Upgrade a Pentium II based system?

[Antoneo]

Hey guys, a friend of mine has a old Pentium II base system:

PII 400 on a 66Mhz bus
128MB PC66 RAM
Some rinky dinky 10GB hard drive, probably 5400RPM
Onboard Video (possibly intel onboard graphics...?)
Motherboard is a 440LX based, no idea of the manufacturer
32X CDROM drive
17" CRT Samsung monitor

That's all I got from booting up his computer, power supply is probably about 230Watts el cheapo. The computer is from one of those custom built at ratshack places. Keyboard and mouse appear to be working properly.

I'm looking for a really cheap upgrade that won't have him bothering me for a bit. He uses email, office applications, web browsing, and a very small bit of gaming (nothing heavy, just wants to see some sorta polygons). It should be quiet, and no overclocking should be involved. The monitor is fine. I think. Top performance not needed, just a nice speed increase for minimal money, about $200 though less is better.

Well, I've tried doing some homework and have some up with the following parts to buy:

Newegg refurbished ASUS A7N8X for $59

Newegg OEM AMD 1700XP+ Tbred for $45

TOTAL: $104 shipped

I'm not sure if I am approaching this the right way, it's been a year since I last built a system (P4 1.6A based) and this is certainly a low budget computer. Should I wait for a Dell deal to come up and see if he would like to bite the bullet of a price tag of ~$400? Perhaps the 1700+ is too much processor for his needs? Cheaper motherboard needed? Should I stick with the retail HS for AMD for quietness? Perhaps Intel's offerings are an option here? I guess the minimum amount of RAM would be 512 PC2700/2100(?).

Any help/advice/nefs/flames is/are appreciated. TIA! I'll be back in the morning to check on this thread .

 

[AndyHui]

The Pentium II 400 runs on a 100MHz FSB, so the board is likely to be a 440BX or 440ZX rather than 440LX.

In any case, in addition to what you propose below, you will also need to purchase DDR SDRAM (regular PC100 SDRAM won't be compatible with the A7N8X), as well as a new power supply. The existing power supply is likely too small/too weak to drive the new system.

 

[magomago]

Also remember that the refurbed Asus Mobo probably won't come with anything other than the motherboard.
It'll be more mangable if you have do it at 200...because then you get a stick of ddr ram and a new PSU that will last for a while.

EDIT:

How about this -



ECS L7S7A2 -53
Allied 400W Power Supply 33.99
1700+ AthlonXP
-45
Crucial Micron 512MB 64x64 PC2100 DDR RAM - 67.99

Total: 199.98

And if you need to get lower prices just move down to 256 megabytes of ram instead which should save off 30-35 dollars.

Either way that setup should please your friend for a VERY long time and if you get a good stepping a year down the road jolt that processor from 1.47 to like 2.2 [though you'd need faster ram if you would try anything beyond adjusting the multiplier]

also if you do it make it clear to your friend you are not obligated to help him and if you do he shouldn't go tell all his friends and drag you into checking other people's pcs for free Just a word of warning

 

[DaveSimmons]

Andy's right if it's a Pentium II 400 MHz. If it's really a Celeron 400 MHz then it is 66 MHz and the mobo could be an LX. If it is a P2 + BX then you could possibly put in a 100 MHz P3, celeron, or even a Slot-T + Tualatin.

Either way he's right about what you need for an XP.

 

[lameaway]

Have him get a Dell. Doing someone a favor and building a computer for them can quickly turn into a nightmare when things start crashing, especially if the person has little computer knowledge. I've been there.

 

[Antoneo]

Originally posted by: AndyHui
The Pentium II 400 runs on a 100MHz FSB, so the board is likely to be a 440BX or 440ZX rather than 440LX.

In any case, in addition to what you propose below, you will also need to purchase DDR SDRAM (regular PC100 SDRAM won't be compatible with the A7N8X), as well as a new power supply. The existing power supply is likely too small/too weak to drive the new system.

Last post for me tonight . Andy and DaveSimmons, you guys are right about the PII 400 running on a 100fsb :beer:. I went to his house a couple months back so my memory is fuzzy. Upon further thinking it is a PII (definitely not a celeron) 350Mhz but still slow-go. I have done the slot-T upgrade to my old machine as well, and it now runs like a champ! P3 450 to Celeron 1.4Ghz. I guess I'll have to check upgradeware's motherboard compatibility list for his. Power supply and RAM I guess is all that I need to add to this list eh?

 

[lameaway]

I upgraded one of my old 440bx board with a slotket adapter to a Celeron 900, and it ran great. It did, however, require a BIOS update first to support that chip, so check to see what updates are availible for that motherboard before you go that route.

 

[deadseasquirrel]

i'd say go for the upgradeware or the powerleap and get him a 1.4ghz celeron tualatin. nice chips. i chose the powerleap because i was concerned about voltages and i like the way they handle it on their adapter. i bought pieces separately for a total of $96 shipped (some direct, some off ebay... one was even shipped from hong kong).

taking a machine from a 350mhz pII to a 1.4ghz celery is nice for $96. if its really a BX board, that would be a perfect upgrade. no need to change ram, psu, or anything. you could even find a 32mb tnt2 ultra on fs/ft for small change as well if that board has an AGP. my BX does, but my dad's 2 do not so he's got some good ole voodoo3 PCIs in those.

deadseasquirrel

 

[dvinnen]

errrrr, remember your going to need a vido card with that mobo

 

[Hankysmoo]

Originally posted by: lameaway
Have him get a Dell. Doing someone a favor and building a computer for them can quickly turn into a nightmare when things start crashing, especially if the person has little computer knowledge. I've been there.