I just bought an HP Pavilion A6330F which sports the following for $649:

2.8GHz AMD Athlon 64 X2 dual-core 5600+ processor
NVIDIA's nForce 430 chipset
3GB of DDR2 RAM
500GB 7,200 RPM SATA hard drive
HP Pocket Media Drive Bay
SuperMulti DVD burner (LightScribe-enabled)
NVIDIA 128MB GeForce 6150 SE graphics set
Front-mounted 15-in-1 multicard reader

Not bad for what I'm going to use it for.
(MS Office, internet, and lots of digital pictures. Maybe a couple of really low-end games. That's it.)

QUESTION: Can I pop in a better graphics card (like maybe a GeForce 8600 GS) into a system like this which uses shared video memory? I think this would be a pretty good setup for the money if I could replace that 6150 SE. Also, I beleive this system uses integrated audio. Can I pop in an Xi-Fi Exteme Music card even though it has integrated audio? I guess I don't know if you can use dedicated graphics/audio cards on systems which use integrated graphics & audio.

Thanks for the advice to a probably stupid question. I just don't know this stuff.

According to HP, your computers supports:

One PCI Express x16 graphics (for a graphics card)

Video graphics Integrated graphics using nVidia GeForce 6150SE
Up to 256MB (with 512MB or more PC memory)
Also supports PCI Express x16 graphics cards*

NOTE: *Either integrated graphics or the PCI Express x16 slot are usable at one time; they are not usable concurrently.

So yes, you can use an add in PCIe graphics card, disable your on-board graphics, and free up any system RAM that was dedicated to graphics.

And yes, you can do the same thing with sound - you will get better sound with a good graphics card (assuming you have good speakers) but you do get any sort of noticeable performance boost by disabling on-board sound.

There are a couple concerns with adding a high power graphics card. (1) Heat - you must ensure your case has adequate front to back air flow needed to ensure heat does not buildup inside the case. Heat is the bane of all electronics. If the graphics card you choose does not exhaust it's own heat to the outside (most do not), you may need to add another or a bigger fan. Check your case for fan options. (2) Power - many budget PCs come with power supplies that are barely adequate to begin with, and they leave little to no wiggle room for expansion. Check your current power supply for specifications. Then use the eXtreme PSU Calculator Lite to determine your power supply unit (PSU) requirements. Plug in all the hardware you think you might have in 2 or 3 years (extra drives, bigger or 2nd video card, more RAM, etc.). Be sure to read and heed the notes at the bottom. I recommend you set Capacitor Aging to 30%, and if you participate in distributive computing projects (e.g. BOINC or Folding@Home), I recommend setting TDP to 100%. Research your video card and pay particular attention to the power supply requirements listed on your video card maker's website for your card. Then look for power supply brands listed under the "Good" column of PC Mechanic's PSU Reference List. Ensure the supplied amperage on the +12V rails of your chosen PSU meets the requirements of your video card. Don't try to save a few dollars by getting a cheap supply. Digital electronics, including CPUs, RAM, and today's advanced graphics cards, need clean, stable power. A good, well chosen supply will provide years of service and upgrade wiggle room. I strongly recommend you pick a supply with an efficiency rating equal to, or greater than 80%.

***
The stupid question is the one not asked.

This post has been edited by Digerati: Jan 19 2008, 01:57 PM

Thanks. I didn't know you could disable on-board graphics. That's what I'm going to do. I'm going to get a better mid-range card to free up my system memory, but one that isn't power hungary. I really don't need high-end graphics for what I'm doing. I just want a card that won't use my system memory, has a fairly low power requirement, but has reasonable quality for digital pictures and low-end games.

Now I'm thinking maybe the GeForce 7600 GT would be a good choice.
Agree / disagree?

Any other suggestions?

Thanks for the help.

Generally, any add-in board is better than on-board graphics. And generally, the more you spend on graphics, the better the performance. So, get what your budget will allow.