Member Avatar for George.Storm

Hi,
I have an old PC:
celeron 2.2
512mb RAM (PC 2700)
300W PSU
etc
Motherboard only has a PCI slot, and I was looking fora cheap GPU, so I could play older games, I have been looking at the 6200, how good are they, and area there any better?
I am aiming to spend less than £30, but I will go higher, so suggest any you know.
Thanks!

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by jbennet

Dani AI

Generated

A few practical, no-nonsense checks and tips for getting the most from a very inexpensive graphics upgrade on a legacy, PCI-only machine — aimed at avoiding wasted cash and compatibility headaches.

  • Compatibility checklist before buying

    • Confirm the motherboard really only has the legacy PCI slot and that the card will fit the case (full- vs low-profile bracket, card length).
    • Check the power situation: many legacy cards draw only from the slot, but some require an extra molex/aux connector or more 12V headroom than an old PSU can safely supply.
    • Verify driver support for your operating system on the vendor’s legacy-driver pages before purchase.
    • If a new card shows no POST video, set the BIOS primary display to PCI (or reset BIOS defaults) so the board initializes that slot first.

  • Realistic performance and tuning (step-by-step)

    1. Install the card and latest compatible drivers.
    2. Lower resolution and turn off antialiasing/advanced postprocessing in-game.
    3. Reduce texture/shadow detail and limit background programs.
    4. If performance is still poor, a small, cheap increase in system memory will often help more than a marginally faster GPU on a CPU-limited system.

  • Buying and troubleshooting tips

    • Prefer low-power, passive or small-fan designs for an old PSU.
    • Buy used locally when possible so you can test before paying. Ask sellers to boot a game or a GPU stress tool.
    • Keep expectations modest: these cards are good for older titles at lowered settings, not modern 3D gaming.

As suggested, a PCI card is the simplest stopgap; ’s experience confirms older cards can still be perfectly serviceable if matched to realistic settings.

Recommended Answers

All 8 Replies

Member Avatar for disophisis

since it doesn't seem like you're in the market to upgrading your mobo for something like PCIE, I suppose the 6200 will work.

It won't run everything full blast!

Member Avatar for George.Storm

Hi,
Well, I know it wont run everything full blast, but I dont really want to spend several hundred pounds on a new motherboard, RAm, CPU, as this will mean I will be buying a whole new computer, all I want the computer for is mainly to work on, but also to be able to run older games, such as Cossacks 2, Call of Duty 2 etc.....
Would there be as better card, or a cheaper one that would not peform much worse?

Thanks.

Member Avatar for disophisis

So hold on, all you have is a regular PCI slot? (the older PCI slot)?

If so, I suppose it's not a bad choice.

I've never owned a 6200 however, I've gone through the 5200, the 6800, and now the 8600gt

You may want to look up some benchmarks for that card and see what it can handle.

Member Avatar for George.Storm

Hi,
How good/bad was the 5200 then?

Thanks

Member Avatar for disophisis

With the 5200 I could play css on medium settings; it wasn't a terrible card, (40 fps average medium settings at 1024x768)

I wouldn't know what to expect from the 6200 however, since it is PCI and my 5200 was agp (256 meg, 128 bit)

Member Avatar for jbennet

i play guild wars on a 5200 agp quite happliy

Member Avatar for disophisis

Yeah I used to play guild wars :D

5200 worked well for it (up from integrated video :) ).

Then I upgraded to an ATI x1600...

Member Avatar for jbennet

yeah i use x600 pci-express now (new pc since the days of my agp 5200)

x600 plays cnc3, bf2, farcry at an acceptable standard

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