Video card upgrade for Dell XPS 8300

Hi oldjayhawk

Welcome to Dell Community.

I understand you are looking to upgrade the video card on the XPS 8300 computer that you own. You already have a good enough Video card installed on your computer. Are you looking for something specific from the installed Video card in the computer.

You can find the Dell recommended video cards on the link below.

http://dell.to/MpEvoa

Only 2 of these cards as 1 GB cards and you would be able to read more about these cards be clicking on More Details link under each of the cards.

Regards

Amrinder D

Dell | Social Media Outreach | Global Social Media & Community

What is the reason for the upgrade?  The GT 420 is another OEM card and considered low-end.  Therefore, if you want a better card for specific reasons like gaming or something, then you would have a lot of options with your 460 watt power supply.   The card is PCIe 2.0 x16 and so is your XPS 8300.  Most Nvidia cards today are going to be 2.0 and with their newest cards they are now 3.0.  AMD cards are 2.1, but will work just fine with 2.0.   The AMD 7000 series is 3.0. 

Therefore, the questions are what do you want to do with your new video and how much do you want to spend?  Two reasonably priced cards that offer very good performance and are way ahead of what you have now are the Nvidia GTX 550 Ti and the AMD HD 6770.  The latter is only $79.99 after the $30 rebate plus you are getting a free game. 

Hi Kelbear1

I thought of the upgrade without any specific reason, other than wanting to improve the video when I watch HD video I shot using my HD camcorder.  I use my XPS 8300 mainly for word processing, watching HD video and surfing the internet (watching youtube sometimes).  But youtube videos are usually not 1980 x 1080 HD, am I correct?  With my uses, would Nvidia GTX 550 Ti or AMD HD 6770 be an overkill?  Between GTX 550 Ti and HD 6770, which one would you recommend?  When I looked for AMD HD 6770 on newegg, I saw also AMD HD6790.  I guess HD 6770 would suffice for my uses, no need to get HD 6790.  Would you agree?

Thanks.

The 6770 is a rebadged 5770 -- if you go AMD, I'd suggest a 7750, as it uses significantly less power than the 6770 and is more than adequate for the uses you describe.

The only reason to go with a more powerful card is gaming.

Hi Oldjayhawk,

I understand that you have just used the computer for a few days. As you said that you only use the computer for word processing and watching HD videos. I am not too sure if you have come across any concern so far.

I see that you have already ordered top of the line video card available at the point of sale. I would personally recommend that you allow it more time to get used to it and only upgrade if you really face a concern.

Regards

Amrinder D

Dell | Social Media Outreach | Global Social Media & Community

Agree.  It would be overkill for your purposes.  I would just stay with what you have.   The new HD 7750 is a good choice and probably the new 300 watt power supply king that a lot of Dells have over the HD 6670 even though your PSU is much larger and can handle more powerful cards.  The cost of the HD 7750 is reasonable and can actually do quite well in a lot of the newer games if that's in your future.   However, most prefer the HD 7770 for gaming for about $20 - $30 more as it would be better than the HD 6770, GTX 550 Ti and the HD 6790.  

Thanks for the information, everybody.  I have looked at HD 6770 and HD 7750 on newegg after reading the comments from everybody here.  Other than a price difference, I think the main difference is that HD 6770 is for a PCI Express 2.1 x16 bus, while HD 7750 is for PCI Express 3.0 x16.  Is PCI Express 3.0 better than PCI Express 2.1, being a newer standard?  But in terms of performance, would one definitely perform better than the other?  If I am not gaming, would either one of them give me very similar video quality when I watch HD video recorded with my camcorder, or when I watch youtube?

The 6770 is faster, but it uses much more power, generates more heat, and has a larger, noisier fan. It also requires an external power connection.

HIS makes a 7750 with the excellent Arctic Cooling Accelero L2 Pro that is compact, quiet, and cool-running, which wouldn't be quite as fast for gaming, but would suit your purposes better than a 6770.  

I am pretty sure the motherboard on your XPS 8300 does not have PCI Express 3.0 so you would not benefit from this even though the card is backwards compatible with 2.0.  However, you would benefit from the other newer technologies of the card and definitely the power savings.   The tech on the HD 6770 has not changed since the HD 5770 and it has been out now for almost 2 years.   Given that both are basically the same cost, I would probably go with the HD 7750.  I don't see that you will notice any difference in video quality with what you have now compared to these other cards though.  

the HD 7750 is the best choice ... it pulls a lot less electricity for almost the same performance as the old 6670's.

Actually, the reviews have it close in performance to the 5770, which is not bad considering that card was aimed at gamers.

This is is the model I have my eye on: www.newegg.com/.../Product.aspx

If I get HD 7750, will it run in myDell  XRS 8300 which has a PCI Express 2.0 x16 slot, while the HD 7750 is for PCT Express 3.0 x16 bus?  By "backward compatible," I think the answer is yes.  Am I correct?

I am glad that rdunnill told me that HD 6770 requires an external power connection.  I would not want that because I am not a very handy guy, and I much prefer the "pop the card in and run it" approach.  I don't even know if the PSU of XRS 8300 has any extra power output.  

If the 7750 card would run on my PCT Express 2.0 x16 slot, I would use 7750 even though I would not be able to take advantage of the 3.0 new features.  The simpler power requirement and quietness (relative to 6670) convince me.  Particularly, because I would not notice any difference in video quality according to Kelbear1.  The bottomline is that I think 7750 will fit my needs better than 6770 even though 6770 appears to be a more powerful card.

Thanks.

If I get HD 7750, will it run in myDell  XRS 8300 which has a PCI Express 2.0 x16 slot, while the HD 7750 is for PCT Express 3.0 x16 bus?  By "backward compatible," I think the answer is yes.  Am I correct?

Yes, that is correct. 

I am glad that rdunnill told me that HD 6770 requires an external power connection.  I would not want that because I am not a very handy guy, and I much prefer the "pop the card in and run it" approach.  I don't even know if the PSU of XRS 8300 has any extra power output.

This just means that you need to plug one of your 6-pin power cables which are not being used into the back of the card.  You actually have two of these and they are just hanging down from your power supply inside the case. No big deal. 

If the 7750 card would run on my PCT Express 2.0 x16 slot, I would use 7750 even though I would not be able to take advantage of the 3.0 new features.  The simpler power requirement and quietness (relative to 6670) convince me.  Particularly, because I would not notice any difference in video quality according to Kelbear1.  The bottomline is that I think 7750 will fit my needs better than 6770 even though 6770 appears to be a more powerful card.

Since you have a newer system with the XPS 8300, I would go with the HD 7750 even though you don't have PCIe 3.0.  I have used many different video cards and never noticed any difference in video quality.  You only need the power for gaming.  I find most cards today that are dual slot with larger fans to run quiet.  It is the single slot cards with the smaller cooling fans that tend to make more noise.  They stay relatively quiet at idle with lower rpms and only when gaming do they increase fan speed and become more audible.  Cards by default may have difference idle speeds.  Mine only runs at 21%.  I have had others that run at 35% which makes them more noticeable at idle speeds. 

If you are interested in the HIS card, HERE is an English guy giving a review about it.