Older system upgrade

[meinzorn]

ok, I'm debating upgrading my processor in my slightly older system.

My motherboard only supports P4 and pentium D processors.

List:
http://www.intel.com/support/m...2ggc2/sb/CS-026580.htm

I have a p4 630 in it right now. Is it worth putting the money into upgrading the cpu to something better or just putting this mobo/proc aside and getting a new setup?

Money is tight, so I can't just go out and get a brand new system, but I'd like a little more power if it is possible.

(also, upgraded to 2gb of memory a while ago which is the max the board supports)

Edit: also curious, 1mb vs 2mb cache - much of a difference?
p4 vs pentium D differences?

 

[Denithor]

How limited is your budget?

Here's what I suggest assuming your wallet doesn't start cussing at me.

AMD X2 240 + Gigabyte 785 combo $120

This combo will be much much faster than any P4 or P4D available and really isn't very expensive.

You can reuse your DDR2 with this board making it a great deal.

 

[KingstonU]

Denithor made a great recommendation. Your motherboard won't let you upgrade to a processor which will provide a decent performance improvement over what you have. Though if you're really tight on budget, and if a Pentium D can be found for really cheap, then perhaps at least having a second core can be improvement enough for you.

 

[Lemon law]

Your board will take a dual core pentium D 915 up to 950 with pressler cores, but I cannot honestly recommend them due to heat problems. The speed is acceptable, they can be overclocked, but you may end up spending a small fortune in a heat sink and fan to keep them, cool enough to use at even stock speeds. I may well scrap my wife's 915 out in favor of a cooler running and faster intel e5200.

 

[bobross419]

Others have said, but... Pentium Ds can be found for pretty cheap, $20 or so in the FS/T section of this forum... Just look around, and if you look in my post make sure you read the italics because I'm not responding to offers right now...

 

[Arkaign]

$20 is lunch money, I think a Pentium D 900 series would be a decent upgrade for someone toiling away with a P4. It's not gonna be crazy fast or anything, but it's a cheap enough upgrade. 2GB of ram is okay for most things, of course 4gb+ is the standard for new builds as it's so cheap for DDR2.

Are you on XP, Vista, or 7?