Help! Upgrading 5 systems .... newbie.........

[dandruff]

Hello guys....
We have 3 Gateway Gp7-550 systems PIII - 550 MHz that we need to upgrade. Anyone experienced in upgrading Gateways - is it simple to take the mobo off and just install a new one or Gateways do something different - the mobo is an ATX

We want minimum 1.6 Ghz Intel P4 CPU
We want to be able to use the existing PC100 RAM
We want to spend not more than $200 for the Motherboard and CPU or anything else that we should upgrade
My boss only wants Intel processor - so no AMD; also preferably an intel chipset

This is what I have researched so far:
a) to use PC100 RAM and intel chipset I am stuck with 845 chipset (no 845g or 845GL) correct me if I am wrong.
b) GA-8IDX, Socket-478, Pentium4 Northwood,Intel 845, PC-133, 4USB, Audio, Retail Box = $69 shipped from Belka - are they good any other mobo place?
c) Pentium® 4 1.8GHz 400MHz FSB Socket 478 (No Memory) Processor Intel Part#: BX80531NK180G Retail. 3 Years manufacturer warranty. w/Fan and Heatsink. 256KB Cache, FC-PGA for $133at NUTREND.com - anyother recommendations

D) or can i just go to mwave.com and buy a bundle from them - r they reliable -should i pay $9 for testing?

As asked b4: can a newbie open a gateway box - take all the components videocard etc and easily install the cpu on mobo and install the whole thing together again?

any help would be appreciated. tahnks in advance!

 

[mechBgon]

If you want high performance, there's not much point in getting a Pentium4 and then crippling it with PC133. It's like getting a base-model Corvette and then putting on the tires and wheels from an economy car. Wowee, lots of horsepower... but no way to get it to the ground.

I don't think your PC100 is going to cut it at all.

I would go with a 1.4GHz Celeron-IIA, if you have to stick with PC100 RAM. The old Pentium-III-based Celerons are more powerful per MHz than a Williamette-core Pentium4 running on SDR SDRAM. Pair that up with a Gigabyte GA-6OXT-A. edit: Note that this board doesn't have onboard video. Currently, mwave.com has the Celeron 1.4A for about $80. So that is well within your budget. If your boss is too dense to consider AMD, then he may also be too dense to understand that the Pentium3 core used in the Celerons is very strong per MHz. Personally, I've got twelve new AMD systems in my fleet at work and they are quite satisfactory, especially for the price. Four more on the way

Now for the big question: will the Gateway case take a standard ATX motherboard? Well, take the guts out, grab a standard ATX board and try it. Make sure to scope out the situation with the connector(s) for the power button, reset button (if so equipped), the LED's... sometimes OEM systems have a proprietary connector. If so, consider getting an Antec PerformanceII SX630II case and power supply, or else be prepared to take the individual contacts out of the proprietary connector and plug them bare onto the necessary pins on the motherboard.

From my experiences with Gateways, I would bail the cases and power supplies altogether, because if they are several years old, you're heading for some power-supply fan failures and will probably need Gateway-specific replacement PSU's. :| Antec SX630II would be a good case/PSU to pick for a Tualatin-Celeron system like I suggested. Industry-standard everything, 3-year warranty.

 

[dandruff]

Thanks for the reply, MechBgon!

I get your point about not to stick with Pc100 - to stay close to the $200 range, can you tell me if this is a good thing to do:

Pentium® 4 1.8GHz 400MHz FSB Socket 478 for $133at NUTREND.com
DDR PC2100 RAM for $25 at pricewatch.com - is this okay to buy? any other places to buy?
Mobo = suggest me a mobo ; how about AOPen AX4b for 66.34

let me know... once again thanks for your detailed reply.....

 

[billyjak]

Here is an excellent place to order motherboard bundles
Look here

 

[mechBgon]

Yeah, get DDR and you're doing much better. I wouldn't buy el-cheapo DDR, however... make it Crucial or Kingston, maybe. The "A"-model P4's are preferable over the non-A models, since they have the cooler-running Northwood core that also performs better. They do cost more, however.

Here are some other thoughts on the whole thing:

• Pentium4-compatible power supplies. Pentium4 boards use an auxiliary power plug not found on your Gateway power supplies (they're from before the P4 era). You will need a new PSU, and a new case if the new PSU doesn't fit the Gateway case. Aside from P4 compatibility, you are well-advised to move up to quality 300W PSU's simply due to the amount of power a P4 consumes... especially the Williamettes, which max out at 100W peak just for the CPU itself.
• Amount of RAM. Give Windows2000 256Mb of RAM, and the second time you launch an application, it will usually launch straight from RAM in the blink of an eye. With Win98, this doesn't seem to work quite as slick. 192Mb usually gets the same effect but that would mean buying two memory modules.
• Hard drives. The Gateways I've got use slow hard drives like Quantum LCT-series ones. A fast CPU won't fix that, so any HDD-intensive work merits a hard-drive upgrade to a fast 7200rpm drive, or the system is still going to be slow.

If it were me, I'd just build a new system from the ground up, or else go the Celeron route and beef up my amount of RAM to 192Mb-256Mb.

 

[WTT0001]

Well, If your boss would give in and go AMD he could pick-up:

1 AMD Duron 1.3Ghz Retail Box (3 year Warranty, includes heatsink and Fan) - $60
1 Samsung 256MB DDR RAM PC2100 CL2.5 - OEM - $64
1 Asus A7N266-VM NVIDIA nFORCE 220 Chipset Motherboard - Retail - $80

Total: $204 from Newegg + Free Shipping

Note: The MB includes Lan, Video and Audio

 

[Vette73]

I have never seen a LARGE compuyter maker use standard ATX boards and cases. So I doubt you can just pop in a new board and go.

But no way you can get a P4 and board, let alone ram and other stuff for $200. NOW if you go AMD then you might be able to pull it off.

 

[dandruff]

thanks all of you guys for your input:

a day of price hunting research online and this is what i come up with: please review:

MoBo: ECS P4S5A/DX $ 64.00 shipped from Newegg

CPU: Pentium® 4 1.8GHz 400MHz FSB Socket 478 retail boxed $ 133.00 from nutrends

Powersupply: POWMAX LP-7700E P4 400W UL ATX Power Supply - Retail Box from mixpc.com $ 21.00

All prices include shipping.

i am using this motherboard because it will alow the use of existing Pc133/ Pc100 Ram sticks taht we have - our machines are already 384 MB (maxed out for the Gateway board) - so I am not buying the RAM for now - i do understand mechbgon's concern but ~ $200 limit is kinda what we can afford if i can convince him then i will get the ram for $ 32

So 64 + 133 + 21 = $228

or the same mobo+cpu combo preassemeled from Accubyte for $209 shipped then add $21 for PSU = $230.


If the power supply will not fit in the gateway case ... i will have to buy a case

If you can suggest anything better, i would highly appreciate it ... once again, thanks for all your help.... thanks....

 

[mechBgon]

Ok, above all, please do NOT buy from Accubyte until you review their reputation at Resellerratings.com. :Q

 

[WTT0001]

Sidenote, how in the world do you get $228 for a total: $64 + $133 = $197 + $21 = $118 right???

P.S. Order both the Processor and the Board from Newegg. It is only $4 more and newegg has an awesome return/RMA process, it is worth it.

 

[randypj]

dandruff--

I'm not trying to be an a$$......just trying to be constructive. It seems that you are a bit new at this to be trying to upgrade work machines (I assume this is work, since you referred to your boss) by gathering parts from a variety of sources.....especially since you might be willing to use some pricewatch vendors. These are not noted to be the most, um.....reputable, as pointed out previously.

I like billyjak's idea of using mwave's bundling selector, if you must use the current cases. Of course, then you have to make sure the new ps and mobo you get will fit the old cases. If you buy a bundle, you might as well pop for $9 to get it tested. mwave is a reputable dealer.

And, are your hard drives fairly current? How about buying new pcs, and selling the old ones on ebay? No, you wouldn't get alot for them.

Darn, the $$$ limit you have is just too restrictive, IMO, to give you a decent performance boost.

I dunno if the Gateways can go with any faster cpus. You could get faster P3's for your $$$ amount, but I really doubt you would see enough difference to make it worthwhile.

It might be interesting to see what Dell has in their refurbished area. Sometimes, you can find some pretty good buys.

Kudos to you for your attempt to do this. That in itself is very admirable. Very cool if you can pull it off.
--Randy

 

[randypj]

Nope...not much in Dell's refurbished....but, I setup a very basic Dell "Desktop Steal of the Week", Dimension 2300 for $499 after rebate, with 40 gig hard drive, Windows XP Home, 128MB Ram (I think you could possibly use the RAM in your current pcs, cause you gotta have more RAM).

Others probably know of better deals on complete systems.
--Randy