The appeal of the upgrade model is that it seems to have an internal configuration similar to my current motherboard -- an AGP slot, 5 PCI slots, 4 RDRAM banks, and IDE interfaces in essentially the same places. The "form factors" of the two motherboards are the same -- ATX 12 x 9.6 inches.
Does this mean that the upgrade motherboard will fit into my current computer tower?
Would the installation be much harder than unscrewing the old motherboard and screwing down the new one?
God hates us all, you know it's true, God hates this place. - Slayer 1726 Posts 10/03
Posted - Oct 26 2006 : 10:04AM
At this point your building a new machine - new HD, new PS, now a MB and CPU! LOL
I would HIGHLY suggest ditching that board, I don't even think they make that socket anymore? Wow, Newegg don't even list it!
Out of curiosity, what would the new board and chip cost ya?
If I were you, and I was going to spend cash on a motherboard and CPU, I'd go more standard. Why stay on VERY old tech? I mean if you plan to upgrade at ALL in the future, you will be replacing you MB and CPU anyway.
I'd recommend a 775 socket if you want to stick with intel. You can get some nice deals on MBs and you can find some killer deals on the Pentium 4s and even the Pentium Ds - hell, the Intel Pentium D 805 (dual core) is 95 bucks! Throw in a MB, another 100 and get some DDR/DDR2 RAM and you are rolling on a sys that will really out perform your current sys.
Even if you went the route, "Well i really don't need a dual core processor" - you can a little cheaper and get a 3GHz CPU for 90 bucks!
However if you are willing to part from intel, you can get some even nicer prices on AMD chips. However, to keep prices low, I'd suggest going with the outdated socket of 939. It's not dead yet, but AMD is going to building all the new CPUs ona the AM2 socket. I have a AMD 64 3500+ and love it.
Now RAM is the big thing for me, but I game a lot, so 2 GB is really needed as far as I'm concerned - I can crank my games to the max with my gfx card, that's why LOL. But I would say a GB of RAM will do ya good, but 512 would be the absolute MINIMUM I would XP on if that's the OS you are in.
P.S. If you can't tell, I love computer hardware... Bob, if you do decide to build new. I'll answer every question I can to get you rolling.
"The universe is hostile, So impersonal. Devour to survive." - Tool
You're right. I guess at this point I've gone beyond upgrading my computer to rebuilding it, which is probably not very practical. However, I'm having lots of fun and it's a reasonably good way to stay occupied sometimes.
One of the reasons that I've got for wanting to stay with older technology is that I don't want to have to toss all the upgrade add-ons that I've purchased over the last couple of months.
I've just installed a new video card, a new sound card, new USB 2.0 and Firewire 300 ports, and a new Ultra ATA controller card. The power supply I just purchased was designed specifically with to work with a Pentium 4 ATX motherboard.
I've also purchased about 1 GB (@ $400) of Rambus RAM over the last year, half of that very recently. So I don't want to have to toss my RAM either.
If I can find a more modern motherboard and CPU that will support my existing components, fantastic. But at this point, I don't want to start from scratch.
In light of that objective, my most basic question is whether my computer tower, including the placement of the its expansion bays, will accommodate any motherboard (including the upgrade I'm considering) with a form factor of ATX 12 x 9.6 inches. Or, if not, what other way is there to determine whether a particular motherboard will fit into my computer tower? Or, if not, how would I determine the kind of tower required for the safe transplant of my computer's innards?
And how hard is it to install a new motherboard in an old machine, anyway?
#SDNY he's all yours. -- Michael Steele 5110 Posts 3/03
Posted - Oct 26 2006 : 4:59PM
Mechanically, it shouldn't be a problem. Disconnect everything from the old board, unscrew it from the stand-offs, remove, and reverse the process with the new board.
What I would be concerned about is whether Windows would refuse to start with the new board and processor, without going through a reinstallation or repair installation. It appears that both boards use the same chipset, so maybe it will work, but, as I never use Intel stuff, I don't know. If I were you, I wouldn't do the swap unless you can be reasonably certain that you won't have any trouble from Windows; just too much hassle.
God hates us all, you know it's true, God hates this place. - Slayer 1726 Posts 10/03
Posted - Oct 26 2006 : 7:13PM
Wow, I'm so happy I never got involved in Rambus RAM
As Harri said, it's not that tough. However I would still suggest you NOT do it. As Harri said it could lead to a reinstall of Windows, if you are not prepared for that, there could be big problems.
Physically it SHOULD fit, the pages say they are the same size. Worst case, you may have to move some stand offs, but that's about it. All your upgrades will fit as well, as they should since they fit in the current MB.
The only thing to be leary of is if it's a proprietary board. Dell and Gateways have used these where there are special notches in the board to ONLY fit in their machines - in that case, go out and get a new case and throw the parts in there. Nice thing about computers are they are somewhat universal. A CD-ROM from 6 years ago will fit into standard ATX cases - I'd say look into mid towers.
Anyway, if you do decide to do the MB/CPU upgrade, I would highly suggest you reinstall Windows. Windows is a whore when it comes to new hardware.
Now as for tossing your recent upgrades to go into a more modern outfit... Nah, only the RAM would have to go. All that stuff could be used in a modern MB. You may have a SLIGHT problem finding an AGP board, but I highly doubt it. And as for that power supply, if it's an ATX 350W or higher it will run just about any chip out there (however I would suggest a good 500W with good amps). I have NO idea why some people say they are specifically for X chip... It's not like they have a special rail that only Intel can access in that PSU.
Regardless of what you decide to do, by all means, build your own next time! It's fun and you will get to know the machine you use better.
P.S. Bob, I'm curious (being nosey ), why did you get a PCI IDE ATA Controller card?
"The universe is hostile, So impersonal. Devour to survive." - Tool
#SDNY he's all yours. -- Michael Steele 5110 Posts 3/03
Posted - Oct 26 2006 : 10:49PM
Another possible problem would be that the Windows that came with your computer was probably the OEM version, which isn't transferable from one machine to another. If you ended up having to reinstall Windows, it might not accept your Product Key, and you might end up arguing with some Microsoft employee in a call center somewhere, who is going to think that you're just trying to scam your way into getting a new key for an entirely different machine.
When I added a second hard drive last month, I didn't understand that the IDE interfaces on my motherboard already fully supported the drive's "Ultra" ATA capability.
What I like, though, is that the PCI card gives me the capacity to add a third hard drive -- which I think I'm going to do.
From the standpoint of staying within the boundaries of a one-computer Windows XP license, where's the line (both from Microsoft's point of view and from other reasonably defensible points of view) between "upgrading" your "original" computer and "building" a "new" computer with components from your original computer?
On a previous computer I had to have the mobo replaced because a capacitor burned out, and Microsoft didn't give me any shit (if I even had to reinstall the OS at all, I can't remember) but I can't remember if that computer even had XP at the time.
Hey Bob, Sometimes the mobo companies have closeout lists and off mobos quite cheap when they come out with a replacement model. I've bought two mobos from MSI directly this way for about a third to a quarter of the price they were selling for just weeks earlier. One caveat, know what you are buying because once you get it, it's yours! Sometimes the lists contain real old stuff that has been on the shelves too long to be worthwhile.
Yeah...I was reading this thread. I didn't notice how old it was until I was getting ready to respond. I was going to tell you that it's not quite as easy as it would at first seem. Hardware is easy enough but software can be a nightmare if you don't really know your stuff. That's why most people who have built their own systems seem to be so knowledgeable. They probably weren't before they did it but had to learn everything in order to do it.
Funny thing is that a lot of people seem to go into it with the intention of saving "a lot" of money on their new computer. Well, that and having a MUCH better system to show for the money they spent. And most of the time, they do end up with a much better system. But they almost invariably end up spending a lot more than they intended to. Why buy a "good" power supply, after all, when you can buy "the best" power supply for %30 more? And so on and so forth.
Having said that, I've seen some photos of some home built systems that just made me drool all over myself.
