what graphics card should i upgrade to

[Deleted member 212788]

it is 450 wats. the pc is a HP desktop model h8-1140sc. the bios is locked and as such i can not configure it myself at all.
what does Motherboard timer not operational (check all PSU to MB connectors seated) mean.

450W from a no-name cheapo PSU (usually cheap units are included in pre-builts) could actually simply not have enough power for a Nahalem i7 + 960. 960 might be power efficient but first gen i7s were quite the power hogs so if you say your system uses about 300W of power with efficiency of 75% that means that the PSU has to actually draw 375W. if you factor in capacitor degradation and that the PSU cannot output (if it ever could) 450W anymore it could be the issue.

Check all the cables that it has connected - Sata power cable, 24/20-pin motherboard cable, 8-pin CPU power and PCIe power connectors (should be dual 6-pin). If all cables are in place make sure nothing else is loose (GPU is properly inserted in the PCIe slot, RAM sticks are properly inserted, everything) and try again

EDIT: DSG pointed you to something I forgot - check if the 12V rail(s) of the PSU have enough Amps for the GPU. if it's a multi-rail unit. make sure to use 1 PCIe cable from both rails as to avoid overstressing 1 rail.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

my processor is sandy bridge and not Nehalem. if i remember correctly, the power connector on the graphics card is connected directly to the power supply. one thing that is with that graphics card is its cooling system. it is an asus strix geforce gtx 960. the fan only runs when the card`s heat goes beyond a certain hight. could that cooling system cause software issues?

 

[Dr Super Good]

it is an asus strix geforce gtx 960. the fan only runs when the card`s heat goes beyond a certain hight. could that cooling system cause software issues?

No it should not interfere with the BIOS or OS. For it to function properly you may need vendor specific drivers to control the fans inside the OS however that is currently not a problem (since you cannot even start the system with it).

The GPU drawing too much power should not be a problem since it only ever uses its full rated power when running at full load doing specific computationally expensive graphical operations. All other times it will run at a fraction of that quoted power (hence how it can be passively cooled at times). One just has to use a PSU with that maximum limit in mind so that when it needs full power it has it.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

could the bios update help?

 

[Dr Super Good]

could the bios update help?

Possibly. Cannot say for sure though seeing how we do not know what motherboard it is using.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

even i do not know what the board is. the pc model is rather specific and mass produced so if you look up the model you find the hardware.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

i purchased another card that uses even less power 950 but even that does not work. according to nvidia`s websites it actually uses less power than the card currently installed so that rules out power supply but it still does not rule out incompatibility. could it be that the 900 series is incompatible?

 

[Dr Super Good]

could it be that the 900 series is incompatible?

Yes it could be. If the computer is mass produced using OEM components it could have a component white lists limiting what components can be installed. Hewlett Packard (HP) and other manufacturers are well known for doing this with their computers.

 

[pyf]

[...] the pc is a HP desktop model h8-1140sc.

- HP Pavilion HPE h8-1140sc Desktop PC Product Information | HP® Customer Support
- HP PartSurfer

the bios is locked and as such i can not configure it myself at all. [...]

In case you mean 'password protected':
- HP and Compaq Desktop PCs - Motherboard Specifications, IPISB-CH2 (Chicago) | HP® Customer Support

even i do not know what the board is. the pc model is rather specific and mass produced so if you look up the model you find the hardware.

- HP and Compaq Desktop PCs - Motherboard Specifications, IPISB-CH2 (Chicago) | HP® Customer Support
- HP Support document - HP Support Center
- Pegatron IPISB-CH2 Mainboard Specs

i have no manual. the pc came without instructions at all. [...]

I would expect a few PDFs to be somewhere on your HDD. Anyway:
- HP Pavilion HPE h8-1140sc Desktop PC Manuals | HP® Customer Support

i purchased another card that uses even less power 950 but even that does not work. according to nvidia`s websites it actually uses less power than the card currently installed so that rules out power supply but it still does not rule out incompatibility. could it be that the 900 series is incompatible?

- Will the GTX 960 Graphics card work on my IPISB-CH2 Chicago Motherboard with In Intel H67 chipset? - [Solved] - Motherboards
- http://www.pc-specs.com/mobo/HP/HP_IPISB-CH2_(Chicago)/1627/Compatible_GPUs

 

[Dr Super Good]

If the computer is mass produced using OEM components it could have a component white lists limiting what components can be installed. Hewlett Packard (HP) and other manufacturers are well known for doing this with their computers.

Wow so I guessed it without even knowing!

Basically it is not incompatible with the motherboard, as that does not even make much sense due to how PCI-E works. Just the motherboard is programed to reject it outright (will not allow it to work) unless it identifies it specifically as "allowed" hardware.

Please can people stop buying stuff from HP...

 

[andreasaspenberg]

i want to still be able to use this pc. any motherboards that will fit of newer date?

 

[pyf]

@andreasaspenberg: what about this 'locked bios' issue?

[...] Basically it is not incompatible with the motherboard, as that does not even make much sense due to how PCI-E works. Just the motherboard is programed to reject it outright (will not allow it to work) unless it identifies it specifically as "allowed" hardware.

The motherboard uses a LGA 1155 socket with an Intel H67 chipset. Therefore I understand, it should be up to the PCIe 2.0 specs. But the HP site does not *clearly* mention, the PCIe x16 slot of the HP IPISB-CH2 'Chicago' motherboard to be fully up to said v2.0 specs. I am unable to find any written official HP technical documentation about this specific OEM mobo. Not even a documentation for its AMI Bios menu.

Now, do the PCie slots read as being v2.0 ones for this OEM motherboard? HWiNFO should help find out (and probably more).


I understand something changed with the PCIe 2.1 specs.

It might explain why some state that motherboard/CPU with Sandy Bridge may only support PCIe 2.0, and cannot support PCIe 3.0 cards. More thoughts here:
Solved: bios freezes on Hp IPISB-CH2 with new graphic card installed - HP Support Forum - 4631736

I expect PCIe 3.0 video cards to work to their fullest, only on PCIe 3.0 slots.

Please can people stop buying stuff from HP...

From personal experience with two HP Pavilions from the 2000s, I do agree they are not worth buying / trying to upgrade if it costs any money.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

according to this link: HP IPISB-CH2 (Chicago) Mobo Compatible PC GPUs only up to 600 series gpus will work. i am willing to switch motherboard and processor(no way to use my current processor in a modern motherboard). is there any motherboards that is compatible with my chassis? another thing regarding a different pc(not relevant in this situation though). that pc also have pcie 1.0 just like this one and can run a gtx 960 perfectly.

 

[pyf]

Again, what was this 'locked bios' issue you were previously talking about?

according to this link: HP IPISB-CH2 (Chicago) Mobo Compatible PC GPUs only up to 600 series gpus will work.

Like I do not know that already; I provided this link earlier in this thread.

another thing regarding a different pc(not relevant in this situation though). that pc also have pcie 1.0 just like this one and can run a gtx 960 perfectly

I expect the video card's possibilities to be underused in a v1.0 slot.
Out of curiosity, what is the motherboard's name please?

is there any motherboards that is compatible with my chassis?

This question should be asked in a new thread imho.

 

[Dr Super Good]

The motherboard uses a LGA 1155 socket with an Intel H67 chipset. Therefore I understand, it should be up to the PCIe 2.0 specs. But the HP site does not *clearly* mention, the PCIe x16 slot of the HP IPISB-CH2 'Chicago' motherboard to be fully up to said v2.0 specs. I am unable to find any written official HP technical documentation about this specific OEM mobo. Not even a documentation for its AMI Bios menu.

It is well known that HP use component white lists on their motherboard. This means they out right reject anything not on the white list. This is to force one to buy new more often or to go through them for component upgrades, which they charge a premium for. I know it is really stupid but then again people still buy the computers...

HP is not the only company to do this. Apple OS itself contains an enormous hardware whitelist which is why it cannot be installed like a generic OS such as Windows or Linux.

 

[pyf]

I remember it was especially true for Compaq computers back in the 1990s.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

you once again ignore my question and keep discussing off topic stuff. please tell me what kind of motherboard i need to upgrade to.

 

[Dr Super Good]

you once again ignore my question and keep discussing off topic stuff. please tell me what kind of motherboard i need to upgrade to.

Any modern non-OEM board that fits your non-OEM components will do.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

what components would that be? my chassis have a somewhat complicated design so i need something that would fit with that.

 

[Dr Super Good]

what components would that be?

The ones you are using already? That are not the motherboard?

my chassis have a somewhat complicated design

You can buy new computer cases very cheaply, and they are almost certainly higher quality than the junk HP uses. I would recommend finding a generic motherboard that suits your needs and if necessary replacing the case.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

chassises cost a lot in my country so i better buy a motherboard that fits the chassis. costs are high because they is no real competition after another shop went down(not that it matters). there is modern cpus that fits the psu(using the same power or less).

 

[Dr Super Good]

there is modern cpus that fits the psu(using the same power or less).

With CPUs it is the problem of the socket (pin configuration), not the power consumption.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

both things can be a problem. i do have a 460 watts power supply that i can not upgrade because of the chassis. that is beside the point. i have compared modern processors to what i have inpower requirements and skylake processors use about the same power as sandy bridge or less. the biggest concern is to find a motherboard that can fit in the chassis.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

will this fit in my chassis: ASRock > B150M Pro4

 

[Dr Super Good]

will this fit in my chassis: ASRock > B150M Pro4

Best way to find out is to measure your chassis space for the card and see. I would recommend adding at least 1 cm to width and depth of the card's technical spec.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

here is some pictures of the chassis. will the motherboad fit?

 

[WhiteFang]

It looks like it,but as DSG said,the best way is to take measurements

 

[andreasaspenberg]

i will ask HP just to be sure but considering how bad my current motherboard is i have to switch it soon as today it broke down completely. i got it back online and the pc have been running since but that is bad. any idea why it require ps/2 mouse and ps/2 keyboard(the new motherboard that is)?