[mrstharp]

I have a HP Pavilion 516x running windows Vista. Bad idea I found out. I upgraded to a Celeron 2.6ghz processor and upgraded from 512mb of ram to 1 gb (2x512mb). HP said I can only upgrade to 1 gb but I found out the specifications of the motherboard actually has a max of 2 gb. I do not know why HP only recommends 1 gb. What I REALLY want to do is take out this crappy motherboard and put in a compatible but better one. Basically I want something that will allow my computer to run faster, add more memory, and be able to handle 2 hdds. Does anyone know what motherboard I can upgrade to and still have all my hardware and current processor and memory work with?

Thank you

Edited by mrstharp, 09 August 2009 - 03:00 PM.

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Celeron 2.6ghz processor

What is the socket of the CPU?
Nvm... it's socket 478 right?

512mb of ram to 1 gb (2x512mb).

What type of RAM... and speed.
Ex. DDR2 800

Are you HDDs SATA or IDE (PATA) drives?

This is the only motherboard I could find that will support your CPU: http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813138079
It will also support your HDDs if they are PATA or SATA. It has a VGA port and supports DDR2 memory. It is faster, but you will have to buy new RAM since DDR RAM won't fit in the slot. If you have an IDE optical drive, and have 2 PATA HDDs, you won't have enough slots to use all of them... you will need to buy a SATA optical drive.

Bottom line... my suggestion: Your components are too old. You might as well get a new CPU, mobo, and RAM, and maybe a HDD.

[edge2022]

Celeron 2.6ghz processor

What is the socket of the CPU?
Nvm... it's socket 478 right?

512mb of ram to 1 gb (2x512mb).

What type of RAM... and speed.
Ex. DDR2 800

Are you HDDs SATA or IDE (PATA) drives?

This is the only motherboard I could find that will support your CPU: http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813138079
It will also support your HDDs if they are PATA or SATA. It has a VGA port and supports DDR2 memory. It is faster, but you will have to buy new RAM since DDR RAM won't fit in the slot. If you have an IDE optical drive, and have 2 PATA HDDs, you won't have enough slots to use all of them... you will need to buy a SATA optical drive.

Bottom line... my suggestion: Your components are too old. You might as well get a new CPU, mobo, and RAM, and maybe a HDD.

[mrstharp]

Thanks for the help and the suggestion. I think we might just end up getting a new computer. We need a new video card on top of everything else. Seems like we can spend about the same getting a new computer and end up w/ a couple of extras we'd like to have. Thank you very much. I really appreciate it.

[edge2022]

Are you interested in building your own computer?
Read through this guide: http://www.geekstogo...er-t208831.html

[mrstharp]

Hey thanks for that! That's awesome. I've been wanting to build a computer for a while. Do you know any good places to get computer parts?

[edge2022]

I would highly recommend Newegg: http://www.newegg.com/
They have some really good deals and combo specials.
You can also look for some barebone kits from Tigerdirect... some of them are good.

About how much are you willing to spend?

[mrstharp]

I don't know really. I'm trying to find something decent that doesn't cost a bundle. I've found some stuff on ebay and newegg and one other place. I found a motherboard w/ a P4, 2.5 ghz i think. The celeron I have is 2.6 but that's fine. It'll work with my DDR memory, even though it can hold 4gb instead of the 1 or 2 with mine.

I had a question about that. The manufacturer of the motherboard says that it can hold 2 gb but in ( ) next to it says that HP and whoever else recommend 1 gb. Why would HP recommend 1 gb of ram instead of 2 if it can hold a max of 2??

I also found a pretty decent video card for like 50 bucks. I can't remember if it was the 256 or 512 mb card. We had a 256 in this computer and it worked awesome. Kids messed it up when they spilled a drink on the comp. So 256 or even better 512 it's still pretty good price. I gotta have a PCI compatible with DDR. I keep finding PCIE or PCI that works w/ DDR2 or something like that. SUCKS!

[edge2022]

How much money do you have to spend, and what components are you recycling?

Why would HP recommend 1 gb of ram instead of 2 if it can hold a max of 2??

I have no idea... I would always suggest that you max out your RAM on an older board.

BTW... DDR is very old compared to the technology now... DDR2 RAM is cheap and is much faster than DDR.
It doesn't matter what RAM your graphics card uses (ex. GDDR3), it just has to have the right interface (PCI, AGP, PCI-E)

Edited by edge2022, 14 August 2009 - 11:56 AM.

[mrstharp]

Oh really? I thought if it said DDR2 or whatever that it meant that's the type of memory it was compatible with. Good to know!

I MIGHT go ahead and buy a new motherboard. I really wanted to use the same memory but the whole point is to have more memory and all I have is 2 512mb sticks. Even just buying a single 1gb stick of DDR2 for a new motherboard I guess would be better.

If thats the case then most likely the only things I will be recycling into the new computer would be my HDD, although I plan on getting another one so I have 2. And I guess the PSU. I'm not really sure how to tell what type of PSU to get? The voltage and all that. I'm not sure which one I got now. uumm...lets see...i'd be getting a new motherboard, new memory, new video card, I think this one has a built in sound card so I'll probably be getting a new sound card unless the new motherboard has a built in one. So I guess not a whole heck of a lot will be getting put in the new comp. new memory obviously.

I'll probably get online and see what I can find. I want a motherboard/cpu combo. And i'd LIKE to get a 512 mb video card but i could settle for a 256 mb instead. If I can't find a combo mobo/cpu for about the same price and speed as the other one I might just stick w/ the one w/ the DDR memory.

One question....mATX...does that mean its a mini atx board?

I figure right now I had a mobo/cpu combo for I believe it was like 50 and a video card for 40ish I believe. So i mean..for the two I'd like to not spend more than 150. I'd have to see how much those two cost before I can even think about anything else. lol

Thanks for your help. I've gotten really rusty when it comes to computers. Haven't really done a lot of hardware stuff with them in like 7 years so a lot of stuff has changed.

[edge2022]

So you are only going to recycle your HDD?
I suggest you pick up this PSU: http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817139008
Or this one: http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817153052

mATX means Micro-ATX. Make sure you choose a case that can support your motherboard.

If you aren't really going to game, then this video card is good: http://www.newegg.co...N82E16814125251

[mrstharp]

That reminds me of a question I had. PCI express...i know absolutely nothing about it. I see it w/ all sorts of different numbers and x16 and what not after it. What does all that mean?? And GDDR2...is that different than DDR2?? lol I know..i can't help it. I have no idea!


Here's the mobo/cpu combo I think i'm gonna get:

http://www.newegg.co...st=Combo.230558

This is the video card I just found:

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16814162018

And then I saw this 2x2gb memory sticks. Are these ok? Or a cheap brand or what? lol

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820145184

Have I said thank you lately for putting up with all my questions?

Edited by mrstharp, 14 August 2009 - 03:53 PM.

[edge2022]

DDR vs. GDDR

PCI-E Version 1.x runs at 250 Mbps per lane...
Version 2.x runs are 500 Mbps per lane...

You can think of a lane as a road on which info travels. So, this means that a x16 PCI-E 2.0 port has 16 lanes. This also means that a PCI-E x16 2.0 port can send data at (500*16=8000 Mbps)

Also, each lane can transmit info forward and backward (you can think of it like that... think a 2 way road)
This means that the maximum data transfer speed is actually (8000*2=16000 Mbps)

Sound cards usually fit into x1 PCI-E slots, while video cards go into x16 PCI-E slots.
The video card you picked out looks good... but you don't need a video card since the motherboard you picked already has onboard video.
This is another card you can buy: http://www.newegg.co...N82E16814125251
Read some reviews before you make a decision.

Your mobo/cpu combo looks very good.

Corsair is a trusted name in RAM... they make really good quality stuff. Get that RAM...
Or this one: http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820227199

[mrstharp]

Thanks for the suggestions. They are just as good as the others but will save me some money! I'll have to take apart my computer to see what size PSU i have in this comp. If I can get away w/o having to buy a new PSU i'd be happy but i will probably have to get a new one. Any insights with LED lights in computers? The case I really really like has LED lights. Im sure that would mean more power from my PSU huh...hehe
Plus i just found out I have virtumonde on my computer. So posted my hijackthis log.
and i think i understand pcie and all its numbers thanks!

[edge2022]

Any insights with LED lights in computers?

They are cool... and they won't really add any load to your PSU... a Corsair 400W should be able to cope with all this and much more.

If you are going to get a new case, make sure it supports Micro-ATX motherboards. Buy an ATX Mid-Tower... the Corsair or ThermalTake I suggested will fit perfectly.

Also... if you want some more cool LED stuff... get Crucial's Ballistix Tracers.

RAM with LEDs... look here: http://www.newegg.co...amp;Order=PRICE

[edge2022]

And another thing...

Plus i just found out I have virtumonde on my computer. So posted my hijackthis log

Did you already post in the Malware Forum? If not, then follow this guide: http://www.geekstogo...uide-t2852.html
Then post the logs asked for in the Malware Forum and let a tech help you out.