Need some help with regards to Video Card comptatability

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Hello there. I do not know much when it comes to video cards and compatibility issues with buying a new one so I am hoping you guys can help me out a bit. Before I start let me say I greatly appreciate any help given as I'm kind of in the dark on this whole matter.

Ok so, currently I have an ACER ASE380 ED421A computer. I got it about 2'ish years ago and it's a dang fine computer that's ran without problems since. Unfortunately, it came with quite a crappy video card, a Geforce 6150 nForce 430 I believe. I enjoy playing games on my computer but I can't run anything more modern than battlefield 2 hehe. I've been looking on the web and I found a video card that I am interested in buying, a BFG Geforce 8600 GTS 256MB PCIe Video Card. Of the little I know about this department, I at least know you can't just rip out the old one and shove in the new one and expect it to work. Basically, I am looking for any information on weather or not this card is compatable with my current computer. I've looked around on the web but believe me, nothing there helps so I thought somebody here must know a bit about this. Forgive me for my lack of knowledge but absolutely any help is really really appreciated. Thanks ALOT for any help given

OH and if you guys wanna give me some suggestions on other video cards that would be awesome as well. I'm looking for one that can at least play COD4 smoothly on average settings. Im not expecting brilliant, maximum quality settings but as long as it runs smoothly that's great. And my price range is about $200 maximum. Again, THANKS SO MUCH

Hey Wittinator Welcome to Dev

Acer ASE380 ATHLON64 DC 4200+ 2.2G SYST2GB 250GB DVDRW WVHP GB LAN MODEM

Are these your system specs ?
If not can you please list them so we can better help you.
Another thing to take into account is what resolution do you play your games at.

If so you are kind of limited in your upgrades.
This would be bottlenecking by your CPU.
I would suggest a nVidia 8800GT/9800 if your an nVidia fan or an ATI 4830...both cards can be found approx @ the same price...and are very close as far as processing power goes.
If your limit is $200 you might be able to upgrade your CPU also...but that depends if you have an AM2 socket or a 939 socket.
If you have a 939 socket your basically at the end of the line...I would not upgrade...just not worth it.

If you have an AM2 socket and your mobo supports it you can upgrade to something like this AMD Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition Dual Core Processor Socket AM2+ 2.7GHZ not bad for $80.

If you look at my sig below you'll notice I have 2 8800GTs (pretty much the same as an 9800GT)...on the second comp with the AMD X2 4400+ I can play COD4 maxed out and no lag (videocard wise)...I can play Crysis with high and medium setting no probs.

Another option is that you can Overclock your CPU and new Videocard to squeeze out a few more FPS to make it last a while longer.
Hope this helps

P.S If you do pick an 8800GT/9800GT...I would recoemd a EVGA/XFX/BFG...they all have lifetime warranties.
I go EVGA because you can change the heatsink without voidding your warranty...and EVGA has Excellent Customer Service

Well according to the specs I have tracked down, the Acer ASE380-UD421A is an AM2 system, but thats not to say it supports anything other than the standard Athlon64 X2 processors. A bios update may be required to go further, or the board itself may not be able to accept any AM2+ processors (like the X2 7750). I have also been unable to track down what power supply is being used by this system, so its hard to say off hand what range to look toward and whether or not your unit will have a PCI Express Power connection, so it would be best if you could pop open the side panel and read off the make and model of your power supply, and if you can see a spare 6-pin PCI Express Power connection (will be 2 columns tall, 3 rows wide), then we can really figure out what your system can take.

But if the motherboard itself has a PCI Express X16 slot, as its specifications indicate, then technically there is no reason why any video card would be incompatible. The PCI Express standards call for compatibility, so it doesnt matter if your X16 slot is version 1.0, 1.1, or 2.0, it will work with all pci express X16 graphics cards that follow one of the above specifications. The only limit you may have will be physically what cards may or may not fit - some cards will be nearly 11 inches in length and can take up 2 slots, the card itself will occupy the X16 slot and the heatsink will block access to the slot below it, so you may have to move your sound card/wifi card or anything else directly below the slot. Another limitation will be power - some cards are powered entirely by the PCI Express X16 slot and require no additional power connections. The 8600 GT for instance consumes about 45w at its peak, which is well under the limit of what the slot can provide....the HD 4870 X2 for instance can consume up to 300w of power, and requires the use of a 6-pin and 8-pin PCI Express Power connection. So as you can see, lots of room in between. And the final factor is, as capinuraz points out, bottlenecking. You want to be able to buy a graphics card that will meet your needs but not exceed them. At some point your processor will hold you back, as will your monitor. Lower resolutions simply do not require big, powerful graphics cards so a high end card will go to waste. So knowing what resolution you play is going to be critical.

But for my money, I would avoid the 8600 GT simply because it is old and weak. The 8600 GT has since been replaced with the 9500 GT, and as you can infer from the specs here it is a solid replacement. Not only is this card more powerful, but it is also typically found for a similar price, if you can get an 8600 GT for half the price, then its a good deal..otherwise its a card to avoid. Beyond that, it is simply a rather weak video card and I dont think you'll have an enjoyable gaming experience with it in COD4 without sacrificing some detail settings and perhaps bumping down the resolution (depending on what your native resolution is for your monitor). My first choice for a system like yours would be the HD 4670. As you can see here it significantly out classes the 8600 GT, offers newer technology, and can typically found online at retailers like newegg for about $70 (minus any rebates). As this card is also powered only by the PCI Express slot, is very short, and uses a single-slot cooling system, I dont see any reason why it would not work just fine in your system. This card will destroy the 8600 GT/9500 GT in any game you throw at it, typically seeing close to double the average frame rate.

So if you can provide some additional information about your set up - the games you play, and the native resolution of your monitor, we can provide you with the best possible match. But as things stand, I would cast a vote for the HD 4670 over the 8600 GT.The 9800 GT/HD 4830 might be a bit more than you need, or could utilize, but if the situation works out it may be the better option to go with...but for now I would still stick with the HD 4670.

Thanks so much for your help. I am trying to get as much info as possible at the moment to help you guys out. Firstly, the most advanced game I'm going to be playing is COD4. I'm not expecting to get a card that plays crisis on max details nor am I expecting a card that can play COD4 on max details. I just want one that can simply run it smoothly on average settings; however, this HD 4670 seems as though it can run it on far greater setting which is fine, doesn't really bother me. I don't care so much for the look rather the fact that it runs smooth.

Secondly, my monitor is at a current resolution 1024 by 768. I can change it to whatever I want and significantly increase the quality but then it just looks werid as it fills up only a portion of my screen.

Also, I know that power supply can be a problem when getting a new graphics card. The ACER ED422A has a power supply of 250Watts, that I know. Since mines a ED421A perhaps it's the same? I'm not sure.