Dead Graphics Card

[metalnick]

 Well guys it finally happened. My Nvidia 6600 GT card has died. I was right in the middle of a game and my monitor just lost signal and now nothing works. I'm pretty sure it's the graphics card but I'm gonna make double sure its not something else when I get home later today. So does anyone have any suggestions for a new-ish card I can replace it with?  I am on a bit of a budget and was thinking maybe a 6800 series card would be better suited for my needs (Plus I can jump from 128 to 512). I mainly use my desktop for older games so I'm not that upset but the fact that I CAN"T use it right now really bugs me. Specs are as follows and I'd appreciate any input.

*Pentium 4 2.4 Ghz
*Windows XP 32-bit
*Nvidia Ge Force 660 GT 128MB
*80GB HDD
*2.0 GB DDR2 RAM


 

[Bones]

you could get yourself a 9600 gt, I had one few years ago and it was quite good ;)

[metalnick]

I had thought about it but I just don't know if my power supply would be enough to run a higher end card. This thing is circa 2004 so, yeah.... 

[Darkthunder]

If your power supply is 400W or above, it should easily handle a 9600GT. Buddy of mine went as high as GTX 260, on an old 400W supply

[Bones]

Affirmative, I had a cheap 400w PSU with additional 4-pin power cable (this card needs that) and it ran perfectly ;)

[moed]

A 400 watt will handle it fine but it's definitely not just about the wattage. What's more important is the amps on the 12 volt rail of the power supply. It should have sufficient amps to power the graphics card and all the other componants in the system with extra to spare. Also, a quality power supply is super important. It may cost a bit more but there is no single component more critical to a smooth and in particular, stable running PC than a good power supply.

I have an old 6800 GT that I used years ago in perfect working condition. It too only has 128MB RAM but it's faster than your 6600 GT. PM me if you're interested and maybe we can work out a deal.

[Bones]

A 400 watt will handle it fine but it's definitely not just about the wattage. What's more important is the amps on the 12 volt rail of the power supply. It should have sufficient amps to power the graphics card and all the other componants in the system with extra to spare. Also, a quality power supply is super important. It may cost a bit more but there is no single component more critical to a smooth and in particular, stable running PC than a good power supply.

I have an old 6800 GT that I used years ago in perfect working condition. It too only has 128MB RAM but it's faster than your 6600 GT. PM me if you're interested and maybe we can work out a deal.

QFT. Better not take the risk of cheaper PSUs, they tend to only have 400w on the sticker ;) better go for Chieftec, Antec, Corsair or OCZ. There are more brands worth haveing a look at that are only slightly cheaper but are just as good as those I mentioned

[metalnick]

Thanks for all your input guys.  I can't recall what the wattage is on my PSU but I think its pretty low. I want to say 260 or 280 but I'm not sure and will have a look when I get home. But I have a friend who's gonna hook me up with a 1GB for 40 bucks.  Plus my old roomate is gonna let me borrow his computer (badass custom rig) and I might buy it from him. Compared to my current system It'd be like jumping from an Apple II to a Pentium 4.  The Universe provides!