Old Dell XPS, want to upgrade a bit.

[woot7800GT]

So I recently cracked open the case of my very old Dell XPS. It's running Windows 98 with 128mb SDRAM and an Nvidia Riva TNT.
I'm thinking about upgrading it a little.
1. I'm pretty sure the Riva is AGP. The port is black and a little bigger than the PCI slots, can anyone confirm? I would like to buy maybe an FX5900 or something.
2. If I want to upgrade it to 256, can I buy any brand stick of SDRAM or does it need to be something special? I heard Dell uses proprietary RAM?
Thanks.

 

[woot7800GT]

Okay, so it's a Dell! My parents bought it like 5 years ago! God! That doesn't mean you can't answer me!

 

[macdude425]

Dell does use proprietary RAM. Normal RAM may well send your mobo sky high. I also think they use proprietary vid cards, but I'm not sure.

 

[idiotec]

I have never seen a Dell with proprietary RAM
Looking at the specs I would bet it is PC133 RAM. Any PC133 RAM should work.

Also, they don't use propriety gfx cards either :amazed: An AGP card should fit right in there.

I actually had an old XPS system. It was actually a great computer. I had a 700Mhz PIII that also came with 128mb RAM and the TNT gfx card. I upgraded it to a 5200FX and 384MB RAM without a problem and got 6 years out of that computer Actually, my brother is still using it and its running great

Overall, typically the only proprietary parts on a Dell is the mobo and the PSU. Everthing else upgrades very easily.

 

[macdude425]

I have never seen a Dell with proprietary RAM
Looking at the specs I would bet it is PC133 RAM. Any PC133 RAM should work.

Also, they don't use propriety gfx cards either :amazed: An AGP card should fit right in there.

Oops. Looks like I was wrong.

Well, I've seen Dell's that have no vid card port.

 

[woot7800GT]

I think idiotec may have gotten the exact same computer as me. It's a good machine. It's been running great for years, just might be time for a little upgrade. I don't know what CPU it has though. The sticker says P3 but under System it says P2. Will CPU-Z work in Windows 98? Also, how hard would it be to add it to my wireless network?

 

[woot7800GT]

Oh, and how can I tell if it's AGP 2x, 4x or 8x?

 

[idiotec]

Oh, and how can I tell if it's AGP 2x, 4x or 8x?

Run CPU-Z, this will also tell you the speed of your chip. I don't see why it wouldn't run under Windows 98....

Also, how hard would it be to add it to my wireless network?

Just add a PCI wireless card to it. It should have a free PCI slot.

 

[PP Mguire]

I would like to buy maybe an FX5900 or something.

dude dont waste your money, either geta 6600Gt or get a 9600XT for that kinda money. and get a stick of 512mb of 133. that should speed it up quite nicely. and im oretty sure CPU-Z will work on almost any OS.

 

[Trotter]

Post the serial number, and I'll pull up its specs.