XPS 8960, upgrade to RTX 4090, 1000w PSU, more ram

Question

Hi!Trying to Build a Good Gaming PCCurrent Set upXPS8960Intel I7-13700, 32gb ram, rtx4070Mainboard : 0XD433PSU : didn't check the actual unit, but i assume 750wLooking for buy  RTX4090, 1000w + PSU, and probably more ram.  Can I just put plug-in-play  GPU, and PSU?  not modifying other component?Thank you!

RoHe · Accepted Answer

XPS 8960 PSU is a custom design, so you probably have to buy a 1000W OEM PSU directly from Dell or from a 3rd party selling Dell OEM components, assuming it can be purchased as a stand-alone component The 8960 motherboard has 12 pin power supply connector but only the 1350W PSU has a 12 pin connector. The 1000W and 750W use a 10 pin connector to the 12 pin socket.

XPS 8960 shares OEM PSUs with these other models:

43YPM 1000W Acbel (XPS 8950, Aurora R13/R14, Precision 3660)
R61D8 1000W Liteon (XPS 8950, Aurora R13/R14, Precision 3660)
RD0G0 1000W Delta (XPS 8950, Aurora R13/R14, Precision 3660)
MP23Y 750W, Acbel (XPS 8950, Aurora R13/R14, Precision 3660)
M92DC 750W, Chicony (XPS 8950, Aurora R13/R14, Precision 3660)
M2G8X 750W, LiteOn (XPS 8950, Aurora R13/R14, Precision 3660)
V63M, 1J62C, V1M9K: 1350W (product line not listed)

What do you gain from the RTX4090 vs the RTX4070 you have now? You will have to make sure the new card physically fits inside the XPS 8960 case. And you may have to disable Secure Boot before installing any after-market GPU, or the PC may not boot.

Max RAM is 64 GB. So how you upgrade RAM from 32 GB depends on what's installed now, 2x16, 1x32. You want RAM installed as matched pairs so it can run in dual-channel mode which is faster and more efficient than single-channel mode.

If you have you have 2x16 now, you'd have to remove both and install matched 2x32 GB since there are only two RAM slots. If you have 1x32, you may still have to replace it with a pair of matched 32 GB modules, unless you can buy a matching module from Dell (CAUTION: high prices), because mixing brands of RAM, even of the same specs can cause problems.

XPS 8960 uses DDR5 RAM at either 4800 MT/s or 5600 MT/s. If your existing is 1x32 GB, 4800 MT/s, you don't want to spend extra for 1x32 GB 5600 MT/s RAM, because the PC will run all RAM at speed of the slowest module, and that assumes the mixed pair is compatible...

smokeygraypoupon · Answer

You might rethink the need for additional RAM for a gaming PC. Gaming consoles only have 16GB of RAM. Games are not RAM intensive. For gaming 32GB is more than enough.Best of luck

tadrscin1 · Answer

@RoHe​  I'm looking at some XPS 8960 refurbs and it looks like no matter which one I get, it will probably need a PSU upgrade at some point in order to upgrade the video card.  Can you clarify what you're talking about here regarding the 750w & 1000w PSUs with the 10 pin connectors?  It sounds like you're saying that you can plug the 10 pin connector from those into the 12 pin socket on the 8960 MB and that those PSUs will then work on an 8960.  Is that correct?   Also, I have another question that I can't get an answer to from Dell.  It seems as though Dell is installing PSUs in some of these 8960s that don't meet the minimum wattage as required by Nvidia.  For example they have several listed right now that have the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 8GB GDDR6 video cards which Nvidia says require a 550w PSU, but Dell is only installing a 460w PSU.  Do you have any idea why Dell is doing that?  I actually noticed that after realizing that the 8940 I bought for my wife 3 years ago, Dell did the same thing with a PSU less that what Nvidia requires for the video card Dell installed in that computer. Thanks for your help.

RoHe · Answer

Dell's OEM video cards are designed to use less power than equivalent "retail" cards with same NVidia or AMD model number. Dell cards typically have fewer/smaller fans, fewer/different video output ports, possibly even fewer data lanes, etc. That allows Dell to install a smaller PSU.

So if you get an XPS 8960 with a Dell GPU installed, you shouldn't have any issues with a 460W PSU. But, if the PC you get only has onboard Intel Graphics (no add-in video card) and decide to install one, or upgrade from a Dell OEM card, that's when you'll have to consider a PSU upgrade...

Both the 750W and 1000W PSUs have a 10-pin connector for the 12-pin motherboard connector. Only the 1350W PSU uses all 12 pins on that motherboard connector.

tadrscin1 · Answer

@RoHe​ Thanks, that's very helpful.

RoHe · Answer

@tadrscin1​ - You're welcome. Happy shopping!

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XPS 8960, upgrade to RTX 4090, 1000w PSU, more ram

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