Decent Video Card for a 350w Power Supply

[xalb1]

Hi all,

I just got a refurbished dell Vostro 470 MiniTower with the following specs :

Processor: Intel Core 3rd Gen i5-3450 Processor (3.10 GHz with Turbo Boost 2.0 up to 3.50 GHz)
HD : 500GB - 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s, 16MB Cache
Power Supply : 350W Power Supply
RAM : 4 GB Dual Channel DDR3 (1600MHz)
OS : Windows 7 Home Premium
Dell Wireless 1703 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth v4.0

I am installing a Samsung 830 128GB SSD as a primary drive and I was thinking of installing a decent video something my power supply can support. Here is a link of the power supply specs. http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/521/photo1dn.jpg/

any input will be greatly appreciated.

 

[toyota]

are you wanting to play modern games? if so then at what resolution? I would probably go no higher than a 7750 or 7770 with that oem psu though.

 

[crazymonkeyzero]

agree^
The xfx radeon hd 7750 core edition is great/probably one of the best, if not the best low power card not requiring a power connector. I believe the 7770 may be cutting it close because it does require a power connector, at least to my knowledge.

 

[RussianSensation]

Welcome to AnandTech xalb1!

A system with a Core i7 2600K @ 4.5ghz + HD7950 MSI TF3 draws about 261W of power.

If you want a high-end GPU, GTX660Ti/670 or HD7950. That PSU should be sufficient for either since both cards are unlikely to pull more than 175W of power. If you don't need that much GPU power, HD6870 or HD6950 2GB are also good mainstream cards.

I can't quote the price for 660Ti yet since it launches tomorrow.

Here is a summary of the performance just to give you an idea where things are. Ultimately, check out specific games you want to play and see if AMD or NV does better in those games.

 

[toyota]

Welcome to AnandTech xalb1!

GTX660Ti or HD7950. 300W on 12A is more than sufficient for either. If you don't need that much GPU power, HD6870 or HD6950 2GB are also good mainstream cards.

I can't quote the price for 660Ti yet since it launches tomorrow.

Here is a summary of the performance just to give you an idea where things are. Ultimately, check out specific games you want to play and see if AMD or NV does better in those games.

um what? have you lost your mind? more than sufficient? that would barely be sufficient with a high quality psu and it would be pushed to very limits. that is a cheap oem psu though that can handle a max of 300 watts on the 12 line at 25c when brand new. under real world conditions such as 40-50C that will be WAY less. it would be beyond foolish to put a 7950 in there and even a 660ti would be silly.

 

[RussianSensation]

Come on, how bad can that PSU be? A 7950 at 800mhz draws about 145W. That CPU won't draw more than 77W I bet. Worst case scenario even a 7850 will work. You guys are recommending a 7770...that's too conservative imo.

 

[toyota]

Come on, how bad can that PSU be? A 7950 at 800mhz draws about 145W. That CPU won't draw more than 77W I bet.

you have to be kidding? add up the whole pc and that will easily be 300 watts under load with a 7950. even a high quality psu would be pushed to the limit. nobody should ever run a psu at its limit.

and AGAIN that oem psu is rated for 25c operation and made with cheap parts. a cheap oem psu rated at 25c will typically only make about 75% of that power at 40-50 C which is realistic. so thats really only about 225 watts MAX to work with in realistic conditions when brand new. and again you dont want to push a cheap psu anywhere near its max as cheap psus will degrade pretty fast if loaded like that.

 

[xalb1]

would this be ok? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121442 ... btw I checked the power supply and it does come with a video card power cord.

 

[RussianSensation]

you have to be kidding? add up the whole pc and that will easily be 300 watts under load with a 7950. even a high quality psu would be pushed to the limit. nobody should ever run a psu at its limit.

Not a chance with that CPU. 7950 + 3960X draw 301W. My own system draws less than 350W and I have an overclocked 7970...

xalb1, 6670 is terrible. Can you afford a new PSU?

Here is $20 for a Corsair PSU. Will work with even a 7970 or 680.

I would say just upgrade the PSU and get a 660Ti/7950.

 

[xalb1]

1080p resolution.. mid settings .. modern games.

 

[toyota]

6670 is terrible. Can you afford a new PSU?

Here is $20 for a Corsair PSU. Will work with even a 7970 or 680.

no way would I run a 7970 or even 680 on a psu that can only do 336 watts MAX. that is an okay psu but it is made with relatively low end parts and rated for 30 C. it is not intended for running high end gpus.

 

[toyota]

1080p resolution.. mid settings .. modern games.

a 7770 will do that just fine. my gtx560 se is the same level of performance and I play every game fine at 1920x1080 with mid settings or better. in fact most games can still be played at higher settings.

 

[xalb1]

7770 with my current 350w?

 

[toyota]

7770 with my current 350w?

yes it will be fine

 

[RussianSensation]

no way would I run a 7970 or even 680 on a psu that can only do 336 watts MAX. that is an okay psu but it is made with relatively low end parts and rated for 30 C. it is not intended for running high end gpus.

What about OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W for $40? 504W on 12V rail.

OP if you don't want to upgrade the power supply and want to be safe, go with Toyota's choice. Personally I wouldn't hesitate to get a new PSU. If you want to play modern games 7770 isn't that fast.

 

[Maximilian]

Come on, how bad can that PSU be? A 7950 at 800mhz draws about 145W. That CPU won't draw more than 77W I bet. Worst case scenario even a 7850 will work. You guys are recommending a 7770...that's too conservative imo.

Meh... i wouldn't trust a dell PSU at all. A quality brand 350w definitely but not something dell put in there. Ive got a dell PSU from an older inspiron 530 desktop here and it dosent even have an on/off switch or active PFC Just a little green light to tell you when its plugged in or whatever.

 

[RussianSensation]

Meh... i wouldn't trust a dell PSU at all. A quality brand 350w definitely but not something dell put in there. Ive got a dell PSU from an older inspiron 530 desktop here and it dosent even have an on/off switch or active PFC Just a little green light to tell you when its plugged in or whatever.

I guess I put too much faith that it's really rated to handle 350W of power at load.

 

[futurefields]

I've had great luck with my 6850 and I see the 7850 only draws 3 watts more. Mind I have a 450 watt power supply but I do believe you could run this card off of a (good) 350 watt power supply. Like if its anything like an Antec Earthwatts it should be fine.

 

[lakedude]

So is there a reason not to change the power supply if need be?

What is the budget and resolution of the monitor?

 

[toyota]

I guess I put too much faith that it's really rated to handle 350W of power at load.

well its rated for only 300 watts MAX on the 12v line and that is where 90-95% of the power needs to come from. and again oem psus like that are rated at just 25 C as that is the only way they can make their advertised power. jonnyguru said you can only expect about 75% of that in realistic conditions.

 

[toyota]

I've had great luck with my 6850 and I see the 7850 only draws 3 watts more. Mind I have a 450 watt power supply but I do believe you could run this card off of a (good) 350 watt power supply. Like if its anything like an Antec Earthwatts it should be fine.

the psu specs have already been discussed and its nothing like an Earthwatts or any other quality psu. he does not actually have 350 watts or even 300 watts to work with on that oem psu.

 

[RussianSensation]

The peak of 7850 is 96-100W though. I mean that should work easily even if that PSU can only handle 275W. You are not going to have 100% CPU / 100% GPU load in games. That CPU is only 77W with the GPU enabled. So at most it's probably pulling 65W at 100% load. Assuming worst case scenario you have 77W + 96W = 173W + 50W for hdd, case fans. That leaves a ton of headroom even if that PSU can only do 275W, not the real 350W.

 

[toyota]

The peak of 7850 is 96-100W though. I mean that should work easily even if that PSU can only handle 275W. You are not going to have 100% CPU / 100% GPU load in games. That CPU is only 77W with the GPU enabled. So at most it's probably pulling 65W at 100% load. Assuming worst case scenario you have 77W + 96W = 173W + 50W for hdd, case fans. That leaves a ton of headroom even if that PSU can only do 275W, not the real 350W.

75% of 300 watts is 225 watts. that is the realistic max that psu can handle on the 12v line when brand new. that is NOT enough to safely power that entire system with a 7850. as already mentioned, that psu has no safety features either so when it goes then other stuff could be damaged.

 

[RussianSensation]

An entire system with GTX680 (without GPU load) + i5 3450 loaded with motherboard, DDR3 and hard drives pulls 98W only in a real world app and 117W under Prime 95. Add 96W for the videocard, you are still well under 200W since no game will load the CPU and GPU to 100% at the same time.

 

[futurefields]

wow, didnt know the psu was that bad

yes 7770 is the absolute best choice, it is not a bad card either