Looking to do a cheap cpu (and possibly mobo) upgrade. Need suggestions

[Arkitech]

I'd like to give my system a little more power for handling HD content and large newsgroup browsing. I already have about 2 gigs of memory, so I'm thinking a new cpu is the best option. Anyone know what's the best cpu I can use with a A7N8X-X mobo?

 

[HannibalX]

A64 4000+

You can get these for cheap. I got mine for less than $100.00

 

[dguy6789]

You have an interesting situation. Your motherboard is near its limit in terms of cpu(The best being an XP 3200+, which is not much faster than the 2800). So if you wanted a good performance boost, you would also need a new motherboard. However, most new motherboards also use ddr2 and pci express. Your best bet would be to save up for a bit and then buy an Athlon 64 X2 3600+ or X2 3800+, a new motherboard, some ddr2 memory, and a new video card. Depending on if you play games or not, you could buy a motherboard with integrated video, which would save you some money.

 

[jackschmittusa]

New mb and cpu is the upgrade path; what to get depends on your budget. You don't need a monster rig for what you are using it for.

For something in the $100+ range, a socket 754 mb and cpu can be had. For $150+ you could go with socket 939. Beyond that, and you are talking new ram and vid card too in most cases.

 

[Arkitech]

Originally posted by: Pale Rider
A64 4000+

You can get these for cheap. I got mine for less than $100.00

sounds like the right amount of money. I wonder if I can still use the same memory

 

[dguy6789]

Originally posted by: Arkitech

Originally posted by: Pale Rider
A64 4000+

You can get these for cheap. I got mine for less than $100.00

sounds like the right amount of money. I wonder if I can still use the same memory

You can as long as you buy a socket 939 motherboard and a socket 939 version of the 4000+.

 

[Jiggz]

I got an MSI 939 mobo with NF4 for $42.99 and A64 4000+ San Diego for $78.00. A 250 SATA hdd for less than $75.00 and finally a GeForce 7100 256 MB for $38.00 For a total of less than $250.00 I was able to upgrade from XP2500+ to A64 4000+.

 

[CurseTheSky]

Socket 939 is the way to go if you want to reuse your DDR memory. Just know that you'll be sort of tossing mone down the drain if you're looking to upgrade more in the future - 939 is dead.

On the other hand, there are some LGA775, and I believe AM2 boards that use both DDR and DDR2 memory. Most of them are MicroATX boards, and not meant for overclocking, but they're definately something to look into.

 

[stevemedes]

Here's the mobo I think CurseTheSky was talking about:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813157092

Its $57. Supports Intel Core2Duo CPUs, also is advertised as Vista ready.
It supports DDR1 and DDR2 memory, also has an AGP slot AND a PCI express 16x slot. Lots of upgrade options and cheap. I used an Asrock board before, was rock stable and even O/Ced my 939 X2 3800 from 2.0 to 2.4 ghz.