Upgrading my GFX card- Nvidia 9800GT 1GB DDR3

Hey all,

I'm new to this forum and im wanting some advice/tips on upgrading my GFX card. I currently have the ATI HD Radeon 4350 1GB graphics card and in my opinion its awful. I bought a tower for £425 and it was listed as a gaming unit. I checked it out and thought it had pretty good specs for its price although apart from the graphic's card and knew at some point i would need to upgrade it. I have FS9(Flight simulator 2004) and i have all the latest addons for it i get from it 25-35fps on average. So a month on from buying this system i need/desperatly want to upgrade the graphics card and i would also like to ask if i were to would i see a vast improvement in FPS and quality?
My current system spec's are as follows:
AMD Athlon II X4 620 2.60Ghz quad core
4096MB Corsair DDR II Memory(4GB RAM)
ATI Radeon 4350 1024MB Performance Graphics
AMD Deluxe Motherboard
Thanks Alex

 

A good question here would be how big is your budget for this?

Also, what is the make and wattage of your power supply? This is the box at the top (bottom) of your computer with the power wire going in and lots of wires coming out of it inside the case. The information should be on a sticker on the side.

 

I would suggest the 9600GSO, it is fairly cheap.

I have your exact processor, and have the 9600, i can play CoD MW2 on 1680x1050 at 50+fps. It overclocks really well too.

 

I currently have a 300W PSU, My budget is around £100 for a GFX card. As i do need to buy a new PSU im upgrading to a 700W PSU. Then around May/June i will have a wider budget up to around £200 but for now its £100 as of needing to buy a new PSU.

Thanks Alex

 

I currently have a 300W PSU, My budget is around £100 for a GFX card. As i do need to buy a new PSU im upgrading to a 700W PSU. Then around May/June i will have a wider budget up to around £200 but for now its £100 as of needing to buy a new PSU.

Thanks Alex

 

You don't need a 700W PSU, not for the 9800GT you mentioned unless you plan to add a second one and even then, it's a bit of overkill.

I'm running an OC'd Q6600, 4GB, 2 OC'd 9800GT's 512MB and three hard drives on an Antec Earthwatts 500W PSU with all components running to the max(I'm folding) 24/7 for 1.5 yrs. now. As long as you buy a quality PSU in the 500W-550W range you will be perfectly fine.

Earthwatts 500W link for Canada but do the math for your area.

 

Just to add to the GPU mix, do consider another ATI as they are generally less expensive than an equivalent nVidia. I hope someone with ATI experience can help you more.

 

I second the 9600GSO.

With regards to the PSU, in case you do not choose the model augiedoggie provided (and it is a good brand) please read the quote below.

Digerati has been kind enough to provide me permission to copy this text::

Please also note that wattage is only an indicator of how a PSU should perform, the main factor in your choice should be the amps provided per voltage type, and per voltage rail for the +12V line.

 

For the PSU, go Corsair.

The TX650 will do you for now, and probably for many upgrades to come!

It also comes with a 5 year warranty and great customer service!

 

I was thinking of buying a cheapish 600W one, How would this do? http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/8284362/CiT-Silent-Technology-600UB-600W-PSU-Power-Supply-Unit/Product.html
Regs
Alex

 

If you want a 9600GSO I'd spend the extra money and get a 9800GT or a GTS 250

If you want any of the cards you probably want a Quality 500W PSU

 

A cheap PSU is not an option in my opinion.

Low amps on the 12v rail can cause instabiity issues, and the fact that it has 2 12v rails means that the amperage is split.

If you have the time reading this would REALLY help you make the decision on your psu and youll learn some stuff too.

Remember, a bad psu could take stuff with it when it fails!

 

If you cannot afford a decent corsair psu, then this is your best bet.

 

Ok thanks i want to get a 600W PSU atleast and i don't really want to spend more than £50 at most £60 for one.
Thanks
Alex

 

http://www.microdirect.co.uk/Home/Product/17482/OCZ-PSU-600SXS-StealthXStream-600W--3-year-Direct would be good imo

I have a OCZ 500 SXS in my other pc and it's pretty damn good for the price.

 

Did you not read what I posted before? Or was it not clear?

If you skimp on your PSU it has a very likely chance of killing ALL of your system components. Do not take the risk.

If I was you I would up your PSU budget to £100 and forget about the GPU for now. At least with a good PSU you can upgrade more later.

 

Thanks, Looks good for its price and has two PCI-E connectors, I think I'll go with this one,

Regs
Alex

 

Please just think about this for a minute.

Do some reading and then make your decision.

I actually went to the MicroDirect Warehouse/shop yesterday and bought the Corsair TX650, i think you should look into this too. If you live near manchester you can collect it at the store for free, so no postage costs.

 

Just seen that you are in Cornwall, so collecting wont be an option, but still, you can't get better than the Corsair PSU i suggested, it comes with a 5 year Warranty and 5 Year on demand customer service! Which i think is exceptional!

 

Ok thanks , Aslong as its no more than £60 I'll buy it as if i do have to pay more than that means a further delay on me getting the GFX card

 

Whats wrong with OCZ?

Yes corsair is awesome