Member Avatar for Seeknay25

I would just like to get some knowledge from people who know more about this subject before I spend 450 bucks. At first I just needed and graphics card but then realized I need a lot better power supply. Now is there requirements that I should be aware of. I plan on buying this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703009
Now this says its 7.4 x 5.9 x 3.4
That 7.4 is length, right? Because if it means that my computer needs to be 8 inches wide then we got a problem. I'm hoping theres no requirements for me to run this.
I also plan on buying Radeon hd 4870 I'm pretty sure that will be fine but if I wanted to do crossfire in the future would I be able to do this with the power supply? If theres anything here than you can answer or something I didnt know about this then please do post.

misc. info
model#=am3100
board=Acer F690GVM

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by jermaghs07

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Following 's upgrade idea and building on points from and , here is a short, practical checklist to avoid surprises when fitting a high-power GPU and/or swapping to a new case.

Measure for fit before buying. With the side panel removed, measure from the inside face of the rear expansion slot straight forward to the first obstruction (drive cage, motherboard area, metal brace). Compare that clear length to the GPU's published length, and add an extra 10–20 mm for bracket thickness and cable clearance. If clearance is tight, options include a shorter card, relocating/removing drive bays, or choosing a different case.

Power and connectors matter more than total wattage alone. Confirm how many native PCIe power plugs the planned GPU requires and whether the PSU supplies them without adapters. For multi-card setups, multiply that connector requirement accordingly. Avoid using Molex-to-PCIe adapters as primary power for high-draw cards; they can overheat and overload wiring. Prefer a PSU with solid continuous +12V current capability and an 80 PLUS efficiency rating from a reputable brand.

Estimate needed wattage with a simple formula: add GPU peak draw + CPU peak draw + ~50–100 W for drives and fans, then add ~25–30% headroom for safety and aging. OEM motherboards sometimes limit multi-GPU configs electrically or physically; check the Acer board’s spec sheet/manual for supported slot layouts and CrossFire compatibility before assuming dual cards will work.

When moving to a new case, pay attention to motherboard standoff placement, I/O shield fit, anti-static precautions, and neat cable routing for airflow. The stepwise transfer approach suggested by is sound; add a BIOS/chipset driver check after reassembly and run a stability test at stock settings before any tuning.

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Member Avatar for 4th&3wood

Acer uses ATX form factor PSUs, and that PSU is ATX PSU, no problems. This is one of the better PSUs out there, and will sufficient for one or both of those cards.

Member Avatar for Seeknay25

Thx a lot for the comment and I looked into it and my tower is indeed 7 inches wide. If that means i cant fit it then that sucks for me. I currently got a 250 watt and heard that means I got a small case. So is it easy, and i mean very easy to get and switch everything over to another case? On newegg I found a couple a 30 bucks. Is there any reason why I should spend more? I sort of want it to last me but I would be fine just using a cheap one for a while until i spend a lot on a more expensive one. And again, is it easy to move my motherboard and everything over to the new case? As much information as you want to give me is greatly appreciated.

Member Avatar for jermaghs07

it is pretty easy to move everything to a new case as long as you just hook everything back up the way it was. if you have never done anything like this before my suggestion is take a few pictures of the old case with all the components still hooked up. make sure you get a pic of how the on/off switch, hdd light and all those little tiny wires that are plugged directly into the mobo are all hooked up. once you have some pictures of what it is supposed to look like then just start carefully taking one piece out at a time and lay them some where, where they won't get damaged. put the mother board in first, then CD drive then hard drive then expansion cards then new PSU when it gets there.


another thing you might want to make sure of the motherboard pin count, some have a 20pin and some have a 24pin. make sure your mobo matches up with the new PSU if you aren't sure what i am talking about it should look like this

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