Any advice on upgrading a Pentium 200?

[Uconn411]

I have an old Gateway computer, which I'd like to upgrade the CPU on. I don't think it is possible, w/o a motherboard upgrade too. It can accept a Pentium MMX processor or Intel Pentium processor, as well as a Pentium Overdrive upgrade. Any insight would be appreciated....

 

[Homer]

You'll do better to build (my preferred route), or buy new. Your upgrade options are either limited - slightly more processor if you get a used P233mmx for about $30, or more RAM (not much point in going above 64mb in a mobo with an FX or TX chipset), faster larger hard drive, and a clean install of you OS & software; or ridiculously expensive with overdrive chips or computer-on-a-PCI card upgrades.
Neither of these is going to get you a cost-effective major boost in performance, if that's what you're looking for. The set of small upgrades can get you a computer that feels a whole lot faster, provided you are only using it for browsing/email/basic office apps, and you don't want to install WinMe or W2000.
If you want real power you'll have to build, or buy new, and your choices are myriad. Someone else is bound to jump in here with specifics, and there are lots of guides on budget vs. mid-range vs. high end on AnandTech and many other sites.

My $0.02

 

[jaydee]

Yeah, your not going to get much more soup out of that sucker unless you make a major upgrade and change just about everything. No matter what you upgrade in that one, will be bottlenecked by the other older components.

 

[Maverick2002]

true true........but wait, cant you get a k6-2? arent they backward compatible with intel chipsets? just a thought....

 

[gimps]

they can be compatible. But, you have to remember that the mobo must support the clockspeed of the K6. You may not be able to run a 500MHz K6 in the mobo if it doesn't have the correct multipliers.
Also depends on how old the mobo is.

 

[Homer]

Ah... Now you're talkin' about "Super 7" mobos & stuff like that. I think it's unlikely that Uconn's board will handle those cpu's, although he should be able to find out just what his options are from the Gateway support site.

 

[CTho9305]

the new k6-2+'s remap the 2x multiplier to 6x... that means a mobo should support it.

 

[gtd2000]

TX chipset will allow the re-map - u need BIOS upgrade 0112 I think...I have it somewhere for ASUS motherboards

 

[BadThad]

I highly doubt that gateway mobo will take anything greater than a P233MMX. Even if the multiplier is mapped, that board won't support the 2.2v K6-2 core...I seriously doubt it.

My question - Why do you feel compelled to upgrade? Want to play 3D games? Apps running too slow? If all you do is word processing, email and web, that P200 isn't really all that bad. If you just want a slight increase in speed for standard apps, throw some ram at that P200. 64MB is optimal for the TX chipset since thats all it can buffer. This will also be pretty cheap. Other than that, you're gonna be looking at a whole new system as cheap as components are. I can get a NEW P233MMX for $45, but hell, a duron 600 is only like $55...I think you get the picture.

Good Luck!

 

[Uconn411]

Thanks for all your input guys, I will have to look more into the k6-2 chip, and see if the motherboard can support the 2.2v. I did dig this URL up on gateway, I don't know if it helps much...
Link

 

[Homer]

Uconn, that page may be telling the truth, but not the whole truth. It is possible to deduce, by comparing the jumper settings listed, with the multiplier and voltage requirements for the listed Intel processors (as listed here), just what other processors are likely to work, such as a P233mmx. Other processors may indeed be possible, but it will take painstaking research and some luck. Then maybe someone will jump into this thread who has done this before, or tried to.
My experience with an HP board of probably the same vintage is that you are not going to get what you're looking for at any reasonable price, and even with the gross expense of some overdrive solutions you would still have a crippled system. If you haven't tried the clean install and increasing your RAM to 64mb (if you're not there already), these things will help for basic uses. Otherwise start thinking about what bits you can salvage out of this system when you put together a new one, and which you can sell (there is a market for P200's and SIMM's), or buy new.