Graphics Card Upgrade

[wally1324]

I have the dell Inspiron 580s and i have the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator as built in video card.

I'm looking to upgrade my graphics card and wanted to know what my options were

 

[ionbasa]

After some reserch on the dell website I found out that you pc is a small form factor, but it does have 1 PCI-E X16 connector, the only thing that you would be limited by would be the form factor and the power supply.
Edit:
just to make sure this is the computer:http://www.dell.com/us/p/inspiron-580s/pd ?

 

[wally1324]

yup thats the computer

 

[ionbasa]

First question, Do you have a preference on whether you want Nvidia and AMD(ATI)
Will it be used for gaming? Movies? Home theater PC?
If for gaming do you want to play new games or games that are less intensive and are a 2-3 years back?

 

[wally1324]

I don't care which brand and I want it for new games so what ever has the most power and meets the system requirements

 

[ionbasa]

Okay, There is 1 problems: first the power supply is only 250 Watts which is a problem, If you would be willing to chang the power supply you could fit a Nvidia GTS 450 which is a very decent card with a decent price:
Newegg.com - Palit NE5S4500F0601 GeForce GTS 450 (Fermi) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Low Profile Ready Video Card

 

[ionbasa]

So the major problem is your power supply. If you want to run newer games, then you need a new PSU, but if you do not want to upgrade the PSU you will most likely be stuck with something like a: HD 5450 ATI card.

 

[bobkn]

The machine will only take half-height (low profile) graphics cards:

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/insp580s/en/cs/cs_en.pdf

I can't tell from the service manual whether it can take a standard ATX style power supply. My guess is, no.

It's still a current model. In customizing the build, Dell doesn't offer any discrete graphics card options. That's not a good sign.

 

[brianzion]

hi there
the ATI 5000 series are good i use the XFX HD5550 fantastic budget card no external power needed it is powered from the board i run two lcd/led monitors with no problems with games/movies/tv etc. ionbasa is correct you could increase the psu to 500w.

Radeon HD 5550 Key Features

– ATI Eyefinity technology with support for
up to three displays (1,4)
– ATI Stream technology (2)
- Designed for DirectCompute 11
and OpenCL(6)
- Accelerated Video Transcoding (AVT) (2,5)
– Compliant with DirectX® 11 and
earlier revisions
– Supports OpenGL 3.2 (6)
– ATI Avivo™ HD video and
display technology (3,7)
– ATI PowerPlay™ technology (7)
– DL-DVI, DisplayPort, HDMI
– PCI Express® 2.1 support
- Low profile graphics card, perfect for small form factor or home theater PCs

LINK :ar: Radeon HD 5550

 

[wally1324]

with the slimline computer do they sell psu's that fit in the computer

 

[brianzion]

that's a small dell Inspiron 580s i would seek comparison details from dell for your graphics/psu before upgrades. is there anything on there site?

 

[Darician]

If you want to upgrade your graphics card on the cheap without upgrading your power supply, you should consider either a Radeon HD 4650, 5550, 5570, or GeForce GT 220, 240, or 430 and they all should run decently without requiring an upgrade while still wiping the floor with the current Intel onboard graphics on your PC.

 

[wally1324]

hi there
the ATI 5000 series are good i use the XFX HD5550 fantastic budget card no external power needed it is powered from the board i run two lcd/led monitors with no problems with games/movies/tv etc. ionbasa is correct you could increase the psu to 500w.

Radeon HD 5550 Key Features

– ATI Eyefinity technology with support for
up to three displays (1,4)
– ATI Stream technology (2)
- Designed for DirectCompute 11
and OpenCL(6)
- Accelerated Video Transcoding (AVT) (2,5)
– Compliant with DirectX® 11 and
earlier revisions
– Supports OpenGL 3.2 (6)
– ATI Avivo™ HD video and
display technology (3,7)
– ATI PowerPlay™ technology (7)
– DL-DVI, DisplayPort, HDMI
– PCI Express® 2.1 support
- Low profile graphics card, perfect for small form factor or home theater PCs

LINK :ar: Radeon HD 5550

With that card would I have to Upgrade my psu or wood it work with the 250w psu that i have

 

[Darician]

The HD 5550 would run just fine with your current PSU.

 

[wally1324]

so this one would be fine to just plug in and it would work

VisionTek - Radeon HD 5550 1GB DDR PCI Express Graphics Card - 900331

 

[brianzion]

hi wally1234
just check the board spec for the pci slot in the pc (that link for the card you gave is $10 cheaper at amazon.) and you need not worry as Darrican has said about your psu it will be fine after doing some research. if you choose that card and it fits into your dell you will have the option to download the ccc program for it CATALYST CONTROL CENTER from AMD. when you fit the card you boot up windows will install the basic driver for it then head over to AMD and download the ccc for the HD5550 64 BIT version.

 

[wally1324]

will this card give me significantly better performance over what i have now

 

[brianzion]

will this card give me significantly better performance over what i have now

yes you will have more performance with it.

 

[brianzion]

1024 (MB) ATI HD5450 Radeon is this what you have in the machine now? looking on dell site for you this is what came up in the specs

SlotsPCIe x16(1), PCIe x 1(1), PCI(2)

 

[wally1324]

no i have the built in intel graphics media accelerator