Need some help upgrading

[nubScotty]

Basically I would like to update my graphics card in order to play games on higher quality settings. I have about $300 to spend max, would prefer to not spend so much as that's my peak. Looking to play games like Bioshock 2 and Dragon Age origins on higher settings if that matters. Anywho believe the specs below are what I need to post for assistance. Thanks in advance for anyone who can help!
Link for a cleaner view of specs: http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/ca/en/ho/WF06b/12132708-12133156-12133158-12133158-12133158-81144179-81583228.html

and copied from above link:

Processor, Operating System and Memory
Operating system installed
Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium
Processor
Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor Q6600
• 2.40 GHz, 8MB L2 Cache, 1066 MHz Front Side Bus
Chipset
Intel® G33 Express Chipset
Standard memory
3072 MB (2 x 1024 MB) (2 x 512 MB)
Memory type
DDR2-SDRAM
Memory slots
4 DIMM (240-pin, DDR2) ( occupied)
Internal drives
Internal hard disk drive
720GB ( 2 x 360GB)
Hard disk controller
SATA hard drives
Hard disk drive speed
(7200 rpm)
Optical drive type
SuperMulti DVD burner with LightScribe Technology
Optical drive speed
16x DVD±R, 8x DVD+RW, 6x DVD-RW, 8x DVD+R DL, 8x DVD-R DL, 12x DVD-RAM, 16x DVD-ROM, 40x CDR, 32x CDRW, 40x CD-ROM
Second optical drive type
HD DVD player for high definition movies
Second optical drive speed
2.4x HD DVD-ROM, 5x DVD-ROM, 15x CD-ROM
System features
Memory card device
15in1 memory card reader
Modem
56k modem
Network interface
Wireless LAN 802.11 b/g
Video adapter
NVIDIA GeForce 8500 GT graphics card with 256MB dedicated video memory, TV-out, DVI, and HDMI capabilities with support for Microsoft® DirectX® 10.
Video RAM
Up to 1535MB Total Available Graphics Memory
Internal audio
High Definition Audio
Audio connectors
Headphone; Microphone;Digital Audio In/Out; LAN; Microphone/Line-in/Line-out; Rear speaker-out; Side speaker out,AUD L-R
Keyboard
HP wireless keyboard and optical mouse with extended range (up to 16 feet)
Handheld remote control
HP Media Center remote control with IR (infrared) receiver
External drive bays
2 external optical drive bays, 2 internal HDD bays, 1 Pocket Media Drive bay, 1 Personal media Drive bay ; Landing pad for USB & 1394 devices
External I/O ports
Front panel 15-in-1 memory card reader: supports SmartMedia, xD, MultiMedia Card, Secure Digital (SD), Mini Secure Digital, Compact Flash I, Compact Flash II, IBM Microdrive, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, Memory Stick Duo, Memory Stick Pro Duo, RSMMC, MMC Mobile, MMC+ 6 USB 2.0 ports (2 Front, 4 Back) 2 FireWire® (IEEE 1394) port(s) (1 Front, 1 Back) Headphone; Microphone 2 PS/2; Digital Audio In/Out; LAN; Microphone/Line-in/Line-out; Rear speaker-out; Side speaker out; Center (subwoofer); VGA-out (Back); AUD L-R, SV, CV TV-out, DVI, and HDMI capabilities on graphics card
Expansion slots
1 PCI (occupied) 2 PCI Express x1 (one available) 1 PCI Express x16 (occupied)
Software
Included/Pre-installed software
Microsoft® Internet Explorer 7.0; Windows Mail; Adobe® Reader 8.0
Optical drive driver software
HP Photosmart Essential: Organize, edit and share photos Muvee autoProducer: Automatically create professional looking home videos and burn to DVD DVD Play HD-DVD: Watch HD DVD movies
Software - education / reference / entertainment
Cyberlink DVD Suite Deluxe: Automatically fix and edit videos and create CDs and DVDs. Edit, burn and archive data to discs.
Software included
Recovery partition (including possibility to recover system, applications and drivers separately); Optional re-allocation of recovery partition; Recovery CD/DVD creation tool; Symantecâ„¢ Norton Internet Securityâ„¢ 2008 (60 days live update)
Dimensions / weight / warranty
Weight
15 kg
Package weight
17 kg
Dimensions (w x d x h)
178 x 422 x 394 mm
Package dimensions (W x D x H)
295 x 505 x 510 mm

 

[CBrooks]

I dont see any power supply specs on that, this would be a good thing to know.

I'd suggest a 5770 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150447&cm_re=5770-_-14-150-447-_-Product

I'm thinking if you get a better graphics card than the 5770 your going to be bottlenecked by your processor.

 

[foothead]

A Q66 could handle a 5850.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...TC-Froogle-_-Video+Cards-_-Diamond-_-14103085

Amazing card for the price.

If you want a little cheaper, get this.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102809&Tpk=4850 x2

You will almost definitely need a PSU upgrade for either. What model/wattage do you have?

 

[CBrooks]

A Q66 could handle a 5850.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...TC-Froogle-_-Video+Cards-_-Diamond-_-14103085

Amazing card for the price.

If you want a little cheaper, get this.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102809&Tpk=4850 x2

You will almost definitely need a PSU upgrade for either. What model/wattage do you have?

You're right that processor wouldn't be bottlenecked by a 5850.. I was thinking he had a dual core for some reason

But yeah we still need to know what his power supply wattage is

 

[nubScotty]

Did some digging and found reviews on Amazon that say it has a 400 watt power supply.

 

[nubScotty]

Bump before I purchase a video card, currently looking at getting the gfx card below, would this run ok with the 400 Watt power supply?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150447&cm_re=5770-_-14-150-447-_-Product

 

[nickelodeonn]

Bump before I purchase a video card, currently looking at getting the gfx card below, would this run ok with the 400 Watt power supply?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150447&cm_re=5770-_-14-150-447-_-Product

Nope.

Minimum 450 Watt Power Supply Requirement

 

[nubScotty]

Any advice for a power supply?

 

[foothead]

OCZ, corsair, cooler master, antec.


Get higher wattage than you need in case of future upgrades.