Motherboard, Hardrive, CPU Assistance

Frankh1188 · 02-01-2008, 01:20 AM

Hi, I have almost no knowledge of hardware for computers, but I do know that its time for me to upgrade.

I only have approx. 120gb of memory, and my computer has been running pretty slow lately.

I'm not sure what parts i should upgrade, because i don't really know what effects what. So i was hoping you guys could help me out.

Heres what i hope to fix:
More memory
Faster processing
Better FPS

Thankyou!

**blackduck30** · 02-01-2008, 02:17 AM

You have not listed what parts you have or how old the system is but I presume it is an older system. You may be better off just biting the bullet and build up a system like the one I have listed below.

The problem with updating an old system is once you have spent your hard earned money you still have an old system that will not compair with a new one.

For around the $600 dollar mark you can have a pretty nice system that should tie you over for some time and give you some head room for upgrades

MOTHERBOARD

ASUS P5K LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $126

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131180

CPU

Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 Conroe 2.33GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail $170

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115030

VIDEO CARD

XFX PVT84GUDD3 GeForce 8600GTS 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported XXX HDCP Video Card - Retail $110 ( after rebate )

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150226

or

XFX PVT84JUSD4 GeForce 8600GT 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail $80 ( after rebate )

MEMORY ( RAM )

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail $34 ( after rebate )

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145034

POWER SUPPLY

Antec True Power Trio TP3-650 ATX12V 650W Power Supply with Three 12V Rails 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, FCC, TUV, CE, C-tick, CCC, CB $90 After rebate )

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371001

HARD DRIVE

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM $70

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148262

CASE

Thermaltake WingRS VG1000BNS Black SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail $40

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811133048

Frankh1188 · 02-01-2008, 02:35 AM

Hi, thanks for your response. I didn't figure out how to check what I had until now so here is my system spec.
My video card is only about a year old, and my PSU is about 7 months old. I will look into what you gave me, thanks again.

Windows: Windows XP5.1 (Build 2600) Service Pack 2
Internet Explorer: 7.0.5730.13
Memory (RAM): 1024 MB
CPU Info: Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 2.40GHz
CPU Speed: 2396.0 MHz
Sound card: SB Audigy Audio [B400]
Display Adapters: Radeon X1600 Series | Radeon X1600 Series Secondary | NetMeeting driver | RDPDD Chained DD
Screen Resolution: 1280 X 1024 - 32 bit
Network: Network Present
Network Adapters: Realtek RTL8139 Family PCI Fast Ethernet NIC - Packet Scheduler Miniport
CD / DVD Drives: G: ATAPI DVDROM 16X | I: NC9514N ZGS638B
COM Ports: COM3 | COM1
LPT Ports: LPT1
Mouse: 5 Button Wheel Mouse Present
Hard Disks: C: 20.0GB | D: 42.7GB | E: 42.7GB | F: 6.4GB
Hard Disks - Free: C: 70.6MB | D: 24.7GB | E: 3.4GB | F: 2.2GB
USB Controllers: 5 host controllers.
Firewire (1394): 1 host controllers.
PCMCIA (Laptops): Not Installed
Manufacturer: American Megatrends Inc.
Product Make: D7219P-ABA A250Y
AC Power Status: OnLine
BIOS Info: AT/AT COMPATIBLE | 06/27/03 | A M I - 6000327
Time Zone: Pacific Standard Time
Battery: No Battery
Motherboard: ASUSTeK Computer INC. 'P4SD-LA'
Modem: Lucent Win Modem

:
:

**blackduck30** · 02-01-2008, 04:18 AM

Well from a quick search I was able to find out that you can only use

DDR RAM

and AGP video

These 2 points rule out a Motherboard change due to new boards using DDR2 and DDR3 RAM and video cards now use a PCI-E ( 1 and 2 ) interface as opposed to AGP.

Without changing the motherboard you will be limited to a Pentium 4 CPU which does not compare speed wise to the CORE 2 DUO units available now or the quad cores for that matter.

With your current setup you can go up to a 3.4 pentium ( socket 478 )
New motherboards use a socket 775

Also just be aware that you can not compare Pentium clock speeds and Core 2 Duo clock speeds on the same level, for example a core 2 duo 2.2MHZ CPU will out perform a pentium 4, 3.4Mhz even tho the clock speed in the pentium is higher. This is due to the Core 2 duo being far more efficient

Frankh1188 · 02-01-2008, 08:47 AM

Blackduck30, thanks for your response...
so, i should probably change my motherboard in order to optimize the other stuff. i was planning on changing it anyways. Thanks!

**blackduck30** · 02-01-2008, 02:55 PM

Yes, If you change your motherboard a whole new world of options open up.

But by doing so you will need :

A new video card,

New ram,

new cpu

And not really essential but a new hard drive ( SATA2 )

I am not sure what brand power supply you purchased either or how many watt's and amps it has but PCI-E video cards require at least 26amps

Frankh1188 · 02-01-2008, 08:26 PM

well, my budget would be around $750 (give or take $50), so should i just get what you listed in your first reply? Thanks!

my psu is... Antec True Power Trio 650 watt ATX12V v2.2 & EOS12v

**blackduck30** · 02-01-2008, 09:31 PM

The only thing i would consider changing/upgrading is the video card may to one of these

XFX PVT88PUDD4 GeForce 8800GT 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail $230

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150263

I would also move up to this processor

Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail $190

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115029

you might want to consider this motherboard

ASUS P5K-E LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $140

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131225

That would still keep you under $700 and allow some postage costs to be put on top

02-01-2008, 01:20 AM	#1 (permalink)
Frankh1188 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 78 OS: Windows ME	Motherboard, Hardrive, CPU Assistance Hi, I have almost no knowledge of hardware for computers, but I do know that its time for me to upgrade. I only have approx. 120gb of memory, and my computer has been running pretty slow lately. I'm not sure what parts i should upgrade, because i don't really know what effects what. So i was hoping you guys could help me out. Heres what i hope to fix: More memory Faster processing Better FPS Thankyou!

02-01-2008, 02:17 AM	#2 (permalink)
blackduck30 Moderator Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Wollongong/Australia Posts: 4,231 OS: XP pro SP3/Vista Ultimate My System	Re: Motherboard, Hardrive, CPU Assistance You have not listed what parts you have or how old the system is but I presume it is an older system. You may be better off just biting the bullet and build up a system like the one I have listed below. The problem with updating an old system is once you have spent your hard earned money you still have an old system that will not compair with a new one. For around the $600 dollar mark you can have a pretty nice system that should tie you over for some time and give you some head room for upgrades MOTHERBOARD ASUS P5K LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $126 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131180 CPU Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 Conroe 2.33GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail $170 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115030 VIDEO CARD XFX PVT84GUDD3 GeForce 8600GTS 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported XXX HDCP Video Card - Retail $110 ( after rebate ) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150226 or XFX PVT84JUSD4 GeForce 8600GT 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail $80 ( after rebate ) MEMORY ( RAM ) CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail $34 ( after rebate ) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145034 POWER SUPPLY Antec True Power Trio TP3-650 ATX12V 650W Power Supply with Three 12V Rails 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, FCC, TUV, CE, C-tick, CCC, CB $90 After rebate ) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371001 HARD DRIVE Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM $70 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148262 CASE Thermaltake WingRS VG1000BNS Black SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail $40 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811133048 __________________ Blackduck30 Time is like money and milk, It's always running out Any Donations Help Keep TSF Free For All

02-01-2008, 02:35 AM	#3 (permalink)
Frankh1188 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 78 OS: Windows ME	Re: Motherboard, Hardrive, CPU Assistance Hi, thanks for your response. I didn't figure out how to check what I had until now so here is my system spec. My video card is only about a year old, and my PSU is about 7 months old. I will look into what you gave me, thanks again. Windows: Windows XP5.1 (Build 2600) Service Pack 2 Internet Explorer: 7.0.5730.13 Memory (RAM): 1024 MB CPU Info: Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 2.40GHz CPU Speed: 2396.0 MHz Sound card: SB Audigy Audio [B400] Display Adapters: Radeon X1600 Series \| Radeon X1600 Series Secondary \| NetMeeting driver \| RDPDD Chained DD Screen Resolution: 1280 X 1024 - 32 bit Network: Network Present Network Adapters: Realtek RTL8139 Family PCI Fast Ethernet NIC - Packet Scheduler Miniport CD / DVD Drives: G: ATAPI DVDROM 16X \| I: NC9514N ZGS638B COM Ports: COM3 \| COM1 LPT Ports: LPT1 Mouse: 5 Button Wheel Mouse Present Hard Disks: C: 20.0GB \| D: 42.7GB \| E: 42.7GB \| F: 6.4GB Hard Disks - Free: C: 70.6MB \| D: 24.7GB \| E: 3.4GB \| F: 2.2GB USB Controllers: 5 host controllers. Firewire (1394): 1 host controllers. PCMCIA (Laptops): Not Installed Manufacturer: American Megatrends Inc. Product Make: D7219P-ABA A250Y AC Power Status: OnLine BIOS Info: AT/AT COMPATIBLE \| 06/27/03 \| A M I - 6000327 Time Zone: Pacific Standard Time Battery: No Battery Motherboard: ASUSTeK Computer INC. 'P4SD-LA' Modem: Lucent Win Modem : : Last edited by Frankh1188 : 02-01-2008 at 02:39 AM.

02-01-2008, 04:18 AM	#4 (permalink)
blackduck30 Moderator Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Wollongong/Australia Posts: 4,231 OS: XP pro SP3/Vista Ultimate My System	Re: Motherboard, Hardrive, CPU Assistance Well from a quick search I was able to find out that you can only use DDR RAM and AGP video These 2 points rule out a Motherboard change due to new boards using DDR2 and DDR3 RAM and video cards now use a PCI-E ( 1 and 2 ) interface as opposed to AGP. Without changing the motherboard you will be limited to a Pentium 4 CPU which does not compare speed wise to the CORE 2 DUO units available now or the quad cores for that matter. With your current setup you can go up to a 3.4 pentium ( socket 478 ) New motherboards use a socket 775 Also just be aware that you can not compare Pentium clock speeds and Core 2 Duo clock speeds on the same level, for example a core 2 duo 2.2MHZ CPU will out perform a pentium 4, 3.4Mhz even tho the clock speed in the pentium is higher. This is due to the Core 2 duo being far more efficient __________________ Blackduck30 Time is like money and milk, It's always running out Any Donations Help Keep TSF Free For All

02-01-2008, 08:47 AM	#5 (permalink)
Frankh1188 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 78 OS: Windows ME	Re: Motherboard, Hardrive, CPU Assistance Blackduck30, thanks for your response... so, i should probably change my motherboard in order to optimize the other stuff. i was planning on changing it anyways. Thanks!

02-01-2008, 02:55 PM	#6 (permalink)
blackduck30 Moderator Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Wollongong/Australia Posts: 4,231 OS: XP pro SP3/Vista Ultimate My System	Re: Motherboard, Hardrive, CPU Assistance Yes, If you change your motherboard a whole new world of options open up. But by doing so you will need : A new video card, New ram, new cpu And not really essential but a new hard drive ( SATA2 ) I am not sure what brand power supply you purchased either or how many watt's and amps it has but PCI-E video cards require at least 26amps __________________ Blackduck30 Time is like money and milk, It's always running out Any Donations Help Keep TSF Free For All

02-01-2008, 08:26 PM	#7 (permalink)
Frankh1188 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 78 OS: Windows ME	Re: Motherboard, Hardrive, CPU Assistance well, my budget would be around $750 (give or take $50), so should i just get what you listed in your first reply? Thanks! my psu is... Antec True Power Trio 650 watt ATX12V v2.2 & EOS12v Last edited by Frankh1188 : 02-01-2008 at 08:30 PM.

02-01-2008, 09:31 PM	#8 (permalink)
blackduck30 Moderator Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Wollongong/Australia Posts: 4,231 OS: XP pro SP3/Vista Ultimate My System	Re: Motherboard, Hardrive, CPU Assistance The only thing i would consider changing/upgrading is the video card may to one of these XFX PVT88PUDD4 GeForce 8800GT 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail $230 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150263 I would also move up to this processor Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail $190 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115029 you might want to consider this motherboard ASUS P5K-E LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $140 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131225 That would still keep you under $700 and allow some postage costs to be put on top __________________ Blackduck30 Time is like money and milk, It's always running out Any Donations Help Keep TSF Free For All Last edited by blackduck30 : 02-01-2008 at 09:52 PM.