Oh, this should take you back...

[IgoByte]

Hey folks,

Believe it or not, I'm typing this from a Dell XPS-T550 whose specs are as follows:
PIII 550, 100MHz FSB on an Intel SE440BX-2 based board
256MB RAM
13GB primary HDD
CD-Rom Drive, floppy, basic video, NIC, sound card, USB 1.1
Win 2K

I've been using this thing as my main computer at home for a while now and I figured rather than buying something new for $1000+, why not save the cash and upgrade this reliable old thing? I need some advice, though.

I'm looking to go as follows:
Celeron 1.4GHz CPU
Slocket (IWILL Slocket II?)
768MB RAM
WD1200JB HDD + something else (whatever the largest other PATA HDD I have)
ATA133 PCI controller
USB 2.0 + FW PCI card
16x DVD burner
Win 2K

+ WD 500GB external drive, which I've been using

As it sits, this computer is rock solid and I've been putting tons of stress on it. It's slow, annoyingly so, but I guess it teaches me patience.

My questions:
a. will this work?
b. where do I get an IWILL slocket II (really cheap, if possible)?

 

[IgoByte]

Oh, and one more question: Is it possible to do this setup on the stock Dell board and somehow still overclock the CPU?

 

[pkrush]

You could build a system that would be about 4x faster than that ancient box for less than $500.
-Socket AM2 Athlon 64 3500+ - $90
-1 gig of DDR2-667 - around $85
-Antec NSK4400 case with 380 Watt power supply - $70
-Biostar TForce6100-AM2 motherboard - $75
NEC 3550 DVD Burner - $30
Western Digital 160 gigabyte SATA hard drive - $60
XP Home OEM License - $90

What you're planning to do probably won't work since the BX chipset never officially supported 133FSB and wasn't very stable when clocked that high. Also, I'm pretty sure it's limited to 512 megs of RAM. Anyway, with what you'll be spending already (at leat $300, probably more since the Tualerons are pretty much impossible to find by now), it just doesn't make since to upgrade it.

 

[IgoByte]

Originally posted by: pkrush
What you're planning to do probably won't work since the BX chipset never officially supported 133FSB and wasn't very stable when clocked that high. Also, I'm pretty sure it's limited to 512 megs of RAM. Anyway, with what you'll be spending already (at leat $300, probably more since the Tualerons are pretty much impossible to find by now), it just doesn't make since to upgrade it.

Actually, the Celeron 1400 is a 100MHz bus CPU and the BX chipset should be able to support 768MB of RAM. When all is said and done, this is how I see my spending:
1. USB 2.0 + FW PCI card (it's something that I can always use anyway) - $15 shipped
2. IWILL Slocket 2 - $15 shipped
3. NEC 3550 DVD Burner (this I can also always use) - $35 shipped
4. Celeron 1400 + 1GB of PC133 RAM + spare mobo - <$40 shipped (hopefully)
5. HDDs: have
6. ATA133 controller: have
7. Win2K: have

So, if everything should work out as I plan, I won't have to spend more than $110 on this upgrade.

 

[Atheus]

Hmm... I think some of those old parts will be quite expensive compared to cheap modern parts. Have you actually priced it up?

IMO If you're on a budget you should upgrade in stages. First get a hard drive and power supply, as these will fail sooner or later and you wouldn't want that. Then get the core of the bits recommended by pkrush, but, re-use the case, CD drive, NIC, everything you can. And don't buy Win XP if you already have 2k. Get a DVD burner or whatever later on, if you want.

BTW - I would say the estimate of 4x faster is an understatement. Even the crappiest socket A system would be a solid 4x faster at most CPU and memory limited applications. You can get these for a great price on ebay. Hell I have a 2.2Ghz Athlon on an NF7-S which I'll probably just give away, it's so worthless.

/Edit:

4. Celeron 1400 + 1GB of PC133 RAM + spare mobo - <$40 shipped (hopefully)

Ya right...

 

[Netopia]

I've put a couple of machines together that are at least somewhat similar. You can do what you have outlined and it will be much faster, but the one thing you CAN'T count on is that it will continue to be as stable. I had a couple of Micron's whose motherboards died after taking them up to the C-1400... looks like too much power draw for the caps to handle. These machines were originally PII-350's though, so perhaps your mobo will be better.

The boards that I had the best luck with were Abit BX133-Raid boards... they are still kicking now.

Joe

 

[IgoByte]

Actually guys, I don't use this computer to game and I have 1.2GHz cellies running Win2K Servers very reliably and without any issues whatsoever. I use this computer primarily for research and web surfing, but also a lot of media (music & video) stuff (not editing, though). The thing that's incredibly annoying about it now, for example is that if I'm trying to transfer 1000 songs of my iPod to the computer, it takes more than a day to do and forget about doing anything in a hurry while it's happening. Also, if I'm online and trying to save a picture, even if it's very small, or a video, I can't just click save and move on to the next one... I have to wait a while before I can go ahead and save the next item. It's strange and actually shouldn't be happening, but I think the RAM upgrade alone and a fresh install of the OS will remedy that particular problem.

 

[IgoByte]

Originally posted by: Netopia
The boards that I had the best luck with were Abit BX133-Raid boards... they are still kicking now.

Joe

Thanks, Joe.

 

[gramboh]

1GB of PC133 is going to cost at least $50US if you are lucky.

Honestly, considering you are doing things like syncing an iPod, it makes sense to build a $500 PC, the utility is there if it is impacting tasks you do in your daily life, and the 3500+ priced out above will be many orders of magnitude faster than the Celery 1400 and will last you for a few years of light computing.

 

[Atheus]

Originally posted by: IgoByte
Actually guys, I don't use this computer to game

The recommended upgrade sytems wouldn't be any good for gaming either as they don't have 3D video cards.

and I have 1.2GHz cellies running Win2K Servers very reliably and without any issues whatsoever.

I have PIII servers too but I wouldn't use one for my main PC! ... (well maybe the dual tualitan, but that's in a different league) Those old systems just don't have the 'snappiness' in everyday use that I've got used to. You would get used to it very fast too I'm sure

I use this computer primarily for research and web surfing, but also a lot of media (music & video) stuff (not editing, though). The thing that's incredibly annoying about it now, for example is that if I'm trying to transfer 1000 songs of my iPod to the computer, it takes more than a day to do and forget about doing anything in a hurry while it's happening. Also, if I'm online and trying to save a picture, even if it's very small, or a video, I can't just click save and move on to the next one... I have to wait a while before I can go ahead and save the next item. It's strange and actually shouldn't be happening, but I think the RAM upgrade alone and a fresh install of the OS will remedy that particular problem.

Wierd. Try cleaning the dust out of the case, reseating the HS wioth new thermal paste, and reinstalling the OS.

I would really upgrade, that thing won't be a reliable workhorse forever - having a 10 year old computer is like having a 50 year old car - but if you really don't want to here's what I would do:

Don't get a new processor if it might decrease stability, it's the least of your worries anyway. Get a power supply and another 256 of RAM and install Linux. Running a minimal windowing system will give you a huge percieved speed increase, and since you don't game, you're a perfect candidate.

 

[IgoByte]

Originally posted by: Atheus

I would really upgrade, that thing won't be a reliable workhorse forever - having a 10 year old computer is like having a 50 year old car - but if you really don't want to here's what I would do:

Don't get a new processor if it might decrease stability, it's the least of your worries anyway. Get a power supply and another 256 of RAM and install Linux. Running a minimal windowing system will give you a huge percieved speed increase, and sice you don't game, you're a perfect candidate.

Linux isn't really an option for me right now. For one, I've never used linux, and then I'm too used to having things the way I know them in Windows. I also need MS Office and the ability to quickly move info from external sources.

I'd like to learn it, though, so it might be useful later.

I figured I'd upgrade this thing for as cheaply as humanly possible while keeping it stable (a PSU I can't really get, because these are Dell OEM PSUs) and then demote it to a file server with oodles of storage once I can afford to buy a decent core 2 duo system in a few months.

 

[IgoByte]

BTW, being in the IT field, I use a lot of computers, some of which are brand new. At the office, I have a 400SC and I have no problem switching back and forth even as this thing is right now. The few annoying points should be addressed by the upgrade.

One question still remains: does anyone know if I'll be able to overclock this combo of motherboard & cpu? The celerons are overclockabe. I remember taking the 1.4GHz celies all the way to 1.8GHz back in the day. 1.6, 1.7 was doable pretty much across the board as I recall. Any ideas?

 

[dexvx]

You need a modded Slotket. Tualatins are not natively compatible with the 440BX.

 

[IgoByte]

Originally posted by: dexvx
You need a modded Slotket. Tualatins are not natively compatible with the 440BX.

Tell me more. I got an IWILL slocket 2, btw. Can it be modded?

 

[Atheus]

Originally posted by: IgoByte
Linux isn't really an option for me right now. For one, I've never used linux, and then I'm too used to having things the way I know them in Windows. I also need MS Office and the ability to quickly move info from external sources.

Openoffice will open word documents, an moving info from external sources is a Linux/Unix specialty.

I'd like to learn it, though, so it might be useful later.

Perfect oppertunity ... you could dual boot?

does anyone know if I'll be able to overclock this combo of motherboard & cpu?

I would say no.

 

[IgoByte]

Originally posted by: Atheus

I'd like to learn it, though, so it might be useful later.

Perfect oppertunity ... you could dual boot?

Sure could. What would you advise as far as linux distro? What's simplest?

 

[IgoByte]

BTW, according to this article, the Slocket 2 allows for independent voltage settings but only has three options for FSB, 66, 100 and 133 MHz. Any way to get somewhere between 100 and 133? 133x14=1.86 and that's a bit much, I think.

 

[IgoByte]

^

 

[bluemax]

you'd be way better off with a cheap AM2 mobo with integrated 6100 video, a <$50 Sempron and a gig of DDR2 RAM. You could do that for about $200 and it'll run circles around your proposed upgrade.

Seriously though - what do you intend this machine to do? You don't want to upgrade and still not do what you want it to.....

 

[Super6]

Go ahead and do it for grins. The last Soyo and MSI BX mobos supported 133 easily. I sold my last slocket a couple of years ago. Have fun.

Super6

 

[IgoByte]

Originally posted by: Super6
Go ahead and do it for grins. The last Soyo and MSI BX mobos supported 133 easily. I sold my last slocket a couple of years ago. Have fun.

Super6

That's why I'm doing it. That and I want to spend as little cash as possible. I haven't built anything in a couple of years and it pains me, and this is a nice opportunity to go back to the roots and rediscover the love...

 

[0roo0roo]

Originally posted by: IgoByte

Originally posted by: dexvx
You need a modded Slotket. Tualatins are not natively compatible with the 440BX.

Tell me more. I got an IWILL slocket 2, btw. Can it be modded?

egads, modding slockets, i believe it had to do with tape and pins? it was pretty ghetto! i do still have a tually 8xxmhz@1.4ish ghz, i'm too lazy to boot it up and check lol the things overclocked like crazy. being said, though i dunno if u can source parts as cheap as u think. as said, old bits are rare, and so expensive for the few buyers that MUST have those bits for some werid reason or another. its just not really worth it. dump money into a dog slow system to be left with a very slightly faster dog slow system. bang per buck not found at all. low end frys m/b+cpu combos are cheap, even the lowest end 70 dollar pos will beat the pants off the old junk. its really only worth it if people are giving u their old parts or if ur cobbling a pc together from your old scraps

 

[Netopia]

You're going to need an FCPGA -> FCPGA2 adapter. I used Lin-Lin 's in the past, but I don't know if you can find them.

Here's a site that has some Slot1 -> FCPGA2 adapters.

One other thing to think about is getting the C-1100 instead of the C-1400. Do that, and switch to a PCI graphics card (since you don't game) and you'll be able to go to a 133MHz bus. The C-1100 has an 11x multiplier, so you can do 11 x 133 = ~1466MHz. Running at this speed will render your AGP slot unusable, but you "should" still be able to use PCI. Check the BIOS and make sure you have the ability to set the PCI to 1/4.

While we're at it... go to http://www.crucial.com and use their memory finder to find out EXACTLY which modules will work in that machine. You may find that you can only use 256MB sticks, or it might be one of the BXs that will take 512MB... but check before you buy any memory.

Joe

 

[bluemax]

I still think it's a bad idea.... all these adapters are not only potentially expensive, but the ods of failure are quite high.

I'd still go the route of "sure thing" and just upgrade CPU/MOBO/RAM and it'll still outperform the classic Tualatin.

 

[dexvx]

Powerleap Slotket-T is the best option, as it has its own VRM.

440BX does not support 512MB sticks (or 256MB sticks with high density SDRam).