video card compatibility

[tn_joeysome]

hello all,
i am gonna upgrade my video card so i was wondering if my dell e310 would be able to run with the Radeon X1550. (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161074)
if not, would the X1300 be the best choice?

 

[nickc]

if u have a pci slot, that would be a good one if u can get the onboard video shut off in the BIOS.

 

[mailpup]

It should be able to run it provided the power supply can handle it. I don't know what is the recommended power supply for the X1550 although I tried to look it up. I think you will have to attach the optional, longer rear plate that comes with it to get it to physically fit. Be sure you have two free expansion spaces at the back of your Dell to accommodate it.

 

[zipperman]

You can if you have a PCIx slot
It's a PCIx card.So you can buy any PCIx card.
Check your motherboard manual for your video slot type.

 

[mailpup]

Actually it is a PCI card and his Dell has two PCI slots but no AGP or PCI-E x16 slots.

 

[tn_joeysome]

does the card need two slots to attach it to, or just two openings in the back of the comp? and what would happen if my comp didnt have enough power supply?

 

[tn_joeysome]

and the X1550 has a PCI version and a PCI-Ex1, whats the difference between them?

 

[mailpup]

The card you linked to at Newegg just needs two openings at the back of the PC, not two slots. As to the power supply, mind you, I'm not saying it doesn't have enough power to run the card but if it didn't, it wouldn't start up. Some lights and maybe fans might come on but you might not get any picture on the monitor. If I remember the specs for the E310 correctly, I think it said it had a 230W power supply. Not that stout but it could still be okay. I just don't know for sure.

PCI and PCI-E are two different slots and so are not interchangeable. PCI-E is for the latest, fastest graphics cards. PCI slots are legacy expansion slots for various add-on cards. PCI graphics cards are low to mild cards that will improve gaming but only by so much.

 

[captaincranky]

Is it Just Me.....?

I believe that PCI sockets are white. I believe That PCI-E x 16 sockets are black.
I'm absolutely certain that PCI-Ex 16 sockets point in the opposite direction on the motherboard. I'm certain there will be more long white sockets than long black sockets. So, then after I explained this (in a different post) and received a "thanks a bunch" message from tn_joeysome, this I assume because because I didn't have a picture to send, why does the thread continue to try to figure out whether this board has PCI-E x 16 sockets.

 

[CMH]

PCIe slots come in all colours.

Here is one motherboard with both blue and black. Here's one with blue and orange. And so there's no confusion, single PCI-E x16 slot motherboards also have blue PCI-E x16 slots.

But yes, PCI slots are generally white. But as I've pointed out, PCI-E x16 slots come in all colours, there's no single common colour.

 

[mailpup]

I think tn_joeysome was just asking what were the differences between the two types of slots, not which one he has. I'm pretty sure he knows full well what I looked up earlier at the Dell website for the E310. That is, it has two PCI slots and one PCI-E x1 slot.

Click here for the Dell website page for the tech specs of the Dell E310.

 

[CMH]

Hrmm....

PCIe X1 would be faster than PCI.

PCI is a very old technology, which speed is 132MBps, which is shared with ALL PCI slots. Which means if you got something else connected, your graphics card will run slower than that.

PCIe x1 runs at 250MBps (which is doubled to 500MBps because it can transmit 2 ways at once). For other PCIe speeds, just multiply with this number.

For a comparison, AGP 8x runs at 2,100MBps.

As you can see, the PCIe x1 version of that card would perform much better. There is a huge bottleneck with PCI graphics cards, and doing anything to relieve this bottleneck will see a huge increase in speed.


If you want to know more, here's a nice, simple website which explains a few things. Its very basic, but it should cover the most simple stuff.

 

[captaincranky]

Even the Pink Ones.......

But yes, PCI slots are generally white. But as I've pointed out, PCI-E x16 slots come in all colours, there's no single common colour.

I find it difficult to consider black & blue "all colors" other than in bruises.
It makes sense that with 2 PCI-E x16 slots they would be different colors, the same as dual channel RAM.
They're still the same physical sockets, reversed in the board. At some point, if you can't interpolate the information posted, and the information normally provided at a manufacturers web site, the "picture" and manual which are normally down loadable, your interests could possibly be better served by not rooting around inside your computer. Just a thought.
And you're still my typing god, no really.