Upgrade advice needed

[Joe Befumo]

Hi,

I have a generic PC that I picked up on ebay (from starburstcomp, whom I
would never recommend to anyone), that has been experiencing some problems.
Basically, when I have too many applications going at once, it simply shuts
down, after which it will not respond to the on/off button until I unplug
and reconnect the power cord.) Anyway, based on advice received in this
group (thanks!) I downloaded a memtest utility, which indicated memory
errors at several addresses. (Oddly, interchanged the chips, and it tested
fine, then it started doing the same thing again & the test once again
indicates errors.)

So, I've concluded that I need new memory.

Right now, my system includes an AMD 2.1 Ghz Athlon (Throughbred), sitting
on an ASRock mother board with 1 Gig memory.

My question regards what other components I should exchange when I replace
my memory.

From what I can gather, the current configuration has a 266 Mhz FSB, does
this sound correct? Can I increase my system's performance (which is pretty
miserable) with a motherboard that supports 333 or 400 FSB, while retaining
the same CPU?

The other alternatives I'm considering are to upgrade to a Pentium 4 (cpu,
motherboard, memory) with the 800 Mhz FSB, or an AMD 64, about which I know
next to nothing.

I use this machine primarily with performance/memory hungry apps, like
Photoshop, Adobe InDesign, Cakewalk Sonar, etc.

Thanks.

Joe
http://www.befumo.com

 

[Marc Hulsebosch]

Hi,

I have a generic PC that I picked up on ebay (from starburstcomp, whom I
would never recommend to anyone), that has been experiencing some problems.
Basically, when I have too many applications going at once, it simply shuts
down, after which it will not respond to the on/off button until I unplug
and reconnect the power cord.) Anyway, based on advice received in this
group (thanks!) I downloaded a memtest utility, which indicated memory
errors at several addresses. (Oddly, interchanged the chips, and it tested
fine, then it started doing the same thing again & the test once again
indicates errors.)

How long did you test?

So, I've concluded that I need new memory.
Try testing with only one DIMM
Right now, my system includes an AMD 2.1 Ghz Athlon (Throughbred), sitting
on an ASRock mother board with 1 Gig memory.
Is it 2100+ or 2.1 Ghz
My question regards what other components I should exchange when I replace
my memory.

If it only happens when you have a lot op applications, so when the
components are stressed, it might be the power supply.

From what I can gather, the current configuration has a 266 Mhz FSB, does
this sound correct? Can I increase my system's performance (which is pretty
miserable) with a motherboard that supports 333 or 400 FSB, while retaining
the same CPU?

No, because the CPU will always use the same FSB, unless you start
overclocking

The other alternatives I'm considering are to upgrade to a Pentium 4 (cpu,
motherboard, memory) with the 800 Mhz FSB, or an AMD 64, about which I know
next to nothing.

If you want a big upgrade, go for the Athlon. Perhaps an X2 (3800),
because you use more then one program

 

[Joe Befumo]

How long did you test?

The first time it ran for about 15 minutes before coming up with errors.
After swapping the ram chips (for each other) it ran for a bit over 4 hours
without any errors. Then, after it crashed, I ran the diagonstic again and
it once again came up with errors within a half hour or so.

Try testing with only one DIMM

I figured I would do that next. However, after looking at the specs on
faster chips, I'm thinking of going for a more powerful system anyway (any
excuse will do)

Is it 2100+ or 2.1 Ghz

It's the '+'

If it only happens when you have a lot op applications, so when the
components are stressed, it might be the power supply.

Yeah, someone else suggested that, which might be the case. I suppose I
could throw a meter on it and try to open apps until it fails. My gut
feeling, though, is that it's memory-related. The crashes don't necessary
happen when I have MANY apps open, but when the apps are using (I presume) a
lot of memory. For example, I can open big docs in WORD, which I suspect
doesn't load the complete document into memory at once, but if I open 2
large (15-20 meg each) text files in a different app, it goes down,

No, because the CPU will always use the same FSB, unless you start
overclocking

I see, thanks.

If you want a big upgrade, go for the Athlon. Perhaps an X2 (3800),
because you use more then one program

I've been looking at those. (Socket 939, correct?) They seem to offer the
most bang for the buck.

Thanks again,

Joe

 

[Joe Befumo]

If you want a big upgrade, go for the Athlon. Perhaps an X2 (3800),

What do you think of the 3700? It's about a hundred bucks cheaper than the
3800, and looks as if it will still be a big step up from what I have now.

 

[Joe Befumo]

Another question:

Would it be worth my while to replace disk drive with an SATA (in terms of
overall performance)? Thanks again.

Joe

 

[Bob]

Yeah, someone else suggested that, which might be the case. I suppose I
could throw a meter on it and try to open apps until it fails. My gut
feeling, though, is that it's memory-related. The crashes don't necessary
happen when I have MANY apps open, but when the apps are using (I presume) a
lot of memory. For example, I can open big docs in WORD, which I suspect
doesn't load the complete document into memory at once, but if I open 2
large (15-20 meg each) text files in a different app, it goes down,

You can monitor memory use with Task Manager. Right click on the Task
Bar.

--

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"Rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will within
limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. I do not add
'within the limits of the law,' because law is often but the tyrant's
will, and always so when it violates the rights of the individual."
-- Thomas Jefferson

 

[Joe Befumo]

You can monitor memory use with Task Manager. Right click on the Task
Bar.

Oh . . . yeah . . . I knew that once ;^)