buying new processor

[hardtarget]

i wan t to buy a new processer,
intel pentium 4
my current one is 1.8ghz so if i add a 1ghz then will it be 2.8ghz or will i have to remove the 1st one?

[Kareeser]

Whoa, that doesn't make sense.

You cannot simply add another processor, unless you have a motherboard that supports multiple processors.

In almost all cases, you can only have one at a time. If you have a 1.8 GHz processor, then swapping it with a 1 GHz will just lower your speed to 1 GHz.

Sorry

[hardtarget]

just checked and my motherboard doesnt take 2,
only 1 socket,

problem is processors cost a bomb here in the uk!!

my computer is

compaq presario model: 5446ea

[blue60007]

Replacing the CPU won't work either. The 1.8GHz P4's were Socket 423 - a 3GHz or 2.8GHz CPU would be a Socket 478 or LGA775. Besides, I kinda doubt the power supply could take the upgrade. Unfortunately, I think you have a dead-end machine.

[Panama Red]

Originally Posted by blue60007 Replacing the CPU won't work either. The 1.8GHz P4's were Socket 423 - a 3GHz or 2.8GHz CPU would be a Socket 478 or LGA775. Besides, I kinda doubt the power supply could take the upgrade. Unfortunately, I think you have a dead-end machine.

Not so fast, blue. The specs on that machine say it's a 478 socket and lists the cpu's that it supports.

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/d...name=c00031052

2.2GHz Northwood is the only NW supported tho so the 2.8 is out of the picture. Not worth upgrading the cpu. You might see a better performance increase by adding more ram. How much memory is installed right now?

[blue60007]

Hmm....I looked up 1.8GHz CPUs, and all were Socket 423.

[hardtarget]

256mb

[Panama Red]

Originally Posted by hardtarget 256mb

256 is fine for office work and net surfing with 98se/ME/Win 2000. But for XP, 512 is really a minimum. What OS are you running?

[hardtarget]

Xp

[Panama Red]

Store bought machines like that Compaq can be picky on the ram. Best to use a configurator like the one at Crucial.com and buy directly from them.

I just checked a configurator and they show that machine using RDRAM. That's not the same info the Comaq site shows. Might be a good idea to open up the case and see what type of memory is in there. Or download Belarc Advisor and run it. It will tell you all about your machine.

[glc]

If you are looking for noticeably better performance, it's time to replace the machine - with something that's not so proprietary.

[hardtarget]

will something like this work on my presario?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/P4-2-8Ghz-Sock...QQcmdZViewItem

what do you have to look for?
is it just the socket or a whole lot more specs have to match?
i have upgraded my ram to 1.25 gb,
now all i need is a cpu,

but how do i take out my old one?

[Panama Red]

The answer is in post #5 above.

[hardtarget]

Originally Posted by Panama Red The answer is in post #5 above.

so this machine cant support speeds higher than 2.2Ghz?

[Panama Red]

That's correct. According to the link I provided, the 2.2GHz, 400 FSB cpu is the fastest that machine will support. And it must be in a 478 socket configuration.

[glc]

Hint: Don't buy a name brand computer (Compaq, HP, Dell, Gateway, etc.) if you ever think you want to upgrade anything other than the ram. Processor upgrades are generally very limited, if even possible.