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February 2nd, 2014 15:00

Upgrade XPS 8100 GPU for video editing? (from GTS 240 --> GT 630 Kepler)

I have older XPS 8100 with 350 W power supply, PCIe v2.

It comes with Nvidia GTS 240

  • 112 CUDA cores
  • 1 GB DDR3 128-bit memory

Is it good idea to upgrade it to GT 630 Kepler that has more CUDA cores and bigger memory BUT less bandwidth! Note there are several flavors of the GT 630 card. The Kepler one has more CUDA but lower memory bandwidth. It also uses a 28(?) nm architecture so it uses less power...

  • 384 CUDA cores
  • 2 GB DDR3 64-bit memory 

I am just trying to give my older desktop a bit of a boost so I can keep it a while longer. Just getting into video editing (simple talking heads HD videos from Canon DSLR mainly for web/YouTube but may experiment a bit with After Effect too)

The other upgrades I am planning:

  • Replace main (and only drive) with a SSD drive for OS
  • Add SATA III /eSATA controller card (motherboard currently supports only SATA II)
  • Add 1 or 2 7200 RPM drives (WD Black Caviar or Seagate Barracuda SATA III) though thinking instead of having them in RAID 0 for increase speed I would just have them separate so I can use different drives for data, sources files on one, and previews, cache, etc. on the other
  • Add USB 3 so I can also external docks if need be, like maybe keep my second drive internal and the third drive external but connected via eSATA III or USB 3

Given the hassle and expense, I am not planning to upgrade the i5 processor (1st generation I think) or the power supply. Is the system otherwise "balanced" for what I will be using it for?

1.5K Posts

February 2nd, 2014 18:00

The GT 630 would be a downgrade from the GTS 240.  I would look at the GTX 650 for an upgrade.  A GT 640 would also be an upgrade for less.  

February 2nd, 2014 19:00

Thanks for confirming my suspicion about the video card. Unfortunately, GTX 650 will also require a power supply upgrade and then I will have to worry about having enough cooling going on... I may see then if I can bear with GTS 240 for a while and maybe just put the $ towards a new computer when my setup gets too pokey.

1.5K Posts

February 3rd, 2014 16:00

The GTX 650 uses less power than the GTS 240.  It does not require a power supply upgrade.  The GTX 650 will probably run cooler also.  

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