Hello and an upgrade question!

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Hi everyone

I am new here so apologies in advance if I ask stupid questions or leave out important details. I am extremely computer literate but have no idea when it comes to the hardware side. I am pretty much like a racecar driver that knows nothing about building engines! :D

I am running an AMD XP 1300+ with 1024 MB of DDR SDRAM.

Motherboard: Abit NF7-S ( http://www.abit.com.tw/page/au/moth...?DEFTITLE=Y&fMTYPE=Socket A&pMODEL_NAME=NF7-S )

Bus speed: 100mhz
Sound card: Nvidar NForce
Video card: Radeon 9200
BIOS: Phoenix 6.00 PG

It has been good up until now, but I would like to give it a bit of a boost. What are my options in terms of
1) A new processor such as an XP 2100+ and upwards. What would you recommend given the settings above?
2) New video card. I will get some more RAM, but I thought a video card upgrade would be appropriate too.
3) Finally, will I have to change fans and that sort of thing?

Thanks!
 
Well, you have an agp 8x slot so graphics upgrade shouldn't be a problem. You're only limited by your budget and by using agp 8x cards.
A 6600gt agp is a nice midrange card, for about $150usd.
The new 6800gs agp will be coming out soon, it should be a good bang for the buck.

Upgrade your bios to the latest version first to make sure the board can support newer cpus.
It will be harder to find an athlon xp cpu now, but sempron cpus are more readily available. I think you can get up to a 3000+ sempron on that board.
http://www2.abit.com.tw/cpu_support/amd-sempron462.htm
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819104210

So it depends on your budget what you get really.
 
it all depends on what you want to use the PC for...
for example if you was a gamer or work with programs that use alot of graphics (eg 3d modeling software)- upgrade the graphics card AND processor...
however if its more of a genral use PC, just upgrade the processor.
you have more than enougth ram and i dont see the point in having that much with your system... but o well...
i'd also recommend browing through Ebay for athlonXPs as they can still be found easily there... just make sure the seller has a good feedback rating...
 
Thanks for the replies.

I do a lot of work on the computer, but also play a few games such as Grand Theft Auto and strategy games and other first person shooters such as Call of Duty.

I am looking at a Sempron 2800+. Given the specs above would you say that it would make a noticeable difference to gaming and general computer usage if that is all I replaced?

Thanks! :slurp:
 
Hi Pete J,

It's great that you're thinking of upgrading. Here's what I recommend.

First, consider what you want to use the computer for. If you intend to play hi-res 3D games and first-person shooters, I'd go and upgrade practically everything - the CPU, RAM and video card. Go for at least an AMD Athlon XP 2100+ and have about 1 GB of RAM.

For the video card, get a good one like the NVIDIA GeForce 6800 series of graphics processing units (GPUs). One card I particularly like is the BFG GeForce 6800 Ultra. This card kicks **** and is one of the best AGP 8X cards out there.

I've come across your Abit NF7-S motherboard before. Its pros and cons can be summarized as follows:

Pros:
  • Good performance and stability
  • Very nice Serial ATA and RAID setup
  • Nice USB 2.0 support, IEEE-1394

Cons:
  • Bad on-board audio
  • Bad manual and documentation

If the con above matters to you, you can just get a new sound card, or consider upgrading to a PCI Express based board.

One thing about cooling - if you intend to get an AMD Athlon XP 2100+ processor, you may want to consider Masscool by Fanner Tech. I find that Masscool fans give quiet operation, low thermal resistance and rock-solid durability.

Good luck, let me know if you need more help.
 
The nf7-s has soundstorm audio, which was supposedly one of the best integrated sound solutions.
 
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