5500 XT or GTX 1650 for old PC?

[arc2350]

Hi guys! I need your advice. I know it looks like an obvious question, but for me the answer isn't such. I have an old PC, which I bought as an after-lease one. It is an HP EliteDesk 800 G1 which following configuration:

• HP 18E4 mobo
• Intel Core i5-4570 CPU
• GeForce GT 1030 GPU
• 2 x 8 GB DDR3-1600 RAM

Now i have that PC for simple task, watching YT and playing old games. Now I would like to spend just a little bit of money to upgrade the GPU to play games, which I wanted to play some time ago but didn't had time, especially Witcher 2, then Witcher 3, Dragon Age II, Dragon Age Inquisition, now maybe Age of Empires III DE, Total War series from Napoleon to Shogun and Rome 2 etc. + games like Warzone 2, Apex Legends maybe. For more recent titles and for a main gaming mashine I want to buy a PS5.

Now - I want to spend around 80$ for an used GPU, which will help me to play games fine (older games as Witcher 2 maxed out in 1080p). And in this price range here in my country I can buy cards like RX 5500 XT, GTX 1650 GDDR6, RX 580, GTX 1060. For pure perfomance I think both Radeons are the winners. BUT... well, the rest of the PC is pretty old and not gaming-tier. So the CPU will be a bottleneck. That's why I think maily about the first 2 cards. Powerful enough, very efficent, especially GeForce. Like a sweet spots for that config.
And here is my dilemma. 5500 XT seems to be a pure winner. Same money, more performance - easy choice over regular 1650. But I've read some topics which say that Radeons can have problems with old DX11 or even older games, that for this old CPU GeForce is better, less overhead, that AMD drivers are bad, that in general NVIDIA cards are better for other tasks not related with GPU. So my point is - looking at this config, what do you think? Is it really a truth? I want to have a seamless experience. Will my PC use the potential of RX 5500 over the GTX 1650? Or will they perform at the same level? If so, is this Turing card better suited for old games and won't suck in Warzone 2.0 also?

Would be grateful for your advices!

 

[tommesfps]

Check the power supply first for total 12V watt output and if pci-e 6- or 8-pin included with your Elitedesk. If you got some spare time to double check second hand GPU market please try to find GTX 1070 or GTX 1650 Super/1660 Super (or TI) wether its in your price range as well.

 

[Darc Requiem]

I'm not sure if this will help or not. This site shows how each GPU performs and you can specify games for the comparison.

GTX 1650 vs RX 5500 XT [17-Benchmark Showdown]

Comparing AMD RX 5500 XT with NVIDIA GTX 1650: technical specs, games and benchmarks.

technical.city

 

[Dr. Dro]

The 5500 XT is better in this case. Radeon driver is friendlier towards older CPUs, and neither of those are fully DX12 Ultimate nor do they have the latest generation multimedia engine. The 6500 XT 8 GB if you can find at a great price is also a top pick.

 

[arc2350]

Thanks for the replies! I could possibly find a GTX 1070 or GTX 1650 Super/1660 Super in that price range, but would it be sensible for this CPU? I think it would be an overkill. :/

The 5500 XT is better in this case. Radeon driver is friendlier towards older CPUs, and neither of those are fully DX12 Ultimate nor do they have the latest generation multimedia engine. The 6500 XT 8 GB if you can find at a great price is also a top pick.

Hmm, that's interesting, but curious - I have read that especially the RX 6500 XT has problems when connected to PCI-E 3.0 line, as it looses much of its performance.

 

[DirtyDingusMcgee]

Be sure you are looking for low-profile (half-height) cards if you are wanting it to fit in that case. That is going to limit your options pretty heavily.

 

[Dr. Dro]

Thanks for the replies! I could possibly find a GTX 1070 or GTX 1650 Super/1660 Super in that price range, but would it be sensible for this CPU? I think it would be an overkill. :/



Hmm, that's interesting, but curious - I have read that especially the RX 6500 XT has problems when connected to PCI-E 3.0 line, as it looses much of its performance.

This is true, but I don't think it outweighs the benefits of the RDNA 2 architecture. It's important to note the 6500 XT does not have video encoding capabilities at all, with relatively limited decoding support as well so sticking to the 5500 might be a good idea if you want to record gameplays every now and then.

 

[AtiAmd]

It is a kinda old cpu...very old. I would not buy anything higher than gtx 970.

 

[natr0n]

The 5500 XT is better in this case. Radeon driver is friendlier towards older CPUs, and neither of those are fully DX12 Ultimate nor do they have the latest generation multimedia engine. The 6500 XT 8 GB if you can find at a great price is also a top pick.

radeon driver is over bloated with uneeded software so that will not help an older cpu

geforce driver is lighter on resources in my own experiences

 

[Dr. Dro]

radeon driver is over bloated with uneeded software so that will not help an older cpu

geforce driver is lighter on resources in my own experiences

Granted, this is old information - but last this was looked at a few years ago, it held up that GeForce cards perform poorly when they are starved for CPU resources, pulling ahead when they're not. HUB and DF both made videos about it back in the day.

 

[Macro Device]

I'm fairly sure you don't have a serious PSU in this system. Won't be surprised if it doesn't even have a 6-pin PCI-e power plug. Your best bet is a GTX 1650 G6 in this case because 6500 XT is VERY stupid (unless available for cheaper) and RDNA2 in this form is in no way superior to Turing. You ain't missing out on anything but a couple percent advantage in games you can't run great on either GPU if you go for an older NV GPU.

5500 XT and other AMD options are too watt-hungry. Wouldn't advise them, unless you have a PSU that can handle it.
10xx series GPUs are very dated. I recommend avoiding them.

I'd, however, have saved up about $500 and made a full-blown upgrade of the whole system.

 

[lexluthermiester]

Hi guys! I need your advice. I know it looks like an obvious question, but for me the answer isn't such. I have an old PC, which I bought as an after-lease one. It is an HP EliteDesk 800 G1 which following configuration:

• HP 18E4 mobo
• Intel Core i5-4570 CPU
• GeForce GT 1030 GPU
• 2 x 8 GB DDR3-1600 RAM

Now i have that PC for simple task, watching YT and playing old games. Now I would like to spend just a little bit of money to upgrade the GPU to play games, which I wanted to play some time ago but didn't had time, especially Witcher 2, then Witcher 3, Dragon Age II, Dragon Age Inquisition, now maybe Age of Empires III DE, Total War series from Napoleon to Shogun and Rome 2 etc. + games like Warzone 2, Apex Legends maybe. For more recent titles and for a main gaming mashine I want to buy a PS5.

Now - I want to spend around 80$ for an used GPU, which will help me to play games fine (older games as Witcher 2 maxed out in 1080p). And in this price range here in my country I can buy cards like RX 5500 XT, GTX 1650 GDDR6, RX 580, GTX 1060. For pure perfomance I think both Radeons are the winners. BUT... well, the rest of the PC is pretty old and not gaming-tier. So the CPU will be a bottleneck. That's why I think maily about the first 2 cards. Powerful enough, very efficent, especially GeForce. Like a sweet spots for that config.
And here is my dilemma. 5500 XT seems to be a pure winner. Same money, more performance - easy choice over regular 1650. But I've read some topics which say that Radeons can have problems with old DX11 or even older games, that for this old CPU GeForce is better, less overhead, that AMD drivers are bad, that in general NVIDIA cards are better for other tasks not related with GPU. So my point is - looking at this config, what do you think? Is it really a truth? I want to have a seamless experience. Will my PC use the potential of RX 5500 over the GTX 1650? Or will they perform at the same level? If so, is this Turing card better suited for old games and won't suck in Warzone 2.0 also?

Would be grateful for your advices!

I have a very similar system and that GTX1650 is a tempting card. However, the RTX 3050 is an excellent offering, despite the bad press. It would be a massive upgrade from what you have now. Of course so would a 1650 or 1660. On the AMD side, a RX5500 is also a very solid upgrade, but an RX6500 would be better and for only about 20% more money.

Give the games you listed, you really want to aim for the 1660, 3050, rx6500 as those card are going to offer the best performance value for the money you would spend.

 

[DirtyDingusMcgee]

These are all great suggestions, just remember, only low profile cards will fit in the case. The hp elitedesk 800 G2 supports full sized expansion slots, but the G1 does not. I've been looking around for you, and the pickings are pretty slim. rtx3050 and rx6400, and gtx1650 (or even a gtx1060 if you trust the SRhonyra brand) are the most modern, non-workstation (and a decent little low-profile quadro t1000 or equivalent radeon pro can be had for cheap.....not ideal, but an option) options that I am seeing with any sort of availability. There are some intel A380s, but I'm pretty sure you have to have resizable bar for them to work correctly. I cannot find any low-profile 6500xt's (just some low profile oem 6500s) or gtx 970s, or 5500xt, or any of the other cards mentioned (that doesn't mean they don't exist, but i can't find them). Here is a pretty good (but not exhaustive) list of LP gpus.

https://microsounds.github.io/notes/low-profile-gpus-for-sff-pcs.htm

 

[lexluthermiester]

These are all great suggestions, just remember, only low profile cards will fit in the case. The hp elitedesk 800 G2 supports full sized expansion slots, but the G1 does not.

Yup. I own one. All of the cards I mentioned are available in both low-profile versions and are PCIe slot powered.

 

[SOS_Earth]

It is a kinda old cpu...very old. I would not buy anything higher than gtx 970.

I'm sure the processor can run decently with a GTX 1650/1660 or Radeon 6500 XT.

Radeon 6500 XT I do not recommend. The disastrous performances will be even more disastrous on an old system, it has no encoder and the fps/w ratio is also poor.

The GTX 1650 is limited by the 4GB vRAM (also valid for the 6500 XT)

RX 580 (Polaris) can reach 230W, so you need a powerful source (minimum 450W). Having trouble decoding VP9 (youtube, netflix)

GTX 1660/S/Ti destroyed the competition in their segment. It should be noted that the GTX 1660 non S or Ti @106W outperforms the RX 580@200+ W. The advantage offered by hardware encoder/decoder is also superior to these GTX cards

 

[DirtyDingusMcgee]

Yup. I own one. All of the cards I mentioned are available in both low-profile versions and are PCIe slot powered.

Not trying to call you out, but can you show me a retail LP 6500xt (or 5500xt)? There aren't any listed here on TPU or anywhere I have looked. I'm Happy to be wrong about it (and corrected) but i just can't find one.

I agree 3050 is probably best bet.

 

[eidairaman1]

It is a kinda old cpu...very old. I would not buy anything higher than gtx 970.

He already has a 1030, no sense in going with a 3.5GB card

 

[lexluthermiester]

Not trying to call you out, but can you show me a retail LP 6500xt (or 5500xt)?

You'll note I did not state the "XT" models. There aren't any retail versions for those cards in low profile. The RX5500 & RX6500 were OEM only parts and a seemingly rare ones. They can be found though.

Dell AMD® Radeon™ RX 6500, 4 GB GDDR6 Half Height 2 DPs PCIe 4.0x4 video card | eBay

Dell AMD® Radeon™ RX 6500, 4 GB GDDR6, half height, PCIe 4.0x4, 2 DP Graphics Card. Tested- Pulled out of a Dell Optiplex 7010.

www.ebay.com

He already has a 1030, no sense in going with a 3.5GB card

Especially considering that it wouldn't fit in the case and the PSU couldn't run it.

I'm sure the processor can run decently with a GTX 1650/1660 or Radeon 6500 XT.

Radeon 6500 XT I do not recommend. The disastrous performances will be even more disastrous on an old system, it has no encoder and the fps/w ratio is also poor.

The GTX 1650 is limited by the 4GB vRAM (also valid for the 6500 XT)

RX 580 (Polaris) can reach 230W, so you need a powerful source (minimum 450W). Having trouble decoding VP9 (youtube, netflix)

GTX 1660/S/Ti destroyed the competition in their segment. It should be noted that the GTX 1660 non S or Ti @106W outperforms the RX 580@200+ W. The advantage offered by hardware encoder/decoder is also superior to these GTX cards

Keep in mind, we're discussing a SFF low profile system. All card suggestions need to fit within that profile and run from PCIe slot bus power. Still I would not disagree with the advice of skipping the Radeons. While they would be an upgrade from the 1030, the newer Geforce offerings are a much better value.

For example, the following is a GTX1650 4GB and priced only $20 more than the 6500 shown above and the 1650 kicks 6500 in the goolies on performance.

GIGABYTE NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4GB GDDR6 Graphics Card (GV-N1656OC-4GL) for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for GIGABYTE NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4GB GDDR6 Graphics Card (GV-N1656OC-4GL) at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

I couldn't find a 1660 low profile, may have been mistaken on that one.

The 3050 however is the card to beat for this form factor.

ZOTAC Gaming GeForce RTX 3050 6GB GDDR6 LP Graphics Card (New) | eBay

<ul><li>NVIDIA Ampere Architecture</li><li>Game Ready Drivers</li><li>NVIDIA® GeForce Experience™</li><li>NVIDIA Highlights</li><li>NVIDIA G-SYNC®</li><li>NVIDIA DLSS</li><li>NVIDIA GPU Boost™</li><li>Low-Profile Design</li><li>2304 CUDA Cores</li><li>6GB GDDR6 memory</li><li>96-bit memory...

www.ebay.com

 

[DirtyDingusMcgee]

Yes, I was aware of the oem versions. XT's were the ones bandied about. Moot point i suppose.

3050 gets my vote.

 

[Dr. Dro]

If OP can afford the 6 GB 3050 - that is indeed the best low profile card right now unless you actually have a high budget and can afford something like an RTX A2000 or RTX 2000 Ada Generation

 

[Darc Requiem]

radeon driver is over bloated with uneeded software so that will not help an older cpu

geforce driver is lighter on resources in my own experiences

Geforce cards have more CPU overhead than Radeon cards. IIRC it's not a driver issue but a hardware one. AMD Radeon cards have a hardware scheduler and Nvidia Geforce do not. They offload the task to the CPU. It's usually a non-issue but it can rear its head in CPU limited situations.

Not trying to call you out, but can you show me a retail LP 6500xt (or 5500xt)? There aren't any listed here on TPU or anywhere I have looked. I'm Happy to be wrong about it (and corrected) but i just can't find one.

I agree 3050 is probably best bet.

Asrock and Power Color made LP 6500XTs but they both are only 4GB cards. AFAIK there is no LP version of the 5500XT.

Asrock RX 6500 XT Challenger ITX

ASRock Radeon RX 6500 XT Challenger ITX 4GB

<b>Clock: GPU / Memory</b>, Boost Clock: Up to 2815 MHz / 18 Gbps, Game Clock: Up to 2610 MHz / 18 Gbps, Base Clock: 2310 MHz / 18 Gbps<br /><b>Key Specification</b>, 6nm AMD Radeon™ RX 6500 XT, 4GB GDDR6, AMD RDNA™ 2 Architecture, DirectX 12 Ultimate, PCI® Express 4.0 Support, 1 x 8-pin Power...

www.asrock.com

Power Color Radeon RX 6500 XT ITX 4GB

PowerColor AMD Radeon™ RX 6500 XT ITX 4GB GDDR6∣PowerColor

PowerColor

www.powercolor.com

 

[Darmok N Jalad]

Don’t sell the older systems so short on gaming power. I have a 5600xt on an old Ivy Bridge E with a 500W PSU. Granted, mine is an 8 core CPU, but it’s a generation slower, running ECC, and I’m also playing fairly recent titles. Some games involve tweaking, but I totally make it work, to the point that I can’t bring myself to pull the trigger on something newer yet.

The bigger problem is if this is a half-height case. Really cuts down on options, which usually also means you’re getting less for your dollar. Looks like that model might have sold in SFF and also tower. If it’s not a tower, it’s a tough ask.

 

[Chrispy_]

Before this thread gets any further, we need confirmation from @arc2350 of his exact HP EliteDesk 800 G1, ideally a photo of what's inside and what the PSU is.

In my cursory search, no EliteDesk 800 G1 has PCIe power connectors from the PSU, The PSU itself is a proprietary non-ATX size to go with the proprietary non-ATX motherboard pinout - and the most potent variant in the largest mATX variant only had a 320W PSU - OP is likely restricted to slot-powered GPUs only, I doubt the SFF variant limited to half-height expansion cards even has 320W.

Of the suggestions so far, I think a low-profile GTX 1650 is probably the best upgrade candidate from the 1030.

 

[jak_2456]

I think that the PC that OP is trying to upgrade will be a sunk cost. I used to run a PC with an i5-3570k, 16 GB of DDR3-1600, and an RX 480; the CPU was bottlenecking the GPU. I ended up going with a Ryzen 5 2600 based system and it fixed the whole issue. That setup can handle a 6700 XT without much fuss! I would sell the old PC unless I didn't have a choice.

 

[Chrispy_]

I think that the PC that OP is trying to upgrade will be a sunk cost. I used to run a PC with an i5-3570k, 16 GB of DDR3-1600, and an RX 480; the CPU was bottlenecking the GPU. I ended up going with a Ryzen 5 2600 based system and it fixed the whole issue. That setup can handle a 6700 XT without much fuss! I would sell the old PC unless I didn't have a choice.

The GT1030 is truly a turd though. A very modest upgrade to the GPU would make this a much better gaming PC for older games.

We're talking 3-4x more performance for the sake of a card you can find used for $50-100, and that's enough to change two entire console generations of games from unplayable to playable.