Upgrading

[Bill V]

WinXP Home
Intel Pent4 2G
ASUS P4S533-E
NVIDIA Gforce4 MX440
512M RAM (not sure what type)
I just bought this machine recently and want to upgrade it a bit. I'm
not a builder (yet) and would like some ideas on RAM and video upgrades.
There are 3 DIMM slots (2 available). I was also thinking about getting
1 or even 2 WD Raptor 36.7GB drives, would my mo handle it? TIA
remove nospam for mail

 

[Anon]

WinXP Home
Intel Pent4 2G
ASUS P4S533-E
NVIDIA Gforce4 MX440
512M RAM (not sure what type)
I just bought this machine recently and want to upgrade it a bit. I'm
not a builder (yet) and would like some ideas on RAM and video upgrades.
There are 3 DIMM slots (2 available). I was also thinking about getting
1 or even 2 WD Raptor 36.7GB drives, would my mo handle it? TIA
remove nospam for mail

OK, you need a 512MB DDR333 (PC2700) RAM board to upgrade your memory, I'd
suggest Kingston brand.

The only "raptor" I'm aware of is a SATA drive. No, your motherboard won't
handle it. But that shouldn't stop you from using it. You can buy a SATA
expansion card if you want to use the raptors.

Not sure what you are looking to do with video, but the following might be a
good upgrade. Actually, I'm not even sure you need a video upgrade unless
you are a hardcore gamer. -Dave

http://www.evga.com/products/pdf/N316.pdf

 

[Bill V]

WinXP Home
Intel Pent4 2G
ASUS P4S533-E
NVIDIA Gforce4 MX440
512M RAM (not sure what type)
  I just bought this machine recently and want to upgrade it a bit.
I'm not a builder (yet) and would like some ideas on RAM and video
upgrades. There are 3 DIMM slots (2 available). I was also thinking
about getting 1 or even 2 WD Raptor 36.7GB drives, would my mo handle
it? TIA remove nospam for mail
OK, you need a 512MB DDR333 (PC2700) RAM board to upgrade your memory,
I'd suggest Kingston brand.
The only "raptor" I'm aware of is a SATA drive. No, your motherboard
won't handle it. But that shouldn't stop you from using it. You can buy
a SATA expansion card if you want to use the raptors.
Not sure what you are looking to do with video, but the following might
be a good upgrade. Actually, I'm not even sure you need a video upgrade
unless you are a hardcore gamer. -Dave
http://www.evga.com/products/pdf/N316.pdf

Hi Dave,
Thanks for responding. If I get Kingston RAM, will it be compatable
with whatever one I have now? does it matter?. If the price is within
reason I would even get 2 and max it out. As far as the video goes, i'm
not a hardcore gamer, but I do want a video card for a Jetfigther game I
have. It doesn't seem to work well with what I have now. If i'm not
mistaken, the Raptor would load it much faster. In reading the reviews,
those that use it say its great for gaming. I have a 20G HD now and want
to use the new one just for just a game or 2. I appreciate your taking
the time Dave, thanks again.
Bill

 

[Dave C.]

Hi Dave,
Thanks for responding. If I get Kingston RAM, will it be compatable
with whatever one I have now? does it matter?. If the price is within
reason I would even get 2 and max it out. As far as the video goes, i'm
not a hardcore gamer, but I do want a video card for a Jetfigther game I
have. It doesn't seem to work well with what I have now. If i'm not
mistaken, the Raptor would load it much faster. In reading the reviews,
those that use it say its great for gaming. I have a 20G HD now and want
to use the new one just for just a game or 2. I appreciate your taking
the time Dave, thanks again.
Bill

The Kingston stick most likely will be compatible with what you have now.
Do NOT get two of them, though. First, there is little to gain in upgrading
RAM beyond 1GB total. That is, unless you are doing video editing with HUGE
data files. Also, some motherboards get unstable if you add too many RAM
sticks. It's best to limit the total number of RAM sticks. And before you
think of just buying a 1GB stick, keep in mind that some motherboards are
finicky about accepting those, also. The safest memory upgrade for your
system would be a single stick of name-brand 512MB DDR333 RAM. In my
experience, Kingston brand works very well and plays nice with other
rands. -Dave

 

[Bill V]

Ok Dave, thanks for all the advice. I'll pick up one stick of Kingston.
I appreciate your taking the time,
Bill

 

[Bill V]

Hi Dave, just one more thing. Can you recommend an SATA expansion card?
I've never used one and not sure what to get, thanks again,
Bill

 

[slower]

WinXP Home
Intel Pent4 2G
ASUS P4S533-E
NVIDIA Gforce4 MX440
512M RAM (not sure what type)
I just bought this machine recently and want to upgrade it a bit. I'm
not a builder (yet) and would like some ideas on RAM and video upgrades.
There are 3 DIMM slots (2 available). I was also thinking about getting
1 or even 2 WD Raptor 36.7GB drives, would my mo handle it? TIA
remove nospam for mail

And yes,, ditch the geforce mx440, the graphics on it are horrible (in
comparison)

do some homework and shop around. ati or nvidea... you decide

 

[Dave C.]

Ok Dave, thanks for all the advice. I'll pick up one stick of Kingston.
I appreciate your taking the time,
Bill

No problem. -Dave