Utterly Confused ..

[Astro2525]

Hey everyone. This is my first time visiting these forums and I am .. as the title states .. utterly confused.

Now, I have a very old system (2004-05..?) and it's graphics card just doesn't cut it for games such as World of Warcraft. So, I decided to upgrade my graphics card. Now upon determining specs and requirements for certain graphics cards, I came across AGP, PCi-E and PCI slots. So, I opened up my case to check out what I had and it looks nothing like either of the 3.

This was taken from the front of the computer. As you can see, on the right is the power supply and the left is what I think to be a graphics card..?

Here's a closer up shot:

Now; the 3 white slots are what I think to be PCI slots. The black slot on the right has got me clueless.

So; I guess what I'm asking is: What kind of graphics cards can I use? I have a 550W PSU so that's really not a problem. It's just my computer looks nothing like anyone elses. Is this some sort of unchangeable interface that I am doomed to put up with for eternity?

BTW:

I'm running a Compaq Presario 2004. Too lazy to find the exact model type, if you need it to determine what everything is, lemme know. Got around 2.5GB of RAM.

Thanks in advance people. ^^

 

[Trotter]

That is a PCI-E x16 slot, mate.

You said a 550W. Care to list the make and model? Not all PSUs are created equal.

 

[MindoverMaster]

That black one looks like PCI-E. Yep, just checked. Made sorely for HP computers.

Motherboard Specifications, A8AE-LE (Amberine) HP Pavilion d4100e CTO Desktop PC - HP Customer Care (United States - English)

(That first picture looks very blurry, though. )

Edit: Officially ninja'd by Trotter.

 

[Joe C]

Edit: Mindover Master beat me to the link for your board

 

[iFargle]

Yup, PCI-e x16 slot. Almost all video cards manufactured today are PCI-e x16, so you shouldn't have any problem with compatibility. The only place you'd probably have problems with is, as Trotter pointed out, your PSU.

We all just got ninja'd

 

[Trotter]

 

[Astro2525]

My PSU is a GEN-2004 550 Watt ATX.
Further specs on that:
Fan:--- 120 mm
Input Voltage:--- 115 ~ 230
+3.3V:--- 18 A
+5V:--- 28 A
+12V 1:--- 32 A
-12V:--- 0.8 A
-5V:--- 0.6 A
+5VSB:--- 2 A
20+4-Pin Connector:--- 1
4-Pin P4:--- 1
6-Pin PCI-Express Connector:--- 1
4-Pin Floppy Connector:--- 1
4-Pin Peripheral Connector:--- 8
SATA Power Connector:--- 2

And the graphics card I'm currently eyeing:

Visiontek Radeon HD 2600 Pro Video Card - 512MB DDR2, PCI Express, CrossFire Ready, Dual DVI, HDTV, HDMI Support, Video Card at TigerDirect.com

Now what I'm worried about is this part:

I just can't seem to think of a way that would fit. My monitor currently plugs into a separate outlet, completely separate from the graphics card (or so it seems ..)

Is it compatible? Or do I have to somehow find a graphics card without it?

 

[Trotter]

Honestly, your PSU is probably junk. Sorry to be blunt, but it is. With that said, it should power that card but you can do a lot better graphically for $100.

Newegg.com - SAPPHIRE 100297L Radeon HD 5830 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ ATI Eyefinity Technology
$110

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GV-N26UD-896M GeForce GTX 260 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
$100

Newegg.com - XFX HD-485X-ZNFC Radeon HD 4850 1GB 256-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
$110

Theoretically that PSU could run those cards, but I wouldn't trust it.

 

[iFargle]

Usually the cards come with a VGA to DVI adapter.

 

[Astro2525]

Usually the cards come with a VGA to DVI adapter.

Now, what exactly is a VGA to DVI adapter? Lol.

Honestly, your PSU is probably junk. Sorry to be blunt, but it is. With that said, it should power that card but you can do a lot better graphically for $100.

Newegg.com - SAPPHIRE 100297L Radeon HD 5830 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ ATI Eyefinity Technology
$110

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GV-N26UD-896M GeForce GTX 260 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
$100

Newegg.com - XFX HD-485X-ZNFC Radeon HD 4850 1GB 256-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
$110

Theoretically that PSU could run those cards, but I wouldn't trust it.

Thanks for all the info Trotter. I really appreciate it.

I'll probably try out

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GV-N26UD-896M GeForce GTX 260 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
$100

and see how my PSU handles it. If it fails, I'll probably purchase a new one. Any recommendations for quality PSU's if it does?