum would be something like a corsair CX430. The cheapest card would be about $50 also. Don't expect night/day difference between a lowend card and integrated.


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## Shoorik (May 26, 2012)

Thank you Clapton. But can you suggest any 1 GB graphics cards? I am not quite sure which ones would be compatible. As I said, I'm not very good at this. At all.


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## claptonman (May 26, 2012)

for $50, you can go with a AMD 6450 or Nvidia GT 520.


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## Shoorik (May 26, 2012)

Thank you very much for your help, I honestly appreciate it. One more question. The graphics card use DDR3, but my computer has DDR2 ram, does this really matter?


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## spirit (May 26, 2012)

Shoorik said:


> Thank you very much for your help, I honestly appreciate it. One more question. The graphics card use DDR3, but my computer has DDR2 ram, does this really matter?



Nope it will work fine. Remember to get a new PSU too though, Corsair CX 430 would be good.


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## Shoorik (May 26, 2012)

Okay, I've run into a little problem you guys. As I said above, my computer is the Compaq HP D7700 Ultra-Slim desktop. Here is how it looks like with the cover off.






This image is not mine, I found it on the Google search engine.

Anyways, all of the graphics card I've seen, are installed vertically to the motherboard. The thing is, I have the PCI Express x16 Slot, but the physical expansion slot for the card is horizontal to the motherboard, not vertical - since the computer is slim. Is there perhaps an extension cable that can be bought? What do you guys think, or am I just crazy?


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## Shoorik (May 26, 2012)

I think I've found the solution. I looked up an extension for the PCI Express x16 slot.

http://www.amazon.com/BestDealUSA-E...VJDG/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1338027041&sr=8-4

Do you guys think this would work so that I could install the graphics card horizontally to the motherboard instead of vertically directly plugging it in?


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## Shoorik (May 26, 2012)

Lol, I ran into another problem, the PSU is also slim.  A bulky one will not fit. Is it possible to just change the casing for this thing?


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## Shoorik (May 26, 2012)

Because I cannot upgrade my power supply, and it currently has 200W on it, is there perhaps a low profile graphics card that doesn't take too much energy out there? Suggestions are highly appreciated, thank you.


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## spirit (May 26, 2012)

Shoorik said:


> Lol, I ran into another problem, the PSU is also slim.  A bulky one will not fit. Is it possible to just change the casing for this thing?



It probably isn't going to be easy moving the motherboard and the rest of the PC into another case. For a start you'd need an I/O shield which fits your motherboard properly.



			
				Shoorik said:
			
		

> Because I cannot upgrade my power supply, and it currently has 200W on it, is there perhaps a low profile graphics card that doesn't take too much energy out there? Suggestions are highly appreciated, thank you.


If you're going to have a GPU in that PC, you're going to have to try and use some sort of low profile card, but really you can't run any sort of dedicated graphics card at all whether it be a low profile or regular card off a 200W generic power supply. Sorry.


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## Shoorik (May 26, 2012)

I've read some other posts on different websites of people using a different graphics card with the same power supply and same computer. They said it works just fine. Hmmmm,  I am not giving up just yet.  Thank you guys for the help. I'll post more if I have any grand ideas.


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## wolfeking (May 26, 2012)

It can be done, but you will have a risk of blowing it up. On 200 watts, the best your going to be able to safely pull off is a HD 6450 or GT210, maybe a 8400GS. Much above that and you run out of power, and these are not going to be a lot better than integrated video.


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## Shoorik (May 26, 2012)

wolfeking said:


> It can be done, but you will have a risk of blowing it up. On 200 watts, the best your going to be able to safely pull off is a HD 6450 or GT210, maybe a 8400GS. Much above that and you run out of power, and these are not going to be a lot better than integrated video.



Thank you, I guess I will try the GT210. Hopefully that will work out on my computer.  How about the HD 5450? Would that also qualify?


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## wolfeking (May 26, 2012)

yea. The 5450 is the same chip as the 6450. It will run a little hotter and take a few more watts though.


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## G80FTW (May 26, 2012)

Shoorik said:


> Hello, I have never modified a computer and need some help/advice. I currently have a 64 bit Windows 7 operating system installed into a Compaq HP D7700 Ultra-Slim computer. It has 3 GB of ram and has the Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU; 6300 @ 1.86 GHz 1.87 GHz. I believe the graphics card comes integrated with the motherboard; I have the Intel(R) Q965/Q963 Express Chipset Family.
> 
> So, I am just curious, what would be a nice and cheap graphics card upgrade for this system?
> 
> ...



If you want another opinion (mine), I would not spend any money putting a graphics card in that thing.  The obvious part, which has already been stressed, is the lack of power, the other is space, the third and probably not so obvious is that the system itself is weak.  As in, the processor/motherboard/RAM will bottleneck almost any graphics card you put in there. And also given that it already has integrated graphics, that will too suck a little bit of power even if you install a graphics card.

But, if you want to be able to play games like CSS nicely, I would suggest:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127602

I think honestly thats the best you will be able to do.  And I would bet your system will still bottleneck even that card, but at least it would be a step up from integrated.  Im not 100% sure that card will even fit in your computer, but it does say it will fit in slim cases.


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## Shoorik (May 27, 2012)

I have looked at many different graphic cards from the list wolfeking suggested. I have settled down with this one because it seems fit for what I need in a graphics card. 



Thanks again wolfeking, I'll let you guys know how it works out.


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## G80FTW (May 27, 2012)

Shoorik said:


> Thanks again wolfeking, I'll let you guys know how it works out.



Please do. Id be interested to know how much better that is over integrated. I havent used integrated graphics, ever haha. Only on school computers when I was in high school  .


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## Okedokey (May 27, 2012)

There is no way in hell that ANY discrete GPU should even be attempted to run on a 200W PSU.  Anyone who suggest it can doesn't understand PSUs.


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## Shoorik (May 27, 2012)

Lol, well, we'll see. I'll give it a shot. I've read up on other websites that people have upgraded their graphics card with the same computer. If anything fries, that's okay, the computer was worth 175$ anyways.  I'm sure it wont be that bad, I've read into the reference guide for this computer model and saw something about upgrading a graphics card. I assume that's what the slot is there for anyways, right?


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## G80FTW (May 27, 2012)

bigfellla said:


> There is no way in hell that ANY discrete GPU should even be attempted to run on a 200W PSU.  Anyone who suggest it can doesn't understand PSUs.



It depends on the PSU.  Some factory PSUs can handle a little extra, as most pre-built computers have a power supply big enough for optional upgrades.  You gotta think about it, his 200W PSU does not have alot to power like a top end gaming PC does.  His CPU, for one, draws very little power compared to something like my i7, and I doubt theres any sound card or anything probably a small single HDD and an optical drive.  200W can power a low profile video card as long as the rest of the system isnt draining too much of it, and from the looks of this his system should be really power efficient.


For the card I recommended (the GT430):

http://www.geforce.com/hardware/desktop-gpus/geforce-gt-430/specifications

Max power draw is 49W.  So it would only be using 1/4 of his PSUs rated output in the worst case scenario.

And here is the 210 that he said he chose:

http://www.geforce.com/hardware/desktop-gpus/geforce-210/specifications

30.5 watts.  I would say he is completely safe using that graphics card with a 200W power supply.


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## Shoorik (May 27, 2012)

Yes, G80FTW, thank you for your input.

The only thing this computer has is a small Disk Drive, no sound card, just a jack for speakers from the motherboard I believe, an integrated graphics card, the CPU (Intel Core 2 Duo), motherboard (80 GB of space), 3 DDR2 Ram sticks (1 GB each), some extra USB slots, and I think 3 mini fans (2 for the CPU and 1 for the power supply).

Some thermal cooling here and there.

Lol, that's it, that's my machine. It works really well actually and is rather quiet. 

I got this computer because I was using an old family computer that was purchased back in 2001. It costed $1200 un-inflated dollars back in the days. It has 512 MB of DDR RAM, Windows XP Home Edition, a 64 MB nVidia GeForce MX440 Graphics Card, 120 GB of space, two Disk Drives, an Intel Pentium 4 Processor, and I think a 270W power supply.

Compared to the old computer listed above, this computer works great!  And it only costed me $175 inflated dollars.


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## Shoorik (May 27, 2012)

Also, one thing I've just learned about is the "base score." Currently, the base score for my Compaq HP DC7700 computer is 3.4. The lowest score is the Gaming Graphics (at 3.4) and the second to lowest is the Graphics (at 3.9). I think that this graphics card upgrade should help the computer bring up the base score. I just have one question, does the graphics card effect both Gaming Graphics and Graphics together? If so, I may be able to bring my computer's base score up to a 4.9, which is the processor, the third to lowest score.  Isn't this a big improvement or what?


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## G80FTW (May 28, 2012)

Shoorik said:


> a 64 MB nVidia GeForce MX440 Graphics Card



I had a GeForce 2 MX200 in 2001.  Was the best freakin graphics card ever! They didnt even have heatsinks back then! I installed a heatsink and fan on it and overclocked the crap out of it and it never died.  But it blasted through DX7 games of that time pretty nicely.

As for the windows index score, which I believe is what you are talking about, yes your score will be your lowest score. Which makes sense, as any computer is only as fast as its slowest component. Take mine for example, my rig is only as fast as my G80 will let it be in gaming   My i7 pretty much is just sleeping when Im gaming, waiting for my video card.


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## Shoorik (May 28, 2012)

Heh, it's good to hear from people who know about computers even from the "old" days lol. Technology is speeding up fast huh? The coolest graphics cards we have nowadays will be outdated in just 1-2 years. I remember, perhaps 5 years ago or so, a 1 GB USB stick was worth around $20-30 (I think). Nowadays, you can get a 32 GB USB stick for around $20 on Amazon. 32 times better in just 5 years and a little cheaper, even with the inflated dollars.


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## Shoorik (Jun 3, 2012)

Oh yes, so I have installed the "EVGA 01G-P3-1312-LR GeForce 210 1GB 64-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Low Profile Video Card," and the fan is reallllllly loud lol. But the graphics seem to be working great. With the integrated graphics card, I played a game on rather low resolution and that was the only way it wouldn't lag spike. Now, I can play the game on the highest resolution with no lag at all. The 200W PSU seems to be taking it just fine too. I have a CPU which takes 65W. So I guess the whole machine is low profile. 

Overall, good upgrade. ^_^ Though I may return the graphics card and get a different one because the fan is super loud. I should have taken into consideration the reviews on this graphics card.


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## sicdeath (Jun 3, 2012)

I would recommend to go for a used graphic card as you can get a great one around $50 such as the 8800 GTX.


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## Okedokey (Jun 3, 2012)

G80GTW you have no idea.


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