Upgrade CPU ?

[GoldHawk]

I am running a desktop machine with the following:

CPU: AMD Athlon XP2000+ at 1.6GHz
RAM: 1 GB DDR
Motherboard: ASRock K7VT2

It is used for little more than Office applications, surfing, e-mail etc.

I have just bought a new HP laptop installed with Vista and I’ve notice how
(relatively) slow my desktop is running WinXP with SP3, even after a
re-format and reinstall of the OS.

I’m interested in knowing whether an upgrade of the CPU on my desktop is a
practical and sensible option. I’m not looking to buy a new machine, which in
every other respect serves my purposes. Is the CPU integrated with the
motherboard, or can the processor itself be upgraded ? If the latter, are
there limitations of compatibility (with the motherboard, or anything else) ?
Would the internal fan(s) have to be upgraded as well ?

The HP laptop is fitted with an Intel Core 2 Duo T5800. I don’t know if that
is a sensible option.

Is this a very difficult job (something I might do myself) ? I have limited
knowledge of the internal hardware, being confined so far to fitting extra
RAM and replacing a DVD burner. Is there anywhere where I could get some
fairly idiot proof instructions ?

With thanks for any guidance.

Regards.

Mike

 

[peter]

here is a list of CPU supported by that mobo

http://www.asrock.com/mb/cpu.asp?Model=K7VT2&s=462

you will notice the most you can go up to is a 2.1 Ghz......that is not much
of an
improvement in speed. evenif you double the amount of RAM the speed increase
might
achieve 10%.

Safe your money and buy a newer system.
peter

 

[Mike Hall - MVP]

I am running a desktop machine with the following:

CPU: AMD Athlon XP2000+ at 1.6GHz
RAM: 1 GB DDR
Motherboard: ASRock K7VT2

It is used for little more than Office applications, surfing, e-mail etc.

I have just bought a new HP laptop installed with Vista and I’ve notice
how
(relatively) slow my desktop is running WinXP with SP3, even after a
re-format and reinstall of the OS.

I’m interested in knowing whether an upgrade of the CPU on my desktop is a
practical and sensible option. I’m not looking to buy a new machine, which
in
every other respect serves my purposes. Is the CPU integrated with the
motherboard, or can the processor itself be upgraded ? If the latter, are
there limitations of compatibility (with the motherboard, or anything
else) ?
Would the internal fan(s) have to be upgraded as well ?

The HP laptop is fitted with an Intel Core 2 Duo T5800. I don’t know if
that
is a sensible option.

Is this a very difficult job (something I might do myself) ? I have
limited
knowledge of the internal hardware, being confined so far to fitting extra
RAM and replacing a DVD burner. Is there anywhere where I could get some
fairly idiot proof instructions ?

With thanks for any guidance.

Regards.

Mike

Time to upgrade the mobo, CPU and memory. I doubt that Socket 462 processors
are too thick on the ground these days..

 

[philo]

I am running a desktop machine with the following:

CPU: AMD Athlon XP2000+ at 1.6GHz
RAM: 1 GB DDR
Motherboard: ASRock K7VT2

It is used for little more than Office applications, surfing, e-mail etc.

I have just bought a new HP laptop installed with Vista and I've notice
how
(relatively) slow my desktop is running WinXP with SP3, even after a
re-format and reinstall of the OS.

I'm interested in knowing whether an upgrade of the CPU on my desktop is a
practical and sensible option. I'm not looking to buy a new machine, which
in
every other respect serves my purposes. Is the CPU integrated with the
motherboard, or can the processor itself be upgraded ? If the latter, are
there limitations of compatibility (with the motherboard, or anything
else) ?
Would the internal fan(s) have to be upgraded as well ?

The HP laptop is fitted with an Intel Core 2 Duo T5800. I don't know if
that
is a sensible option.

Is this a very difficult job (something I might do myself) ? I have
limited
knowledge of the internal hardware, being confined so far to fitting extra
RAM and replacing a DVD burner. Is there anywhere where I could get some
fairly idiot proof instructions ?

With thanks for any guidance.

Regards.

Mike

I am using a fairly similar machine (XP2500)

I recently bumped my RAM up from 1 gig to 3 and noticed a moderately good
improvement.

RAM is cheap and easy to install.

BTW: You may want to go into the control panel

system

advanced


then set for best performance

 

[Paul]

I am running a desktop machine with the following:

CPU: AMD Athlon XP2000+ at 1.6GHz
RAM: 1 GB DDR
Motherboard: ASRock K7VT2

It is used for little more than Office applications, surfing, e-mail etc.

I have just bought a new HP laptop installed with Vista and I’ve notice how
(relatively) slow my desktop is running WinXP with SP3, even after a
re-format and reinstall of the OS.

I’m interested in knowing whether an upgrade of the CPU on my desktop is a
practical and sensible option. I’m not looking to buy a new machine, which in
every other respect serves my purposes. Is the CPU integrated with the
motherboard, or can the processor itself be upgraded ? If the latter, are
there limitations of compatibility (with the motherboard, or anything else) ?
Would the internal fan(s) have to be upgraded as well ?

The HP laptop is fitted with an Intel Core 2 Duo T5800. I don’t know if that
is a sensible option.

Is this a very difficult job (something I might do myself) ? I have limited
knowledge of the internal hardware, being confined so far to fitting extra
RAM and replacing a DVD burner. Is there anywhere where I could get some
fairly idiot proof instructions ?

With thanks for any guidance.

Regards.

Mike

I wouldn't try to upgrade your 2000+. I suspect the 2600+ with FSB266, may
be hard to find. There may not have been that many of them made when they
were in production. And anything slower just wouldn't be worth thinking about.

I have an S462 motherboard, which I recently retired and replaced with a
Core2. The processor in my board is a 3200+ with FSB400, and I was finding
that was getting annoying. One of the issues with the processor, is it is
a single core without hyperthreading. I find two cores can on occasion
be slightly smoother (my backup machine is a P4 running at 3.1GHz, and
I liked that a bit more than the AthlonXP 3200+, even though the respective
manufacturers think they're roughly equal).

I don't consider assembling computers to be that taxing. The downloadable
motherboard manuals will give you some information, and there are some
web sites that do "system builds" at various price points, to give you
some idea about how to do it.

My current build is an attempt at a cheap migration. I get a Core2 Dual
processor, I get to keep my old AGP video card. I'm using new RAM, but
could just as easily used the RAM from the old S462 board. This is the
motherboard I chose. The only thing I don't like about it, is the
amount of effort the manufacturer put into the BIOS. The board works
fine with stock settings (i.e. don't change anything, just turn it
on), but attempts to experiment with other settings haven't given
me any reason to praise the board. So right now, it "just works".
One limitation, is it takes CPUs up to FSB1066 and no higher. Many
desirable modern Core2 processors are FSB1333, so if you wanted a
higher end CPU, there are limits. I'd say, if you were skimping,
you might install this upgrade for about $250. The thing that
attracted me, was getting to reuse my perfectly good and trusty
AGP video card.

http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?Model=4CoreDual-SATA2 R2.0&s=775

If you're not trying to keep the video card, and you'd not a gamer
playing Crysis or Oblivion, then an AMD motherboard with integrated
graphics (video is inside the chipset) is another possibility.
Something with AM2/AM2+ socket, which takes cheap DDR2 memory.
You could probably whip something together for about the same
money as the previous suggestion. (You can replace a full sized
ATX motherboard 12" x 9.6", with a MicroATX 9.6" x9.6", since
the mounting holes are a subset.)

M3A78-EM AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G (DVI and VGA video connectors) $79
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131324

Processor with heatsink for $60
Athlon 64 X2 5200 Brisbane 2.7GHz Socket AM2 65W Dual-Core
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103210

2GB low profile RAM for $23
(2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) CAS5 Dual Channel Kit
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820134117

You can spend a bit more on the processor if you want. I picked a
65W processor, as with that, it doesn't really matter what kind
of power supply is in your computer, it is likely to run the
new system. There are even quad core processors in the support
list, if you want to use one. But that would be overkill for
web surfing.

(Processor list)
http://support.asus.com.tw/cpusupport/cpusupport.aspx?SLanguage=en-us&model=M3A78-EM

Have fun,
Paul

 

[Patrick Keenan]

I am running a desktop machine with the following:

CPU: AMD Athlon XP2000+ at 1.6GHz
RAM: 1 GB DDR
Motherboard: ASRock K7VT2

It is used for little more than Office applications, surfing, e-mail etc.

I have just bought a new HP laptop installed with Vista and I've notice
how
(relatively) slow my desktop is running WinXP with SP3, even after a
re-format and reinstall of the OS.

I'm interested in knowing whether an upgrade of the CPU on my desktop is a
practical and sensible option. I'm not looking to buy a new machine, which
in
every other respect serves my purposes.

Then it's probably more cost-effective to leave yours as it is now.

Is the CPU integrated with the
motherboard,

No. CPUs and motherboards are completely separate items, often made by
different manufacturers.

or can the processor itself be upgraded ?

Often, but the question is, is it worth the cost?

Sometimes, the answer is "no". I will suggest that in your case, that's
the answer.

If the latter, are
there limitations of compatibility (with the motherboard, or anything
else) ?
Absolutely.

Would the internal fan(s) have to be upgraded as well ?

The CPU will come with a heatsink and fan.

The HP laptop is fitted with an Intel Core 2 Duo T5800. I don't know if
that
is a sensible option.

It isn't a physical possibility.

Boards made for AMD processors can't accept Intel processors, and vice
versa. The board is also designed for a processor with a specific number
of pins and other physical and electrical characteristics. Processors that
don't match can't be used.

Is this a very difficult job (something I might do myself) ?

If the parts *match* swapping a processor is often not difficult, but if you
damage the parts, it's a pretty expensive mistake.

I have limited
knowledge of the internal hardware, being confined so far to fitting extra
RAM and replacing a DVD burner. Is there anywhere where I could get some
fairly idiot proof instructions ?

With thanks for any guidance.

Regards.

Mike

A better - meaning faster - CPU will quite possibly run you a couple of
hundred dollars, if one that matches your board is available. Older,
obsolete processors and memory that aren't in common use tend to be more
expensive because they have lost their economies of scale.

In comparison, that much money can more than pay for a used 3Ghz Pentium 4
box with a valid XP Pro license, and it will be *much* faster and more
upgradeable than the system you have now.

HTH
-pk

 

[GoldHawk]

I really appreciate all these replies. As my question may have indicated, I
don't have much knowledge in this area. Some of the advice went a bit beyond
my understanding, but it was all very useful and a learning curve. It's
interesting and something about which I'd like to learn more.

I understand the limitations. The consensus seems to be that I should live
with what I've got or go out and buy a new machine.

I tried tweaking the System > Advanced settings but it reverted everything
back to classis view. I have been able to system restore.

From a post I made in relation to Vista, I have found out something about
virtual memory and made some adjustments. Unless I am imagining it, this
does seem to make a minor improvement.

Again, thanks to all. Much appreciated.

Mike Evesham, UK

 

[F3]

GoldHawk,

One of the most cost-effective ways of upgrading a computer is to
upgrade the RAM. Look up what the specifications of your ASRock MB and
determine what the maximum memory it can accommodate is. If the 1GB you
currently have is the maximum, you're up the proverbial creek.

If the maximum is 2GB or thereabouts, you could upgrade the RAM.

However, there is another problem limiting the performance of your
computer... The cache memory of your processor chip. Processor chips
(in your case: AMD Athlon XP 2000+) come with a very high-speed memory
built-in. The main memory (RAM) typically runs at a fraction of the
internal speed of the processor chip. The cache memory built into the
processor chip is typically very small, but usually runs at the same
speed as the internal speed of the processor chip. The more cache
memory your processor chip has, the faster it will perform.

Therefore, two 1.6GHz processors built on similar technology, but one
having 1MB of cache and the other having only 128KB of cache will have
notably different performance characteristics - specifically, the one
with 1MB of cache will outperform the one with only 128KB of cache.
Assuming similar motherboards, RAM, hard disk drives, & operating systems.

I haven't looked up the specifications of your processor chip, but I am
making an educated guess that your processor chip has only 128KB or so
of cache. You can download a processor (CPU) identification utility
from AMD (www.amd.com) or from Intel (www.intel.com) to check the
specifications of the processor you have installed. Please use the
utility from the company which made your processor.

You might have to "bite the bullet" and buy another computer. You can
get a good, used computer, with a processor twice the speed of your
current processor for a fairly inexpensive price. As long as it is a
brand-name system, it should come with a Windows COA sticker on it for
the version of Windows already installed. I recommend Windows XP
Professional (or Home, if Pro is not available). Newer programs
(including Operating Systems) tend to be more power-hungry than older
ones. If the program demands more power, but your computer has a fixed
processor speed, a fixed quantity of RAM, etc., what happens?

Fred
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