need help with pc asap; graphics card died

**Templar Knight** · March 16, 2010, 09:14 PM

well earlier today my graphics card on my pc died. now i need help because i am not entirely sure on what kind of new graphics card i can get to replace it.

i am using a hp pavilion a1210n computer.

i am just not sure on what kind of graphics card is compatible with this computer, so can someone please give me the names of a few graphics cards i could buy to replace my old ati x300 (at least thats what i think it was called) all of the stuff i have read on the internet so far has given me a headache so please i need help

oh and please dont suggest for me to buy a new computer, because i know i need to buy a new one but i just cant buy one right now.

**Wheelchair** · March 16, 2010, 10:42 PM

according to the HP site you have 1 PCI-E slot available that means you can get any GPU you want on the market... It'd just finding one that will fit inside the case and one that will fit your power requirement.

I'd have to go out on a limb and say a 5770 would be good.

**Capt. Fozdike** · March 17, 2010, 12:05 AM

Originally Posted by Wheelchair

according to the HP site you have 1 PCI-E slot available that means you can get any GPU you want on the market... It'd just finding one that will fit inside the case and one that will fit your power requirement.

I'd have to go out on a limb and say a 5770 would be good.

Yeah this sounds good for your particular PC

**Freddie** · March 17, 2010, 10:49 AM

Originally Posted by Wheelchair

according to the HP site you have 1 PCI-E slot available that means you can get any GPU you want on the market... It'd just finding one that will fit inside the case and one that will fit your power requirement.

I'd have to go out on a limb and say a 5770 would be good.

I wouldn't go out on limb, that model is 5 years old and comes with a crappy 300 watt PSU made by Chinese Charlie's Factory for Cheap PSU's and will blow up if you tried a HD5770. One guy who left a review on this said he had to replace the PSU just to run a Geforce 6600GT OC so it wouldn't stand a chance against a HD5770.

That's not to say you can't get a modern video card in fact I would recommend you do, an ATI Radeon HD 5450 would suit your needs as it only uses 19 watt at load and 7 watts at idle. You could replace your PSU with a more credible unit that won't blow if you ask to running anything more demanding then Minesweeper which would give you the option of getting a more powerful GPU but as Doono says you CPU would bottleneck a HD5770 but a combination of a Radeon HD5670 and a Corsair/Cooler Master/Akasa/Antec 350/400 watt PSU would give your PC a new lease of life for another 18 months or so.

**mrmouth** · March 21, 2010, 09:11 PM

Originally Posted by Freddie

Chinese Charlie's Factory for Cheap PSU's

You know damn well that is a good OEM!

**Doono** · March 17, 2010, 06:32 AM

if you read the rest of the spec on that machine a 5770 is way overkill and would be so badly bottlenecked its a waste of money. Unless you have upgraded the system yourself well beond the original specification I would just slap any old £30-£40 card in within the radeon 5000 series, as even at that price it will be vastly superior to that radeon 200 express that came installed inside it.

**Templar Knight** · March 17, 2010, 11:13 AM

thanks you guys, i was getting really confused because on newegg when i was looking at graphics cards and they said they required a pci-e slot x16, and i thought the x16 would make it incompatible with my computer. so i will probably buy an under 60 dollar replacement since well i dont feel like spending big bucks on my current computer.

once again thanks for the help

edit: i was thinking on getting this card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-419-_-Product

**Doono** · March 17, 2010, 01:17 PM

spend the extra $10 and get a radeon 5450, 7200gs is old and pretty crappy by todays standards

**Templar Knight** · March 21, 2010, 01:59 AM

just want to say thanks to everyone for the help again, i really appreciate it, my new graphics card should arrive next week and then i can get my desktop back up and running

a little bit off topic but i have a quick question. what does the x16 mean on"PCI Express x16"

**Wheelchair** · March 21, 2010, 03:00 AM

Originally Posted by Templar Knight

just want to say thanks to everyone for the help again, i really appreciate it, my new graphics card should arrive next week and then i can get my desktop back up and running

a little bit off topic but i have a quick question. what does the x16 mean on"PCI Express x16"

It's just the speed of the PCI lane(IE Bandwidth), before 16X there was 8X, 4X, and 1X.

The need for 32X(or 24x?) is coming up and will probably debut in the next 2-3 years. Graphics cards aren't even coming close to reaching 16X and probably reside around the speeds of 12x-13x

**Roman_Man#3** · March 21, 2010, 05:47 PM

Originally Posted by Wheelchair

It's just the speed of the PCI lane(IE Bandwidth), before 16X there was 8X, 4X, and 1X.

The need for 32X(or 24x?) is coming up and will probably debut in the next 2-3 years. Graphics cards aren't even coming close to reaching 16X and probably reside around the speeds of 12x-13x

There won't be a 32x or 24x, it will be PCI-E 3, which offers more wattage and about double the bandwidth of PCI-E 2. And you're right per se in saying its the bandwidth, but I just have to be anal and correct it a bit

. Each PCI-E lane has a certain bandwidth, and the number denotes how many lanes there are. So a X16 PCI-E bus has 16 PCI-E lanes. So its not that its speedier, its that there is more space available for information to pass through. A 16 lane road at 40Kph won't have the same congestion as a single lane 40kph road, even though they're the same speed.

**Templar Knight** · March 21, 2010, 03:20 AM

thanks

i guess i might as well ask this too, my computer came with a 300 watt power supply and 300 wtts is the minimum requirement for my new graphics card, so should i send away for a new power supply as well?and if i should can i have some cheap recommendations, because i know next to nothing about power supplies

**Sphere** · March 21, 2010, 08:58 AM

i guess i might as well ask this too, my computer came with a 300 watt power supply and 300 wtts is the minimum requirement for my new graphics card, so should i send away for a new power supply as well?and if i should can i have some cheap recommendations, because i know next to nothing about power supplies

The bottom line on a PSU is if it works it works. Throw your new card in and see if it can boot up. The bad news is hp is notorious for cheap PSU's.

For the future though, skimping on a PSU doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Cheap ones tend to blow up, and generally speaking PSU's are not linked to performance so a good high watt PSU is futureproof.