Will this work? 'Beefing up an old dell'

Lipsmoker

Solid State Member
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Location
england
So i have a Dell optiplex gx620

124680_090930131840_dell_gx620_desktop.jpg


Yes i know...


It's Tiny and it's pretty slow it's running a Intel Pentium 4 at 3GHz.

Has 1GB of Ram
Windows 7 ultimate 32bit
Radeon x600

It's not the worst computer i'v had but it's by far not the best and before anybody says it's not worth it. I'm weird like that and i can do this really cheap plus i'v had this little beast for a while.

Upgrade plans (Have seen somebody else install this CPU successfully)

Intel Pentium D 945 Dual Core 3.4GHz 4MB Socket 775 CPU
4GB DDR2 RAM
Windows 7 ultimate 64bit

This is all find and dandy. the FSB supports 800mhz so it's bang on

My only worry is the CPU cooler. I'm obviously going to need an upgrade. Will any 775 cooler work? even though my case is small. I mean width wise if that makes sense. i guess a 775 socket width is the same in any pc though so it shouldn't interfere with anything at the sides of the CPU itself..

Now the depth of the Cooler may be an issue. Can i just simple very neatly cut my side case to fit the cooler? i'm aware i may need to counter balance the pc or just run it on it's side. I think it could look pretty sleek when done i can't seem to see an issue with this.

I'v already installed an Artic Fan in the pc to keep it cooler

I can pick up that cpu and a decent cooler for $40 if i shop around
Ram i can pick up for $50

Can anybody see anything wrong with this? I'm aware i may need a bios update

Thanks guys.
 
To be brutally honest, that old machine isn't worth throwing any money at in terms of upgrades. You're better suited saving up some money and building a new rig.

Nothing wrong with being cheap, but you need to be dollar smart. Throwing $200 at an old rig to get another year out of it or spending $500 to get something good for about 6 years.

To answer your question, you would need to look at the TDP of each CPU. If the new CPU is the same or lower, then you can use the existing cooler. If not, any LGA 775 cooler should work assuming it fits in the case.
 
A dual core CPU and 4 gigs ram will certainly speed thing up but 64 bit OS? Keep your 32 bit OS for now as you're having 4 gigs ram which is the limit of 32 bit OSes.

Be cheaper to upgrade then.
 
So i have a Dell optiplex gx620

Yes i know...

It's Tiny and it's pretty slow it's running a Intel Pentium 4 at 3GHz.

Has 1GB of Ram
Windows 7 ultimate 32bit
Radeon x600

It's not the worst computer i'v had but it's by far not the best and before anybody says it's not worth it. I'm weird like that and i can do this really cheap plus i'v had this little beast for a while.

Upgrade plans (Have seen somebody else install this CPU successfully)

Intel Pentium D 945 Dual Core 3.4GHz 4MB Socket 775 CPU
4GB DDR2 RAM
Windows 7 ultimate 64bit

This is all find and dandy. the FSB supports 800mhz so it's bang on

My only worry is the CPU cooler. I'm obviously going to need an upgrade. Will any 775 cooler work? even though my case is small. I mean width wise if that makes sense. i guess a 775 socket width is the same in any pc though so it shouldn't interfere with anything at the sides of the CPU itself..

Now the depth of the Cooler may be an issue. Can i just simple very neatly cut my side case to fit the cooler? i'm aware i may need to counter balance the pc or just run it on it's side. I think it could look pretty sleek when done i can't seem to see an issue with this.

I'v already installed an Artic Fan in the pc to keep it cooler

I can pick up that cpu and a decent cooler for $40 if i shop around
Ram i can pick up for $50

Can anybody see anything wrong with this? I'm aware i may need a bios update

Thanks guys.

I "had" an only gateway gt5404, which had the Pentium d 915 in it. If you want to upgrade, I'd upgrade the motherboard to one that can support a core 2 quad then go from there, and the motherboard I have in mind is the ASRock G41 from amazon which supports DDR3 RAM instead of DDR2 (which you can't find 8gb for under $100) and you get wonderful LGA775 quad core support! Good luck!
 
If i were you i'll "upgreade" the OS to something that is designed to run on old computers.
Try Installing Lubuntu. It's gonna make your PC faster for sure.
 
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