Upgrade a Dell Computer...

[Coolmatt]

Yo, my father has a Dell Dimension 2400 as his office computer(see bottom of this post for tech specs) and I want to upgrade it to an AMD Athlon 64 3300+ Socket 754. What I wanted to do was place the new upgrade into the same case as the Dell. Here's what I plan on purchasing...

AMD Athlon 64 3300+ 2.40GHz / 256KB Cache / 1600MHz FSB / OEM / Socket 754 / Processor

My problem is that I want to get a motherboard which will fit the ATX power connector in the Dell computer and that the Motherboard will be able to use the amount of power in the Dell computer (not sure of the wattage of the PSU). Any ideas for a good Mobo is appreciated.

Tech Specs (Dell Dimension 2400):
Pentium 4 - 2.4 Ghz
Some Intel Mobo w/ integrated graphics
2 x 256 MB PC2700 333Mhz
...etc... lol, nothing much else matters

I'm ASSUMING that the Power Supply is 20 pin (I'm not at my father's office so I wouldn't know). If you're missing any info that you need to help me let me know.

 

[iss]

What is it you plan on doing with the computer? gaming? if the present motherboard has a AGP port you would be better off spending your money on a graphics card.

Your also going to need a copy of XP once you switch the motherboard from a intel chipset to a amd chipset your not going to be able to boot from the existing hard drive. you also wont be able to use the dell recovery disk to reload windows once you swap mobo's.

Most of Dell's PSU's with P4's are 300watt

 

[Rick]

upgrade it to an AMD Athlon 64 3300+ Socket 754

The deal on the CPU is great (19.95 after $50 rebate), but this upgrade is to a platform that is EOL. Keep that in mind, although it may be a substantial upgrade compared to you have currently.

My problem is that I want to get a motherboard which will fit the ATX power connector in the Dell computer and that the Motherboard will be able to use the amount of power in the Dell computer

Many dells 'feature' a proprietary ATX connection. Fortunately, I believe this (as well as many newer models) is a standard ATX connection.

I'm ASSUMING that the Power Supply is 20 pin

This is a safe assumption. There are adapters which can help you connect a 20-pin PSU to a 24-pin board in case you change your mind. Alternatively, a new PSU can cost less than $20.

not sure of the wattage of the PSU

ISS mentioned 300w. Sounds about right. Is 300w for your system enough? Yeah, it should work... Even lower wattage should work... Although it would certainly make ME feel a bit uncomfortable if are considering adding a decent video card, extra components and so on.

Some Intel Mobo w/ integrated graphics

Don't forget you'll need to either buy a motherboard with integrated graphics or get a video card to put in it. This can be the bulk of your upgrade expense depending on whether you're planning to play games or not.

 

[vnf4ultra]

Yo, my father has a Dell Dimension 2400 as his office computer(see bottom of this post for tech specs) and I want to upgrade it to an AMD Athlon 64 3300+ Socket 754. What I wanted to do was place the new upgrade into the same case as the Dell. Here's what I plan on purchasing...

AMD Athlon 64 3300+ 2.40GHz / 256KB Cache / 1600MHz FSB / OEM / Socket 754 / Processor

My problem is that I want to get a motherboard which will fit the ATX power connector in the Dell computer and that the Motherboard will be able to use the amount of power in the Dell computer (not sure of the wattage of the PSU). Any ideas for a good Mobo is appreciated.

Tech Specs (Dell Dimension 2400):
Pentium 4 - 2.4 Ghz
Some Intel Mobo w/ integrated graphics
2 x 256 MB PC2700 333Mhz
...etc... lol, nothing much else matters

I'm ASSUMING that the Power Supply is 20 pin (I'm not at my father's office so I wouldn't know). If you're missing any info that you need to help me let me know.

That's a good deal on the cpu, but it's a kind of strange cpu. It has the cache of a sempron, but is an athlon 64. It would basically be a sempron64 4200+ if they made such a chip.

You should have a standard 20 pin power connector.

According to dell your system could have a 200 or 250w psu.
The 200w is really iffy, but I'd think 250w should run ok. If you add in a graphics card, then you would probably want to get a good 350-400w power supply though.

You need a micro atx socket 754 motherboard for that system, if you're getting the 754 processor.
This would be a sweet board for your system.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813138268
(it's a oc'able matx board, which is harder to find)

You WILL have to modify your front panel connections to get them to work properly with the new motherboard, but it shouldn't be too hard. If you need help, I'd be glad to assist.

Be sure to put an athlon 64 sticker on the system when your done, it'd be a real sleeper...

 

[KingCody]

Be sure to put an athlon 64 sticker on the system when your done, it'd be a real sleeper...

yep, [sarcasm]it won't work as good without a sticker :haha: :giddy: :haha:[/sarcasm]

 

[Coolmatt]

I wanted to get it mainly for computing and whatnot. He's not interested in upgrading the computer anymore cause he barely uses it for anything else other than using inventory software.

Thanks anyway for the help.