Solved Hardware Upgrade

[Tnuh555]

Hello!

I was looking to upgrade some of my computer's hardware for Christmas, but am unsure where to start. I was planning on a video card, and the video card will probabaly need a better power supply to accommodate it's power needs.

Here is a link to the specs of the computer:
HP Pavilion a6130n Desktop PC - Product Specifications

I hate the Integrated video card, It really falls short of what the sales rep said 3 years ago. Tried playing Quake 4 when I got it and the results were not great.

I'm asking you guys what parts that you think I should get/ ask for. I would try to look for myself, but I am very busy with school.

All help is appreciated!

If you need any info, let me know and I will try to find it.

The installed PSU is 250 Watts.

Operating Systems: Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit, Windows Vista Home Premium 64 bit. (Dual boot)

 

[richc46]

Welcome
The one upgrade that appears at first glance is memory. With a 64 bit OS and a 32 bit Ultimate Seven, I would suggest at least 4 gb of ram. It will imporve the 64 bit. OS. I think that 6 would be a bit too much, unless you are into resource hungry games,etc.Dont mix and match. Discard what you have. Many may disagree, but I think that my way is best.
I will research a bit early tomorrow to come up with other upgrades, such as video card etc.

 

[Lorien]

Hi Tnuh555,

Here's an article on how to replace/add a video hard in an HP desktop: Installing or Replacing a Video Card - HP technical support (United Kingdom - English).

You can use one that fits a PCI, PCI Express x16, or PCI Express x1 slot (you have one of each available according to the specs). Note several cards require two slots (of the same type), so you'll need to exclude those.

The card will tell you if you need a more powerful power supply - and it is VERY likely given that you currently have only 250W. Most cards want 400-500W.

There are many choices of video cards, but for your system I recommend the following: Every PC needs good graphics.. Note that it needs a minimum of 300W power supply, so you should get at least a 400W (as it's always better to have more power than speciified). I would also get the 1GB memory option so it will definitely support your games.

I believe that plus the memory upgrade Richard already recommended should take care of your needs for the time being.

I hope this helps.

Good luck!

 

[Tnuh555]

Alright, I was checking out the link for the Nvidia card that Lorien had sent, but this raises more questions. I assume the power supply would be easy to replace, It would include general directions. As for the graphics card, I seem to be worried about if it will seat properly. My motherboard is by ECS (Elite group). I went there because I did not notice anything for ECS mobos on the Nivida website.

The thing that gets me is that the motherboard is attached to the left side of the PC, the right panel comes off. When I look inside, the slots look backwards, that the little notch in the graphics card goes closer to the end with the ports, but the slot withing my pc has the little notch closer to the end with no ports. It's hard for me to explain, but you may get what I mean. I will look again, but I just figured Id put that out there. I will update with my findings soon.

My RAM seems optimal at 3 GB, if anything is still running slow, I will upgrade the RAM.
For now, the main concern is getting a dedicated video card, Integrated graphics are a joke.

I do thank you for your recommendation, I may just go with that video card. The prices really looked cheap enough.

 

[richc46]

I would look into that RAM, too. It will improve the perfrormance of the 64 bit.
If you want a good graphics card, etc. you may be into resource hungry games.
Press Alt Cntr Delete and see what is using most of the memory. You may be able to remove it from start up to improve performance, even with the current RAM
Best of luck to you
Come back with any further questions or problems.

 

[Tnuh555]

Alright.

Time to open the tower .

 

[richc46]

Type :alt cntrl delete, and then task manager. Go to processs see what the big memory users are. May be able to disable and have better performance.

 

[Tnuh555]

Type :alt cntrl delete, and then task manager. Go to processs see what the big memory users are. May be able to disable and have better performance.

I know it's the graphics card. I tried that many times before and it seldom works. I want to play games like Team fortress 2 and Half life 2, with that, I need a graphics card.

As for looking in the pc, there are two open slots, one is really small. It is white in color. The other slot looks more like a PCI-E slot, it's a longish slot, black in color, with a lever to hold it in. As for the slots having the notch in the wrong spot, you can ignore that. I guess I was looking at the old PCI slots at the time. I really do appreciate the help. Now I just need to find a decent graphics card.

Should I be worried about who the motherboard manufacturer is though? I don't want to get the thing on Christmas morning and have to send it back.

 

[Tnuh555]

Mabye a can of air would be beneficial too, it's quite dusty in there!

 

[Lorien]

As long as you have a working PCI-E slot available and the system is running Vista, I believe you will be fine in terms of the motherboard. It is remotely possible it won't be compatible, but I sincerely doubt it. I will try to check further to see if I can get some type of confirmation - but it is not going to be easy to find.

 

[Tnuh555]

Well, as far as the PSU, it would seem as any ATX PSU would fit, I read this on another forum, and the images for them look similar as well. Ill probably go with a 400W supply. Any newer games that come out I might just buy for the PS3.

 

[Tnuh555]

Ok, I got the PSU figured out. As for the graphics cards, I seem to have figured them out. The question is which one to buy now.

 

[bruce2]

Hi Tnuh555,

I believe in your earlier posts mentioned that the PCI X 16 slot seems backward is actually a wrong slot you were looking at. The black one is the correct one. So it is compatible to any mainstream GPUs. Here is your MB: ECS HP MCP61PM-HM Nettle3-GL8E AM2+ GeForce 6150SE Motherboard

As far as which GPU to get, I would get either the cheapest or next to the cheapest ATI or nVidia with 1GB of RAM such as this: Newegg.com - ATI 100-505606 FirePro V4800 1GB GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 Workstation Video Card Anything better wouldn't do much good cause your CPU would be the bottleneck.

I would get a at least 500W PSU on the safe side; it only costs a tiny bit more.

As suggested as in the previous comment, I would definitely fill up all four memory slots available.

At last, if you are still using the monitor listed in "specs", you might think of a small upgrade with something like this or better: Newegg.com - SAMSUNG B2030 Glossy Black 20" 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor 250 cd/m2 DC 50000:1(1000:1) I think it is very important to have good monitor because it is the part of the computer you are looking at the most. You would enjoy looking at it more and also good for your eyes. In any chance if you switch out your computer, you can keep the monitor.

Please keep us update on how things going. Good luck and enjoy!

Bruce

 

[Tnuh555]

Yea, I guess I didn't make it really clear that I was looking at the wrong slot. It was over a year ago that I really looked at it, and today I just opened it and posted whatever was in there. Didn't look at the notches or w/e. Anyway, I don't think I have the monitor in the specs, I got a 22 inch monitor as a bundle. The graphics card looks good, but I may be able to find something similar for less somewhere else. Thanks for the input!

 

[fieseler]

you might want to look at the gt240, anything higher and i dont think the ventilation in your case would be adequate (assuming you havent swapped the case out already)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130531&cm_re=evga_240-_-14-130-531-_-Product

If your looking for something that has directx11 support, the gt430 is a littler greater performance-wise to the 210 that Lorien linked to, but the 240 is still the better card.

Newegg.com - EVGA SuperClocked 01G-P3-1435-LR GeForce GT 430 (Fermi) 1GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Low Profile Video Card

EDIT:
I would also grab a 500w psu incase you want to add anything at a later date. Otherwise you'll only end up buying another one next year when you want to upgrade again

 

[Tnuh555]

you might want to look at the gt240, anything higher and i dont think the ventilation in your case would be adequate (assuming you havent swapped the case out already)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130531&cm_re=evga_240-_-14-130-531-_-Product

If your looking for something that has directx11 support, the gt430 is a littler greater performance-wise to the 210 that Lorien linked to, but the 240 is still the better card.

Newegg.com - EVGA SuperClocked 01G-P3-1435-LR GeForce GT 430 (Fermi) 1GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Low Profile Video Card

EDIT:
I would also grab a 500w psu incase you want to add anything at a later date. Otherwise you'll only end up buying another one next year when you want to upgrade again

Alright, that graphics card looks like it would do the trick. As for the power supply, I'm unsure about one thing. This may sound stupid, but when you buy a power supply, does it come with all of the power connectors already attached? If they don't, would it be easy to attach them? I am by no means an electrician.

 

[bruce2]

Alright, that graphics card looks like it would do the trick. As for the power supply, I'm unsure about one thing. This may sound stupid, but when you buy a power supply, does it come with all of the power connectors already attached? If they don't, would it be easy to attach them? I am by no means an electrician.

PSUs come in two ways. A regular one as the one you have in your case look like an octopus with every connection you need plus some extra connectors coming out of the unit. The other called detachable which you can attach the cables come with the PSU you need to the PSU so you wouldn't have to worry about tucking the unused one away.

The connectors only fit certain components, so you don't have to worry too much. You might mark or remember where on the MB needs a connector so you wouldn't left something out.

Hope this helps.

Bruce

 

[Tnuh555]

Alright, that graphics card looks like it would do the trick. As for the power supply, I'm unsure about one thing. This may sound stupid, but when you buy a power supply, does it come with all of the power connectors already attached? If they don't, would it be easy to attach them? I am by no means an electrician.

PSUs come in two ways. A regular one as the one you have in your case look like an octopus with every connection you need plus some extra connectors coming out of the unit. The other called detachable which you can attach the cables come with the PSU you need to the PSU so you wouldn't have to worry about tucking the unused one away.

The connectors only fit certain components, so you don't have to worry too much. You might mark or remember where on the MB needs a connector so you wouldn't left something out.

Hope this helps.

Bruce

So, let me make sure I am understanding you right. From my understanding, I would need to attach whatever power wires I needed TO the power supply, the power supply will have NO wires attached when I take it out of the box it was shipped in, those will be in a separate container of some sort with the PSU, right? Cant be too hard, as long as I don't need to solder anything I think I will be fine.

Thanks for all the help everyone!

 

[bruce2]

Alright, that graphics card looks like it would do the trick. As for the power supply, I'm unsure about one thing. This may sound stupid, but when you buy a power supply, does it come with all of the power connectors already attached? If they don't, would it be easy to attach them? I am by no means an electrician.

PSUs come in two ways. A regular one as the one you have in your case look like an octopus with every connection you need plus some extra connectors coming out of the unit. The other called detachable which you can attach the cables come with the PSU you need to the PSU so you wouldn't have to worry about tucking the unused one away.

The connectors only fit certain components, so you don't have to worry too much. You might mark or remember where on the MB needs a connector so you wouldn't left something out.

Hope this helps.

Bruce

So, let me make sure I am understanding you right. From my understanding, I would need to attach whatever power wires I needed TO the power supply, the power supply will have NO wires attached when I take it out of the box it was shipped in, those will be in a separate container of some sort with the PSU, right? Cant be too hard, as long as I don't need to solder anything I think I will be fine.

Thanks for all the help everyone!

If any PSU which didn't specify as detachable has all necessary wires coming out of the unit looks like and octopus. Such as this:
Newegg.com - SeaSonic S12II 520 Bronze 520W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS 12V V2.91 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply

On the other hand, a detachable one would be looking like this one as you will notice there are less cables coming out of the unit. Instead, there are a bunch of souckets: Newegg.com - OCZ ModXStream Pro OCZ500MXSP 500W ATX12V V2.2 / EPS12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply compatible with core i7

There are no performance difference between the two type. Only different is that one has less unused cables to tuck away.

 

[Tnuh555]

Alright, I know what to get now and how to install it. Thanks for all of the help!