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New power supply for Dell Inspiron 531 & GeForce 9800GT
Hello all
I want to buy a new graphics card for inspiron 531 (bought about year ago) - GeForce 9800GT (for GTA4, etc.), and i read, that it require more powerfull power supply.
Which model is could be used as replacement for standard Dell's power supply?
And may be somebody has 9800GT in dell desktop - could you share your opinions about this card?
shesagordie
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January 23rd, 2009 12:00
alexeyott
Most generic standard ATX power supply units can be installed, with either a 24-pin or 20+4-pin main motherboard power connector, with or without the on/off switch.
You should be able to buy a compatible power supply from either a local or online computer store.
Note: You require a power supply with four SATA power connectors.
Bev.
alexeyott
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January 24th, 2009 02:00
Thank you for answer.
I see different ATX standard - ATX 2.0/2.2/... - which are better?
shesagordie
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January 24th, 2009 12:00
alexeyott
Both are suitable, the ATX 2.2, has updated power efficiency and requirements.
Bev.
alexeyott
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February 6th, 2009 09:00
Thank you for so detailed answer!
mew905
19 Posts
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February 6th, 2009 09:00
You're right about it requiring a more powerful PSU. You need a PCI-Express ready power supply (PCI-E ready almost always means you will have SATA plugs). You need at least 1 PCI-E plug, with something around 36A on the 12V rail (most PSU's show these ratings on the side of the box), if it has more than one 12v rail (12v1, 12v2, 12v3, etc. dont worry about the -12v) you'll need at least 18A on the 12v that runs the video card (on the Gigabyte OdinGT it shows 12v3 and 12v4 run the GPU(s) with some other stuff). The card itself only uses 7.6A tops (or lower if you get a 55nm 9800 GT) so as long as you get a PSU that can run around 10A CONTINUOUSLY (most will only show you the max so you should gun for about 1.8x that) a 400w PSU will work just remember those amperage requirements.
Now, I DO run an 8800GT which is identical to the 9800GT in every way except 1 (maybe 2), 1: the 9800GT's are Hybrid SLi ready, but that doesnt apply to us. and 2: some 9800GT's (as mentioned before) have a 55nm die shrink, the 8800Gt and older 9800's are 65nm.
You wont be able to slip in the 9800GT directly, the 531 has *just* under 9 inches of room between the HDD cage and the rear of the PC. It will fit but you will have to maneuver it in. If you have a second harddrive in the HDD1 area, take that out for now to make this process easier.you will have to buy a 90 degree SATA cable (or flip the cable around as dell supplies a short one with 1 end as 90 degree) if you use more than 1 HDD. Unfortunately the 4th SATA (top left) will be unusable unless you can find one that flips the opposite direction (dont know if they make those) because the video card is so long it covers the top 2. The bottom 2 are easy to reach and dont require a special cable at all. Buying a dual slot card (where the entire card is double slot, such as a 9800GTX, or the GTX 200 series) will render all but 2 useless and all the cables will have to be 90 degree cables (meaning you WILL have to buy a longer 90 degree SATA to reach the CD drive as dell doesnt supply one of these).
And finally, the fun part: pluggin in the 9800GT. While this is a rather straight forward process, you will have some trouble reaching back to plug it in. If your plugs are on the sides (like the 9800GTX, or GTX 200 series) you can forget about that second harddrive being in there at all. Plus I would imagine you'd have a *** of a time getting those in anyway unless you have some really thin or flexible cables.
If you have any other questions, e-mail me at OLP-fanatic@hotmail.com and ask. I've swapped CPU's, harddrives, CD drives, Power Supplies, RAM, video cards, etc. Basically the only thing I havent (and can't other than the one in the 530) swapped is the motherboard. So that means no possibility *at all* for overclocking as of yet...
contrvlr
1.4K Posts
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February 6th, 2009 12:00
Nvidia reccomends 26 amps for the 9800GT and that's kind of bloated so that people with power supplies that are not quite as capable don't overload thier machine. A 36 amp psu would be capable of running dual 98's in SLI if you had the board for it.
Can I ask where you got your Odin ?
I'm currently looking for one to replace an old Modstream 520 but the only luck I've had is a $165 550 watt model and that's just to expensive.
mew905
19 Posts
1
February 7th, 2009 03:00
Of course, the Odin GT is a high quality PSU by Gigabyte, I bought mine for $170 and felt it was overpriced, but trust me, it has many features that other PSU's lack that easily make it worth $170. For starters (and the biggest one for me) is the software control and monitoring (monitor power output, via each rail by voltage and amperage, as well as a total usage and peak level), 2 fan control (only 1 controller though), 4 temp probes, 140mm almost silent fan, voltage control for the 12v, 5v and 3.3v, modular, and a cool (software controlled) button that turns the blue LED on or off. The Odin Pro lacks the software control though.
If you're in North America, www.ncix.com has them, both the 550w and 800w models.
contrvlr
1.4K Posts
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February 7th, 2009 05:00
Thanks for the response.
I already knew about all the bells and whistles, was just having a hard time finding one at a decent price.
They are being discontinued and quite a few etailers have sold out due to lowering the price ( svc.com cleared them out for $80 a pop, I hate having missed out on that deal )
I finally did find the 550 at frozencpu.com yesterday, for $139 shipped ( it's already on it's way ), most other places that still have them are charging $160 and up, $164 +shipping at NCIX :(
For me, this is more of a novelty purchase than anything else ( although I am replacing a dying unit ), you can get higher quality power supplies for less these days, and I use a power meter and amp clamp for checking power use and voltages.