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Graphics Card Upgrade question(s)

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  • 07-10-2009 6:24pm
    #1
    Lu Tze
    Registered Users Posts: 3,495 ✭✭✭


    I have a dell insiron 530 desktop, 2.33ghz core 2 duo, and a ATI 2400 pro graphics card came as standard. Was looking to possibly upgrade the graphics card (played ages of empires 3, and that seemed a bit choppy).

    Was looking at the ATI 4670 from Komplett, but the Sapphire Radeon HD 4730 is only a tenner more expensive.
    Was wondering if there is a big difference?

    Which i should go for as won't be playing that many games (would like to play Fallout 3) and will only be using 1280x1024 resolutaion on the monitor, switching to a 32" HD ready TV sometimes?

    Should i be looking at something else entirely?
    Also, i have no idea if the dell power supply is sufficient for these, or has the correct connections. The manual didn't specify what wattage etc it was


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    #2
    Anti
    Closed Accounts Posts: 12,401 ✭✭✭✭Anti


    Yeah your psu will be fine, no worries there. And to be honest, there isn't much difference between those two cards. Both have hdmi out posts for yoru tv, and both will perform about the same too.


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    #3
    Lu Tze
    Registered Users Posts: 3,495 ✭✭✭Lu Tze


    Anti wrote: »
    Yeah your psu will be fine, no worries there. And to be honest, there isn't much difference between those two cards. Both have hdmi out posts for yoru tv, and both will perform about the same too.

    Cheers Anti.

    Is it likely my PSU will have the right connectors, or are these powered through the PCI Express connection?

    Will those cards be smooth enough playing Fallout 3 etc.?


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    #4
    Anti
    Closed Accounts Posts: 12,401 ✭✭✭✭Anti


    The komplett site is down for me at the moment, so i cant be 100% certain of the power connetors on them. But chances are for these two cards its probably a 6pin connector. In the box will be a molex - 6pin adapter. So you will have no hassle at all here :)


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    #5
    jonny72
    Closed Accounts Posts: 674 ✭✭✭jonny72


    Lu Tze wrote: »
    Cheers Anti.

    Is it likely my PSU will have the right connectors, or are these powered through the PCI Express connection?

    Will those cards be smooth enough playing Fallout 3 etc.?

    No power connector needed for the 4670.

    Another option is the 4770, very good card, low power draw, quite a bit faster than the 4670.


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    #6
    Lu Tze
    Registered Users Posts: 3,495 ✭✭✭Lu Tze


    Thanks for your help lads.
    Another option is the 4770, very good card, low power draw, quite a bit faster than the 4670.

    Unfortunately its about 30 quid more though. Not sure what to get now, but presume the 4670 enough for my needs. Cheers for that though!


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    #7
    TerrorFirmer
    Closed Accounts Posts: 29,930 ✭✭✭✭TerrorFirmer


    As above PSU will be grand, pretty sure 4730 is gonna suck up more juice though, 4670 doesn't even need extra power, gets it all from the lane. It's a good bit more powerful though, I would say at least 20% faster - depends on whether it's worth your while spending the extra money, as to be honest even the 4670 is a monster upgrade on a HD2400.

    Edit: Seems it's up to about 30% faster really from reviews, can't go wrong for an extra 10 euro. But it requires 2x6-pin power cables, compared to none whatsoever for the 4670. It's gonna suck up anything to an extra 80-90w at idle/peak (prob less for idle, but a lot more for peak). All in all your call, you know what you want. 4670 = huge improvement in performance, no extra power, low draw. 4730 = Massive improvement in performance, power requirement, higher draw.

    The 4670 would still be a good performance card at 1280x1024 and coming from a HD2400 it'd be like night and day.


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    #8
    Solitaire
    Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 18,377 Mod ✭✭✭✭Solitaire


    HD4670: Budget card, okay up to 1280*1024, 55nm, <50W power draw, needs no supplementary power connector.

    HD4730: Aimed as gaming card but severely underpowered, now basically an overpriced budget card, fair up to 1280*1024, poor past that, 55nm, >130W power draw (!!), needs 2 PCIe power connectors IIRC. Avoid like the plague.

    HD4770: Gaming card/next-gen budget card, excellent at 1280*1024, good at 1650*1080, mediocre at 1080p and weak past that, 40nm, >50W power draw, needs one PCIe power connector. Very good upgrade option if it can be had cheaply.


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    #9
    majiktripp
    Registered Users Posts: 2,471 ✭✭✭majiktripp


    Solitaire wrote: »
    HD4770: Gaming card/next-gen budget card, excellent at 1280*1024, good at 1650*1080, mediocre at 1080p and weak past that, 40nm, >50W power draw, needs one PCIe power connector. Very good upgrade option if it can be had cheaply.

    PowerColor HD 4770 512MB GDDR5 for £75 on eBuyer. Not bad value! Extra £9.99 for shipping to Ireland mind you but still over all good value.


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