Need help with upgrading graphics card.

[dankish]

First of all,is my computer capable of upgrading to a new graphics card?
Link to my computer here

If I can upgrade,what card would be good to use?
I have always wanted to play games,but NEVER had a good enough card to keep up with them! Some games I would be interested in are something along the lines of Call Of Duty 4-6,Gears Of War,Bad Company 2,etc...Pretty much FPS games,and some that I assume require a decent graphics card. I am by no means willing to spend a lot of money on one,something around 100$ish would be ideal. Is there any in this price range that would work well? I would greatly appreciate some advice from you guys,preferably someone with knowledge,and knows that they are talking about!

Thanks!

 

[NoForgiveness]

You are pretty bottlenecked by your CPU. You will still see pretty awful FPS even if you upgrade to something like a low power 9800GT card. I think the games will be a hell of a lot more playable than they are now (which is barely if at all) but you should consider moving up to a modern low-cost dual-core solution, perhaps with 4GB of RAM. Bad Company 2 requires pretty good specs, definitely a dual-core CPU at 2.8GHz and a Geforce 9800GTX+/GTS250 or Radeon 4830/5770.

 

[rodneycubed]

You are pretty bottlenecked by your CPU. You will still see pretty awful FPS even if you upgrade to something like a low power 9800GT card. I think the games will be a hell of a lot more playable than they are now (which is barely if at all) but you should consider moving up to a modern low-cost dual-core solution, perhaps with 4GB of RAM. Bad Company 2 requires pretty good specs, definitely a dual-core CPU at 2.8GHz and a Geforce 9800GTX+/GTS250 or Radeon 4830/5770.

^This. Don't waste $100 on a graphic card for your machine. You definitely need something more powerful CPU wise.

 

[Cyant]

If you want to play Bad Company 2 skip the Dual core and go straight to Quad core. Tried it and it ran like crap on my PC even with a GTX295. My friend with a Q6600 and a much weaker vid card ran twice my FPS at least.

The reqs for Bad Company 2 is Dual core but recommended is Quad core. And they don't recommend it for nothing. If you want the game to be enjoyable you MUST have one.


Only need my CPU now, got the rest of my gear. 12GB of Gskill 1600 - Asus P6T Deluxe - Noctua NH-D14
i7 920 / 930 soon hopefully. Cash is short have to buy a bit each time I have some hehe.

 

[NoForgiveness]

If you want to play Bad Company 2 skip the Dual core and go straight to Quad core. Tried it and it ran like crap on my PC even with a GTX295. My friend with a Q6600 and a much weaker vid card ran twice my FPS at least.

The reqs for Bad Company 2 is Dual core but recommended is Quad core. And they don't recommend it for nothing. If you want the game to be enjoyable you MUST have one.


Only need my CPU now, got the rest of my gear. 12GB of Gskill 1600 - Asus P6T Deluxe - Noctua NH-D14
i7 920 / 930 soon hopefully. Cash is short have to buy a bit each time I have some hehe.

You have a stone age dual core though. E8400 or PII 550 can rock BC2 just fine.

 

[dankish]

Is this my only option?

So if I were to get a new CPU,would that entail me also getting a new graphics card?
I am by far not computer illiterate, but I have never messed with a CPU. Is it pretty easy to install? Do I just pull the old one out, and replace it with the new one? Would I just need a new CPU and not a MOBO, also? If I need a new CPU,MOBO,and some other things,this seems like too much work(and possibly money) to upgrade.

Another question... What could I possibly do in the situation of making HD videos run a lot smoother? I would be partially satisfied if I could watch them without the periodic freezes/skipping(if this is caused by the gpu), of course. If I can't play games, fine, but at least my videos won't look so bad!

 

[Cyant]

The only difference between a 8400 and a 6420 is Mhz you can push them to and a little extra cache.

My friend has a Q6600 but he doesn't even overclock and the performance increase is unbelivable with that game. I usually am faster and every other games.

I doubt a 800Mhz increase in my CPU speed (jump from 3.2 to 4Ghz like your CPU) would double my Frame per seconds.

 

[magao]

You have a stone age dual core though. E8400 or PII 550 can rock BC2 just fine.

Maybe you ought to rephrase that as PhII 550 ... I spent a couple of minutes trying to work out how a Pentium II (even at 550MHz) could rock BC2 just fine

 

[Cyant]

Whats a Phil 550? kidding...

 

[NoForgiveness]

Is this my only option?

So if I were to get a new CPU,would that entail me also getting a new graphics card?
I am by far not computer illiterate, but I have never messed with a CPU. Is it pretty easy to install? Do I just pull the old one out, and replace it with the new one? Would I just need a new CPU and not a MOBO, also? If I need a new CPU,MOBO,and some other things,this seems like too much work(and possibly money) to upgrade.

Another question... What could I possibly do in the situation of making HD videos run a lot smoother? I would be partially satisfied if I could watch them without the periodic freezes/skipping(if this is caused by the gpu), of course. If I can't play games, fine, but at least my videos won't look so bad!

Video players largely rely also on the CPU for HD rendering, so a weak CPU will hold you back too.

You could build a cheap i3 system with integrated graphics (COD4 should be playable) to get you by until you can afford a newer graphics card.

 

[NoForgiveness]

Here is a starter kit for you: http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/1457/starterkit.png

Port over your hard drive and you're set. You could also spend another $50 on a new 500GB HD.

 

[Dangman]

So if I were to get a new CPU,would that entail me also getting a new graphics card?
I am by far not computer illiterate, but I have never messed with a CPU. Is it pretty easy to install? Do I just pull the old one out, and replace it with the new one? Would I just need a new CPU and not a MOBO, also? If I need a new CPU,MOBO,and some other things,this seems like too much work(and possibly money) to upgrade.

Another question... What could I possibly do in the situation of making HD videos run a lot smoother? I would be partially satisfied if I could watch them without the periodic freezes/skipping(if this is caused by the gpu), of course. If I can't play games, fine, but at least my videos won't look so bad!

For gaming, you're pretty much looking at an entirely new build: New CPU, mobo, RAM, PSU, and GPU. You can probably reuse the DVD drive, hard drive, OS (kind of but we'll get into that later), and case.

As for HD video playback only, just pick up the $50 HD 5450 video card, set up HD playback according to this guide, and you'll be set when it comes to watching HD video. No need for a PSU upgrade either.
http://imouto.my/watching-h264-videos-using-dxva/

Here is a starter kit for you: http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/1457/starterkit.png

DO NOT GO WITH THIS KIT!!!!

Apevia makes some of the world's shittiest PSUs. Unless you want a PC for a paperweight, don't get an Apevia PSU.
Apevia ATX-AS500W-BL
Apevia Warlock Power 900W
XQPack's Included 420W PSU
Aspire Beast 680W Power Supply

 

[NoForgiveness]

Apevia makes some of the world's shittiest PSUs. Unless you want a PC for a paperweight, don't get an Apevia PSU.
Apevia ATX-AS500W-BL
Apevia Warlock Power 900W
XQPack's Included 420W PSU
Aspire Beast 680W Power Supply

People say that about everything. I have heard the same for CoolerMaster yet I have used several of their PSUs and they have all been tough and powerful. People love Thermaltake PSUs but I used their 430Watt model and it was a re-branded 350Watt unit with a single weak-ass 12V rail. Every manufacturer has their turd. For this price point an Apevia PSU would really be the best bet. Also I don't see the particular model I selected in your links, and the model I linked to has reliable reviews. I would give it a try for the sake of saving $. The OP could always buy a used PSU from the forums.

 

[Dangman]

For this price point an Apevia PSU would really be the best bet. Also I don't see the particular model I selected in your links, and the model I linked to has reliable reviews. I would give it a try for the sake of saving $. The OP could always buy a used PSU from the forums.

What reliable reviews? Newegg user reviews? Those aren't a good indication whatsoever of PSU capability and quality. I linked to every proper PSU review of an Apevia PSU I could find. Those reviews should be an indication of Apevia' overall PSU quality as they vary in range from wattage, age, amperage, etc. Just ask in any half-way decent PSU subforum and you'll easily see that Apevia is not recommended at all.

Even without Apevia's reputation, that Apevia PSU you chose would still be a bad buy due to the following lack of info:
- Max amperage on the +12V rail
- Whether it was rated at peak or continuous load
- What temperature that PSU was rated at

Without those key pieces of information, there's no way anyone can tell if that PSU is capable of providing its rated wattage in a real world scenario.

A better recommendation would have been this PSU:
$55 - Corsair 400CX 400W PSU

Several advantages:
- Corsair is well known for quality PSUs
- Stated max amperage on the +12V rail of 30A
- Known to be rated at continuous load
- Rated at 50C which is the average temperature of PSUs when inside a PC
- Backed by a proper PSU review:
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2009/02/16/entry_level_power_supply_roundup/5