fastest cpu for old ecs K7S5a?

[winn0031]

I have an old ECS K7S5A motherboard, have never flashed the bios so i believe it is rev. 1.0. What is the fastest processor i can install? right now i have an old Duron 950 and it lagging big time.

Also, when i install a new ship, do i need to do a fresh install of windows XP? or can i just power down my computer, take the old cpu out, snap the one in and boot the computer back up?

Thanks in advance.

 

[o1die]

It should take an xp2400 at 133 fsb. It won't work with the barton or sempron cpus.

 

[Peter]

The theoretical maximum is the (rare) initial XP2600 model that ran at 133 MHz bus as well. You need to update to the latest BIOS (August 2003 if I remember correctly) before making the jump.

Also, before you go ahead, check for bulging or leaking capacitors - your board is from the time when lots of capacitors with counterfeit (and unstable) chemicals were in the market - and ECS have been victim to this just as well as any other Taiwanese enterprise.

 

[bolomite]

in response to your 2nd question, just drop in your new processor, and your system should recognize it (provided your BIOS is up to date)