Cpu and ram compatibility question

[bottlenecked]

I recently bought an sl6qb P4 2.8 ghz 533 mhz fsb northwood processor for my dell dimension 2400. The memory I have in it now is pc2700 cl2 512 mb (333 mhz) x2 sticks (1 GB of ram). When I tried this processor out, my system wouldn't post, and it gave me no error lights on the back of the dell. There were also no error beep codes. Also, the system powered up as soon as I plugged it in and it stayed on. The PC is still working fine with the celeron 2.4 ghz stock processor.

My question is: Did I get a defective processor that I need to replace or is there a compatibility issue between pc2700 ram and the sl6qb processor? Also, is there anything else that I am overlooking?

Edit: If I do need to upgrade the ram, it seems to me like pc3200 1gb x2 sticks would be the best that this pc could handle. Unfortunately, the cheapest I can find was a whopping $39.99. If I do need to change ram, can anyone link me to some that is cheaper? Thanks a ton for taking time to help.

 

[Fardringle]

The Dimension 2400 should be fine with both the cpu and RAM. It supports 533 mhz Northwood CPUs and up to PC2700 RAM (you can use PC3200 RAM but it will run as if it is PC2700).

If the system works normally with the RAM and the Celeron CPU, but not with the P4, then first check for any available BIOS updates for the system on support.dell.com. If you have the newest BIOS then I'd suspect that you're either somehow installing the P4 CPU incorrectly, or it's a bad chip.

 

[bottlenecked]

hmm, I will check for a bios update, but as far as the installation goes, I installed the p4 in exactly the same manner as the celeron. I even switched them out 2 or 3 times and each time it worked with the celeron but not with the P4. If I do have the latest bios, then, I will contact the seller and exchange the cpu. I appreciate your help. I didn't realize that the pc3200 ram wouldn't improve the frequency at all. That saved me some money tyvm!

EDIT: I checked to be sure that I have the latest BIOS for the dimension 2400, which I do (version A05). I sent a message to the seller to exchange this for a working cpu, and I'm awaiting a reply.