Question for you Computer Guru's out there

[stitch]

Can any one tell me if it's ok for me to replace an AMD Sempron processor with an AMD Athalon processor?
And how do I find out what is the maximum Ram my mother board is capable of handling? ...Is there such a thing?

I will now wait for RGD to give a ration of S#@t as to why a crusty old cowboy like me is fiddle farting around with this "Nerdly Computer Stuff" ??
Your answer Ron is that I can't afford a new one, So I'm gonna have to pump new life into this old puppy myself

[dunng]

Sempron is a Socket 939 and the Athlon is a Socket 462 (A)... What is your Motherboard Model Number?

[stitch]

Originally Posted by dunng

Sempron is a Socket 939 and the Athlon is a Socket 462 (A)... What is your Motherboard Model Number?

Oh great, And I would find this out How?

[dunng]

Usually right on it between the card slots or near the processor...

[stitch]

Looks like it says K8S-LA ...

[dunng]

I was wrong in my first post... Here's the details on your board.

* Socket 754
* Supports the following processors:
o AMD Athlon 64 3700+ processor (Clawhammer, 2.4 GHz)
o AMD Athlon 64 3400+ processor (Newcastle, 2.4 GHz)
o AMD Sempron

Memory type PC 2700 or PC 3200 DDR
Memory sockets 2 x 184-pin DDR DIMM
Maximum Memory 2.0 GB

[stitch]

Woooooowa ... First off THANK YOU!
Second, Maaaan that is scarey ... How did you know all of that?
BTW, I am impresed

[dunng]

Originally Posted by stitch

Woooooowa ... First off THANK YOU!
Second, Maaaan that is scarey ... How did you know all of that?
BTW, I am impresed

Welcome! Google is your friend!

[SeanGAR]

Originally Posted by stitch

Woooooowa ... First off THANK YOU!
Second, Maaaan that is scarey ... How did you know all of that?
BTW, I am impresed

Google is your friend.

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/d...&printable=yes

/AGP huh? Been a while since I ran one of those.

What sempron do you have? How much memory do you have? What OS are you using?

Finding a processor for a MOBO that old might not be simple unless you look at the bay.

Personally, I wouldn't spend more than 30 bucks for a processor for that MOBO.

And in all honesty, I doubt much performance difference between a Sempron and Athlon for that MOBO. You'd be better off maxing the memory in most cases. XP is a dog on less than 512 and only opens up on a gig or more. Linux (most modern distros) would probably run great on that box even if you only have 256MB ram.

http://cgi.ebay.com/AMD-Athlon-64-34...3%3A1|294%3A50

http://cgi.ebay.com/AMD-ATHLON-64-34...3%3A1|294%3A50

And let me look around tomorrow at what I have .. I may have an Athlon x64 3XXX sitting around in a box collecting dust that I'd be happy to send you if it will work on your MOBO. Memory would be there too, likely 2 x 512MB.

[stitch]

Ok, Now I need a Drink ... I'm a saddle Maker guys,... I used to herd cattle for a living ...
Here's what I know so far ...

Processor #1 : AMD Athlon 64/Opteron / 573B2C87
Platform : (Auto)
Vendor String : AuthenticAMD
CPU Type : Original OEM Processor (0)
Family : 15 (15)
Model : 12 (12)
Stepping ID : 0 (0)
Brand ID : 0 (2183)
APIC : 0
HT Log.CPU Cnt : ----
Name String : AMD Sempron(tm) Processor 3100+

Internal Clock : 1808.39 MHz
System Bus : 200.93 MHz
System Clock : 200.93 MHz
Multiplier : 9.0

L1 I-Cache : 64K Byte
L1 D-Cache : 64K Byte
L1 T-Cache : ----
L1 Cache : ----
L2 Cache : 256K Byte
L2 Speed : 1808.39 MHz (Full)

MMX Unit : Supported
SSE Unit : Supported
SSE2 Unit : Supported
SSE3 Unit : Not Supported
MMX2 Unit : Supported
3DNow! Unit : Supported
3DNow!+ Unit : Supported

Host Bridge : 1039:0760.02 [SiS 760]
IDE Controller : 1039:5513.01 [SiS 5513]
VGA Device : 10DE:0326.A1 [NVIDIA GeForce FX 5500]
Memory Size : 512M Byte
Memory Clock : ----

OS Version : Windows XP Version 5.1.2600 Service Pack 2
And right now I have 512mb of Ram.
Thanks you guys .... Now I'm gonna go have that Drink!

[SeanGAR]

Originally Posted by stitch

Ok, Now I need a Drink ... I'm a saddle Maker guys,... I used to herd cattle for a living ...
Here's what I know so far ...

OS Version : Windows XP Version 5.1.2600 Service Pack 2
And right now I have 512mb of Ram.
Thanks you guys .... Now I'm gonna go have that Drink!

I have two Crucial DDR 333 512MB chips that I can send you, they look compatible with your board and should give you a bit of a boost over 512MB.

My processor is an Athlon X64 3200+, but it is the 90nmm Venice core. Your MOBO spec sheet lists only 130mm chips (Clawhammer and Newcastle). So I'm unsure if the chip that I have will work in your box. You're welcome to try it though. AMD has made chips with different processes (nm) but used the same names. Normally, MOBO manufacturers update the BIOS to take advantage of newer processors, but companies like HP that make their own BIOS for the MOBOs they bought (from ASUS for example) do not always, as they don't expect users to upgrade their equipment, they prefer a fresh sale.

Perhaps you can download and run CPUID, which will tell us the process on that Sempron chip you have in there. If it is 90nm, the MOBO will likely support other 90nm chips.

http://www.cpuid.com/

Also, I have found that the biggest thing you can do to speed up older computers running XP is to reinstall everything. A bit of a PITA if you don't have the original disk(s) from HP as you would have to find and save the drivers then install them. In lieu of that, a thorough antivirus scan and use of spybot search and destroy tools can do wonders.

http://www.majorgeeks.com/SpyBot-Sea...ols_d2471.html

You can also use msconfig or Spybot to look at and remove any un-needed startup programs that may be hogging resources. You can google the names of all the startup processes and see what they are there for. Many are unneeded.

If you have any questions shoot me a PM and we can chat at leisure. I love talking about and fixing up old computers.

Removing a CPU and reinstalling the heatsink is simple but sometimes a bit of a pain, especially if you haven't done it before. We're here to help though !!

My head hurts from reading this post,,,wish I understood computers!

[JE3146]

Originally Posted by Cigary

My head hurts from reading this post,,,wish I understood computers!

It's a lot simpler than people realize... I assure you.

I think the most frightening thing of a computer is the power supply and it's infinite quantity of cords. That itself isn't that complicated either as only one head style is going to fit a slot style. Make sure it's the correct one, and make sure each device has power running to it... and you're good. Take away the 20 wires from that and the computer looks a little more tame inside.

Then you h ave either small thin cables which are usually red called SATA cables or big fat thin ones called PATA cables or IDE. Most new computers don't even include a floppy drive anymore, so that's not even worth discussing.

A device like a DVD drive will either take a SATA or IDE cord. That cord gets plugged into the appropriate (fitting) slot on the motherboard. Done.

From there... you have a motherboard with a socket size that only fits certain processors. DDR slots that will only fit certain memory sizes (DDR, DDR2, or DDR3... or if it's older then SDRAM or RDRAM)...

Just think of it as low voltage legos

[dunng]

Here's a RAM upgrade to max out your PC - NewEgg

[dunng]

Originally Posted by dunng

Here's a RAM upgrade to max out your PC - NewEgg

Seeing as you only have 512MB of RAM, you would see a good boost buying the upgrade above...

[stitch]

Also, Which prossor do you recomend

[dunng]

Originally Posted by stitch

Also, Which prossor do you recomend

Fastest one you can find for your price point...

[dunng]

Too bad the processor upgrades are not available at retail for the most part... On eBay, check item 150333588184 or 270360803269.

[RGD.]

Originally Posted by stitch

. . .

I will now wait for RGD to give a ration of S#@t as to why a crusty old cowboy like me is fiddle farting around with this "Nerdly Computer Stuff" ?? . . .

Now would I do that . . .

Seriously though - if SeanGar does not have a processor laying around, I might have an AMD in the box somewhere. I'm an Intel person myself but do have some parts laying around.

Best thing for you though is to max out your memory. You will see the difference there than in the chip. Also a clean up of XP (get rid of files and crap you don't need), defrag and or reformat may be in order esp on older machines. Let me know if there is anything I can help with - call me if you need to.


Ron

[stitch]

Originally Posted by RGD.

Now would I do that . . .

Bout time you showed up!
Left myself open for the thrashing I had coming to me and you didn't even do it ....What a guy!