changing CPU only - leaving the rest unchanged

[drextremeops007]

HellOw all Anand'ers.

I plan to degrade my CPU to a lower-powered one Nothing else will be changed. Would I need to re-install my OS??

Thanks in advance.

 

[dflynchimp]

first off it's not called "degrade" that implies wear and tear on the current CPU. Switching to a lower-power/lower-performance cpu is called "downgrading"

Sry, that word just stuck out like a sore thumb for me...

answer is no, someone correct me if I'm wrong, but the OS, once activated, locks itself to the Motherboard's ID, so you could swap in new cpus, video cards, and even add another HD provided that the motherboard is still the same one.

I recently upgraded my Dad's comp from a A64 3200+ venice to a A64 X2 3800+ Toledo. It was as simple as removing the old one and tossing the new one in (plus a new cooler too, but that's irrelevant of course)

 

[drextremeops007]

oops... sorry. I meant to say downgrade. Hehe..

FYI, I am downgrading from e6750 to e6550.

 

[TuxDave]

You will not need to reinstall your OS.

 

[dflynchimp]

ooh, just realized something, why don't you just underclock your cpu? it nets the same effect since you're sticking with Core 2 Duo anyways

 

[zach0624]

why downgrade? the e6750 is G0 and runs very cool and probably can be undervolted quite a bit a stock freq.

 

[drextremeops007]

I managed to be able to sell off the cpu at a great price. Got the e6550 for a great price as well. So the net effect is I save some money here and there. I downgraded some of my other parts as well. Trying to save up for a HDTV at the end of the year.

 

[dflynchimp]

hmm, oh well, since it's already done, do as you will, lol

 

[hans007]

wow that doesnt seem like much of a money savings, or much of a performance difference. the prices on those are like $30 apart as it is.

i just bought an e4400 for like $90 shipped on ebay and i think if you really wanted to save cash you could have got something like that (its slower than a e6750 but unless you are doing some hardcore gaming i doubt youd' notice).

anyhow, windows generally doesnt care about anything but the motherboard chipset and such so a downgrade always seems to be fine