Dell 8400 upgrade

[Dellitup]

hey i got a Dell 8400 (all laugh)
Specs are

3.4 pent
1gig ddr2 at(533)
soundblaster live 24 bit
6800gto
80 hard drive
19 inch lcd

K christmas and birtday are comeing so ill get about $500 maby. 300 more if i start working. I need a gaming system, well better one. The case suxs no air movement or vent and the gto runs at 72C. So im think of buying some type of thermaltake case with a 430 watt ps. This gto is kinda underclocked and unmaskeble. So maby a gt or 700gtx all depends. I think i was gonna buy the asues SLi motherboard for intel, so maby a 7800gtx or buy one gt and get one later or ultra.
Tell me guys what i need to get this moving

 

[Vegito]

basically you're looking at rebuilding the whole system.. since dell case wont fit regular mobo and the psu are sort of out of the question also..

basically you'll need a new case, mobo, psu, video (since you mentioned), maybe a new processor if your 3.4 doesn't fit into asus sli.

You should save more money and hope for the best..

 

[Dellitup]

why whould i need a new proccers the mother board is for intelsASUS P5ND2-SLI Deluxe Socket T (LGA 775) Nvidia nForce 4 SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

 

[jpeyton]

If you want better gaming, just get a better graphics card and call it a day. Sounds like a waste of time and money to reconstruct the entire system.

Your 19" monitor has a maximum resolution of 1280x1024; what games are you playing that you need better performance with at that resolution?

 

[Vegito]

Originally posted by: Dellitup
why whould i need a new proccers the mother board is for intelsASUS P5ND2-SLI Deluxe Socket T (LGA 775) Nvidia nForce 4 SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

because I dont know whats the one in your current dell..

There are lga 775 3.4 and also prescott 478 3.4

so if you got one and not the other.. but since you got ddr2, only the lga775 uses that..

 

[Dellitup]

So am i better off buying a 6800 ultra and a case or just a 7800gtx, im not a over clocker or anything i just dont want lag. MY gto plays source like crap

 

[jpeyton]

Hrrm...

I'm surprised because a GTO isn't such a bad card. ATI cards perform pretty well in Source too.

Keep your case. Make sure your system is optimized...defrag your drives, uninstall any crap you don't use, have as few applications loading at startup as possible, use a good set of drivers...

Maybe check eBay for a used X850XT PCI-E. Those are fast cards in source, and most will run at Platinum Edition speeds. You can probably get one for $400 or less. I would not get a 6800 Ultra unless you find them for super cheap.

7800GTX is noice, but it's a lot of cash too.

I have an 8400 and it played CS:S very well with an X850XTPE.

 

[RaiderJ]

If you upgraded that video card to a faster one, I see no reason why it wouldn't be a great gaming machine. If you get really excited about a gaming system, I think you'd be better off to sell the Dell and start from scratch.

But... if you are looking into SLI, you obviously just prefer to throw money away. In that case, get an Alienware.

 

[furballi]

The layout of the DELL motherboard makes it VERY difficult to upgrade to a new case. It can be done, but you will end up modding the new case to make it works. Again, I would only upgrade the memory, hard drive, RAM, and video card with those 8400s. That's why DELL can sell them so cheap and still make $.

 

[RussianSensation]

Your best bet is a new G70 or R520 (when it comes out). Otherwise you are just wasting money literally. As long as your components do not overheat, who cares about airflow.

 

[Dellitup]

yea but the thing is i want to go to lan parties, and i do go to alot just not with my comp, why you ask, im not taking a dell when every1 else has a sweet case. I might just but a case and intelsASUS P5ND2-SLI Deluxe Socket T (LGA 775) Nvidia nForce 4 SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail. or just not go to any lans

 

[RussianSensation]

Originally posted by: Dellitup
yea but the thing is i want to go to lan parties, and i do go to alot just not with my comp, why you ask, im not taking a dell when every1 else has a sweet case. I might just but a case and intelsASUS P5ND2-SLI Deluxe Socket T (LGA 775) Nvidia nForce 4 SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail. or just not go to any lans

i think what matters is that you smoke them at the games you play. It's even sweeter when you have a sleeper system - no window inside so they cannot tell what you have. All these hardcore junkies with souped up cases, and then some kid with a Dell computer whips their asses. Once 7800GTX is in there, I doubt you'll feel inadequate unless the people you play with spend their monthly paycheques on hardware upgrades.

Next time you consider puchasing a new system just build one yourself, because that is what it sound like you plan on doing now after having dropped money on a Dell system.

 

[happy medium]

Read the part about the cage fan at the bottom. By the time Christmas comes the 7800 GTX will be cheaper and uses less power then the 6800 ultra. Just upgrade your video card and grab the card cooler from Dell is my advice.

a Dimension 8400 350w power supply, XPS Gen 3 460w power supply (PCIe video cards) =
GeForce FX 6800 Ultra Extreme Edition
GeForce 6800 Ultra
Radeon X800 XT Platinum Edition
GeForce 6800 GT
Radeon X800 XT
Radeon X800 Pro
GeForce 6800
Radeon X800 SE
Error while adding PCIe video card, "Alert! additional card cage fan needed for PCI Express card over 75 watts". You need to call Spare Parts (800-372-3355) and purchase this part number:
H3840 Auxilary Blower Fan for PCIe video cards
Message Edited by DELL-ChrisM on 10-29-2004 10:36 AM

 

[DerelictDev]

I would leave it alone, the computer sounds pretty decent. A 6800gto should run BF2 fine considering your max res is onle 1280 by 1024. I think your computer probably needs a good clean install. Most likely Windows XP "WITHOUT" Dells included software and other crap. After the clean install, get the newest drivers, fool proof things (Spybot and such) and reinstall BF2. You should see a good increase in performance w/o wasting anymore money. (Maybe except for a Retail Windows XP if you dont dl it. wink)

If this is not the case just upgrade the card, though i really dont think you need too.

 

[Twsmit]

Originally posted by: DerelictDev
I would leave it alone, the computer sounds pretty decent. A 6800gto should run BF2 fine considering your max res is onle 1280 by 1024. I think your computer probably needs a good clean install. Most likely Windows XP "WITHOUT" Dells included software and other crap. After the clean install, get the newest drivers, fool proof things (Spybot and such) and reinstall BF2. You should see a good increase in performance w/o wasting anymore money. (Maybe except for a Retail Windows XP if you dont dl it. wink)

If this is not the case just upgrade the card, though i really dont think you need too.

He is right. you have a beast of a system. Its an intel, its a dell, its 'only' a 6800GTO.... but its a beast of a system. Some minor optomizations and the realization that what you have is about as fast as it gets.... give or take a little and you should fine yourself happy.

rebuilding your system will be expensive and probably only give what..... 20% more speed improvement??? Not worth it. At most get a new video card in a year or two.

 

[FlyingPenguin]

Geez. Dimension 8400 is a NICE rig. It's the same hardware as the Dell XPS Gaming System except for a lighter PSU and no fancy case. It's the rig I'd buy if I wanted to buy an OEM computer.

72C is NOT too hot for a modern GPU. You can always put a bigger heat pip in there if you want, or add an extra exhaust fan, but it'll run fine stock.

 

[happy medium]

Another thing to consider if you go SLI with 7800's is the bottleneck you have with that cpu. I don't think it's worth it at all.

 

[hurtstotalktoyou]

I agree. You have an extremely fast system. To upgrade it, as said above, would cost lots and yield a minimal speed boost.

 

[furballi]

A friend just purchased the DELL 8400 about one month ago. Just last week, the 80 mm case fan in the PSU is making loud noise.

 

[mettleh3d]

your system is an UPGRADE for me. HAHAHAHA jk, you have intel.