Is my board an ATX?

yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
edited December 2005 in Hardware
looking to upgrade my processor from a 1.6G to a 3 or higher. I'm using a Compaq Presario 5900 and I'm wondering which board/processor to buy that will fit. The machine is about 4 years old. They all seem to use the ATX standard but I'm not sure.....

Thanks guys!
«1

Comments

  • TheSmJTheSmJ
    edited December 2005
    Can you get a clear photo of the motherboard?
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    TheSmJ wrote:
    Can you get a clear photo of the motherboard?

    I can try hold on.
  • ArmoArmo Mr. Nice Guy Is Dead,Only Aqua Remains Member
    edited December 2005
    if it was made within the last 6 years then yes, it SHOULD be atx, compnies like dell and compaq like to make their parts proprietary so if you try to use them in something else they either dont work or blow up the compnent. not to mention that they use "bottom of the barrel" parts when they make these things.

    i remember Dell power supplies had a pin reversed in them so if you tried to use a non dell motherboard, it would instantly fry it.

    if your not sure and dont want to take the risk ( small risk probably ) then i would opt for a new case and a large PSU.

    what kind fo machine are you looking about upgrading to? whats your budget.
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    I'd like to keep this under $500 for everything. I do some gaming (not hardcore, but I like my shooters) and manipulate a lot of photo's music and video. I'd like to keep my hard drives and card adaptor, those are all fine.
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    This is what it looks like.
  • TheSmJTheSmJ
    edited December 2005
    It looks like an ATX board (mATX to be exact) but as Armo said the power connectors' pinouts could be different from the real ATX spec.

    Since you'll need a new PSU anyways if you're going to upgrade, you might as well get a cheap $20 case (plus a GOOD $50+ power supply) while your at it as well.
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited December 2005
    SMJ is right, if your limit is $500, you are probably better served by migrating the parts, minus motherboard, CPU, and power supply unit (PSU) to a new case. The newer case will give room to work in, making other future upgrades much easier. Just like it was expressed above, it's often very tricky upgrading a pre-built, mass produced machine. We'll help you with any upgrades or builds you would like to do. My last name brand computer was in 1995. Having done my first home build in 1999, there is no going back.
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited December 2005
    It would be helpful if you would provide your system specifications. Look inside the case and at any documentation you have. Also go to System Tools in Windows for more information. Let us know about the components in your system:

    CPU
    Physical Memory (DRAM/SDRAM)
    Display
    Hard Drive

    It might be that just a CPU upgrade might not make much difference in your gaming. Gaming software is dependent on much more than just the CPU.

    EDIT: I just reread your posts:
    and manipulate a lot of photo's music and video
    For $500 we could dramatically improve performance in nearly every application you use.
  • GrayFoxGrayFox /dev/urandom Member
    edited December 2005
    That psu is propriatary and you might have a hard time fitting in a new board.
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    Good info.

    I'm sold on the new case, power supply, motherboard and CPU. Looking on Tiger direct, I found an Axper P4I533PE w/ an intel D 345 3.06 pentium 4. What are the specifics if I want a strong gaming machine? I currently use a GeForce 5700 graphics card. What is an adequate sized PSU? A mid or a full size case?
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    All right, I just bought a Xion 600w PSU and a Thermalmake XASER full case. Motherboard suggestions anyone?
  • ArmoArmo Mr. Nice Guy Is Dead,Only Aqua Remains Member
    edited December 2005
    go AMD, you will NOT regret it. They run faster, cooler and cheaper than a P4.

    Anything by Asus, MSI, or DFI.

    do you want to use your old agp card or do you want to upgrade to PCI-E
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    Is that the graphics card? What are the advantages of the PCI-E?
  • ArmoArmo Mr. Nice Guy Is Dead,Only Aqua Remains Member
    edited December 2005
    the "wave of the future" eventually AGP will be replaced by it. It has a MUCH higher bandwidth thn APG. AGP is like 4.5GB/s or so and PCI-E is somthing like 11GB/s. PCI-E also supports a technology created by 3DFX and copywrited by nVidia called SLI. SLI allows you to bridge two video cards which one card will render the top half of the screen adn the other card will render the bottom half of the screen, there are also diffrent configurations for SLI mode.

    it effects the price of the system overall, because if you go for the PCi-E card it will put a substanial dent in your budget. on the other hand it will allow you to get more powerful cards in the future.
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited December 2005
    I may get slapped down, but in my opinion, the only advantage to PCI-e is that it is slowly becoming the new standard, just as AGP overtook PCI (PCI over ISA...). For future upgrading potential, it would be wise to have a motherboard with a PCI-e slot. The previous poster was corect: If the main objective for this computer is gaming, AMD is the road to follow. Motherboard recommendation was also good - Asus, MSI, DFI, and Abit - and I did rank them in the order I believe best for ease of building a new system. If you want the best compromise of performance and ease of build, I'd recommend Asus. For just plain, easy building MSI. DFI is really popular is generally a very good performer when tuned. Myself, I'm a big Abit fan, but I recognize they can sometimes be rather finicky setting up. If you think you will be overclocking, I'd definitely go with DFI or Abit. Steer clear of Gigabyte, Aopen, Chaintech, ECS...
  • ArmoArmo Mr. Nice Guy Is Dead,Only Aqua Remains Member
    edited December 2005
    you also have the option of geting a motherboard with BOTH pci-e and AGP, but to tell the truth, they are made by low end builders ( ECS and Asrock )
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    Talk to me about overclocking. What is it and how do I deal with it?
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited December 2005
    Overclocking is simply hotrodding with a computer. It is taking hardware components, usually the CPU and video card beyond the default performance limits set at the factory. It doesn't usually accomplish much for real world use, but it is a fun engagement. It is also risky, as you can damage or destroy hardware components. Take a look at the overclocking subform.
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    Right on. i don't know how much unconventional computing I'll be doing. let me know how to "game" and compute at a hight level, spending the minimal amount of money on my system.
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    How about this Mobo...

    ASUS A8N5X Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

    CPU Type: Athlon 64 FX/Athlon 64/Athlon X2
    DDR Standard: DDR 400 (PC 3200)
    Dual Channel Supported: Yes
    FSB: 1000MHz Hyper Transport (2000 MT/s)
    Maximum Memory Supported: 4GB
    Number of DDR Slots: 4x 184pin DDR
    Other Slots: 1x PCI Express x4 slot
    PCI Express x1: 2
    PCI Express x16: 1
    PCI Slots: 3
  • ArmoArmo Mr. Nice Guy Is Dead,Only Aqua Remains Member
    edited December 2005
    that looks like a real solid board, plus it has 41 reviews with a 5 star rating on newegg ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131569 ). The nForce4 chipset is a good thing to have.

    as far as video cards go, i bet an x800 would work nicley for you. ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814127176 ) Its more powerful than a 9800pro which by no stretch of the imagination is a "lay down adn die" card.

    for the processor, id say nothng less than a AMD 64 3200+ ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103502 )

    if your budget allows, more ram could always be better :) and if you still have more money after that in the budget, id go for one of the Asus, or DFI heavy hitters such as:

    Asus A8n-SLI series ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131524 ) * I have the A8N-SLI Deluxe

    DFI Lanparty UT series ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813136152 ) * many people on SM have a version of the DFI LP boards

    MSI K8N Neo4 ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813130484 ) * a fantastic board

    Abit K8N Uktra Series ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813127222 )

    **** keep in mind that you will have to reinstall windows and all of your data when you upgrade your motherboard ****

    //edit// oh yea if you've never heard of newegg, then today is lesson number 1. Shop Newegg :) newegg is posibly the BEST online computer store. personally i have built dozens of machines off of newegg. and i belive every one here usually uses them
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    Will my GeForce 5700 vid card work with this board? And is the processor hard to attach to the MB? Obviously, this is the first machine I've built and don't want to do anything dumb....
    And yes, newegg rocks. I bought the case and PSU from them, as well as the graphics card and new HD and DVD drive last year.......
  • ArmoArmo Mr. Nice Guy Is Dead,Only Aqua Remains Member
    edited December 2005
    i belive your 5700 is an agp card so, no.

    as for the CPU, its REALLY easy, all the cpu cokets now-a-days are refered to as ZIF sockets for Zero Insertion Force. All you gotta do is lift a small lever which "unlocks" the socket. then you plop the cpu ni, DO NOT FORCE IT, if it dosnt go in the first time, its probably turn the wrong way, the CPU's them selves are marked, usually with a golden triangle, this triangle should go in the same corner as where the unlocking lever is

    .............| golden triangle
    ________V
    |
    | |<- lever
    |...........| |
    |...........|
    |
    |

    wow my ASCII art is awful... but i can show u pics


    Image_49.jpg

    in that pic is backwards... ..
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    I followed your advice, buying:
    CPU AMD 64 |3700+ ATHLON 64 939P RT - Retail (Qty=1,Price=$228.00)
    VGA|MSI RX800-TD128E X800128 R - Retail (Qty=1,Price=$137.00)
    MB ASUS A8N5X NF4 939 - Retail (Qty=1,Price=$92.00)

    This will go in the case and PSU I bought yesterday. I have the 2 internal HD's, the DVD-R, and CD-R from the old machine too.

    Do I need anything else to get a working machine?
  • ArmoArmo Mr. Nice Guy Is Dead,Only Aqua Remains Member
    edited December 2005
    that should get it up and running
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    The MB holds up to 4Gig of RAM. What is the advantage of all that? I know RAM is a good thing, but that seems like a lot.

    Any suggestions on a decent assembly tutorial?
  • lemonlimelemonlime Canada Member
    edited December 2005
    yossarian084 wrote:
    The MB holds up to 4Gig of RAM. What is the advantage of all that? I know RAM is a good thing, but that seems like a lot.

    Any suggestions on a decent assembly tutorial?

    You've gotten some good advice from everyone so far.. you will not regret going AMD for a gaming rig.

    Mediaman did this system building guide a while ago. It's a little dated but a good thorough guide on the subject: http://www.short-media.com/review.php?r=151

    As for ram, 1GB is a good 'minimum' amount for a gaming machine, and if your buget permits, get 2GB. 2GB is good for newer games such as Battlefield 2 and will be more 'future proof'.. Any more than 2GB is not useful unless you are into 3D design or other very intensive tasks (servers etc). Also, on the AMD platform, stick with 2 identical sticks. Dual channel kits are the best way to go. 2x512 or 2x1024MB etc. Stick with reputable manufacturers like OCZ, corsair, mushkin, g.skill etc.
  • ArmoArmo Mr. Nice Guy Is Dead,Only Aqua Remains Member
    edited December 2005
    before ANY thing gets processed by the CPU is it stored in RAM, the more ram the bigger the CPU buffer is and the more things you can have open before your machine starts to chug and slowdown.

    all operating systems use a small section of your hard drive space for something called a swap file. the swap file is "hard drive ram" it works just like ram only off the hard drive. this isnt a very good thing. considering that the average seek time for a modern HDD is approx 8-9ms, that seems pretty damn fast untill you compare it to the seek time of ram, approx 3-5 NANO SECONDS!.

    so the more ram you have, the less the OS has to use the swap file :)

    as far as construction guides, SM its self has a VERY good guide, lemme like it
    http://www.short-media.com/review.php?r=151
  • yossarian084yossarian084 Norwich, VT, USA Member
    edited December 2005
    OK. i'd like to max out the RAM. what type is compatible given the processor/MB combo I just bought?
  • ArmoArmo Mr. Nice Guy Is Dead,Only Aqua Remains Member
    edited December 2005
    it takes DDR400 ( speed rating is PC3200 )

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?Manufactory=&PropertyCodeValue=0&PropertyCodeValue=0&PropertyCodeValue=524%3A7862&PropertyCodeValue=0&PropertyCodeValue=0&PropertyCodeValue=0&PropertyCodeValue=0&description=&MinPrice=&MaxPrice=&SubCategory=147&Submit=Property

    you want AT MINIMUM 512mb of ram, and 2 gigs is kinda over kill, i use 1.5gb of Corsair XMS

    good brands to stick to:

    OCZ
    Corsair
    Kingston
    GeIL

    thats not to say that lesser known brands

    Patriot
    PQI
    Rosewill
    A-DATA

    arent also good. i use some A-Data ram in one of my machines and it runs great. one thing youw ant to look for is ram with a low CAS Latencey, this is rams version of seek time like a hard drive. the lower the CAS the faster the ram is

    i have a set of this

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145450
Sign In or Register to comment.