Upgrading graphics card, help needed please!

Clutterfree

Hello,
I bought my son this PC 20 months ago:

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/252738

Zoostorm Desktop, Quad Core Q8400 2.66GHz, 6GB RAM, 1TB HDD, DVDRW, GTS450, Windows 7 Home Premium

He has now got into PC gaming and wishes to upgrade the graphics card to this:

http://www.dabs.com/products/gigabyte-geforce-gtx-650-ti-1032mhz-2gb-pci-express-3-0-hdmi-8BP6.html?src=2

This is cheaper but only has one fan?

http://www.ebuyer.com/396968-gigabyte-gtx-650-2gb-gddr5-vga-dual-dvi-hdmi-pci-e-graphics-card-gv-n650oc-2gi

How do I find out if it is compatible with his PC please?
Also, is it easy to fit? Looks complicated to me as it has a fan with it!
Is it a case of removing old and putting in new?
I've no idea on the workings of a PC so any advice gratefully received.
Thank you.

bengalknights

There should be a empty pcie slot (long thin hole) looks like below

http://rpmedia.ask.com/ts?u=/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/PCI_und_PCIe_Slots.jpg/180px-PCI_und_PCIe_Slots.jpg

tonyh66

according to the link, the PC has a GTS450 already installed. This is a PCI-e 2.0 card, the motherboard may not support the cards you have linked as they are PCI-e 3.0 you need to check this.

Clutterfree

Yes it does already have a graphics card installed but he said it doesn't play all games now, so needs to upgrade it.
How do I find out if it's compatible please? Or do I need to look at PCIe 2 cards?
I'm a complete idiot when it comes to PCs, hence this thread!

nathand_2

The card you linked to isn't all that much of an upgrade. It's a newer generation but the performance increase isn't spectacular. Check out tomshardware.com

They have charts ranking graphics cards and also make suggestions every month on which card to go for in each price bracket.

Clutterfree

Thanks.
I let my son know and will probably be back once he's found one for more advice!

neilwoods

Are you able to open up the side and look for name and model number of the motherboard.

By no means big on graphic's cards, but a pci-e 3 card will work ok pci-e 2 card so long as it is x16, but if x8 then will notice a difference.

All depends on your budget.

Clutterfree

Thanks.
Will get hubby to take a look tomorrow.
Really don't want to go over £125 if I can help it, unless an extra tenner or so would make a huge difference.

Clutterfree

Found a cached version of the PC web page which shows more specifications of sons PC, if that helps.

http://woks!!!!!!!!/cache/?http://www.ebuyer.com/product/252738

Edit... Blocks web link, remove space for it to work.
http://woksbox. net/cache/?http://www.ebuyer.com/product/252738


PC details

Product Description

Gaming, movies, office, photo and video editing - the Zoostorm Quad Core can do it all! It brings you staggering performance for a low price that defies its high specification features. Packed with Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium, the very latest Intel Quad Core Q8400 processor, an amazing 6GB of DDR3 Ram, a huge 1TB hard drive and the latest dedicated nVidia GTS450 graphics, this PC system has the lot!

This model comes with Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium pre-installed to reduce set up times. ! !



Processor
Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 Quad Core Processor 2.66Ghz,
4MB Cache
Memory
6GB DDR3 133Mhz
Expandable to 8GB Max
Hard Drive
1TB (1x1TB) SATA II
Optical Drive
DVD Supermulti
Software
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium 64Bit
Display
Monitor Not Included
Graphics
nVidia GTS450 1GB dedicated GPU
Input Devices
Keyboard and Mouse
Networking
Network Interface: 10/100/1000 LAN
Dimensions
Depth 450 mm
Width 180 mm
Height 360 mm
Interfaces
1 set 5.1 channel Audio jacks (3 jacks)
1 x PS/2 keyboard port
1 x PS/2 mouse port
1 x Serial port
6 x USB 2.0 ports
1 x RJ45 LAN port
1 x VGA port
1 x DVI Port
1 x HDMI Port
Warranty
1 Year Manufacturer Warranty

gonzo127

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/1gb-msi-radeon-hd-7850-overclocked-4800mhz-gddr5-gpu-900mhz-1024-cores-dvi-hdmi-2x-mini-dp would be the way i would be looking with you budget yes its a little bit over but the reviews show this card is capable of playing all the current games at 1920 x 1080 (full hd) http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2012/11/05/msi-radeon-hd-7850-1gb-review/1

neilwoods

No its doesn't show any specs for board or pci slots. Chances are it is x16, as the GTS450 card is x16.

The above card by gonzo127 seems to be a good choice.

If you were determined to go for GTX 650 then you would be better to buy gtx 550ti for about £92, game wise won't see any difference, only way to notice any difference is if you ran some tests like they do on the review sites.