Dell 8300 video upgrade

Your 250W PSU will be fine with the 7600. I'm running the 7600GT in my 4400 with the same PSU. No problems.

 

For the price and performance, I think you'd be better off with the 7600GT/ 256mb card. You won't benefit from the 512mb on the card. Right now, this card costs the same as the 7600GS with 512mb at Newegg. The GT is a much better card than the GS.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?Category=38&N=2010380048+1069609639+1305520548+106790717+1067920131&Submit=ENE&SubCategory=48

 

You can download the latest driver from NVidia to your desktop. Remove the old NVidia driver from the add/remove section of your Control panel. Shutdown your PC. Put the new card in and start up. Remember, you will need to connect a 4 plug molex to the card. I used a Y splitter for this, just to use as an extension cord from my power cord. After start up, the PC should tell you if found a new card. Just close out all attempts to update the driver at this time. Then open the saved driver from before and double click it. It will install automatically. You may need to reboot, but that's it.

 

If you're going from an ATI card, there are more complex procedures for removing those drivers but can be found on this forum in many places.

 

Ken

Thank you for your reply and info.

 

Could you tell my why I wont benefit from the 512mb?  Just asking as I am no professional.

 

Also what is a four plug molex and why do I need it.

 

Thanks in advance for your time and info!

I'm not an expert either, but if you hang around this forum long enough, you pick up a few things from those that have tried and those that do have a high tech knowledge.

 

From what I have read, there is really no game or program (or very few) out there that can take advantage of having more than 256mb on the card. You'll get much better performance from the GT over the GS which is an underclocked GT.

 

The 4 pin molex is necessary to supply additional power to the card that wasn't designed into the original AGP slot. PCI-e slots were made to provide more power to the card but even higher end PCI-e cards require an additional power hookup (they use a 6 pin connector). Many have neglected to hook up this connector and couldn't figure out why the card didn't work. Seems the directions that come with most cards don't say anything about it. They assume you know. You'll see the connector on the  top right corner of the GS and GT models if you look at close ups.

 

I have the Leadtek 7600GT and even though it doesn't say so, it came with a Y splitter. Some advertise they include that. You'll only need one (and they only cost $2 or so) if you don't have a spare connector on your power cable. I had the spare connector, but it was tight stretch to reach the card. The splitter is just an extension cord for me.

 

Ken

 

Thank you very much for the information.

 

Any idea of which company offers the best 7600 card? There are a few companies out there such as XFX EVGA and BFG etc.

 

Thanks again.

I've been using the Leadtek (pictured above) since Jan 3. It's quiet and has been working fine. XFX also has had good reviews. What output (input to your monitor) do you need? The Leadtek has 1 DVI and 1 VGA. The XFX has 2 DVI but comes with a VGA adapter. I imagine it's like any other purchase. You can get a lemon or it will work as advertised. Some people who have had success with a certain manf always recommend them. You'd probably be happy with either of these. Read the reviews available for each manf and then you'll at least be making an informed decision.

 

Ken

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panzer1997 wrote:

Thank you for your reply and info.

 

Could you tell my why I wont benefit from the 512mb?  Just asking as I am no professional.

 

Also what is a four plug molex and why do I need it.

 

Thanks in advance for your time and info!

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