Turn HP Pavilion to gaming computer

[ATSweatt]

Hi, I am looking to upgrade my HP Pavilion 500-214 to run games smoothly. I am looking at upgrading my video card and power supply but, I am unsure on what is compatible with my current motherboard. I am very new to building a gaming pc and was looking for some insite. I was looking at getting a NVidia GTX 750 ti and upgrading to a gold rated power supply probably 600w. My utimate goal is to run games like GTA 5, Fallout 4, The Divison, So on so forth on HIgh or Very High Graphics. Your help would be very much appreciated! Thank you!

[old_geekster]

@ATSweatt, welcome to the forum.

The best way to determine which video cards will do what you need is, run a search for each game that you want to play for system requirements.  This will tell you the Minimum Requirements and the Recommended Requirements.  For instance, Fallout 4 shows Minimum - GeForce GTX 550Ti and Recommended - GeForce GTX 780.  Since you want to play the games at high or very high settings, the Recommended Requirements would be what you need.  I like EVGA products.  Their Tech Support (1-888-881-3842) is very good.  I suggest contacting them to determine which is the best card for your system and needs.  They are the experts on their products.

The power supply unit (PSU) is much easier.  Any standard ATX PSU will work.  I suggest measuring the existing PSU and comparing them to the one that you choose.  For either of the video cards above, a 600W PSU would be fine.  You should add at least 100W above what the video card needs to run properly.  This will give you extra power for peak times.  I like Corsair products.  A modular PSU is very good for smaller cases.  This allows you to use only the cables that are absolutely necessary.

Now, I have given you a lot of information to consider.  I would like you to find the video card and PSU that you want.  Then, come back and we will discuss your choices.  This is the way to get experience on reading specs.  Always read Customer Reviews to see what users have to say about them.  Newegg normally has the best Specifications information.

[TheN00bBuilder]

It will be hard to get high frame rates with that CPU, it being only an AMD A8. Though, your wish is my command.

Anything above an RX 470 will be 100% overkill for that CPU and you do not need a 600W PSU, maybe more like 550W. I say that Corsair should be avoided, as yes, they have good models, but they have their fair share of junk power supplies as well.

GPU; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202230&cm_re=rx_470-_-14-202-230-_-Product

PSU; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182356

[ATSweatt]

Thanks for all the help! I think I have decided on a EVGA GTX 960: http://www.frys.com/product/8367207?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG and a Thermaltake TR2 500w PSU:  http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153226&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-PC&cm_mmc=KN... I just need to make sure that the grapics card will fit/ work with the motherboard. As far as the cpu I will be upgrading that as soon as I get these upgrades and get a little extra cash probably going to go with an AMD Athlon X4 860K Black Edtion: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MU00IOQ/?tag=xtremegaminer-20

[wb2001]

Black Edition chips are  not certified for that machine. Read here.

@erico makes the following statement:

When choosing an upgrade CPU, pay close attention to the max TDP and  ensure that you do not choose a Black Edition CPU.

AMD Black Edition cpu's are not supported by the motherboards in standard HP desktop PCs.

A Black Edition is great for an enthusiast level motherboard which gives its owner access to primary and secondary memory timings, voltages and bus multipliers. An HP dektop PC does not give its owner access to any of those options in the BIOS. 

[old_geekster]

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@TheN00bBuilder wrote:

Anything above an RX 470 will be 100% overkill for that CPU and you do not need a 600W PSU, maybe more like 550W.  I say that Corsair should be avoided, as yes, they have good models, but they have their fair share of junk power supplies as well.

---

Opinion or fact?  I have recommended hundreds, if not thousands, of Corsair PSU's over the years; CX, CS, RX, standard, modular, etc.  To date, I have never had any member come back complaining about the quality.  In fact, quite the opposite.  The reason is, they provide clean, stable power for the system at a reasonable price.  This is based on hours as an active member on enthusiast, overclocking forums.  Since the PSU is the most replaced component in a computer, it would be difficult to find a manufacturer's product that doesn't have what appears to be good models and bad models.

[wb2001]

While I have no bias against Rosewill products, using their BlackHawk case in all my builds and(having the Green Series 630W and 530W units  (in older 8100 and 9200 computers), those were not modular. That particular Rosewill is 6.3" deep into the case.  I would measure the interior, allowing for added modular cable plugs.

Notice: The 2 Rosewill Green Series are now old stock items.  Been in service over 4 years.

[Big_Dave]

@TheN00bBuilder

Unless your application is CPU bound, the bigger the graphics card the better especially if you are experiencing low frame rates at higher resolutions and high game settings.

[ATSweatt]

Okay I have a new question for you guys on this subject I got a really good deal on an AMD R7 360 OC Graphics Card. I know its a little on the lower end of cards but it will do what I need it to do. So my question is with this card do I still need a psu the computer has a 300w psu and this card has a 100w TDP. What do you think?

[TheN00bBuilder]

@old_geekster

It is a total fact. Enthusiast forums avoid the CS, RMs minus the 750/850W unit, and CX series power supplies like the utter plague.

http://www.overclock.net/t/1431436/why-you-should-not-buy-a-corsair-cx430-500-600

http://www.hardocp.com/article/2015/01/21/corsair_cx750_750w_power_supply_review/#.V7PIW0bYKUk

http://www.overclock.net/t/1455892/why-you-might-not-want-to-buy-a-corsair-rm-psu

In short, avoid all Channel Well Technology OEM power supplies. Their power SATA connectors are also extremely brittle and I have broken at least one on all my Corsair PSUs; a VS550, CX430, TX750, and RM850.