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Radeon X1550 vs Dell Dimension 4600
I recently purchase a new wide screen HD Dell monitor for my older (roughly 6 - 7 years old) Dell Dimension 4600 desktop computer. Dell also suggested I upgrade the graphics card to accommodate and utilize the benefits of the new monitor. My Dell originally came with an Nvidia AGP graphics card. Dell suggested I purchase the Visiontek Radeon X1550 PCI 256MB graphics card because it would work within the power requirements of my computer and because it would utilize one of the remaining PCI slots (my computer only has 1 AGP slot and 3 PCI slots). I installed the new card and drivers and it does not work. It is as if the computer isn't even seeing the new card and it won't load any of the drivers. I have tried almost everything I can think of. I have also contacted the Visiontek tech support countless times and they don't seem to know what the problem is. I have asked Dell if it is because my computer is too old for this newer technology and all they came back with was perhaps I try a smaller card. Has anyone out there come across this issue before? Is there a fix for it? Or is my computer too old to accommodate this new card. Any help or assistance would be great. Thank you.
JMICHAEL
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February 20th, 2010 16:00
I am not sure why Dell would recommend a PCI card when you have an AGP slot for a video card. You said your system came with an Nvidia AGP card. Did you uninstall the drivers and pull the card out? You can't have both cards in without issues especially an ATI and Nvidia card. You should have purchased an AGP card versus the older and slower PCI. I would send that card back and get an AGP card only and you will not have any problems. The older PCI cards always cost more than AGP or today's PCI Express ones. If you spent over $100 for this card which seems to be what they cost, I would send it back. If you just want a card to support a widescreen monitor, then you can simply get something like THIS. I run the AGP 6200 on the Dimension 4600 without any problems. There is a really good deal right now on THIS HD 2600 Pro which is a better performing card over the 6200 or X1550. At only $34.99, I might get one.
jdavker
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February 21st, 2010 10:00
Thank you JMICHAEL for your quick and great help. I will definately look into your suggestion. Since I am new to the HD monitor world, will these cards you suggested also improve the quality of picture or video too? Thank you again for your help.
jdavker
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February 21st, 2010 11:00
Hello JMICHAEL again. I have been studying your suggestions and I really like the looks of the 2600 Pro. One question for you if you know the answer. Will my Dell have adequate power supply for it? Or will I have to tap into the power source with the supplied connector it comes with? Thanks again for all your help.
JMICHAEL
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February 21st, 2010 17:00
Actually, I didn't catch that this card needed the additional hook up from the power supply. Being an AGP card, the slot does not provide near the watts that a PCIe slot would. If you have AGP 3.0, then you will get around 40 watts. You would have to use the adapter and have two molex connectors available on your power supply. It is a great price, but sometimes AGP and ATI is a hit or miss. I think ATI states a 400W power supply requirement. Obviously, this is overstated, but having only a 250W PSU is way below what they are stating. With AGP, I'm not sure how much the card needs, but I cannot imagine it needing much over 45 watts.
jdavker
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February 22nd, 2010 12:00
Thank you JMICHAEL for all your help. Since I don't do any gaming, I think I'm going to go with your suggestion of the EVGA GeForce 6200. With the small power supply of my computer and after reading many reviews, I think this will do me just fine. Again, thank you for your help. I couldn't have done it without you.