Dell Vostro 200 needs a new video card

[Fardringle]

I just acquired a Dell Vostro 200 PC that needs a new video card. The previous owner decided that they would rather buy a new machine instead of just replacing the dead video card so they gave the system to me to "dispose of". I tossed in a spare video card (not a gaming card) and the rest of the system seems to be working perfectly. So, I'd like some options for an inexpensive video card that will complement the rest of the computer and turn it into a low-budget gaming system for my nephew. I'm not looking for spectacular results, of course, but something that can run somewhat recent games at better than minimum settings would be nice. I haven't shopped for video cards for a very long time so I just don't know what might be available. Preferred budget is around $50, but I can go a bit higher if there is something significantly better for not much more money. $100 is the absolute maximum.

Relevant system specs are:
Core2Duo E4600, 2.40Ghz
2GB DDR2 RAM (will be upgraded to 4GB)
Windows XP Pro
300 Watt HIPRO PSU (this limits the options since power hungry cards probably won't work)
1280x768 or 1280x1024 resolution depending on what monitor I decide to use with it (both are 19" Dell LCDs)

 

[Termie]

An HD5570 would do quite nicely. Here's one for $55 after $10 rebate: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102875.

It will certainly work with your power supply, and it will allow moderate gaming, especially with older games.

A significant step up would be the HD5670, for $65 after $10 rebate: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102870. It's about 30% faster than a 5570. That is as high as I'd go given the CPU and the power supply.

Note that AMD just released replacements for the 5570/5670, in the form of the 6570/6670. They step up performance a notch, with the 6570 more or less matching the 5670 and the 6670 pulling about 20% ahead. They would be preferable if they were priced to match, but they currently are at "launch" prices, which means they are too expensive.

 

[hdfxst]

I don't know about the power supply but for under 100 dollars this isn't bad.Use the code RABBIT15 for $15 off

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php...-2DVI-HDMI-DisplayPort-PCI-Express-Video-Card

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php...-2DVI-HDMI-DisplayPort-PCI-Express-Video-Card

85 dollars after rebate for either one,and that rabbit15 code works on everything

 

[Termie]

I don't know about the power supply but for under 100 dollars this isn't bad.Use the code RABBIT15 for $15 off

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php...-2DVI-HDMI-DisplayPort-PCI-Express-Video-Card

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php...-2DVI-HDMI-DisplayPort-PCI-Express-Video-Card

85 dollars after rebate for either one,and that rabbit15 code works on everything

Those are great deals, but probably not the best match for the system in question. The PSU that the OP is working with is of questionable quality, and the CPU truly isn't enough to tap the power of an HD5770. You'd need at least a 3Ghz dual-core to really match that card.

That being said, I'm going to go ahead and still your thunder and suggest that the OP use your coupon code to buy a 5670 at Superbiiz for $52.89 after rebate: http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php...5-DVI-HDMI-DisplayPort-PCI-Express-Video-Card

Now that's a killer value for an older rig.

 

[Fardringle]

So the 5670 is probably the best card for this computer? I can't argue with $53 if that's the case.

 

[toyota]

anything more than a 5670 would be pushing that cheap old psu too hard. plus at just 1280, the 5670 is a good match to your modest cpu.

 

[Fardringle]

Sounds good. Thanks!

 

[timma]

you can buy new Gigabyte 6670 OC 1GB DDR 3 also have good non 6-pin need and good performance.

 

[toyota]

you can buy new Gigabyte 6670 OC 1GB DDR 3 also have good non 6-pin need and good performance.

6670 uses gddr5 and why would he pay twice the price for the 6670 though?

 

[nvidiaintelftw]

6670 uses gddr5 and why would he pay twice the price for the 6670 though?

and 80 more SPs

 

[toyota]

and 80 more SPs

yes I know that. the whole point was that the 6670 is twice the price while only offering less than 20% more performance.

 

[bryanW1995]

yeah, no way that the 6670 is worth double the 5670, especially in light of the $50 budget. I was going to recommend a used 4850, but the psu kinda scared me away from that so the 5670 gets my vote as well. It's like a 9800gt or 4830 but with dx11, should be good for him for a long time.

BTW, why are you bumping up to 4gb ram? I didn't go up to 3gb on my xp pro rig until after I retired it in nov 09. Unless he is an olympic porn surfer he's unlikely to ever run out of ram in xp pro even at 2gb.

 

[Fardringle]

The 4GB is mostly just because I have dozens of RAM sticks sitting in a box collecting dust, so I figured I might as well install the maximum that the motherboard can handle (even though XP can't really use it) since I expect he'll probably want to put Windows 7 on the machine at some point.

 

[toyota]

XP has nothing to do with not being able to use more than 3gb of ram. its 32 bit that is issue there.

 

[OlafSicky]

Just get a hd6450 all the other cards are overkill why waste money and power

 

[Fardringle]

XP has nothing to do with not being able to use more than 3gb of ram. its 32 bit that is issue there.

It is 32bit XP Pro, which is why I mentioned it. Doesn't really matter, though. I have the RAM sitting around doing nothing so I plan to install it just so he can have it if he ever has a way to make use of it.

Just get a hd6450 all the other cards are overkill why waste money and power

I'm confused. Why would I buy a card that is just $10 less than the 5670 that has been recommended here, but is VASTLY slower (about 1/4th as fast based on the benchmarks that I can find for it)?

 

[Termie]

I'm confused. Why would I buy a card that is just $10 less than the 5670 that has been recommended here, but is VASTLY slower (about 1/4th as fast based on the benchmarks that I can find for it)?

Stick with the original suggestion. The 6450 is nearly the same price as the 5670 I linked, and less than half as fast: http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/HD_6450/22.html. Not a good alternative unless you were contrained by your power supply, which you are not. Plus, the extra horsepower of the 5670 in most cases will not be wasted on your system.

 

[Fardringle]

Yep. I'm definitely planning on the 5670 from superbiiz. I'm just curious why Olaf thought the 6450 would even be a consideration...

 

[cusideabelincoln]

Even with that processor the 6450 would hold you back in a lot of games. The 5670 is a good match. Not much need to go higher - but that does depend on what types of games you play.

 

[Fardringle]

I got the 5670 today and installed it just using the drivers on the included CD (version 8.771.0.0 dated 8/25/2010 for initial testing) and got a 3DMark Vantage score of 4692. Not too bad at all since the program says the "expected" score for this system is around 4500. LOTS better than the score of 0 (benchmark wouldn't even run) with the X300 that I had in the system temporarily.

Thanks again for the help!


edit: I installed the newest Catalyst drivers (version 8.841) and the 3DMark score increased to 4772 but I got a message that the driver is not "approved" for some reason. I'm not too worried since that's a good score, but it's interesting that the official drivers from amd.com are not approved for use with the program, but the drivers from Sapphire's CD are...

 

[Termie]

I got the 5670 today and installed it just using the drivers on the included CD (version 8.771.0.0 dated 8/25/2010 for initial testing) and got a 3DMark Vantage score of 4692. Not too bad at all since the program says the "expected" score for this system is around 4500. LOTS better than the score of 0 (benchmark wouldn't even run) with the X300 that I had in the system temporarily.

Thanks again for the help!


edit: I installed the newest Catalyst drivers (version 8.841) and the 3DMark score increased to 4772 but I got a message that the driver is not "approved" for some reason. I'm not too worried since that's a good score, but it's interesting that the official drivers from amd.com are not approved for use with the program, but the drivers from Sapphire's CD are...

Good to hear it worked out. Sounds like a nice fit for your system.

Don't worry about 3dMark saying the drivers aren't "approved." That's just because it takes a while for 3dMark to catch up to the latest driver releases. Technically, I think you're now running Catalyst 11.4, which just came out a few days ago.