BRick can't even computer

[BRickAstley]

This is half vent and half "does anyone have any idea what I can do now?"

So, the desktop I use at home is a Dell Optiplex 980, an older former work machine that gets basic stuff done. I've put a borrowed GPU in it, some older AMD one, I forget what but it runs civ4 at minimum settings. Well I get some birthday money and decide I wanna be able to play REAL games at REAL graphics settings, so I bounce over to Newegg and order a GTX 950. It got here today, and I excitedly put it in..... And then realized I have no way to power it. The power supply that comes stock in there doesn't have a 6 pin PCIe or a pair of 4 pin Molex connectors, so it's a no go. Well, I then decide to just get a different power supply... But then I find out that the 24 pin Motherboard power connector is wired differently for this specific Dell computer and I'd need an adapter and to rewire pins and I'm just not confident doing that when messing with power supplies and motherboards.

So.....

If anyone has good pc build knowledge and has any ideas to throw out there please feel free, but venting about it helps either way. I've got the feeling that the best solution is to buy the rest of the parts to build a computer from scratch, which would be best I know but also means lot of $ I don't have at the moment.

Moral of the story: Don't go installing parts all willy nilly in prebuilt commercial computers without proper research first!

[NobleHelium]

Trying to change anything about a Dell is bad. They intentionally design their stuff so that you have to pay them to change anything.

[Lewwyn]

lol Dell...

[Elum]

Assuming you can return the card and that you don't want to build a new system, then there are some graphics cards that don't require power connectors. GTX 750ti is the classic or if you can wait there are new GTX 950 being released (available 03/16/16 it seems) that don't need power connectors either. Modifying a PSU I can't help you with though .

[Gustaran]

I think Elum's idea sounds pretty good.

IMHO, either you can get a card that can be installed quickly with no hassle or it's not really worth it.
If I have to start exchanging more and more parts for a single upgrade or mess with things such as the power supply, I'd rather start saving some money to get/rebuild a decent computer instead of wasting time and money on an already outdated machine.

[BRickAstley]

Yeah, I think the 750ti is going to be the way to go here. I saw that about the new 950 but initial impressions are wary and saying it won't be much better than the 750ti so I think I'll go the tried and true route this time.

[Bacchus]

I'm a happy user of the 750Ti and can testify that with a semi-decent processor (I have a lower-end Haswell i5), you can run pretty much everything on decent settings on a decent screen.

[BRickAstley]

I'm a happy user of the 750Ti and can testify that with a semi-decent processor (I have a lower-end Haswell i5), you can run pretty much everything on decent settings on a decent screen.

This is a former work computer, so it had good specs for everything except graphcs. I think the processor is either a high end i5 or a low end i7, so I'm definitely good there.

[Bobchillingworth]

I actually just installed a 750Ti in my gaming desktop yesterday. My Radeon HD 6770 had been a trooper, but Fallout 4 proved too much for it, and the 750Ti was pretty cheap on Amazon (with free next-day delivery!).


Works well so far. Had to reset all of my civ settings, but otherwise no problems. I figure it'll last me for a couple years, at which point my PC will be almost seven years old and in need of replacing anyway.

[ReallyEvilMuffin]

These things with the current cost of tech it is *almost* easier to buy a new complete set up. I got my lenovo laptop 3 and a half years ago. i5 midrange processor, good graphics card, 8gb of ram and a 17 inch screen. Whilst I have had to replace the screen (its big, I take it everywhere and I am fairly casual about what I carry it around in) any component improvements I wouldn't even bother attempting to do. When they are obsolete I will probably just get a new system.

As Barny says, newer is ALWAYS BETTER!

I don't buy many newer games, but it runs Skyrim on near maximal settings without much of a hitch. They seem to offer very good spec for the money, and the keyboard is easy to use.