Old wattage verses new wattage?

[Angelmaat]

I am looking to upgrade my old 2007 HP Pavilion a6433w Desktop PC with a new tower, but the towers I've been seeing have only 180 watt power supply, while my old one had a 250 watt power supply. What is the difference and is it something I can transplant?

[old_geekster]

@Angelmaat , welcome to the Community.

The new 180W power supply units (PSU) have a 4-pin power connector.  Therefore, you won't be able to use them with the 24-pin power connector on your motherboard.  There are two major things to consider when moving your motherboard to a new case: 1) the holes in the motherboard have to match the stand-offs in the case and 2) the front connectors in the case may not be compatible.  This is very possible since your computer was release in 2008.

Any standard PSU should work with your motherboard.  Again, however, the age of the motherboard may be a problem.

Here are the Product Specifications for your computer.  Look at the sections titled "Processor/Processor upgrade information and Memory/Memory upgrade information" for the information that you need to upgrade them.  Availability may be limited for these items.

Please click the "Yes" button if my reply was helpful and "Accept as Solution" if your problem is Solved!!

[Angelmaat]

I'm sorry if I was unclear. I'm looking for a new computer tower altogether, that's why the wattage bothered me. However if I cannot migrate the power supply from one tower to another, is 180watts enough if I want to upgrade the new tower?

[old_geekster · Accepted solution]

Thank you for the additional information, @Angelmaat!

I am not certain if you were unclear or my old mind didn't read your thread correctly! 😉

It would help me to know how you will use the computer.  If you plan to upgrade it in the future it would be best to get one with a more substantial PSU in the beginning.  The models with the 180W PSU's have a 4-pin power connector as I stated.  This makes it more difficult to upgrade.  Once I know how you use the computer I will try to guide you in your choice.

[Angelmaat]

Mostly browsing, but definitely some gaming. I want the wattage, graphics card, and RAM to do that.

[old_geekster]

Thank you for the additional information, @Angelmaat!

How much do you want to spend on your new computer?  This will help me make suggestions that will be in your price range.

[Angelmaat]

I'm not sure. I think I go as high as $2000, but that will take me a few months to save that much. Right now I have a little over a thousand saved.

[old_geekster]

@Angelmaat 

Here is a page of Gaming computers at HP Store: https://www.hp.com/us-en/shop/slp/hp-gaming/desktops?jumpid=ma_hp-gaming_product-tile_desktops_2_3k1...

As you can see, there is a considerable difference in what you can buy for $1,000 and $2,000.  Personally, I would try to buy an i7 processor and at least 16 GB of memory.  The memory is difficult to upgrade later and every other component can be upgraded without many problems.