Dell XPS 600 Upgrade

[bryan240g]

Hello all, this is my first forum post and I am new to TH. Let me start off by saying that I am a noob at all this computer building stuff. I own a DELL XPS 600, had it about 2 years, and I love gaming and multimedia, I play alot of FPS games(COD 4), and I would like to make some upgrades. I know alot of you out there are saying, " YOUR UPGRADING A DELL!!!!!!", yeah I am. I am not ready to make the leap into building my first PC yet,but I feel I am comfortable enough with upgrading hardware, and software. So I am wondering you all could share your thoughts with me on what I can do tp upgrade my PC. I will list my PC stats below. Please let me know if you see something I am planning on getting that isn't going to work, or if you have a better idea.


Dell XPS 600
Nvidia C19 mobo
Pentium d 840 (3.2)
4gb ddr2 5300 (667mhz)
2x 80gb WD raptors Raid 0
Seagate 750gb SATA
Dual geforce 7800GTX SLI
Soundblaster X-FI

Your suggestions are much appreciated. Personally I would like to upgrade the processor to one that is more efficient like the (E6850) maybe, and eventually faster RAM, and the video cards. Let me know guys. Thanks.

 

[nukemaster]

due to the age of the system i doubt the board is computable with a e6850. Intel changed the voltage system requirements when core 2 came out.

Was core2 an option for those computers when you got it?

 

[scorch]

Dell XPS 600
Nvidia C19 mobo
Pentium d 840 (3.2)
4gb ddr2 5300 (667mhz)
2x 80gb WD raptors Raid 0
Seagate 750gb SATA
Dual geforce 7800GTX SLI
Soundblaster X-FI


Is this the specs on the computer as it is now???? If so I would keep it where its at now because as mentioned above you may not be able to upgrade the processor.

 

[delluser1]

No C2D upgrade for that machine. The best thing you could do for it would be to add any flavor of 8800 video card.

 

[bryan240g]

Yes, this is my current configuration of my system as of now. I was afraid you guys might say that about my system. So I geuss in a year or so then I will be attempting to build my first system. Can you guys offer any advice, or ideas on building a good gaming rig that is upgradable, and affordable. I would like a setup that one day i can OC, after I learn how to safely do it without frying anything. As of right now here are some items I am intrested in using IF I were building right now. Please tell me if they are overkill, remember I am extremely new at all this.

Case:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133154

PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

MOBO:ASUS Striker Extreme LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX(is this overkill, remeber I am a noob?) Just figured i should get a really good mobo to have a good foundation.
CPU: C2D E6850
CPU Heatsink: ZALMAN 9500A 92mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler
RAM: CORSAIR Dominator DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066
Video Card: EVGA GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

Well guys, tell me what you think. I already have good harddirves, and optical drives so that's why they are not on the list. Am I missing anyhitng, did I go overboard? Share your thoughts. Thanks. Oh and by the way thanks for all of your previous posts.

 

[shuyin]

Yes, this is my current configuration of my system as of now. I was afraid you guys might say that about my system. So I geuss in a year or so then I will be attempting to build my first system. Can you guys offer any advice, or ideas on building a good gaming rig that is upgradable, and affordable. I would like a setup that one day i can OC, after I learn how to safely do it without frying anything. As of right now here are some items I am intrested in using IF I were building right now. Please tell me if they are overkill, remember I am extremely new at all this.

Case:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133154

PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

MOBO:ASUS Striker Extreme LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX(is this overkill, remeber I am a noob?) Just figured i should get a really good mobo to have a good foundation.
CPU: C2D E6850
CPU Heatsink: ZALMAN 9500A 92mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler
RAM: CORSAIR Dominator DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066
Video Card: EVGA GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

Well guys, tell me what you think. I already have good harddirves, and optical drives so that's why they are not on the list. Am I missing anyhitng, did I go overboard? Share your thoughts. Thanks. Oh and by the way thanks for all of your previous posts.

That board is a little overkill if you're going with stock speeds. Replace 6850 with 9400
You're also paying alot more for 1066 ram whilst 800 will do just fine. Might save a little if you carefully think over your needs. P35 boards will work just fine, will OC good and alot cheaper.

 

[bryan240g]

Shuyin, thanks for your input. I do want to overclock in the future, but I have a lot to learn about in order to do it properly without frying things. You mentioned eplacing the 6850 with a 9400, what is that? Remember I am a total newbie. I will look into cheaper bards and a little cheaper memory but of a good brand name. I named ASUS earlier because I have heard of them before, is gigabyte, and MSI also a good name. Basically the only way i can tell if something is good on NEWegg, is if it has good reviews from customers, and I hate to say it but I am one of those guys that thinks if something is more expensive it must be better, which I know is not a good way to purchase things, just expensive. Keep the feedback coming guys, I am sucking it up like a spoonge. Thanks.

 

[WR2]

2 1/2 - 3 years is about right for replacing a gaming system.
The 9xxx/8xxx Penryn/Wolfdale are the refresh of the Q6xx quads/E6xx dual core C2D CPUs.
A year out is wayyyy to early to start choosing hardware. Prices and choices will change wildly over that period.
3 months out is about the earliest you'd want to actually start picking out hardware.
Setting a budget is always the first (and sometimes hardest) step.

The customer reviews at NewEgg are useful but not always the best way to judge the technical merits of hardware.
There are plenty of useful sites and besides THG you can spend some time over @ AnandTech. Check out the Guides they put together.
You have a year to cruise the forum and PC review sites to get a handle
on building your own PC. 9 months from now you'll have a much better
idea on where to start.

 

[bryan240g]

WR2, thanks for the info. bro. Will do. Your exactly right 1 year out is WAAAAAY to early to try and plan a system. I will hit some sites and see what i can come up with. Thanks again.

 

[jjkrogs]

Hi guys, I have the exact same question and setup-- Dell XPS 600 with what original poster mentioned (minus 2 Gigs Ram), and I too am looking to upgrade. However, I'm fine with the processor, just want to add RAM, new video card and upgrade to Vista.

I chose only 2 Gigs Ram at the time because Dell only offered 667mhz, whereas my motherboard was 800, so now want to get 2 'sticks' of 800 mhz 2Gig Ram (4 Gig total). Any suggestions? Would prefer on the cheap provided performance won't suffer.

Also would like to know how I swap out cards. As original poster mentioned, I've got 2 Geforce 7800 GTX's running SLI, and am thinking of just going to a single card of the 8800 series if I can find one for around $250-300. Want to run Direct X 10 stuff. Is it simply a matter of pulling the 2 cards out, along with the SLI bridge and plunking the new cards in? I've also got the issue of finding what exactly would be compatible with the motherboard. It's the Nvidia and I'm hoping (assuming?) the original poster has the same as me since it's the same model/age/setup. I know it's the PCI-E x16 slot. How do I know what card will be compatible, or if anyone has any specific suggestion, please let me know.

I'm also upgrading to Vista when this new hardware is added. Is it better to buy an external harddrive, move everything onto it and just clean-install Vista, or does the over-install deal work ok?

Lots of questions, I realize, but I sincerely appreciate it!

 

[nukemaster]

Patriot ram tends to be on sale often. Not sure where you live
Canada
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=26701&vpn=PDC24G6400LLK&manufacture=Patriot&promoid=1008
US
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220269&Tpk=PDC24G6400LLK

For the video card, yes you do just remove the cards and sli connector and insert the new card in the top slot.
It is recommended that you uninstall all the drivers for you old card first....then when it tells you to restart, just shut down and remove it. Get the latest Nvidia drivers and install them(download then first so they are waiting for you)
http://www.nvidia.com/object/winxp_169.21_whql.html

It is best to do a clean install.....an external or internal drive is a good way to back your stuff up. Then when all is said and done you can either use both drives or use the new one for backup's once a month....

Hope this helps....

Just so you know DX 10 is not all that good yet....few games, poor performance at high settings.....Also be aware, in some games your SLI is faster then 1 8800 card(Doom3 for example)

http://www23.tomshardware.com/graphics_2007.html - Single cards
http://www23.tomshardware.com/graphics_sli2007.html - multi

make sure what you play will get a boost. 1 8800 GTS 512 is almost = to a 8800GTX it wins some and looses other....

 

[jjkrogs]

Nuke, tks much! Couple more quick ones...

Any idea what 'type' of vid card would be compatible? I see there are diff types of 8800 GTX, for example, for diff types of motherboards. As long as it's PCI-E, it'll work, right?

Also, since I'm upgrading to Vista, should I add all the new hardware BEFORE I install Vista, or install Vista, and then upgrade?

Finally, say I'm running a Raid setup, etc, does Vista have all the drivers for things like that? I've never upgraded my own platform before. Tks again!

 

[nukemaster]

As long as its PCI-E(X16 slot) it should be fine...

The performance is more or less from slowest to fastest

8800 GTS 320
8800 GTS 640(they are nearly identical at lower resolution)
8800 GT(in most cases. This card is based on a new core and uses less power)
8800 GTS 512(this is based on a newer card that in some games even beats the GTX and uses less power)
8800 GTX
8800 ULTRA (fastest single card single GPU card, but its not much faster then a 8800GTX and uses the most power for an Nvidia card)

The best value right now from Nvidia is the 8800 GTS 512(and depending on your PSU....later you can just sli it with another one)

Before you place any orders, go look in your bios(see dells instructions) and make sure you can increase the memory voltage if needed. The Patriot stuff needs more then 1.8 volts to run at its spec'd timings and speed. So before you install it you will want to set your voltage to at least 2.0(its rated for up to 2.2)

When you upgrade to Vista you should have all the new hardware in.

I have not installed Vista yet(waiting for SP1) so i can not comment on the raid drivers...

according to the link below you can load the raid drivers off a USB flash drive or cd.....and there is suppose to be a spot when you partition to select the drivers you want....
http://forums.techguy.org/windows-vista/455346-vista-raid.html

Once in windows you have to get platform drivers from Nvidia(when you install just skip the sata drivers, you should not need then....also skip the NV firewall).

You should get all the drivers you need before the upgrade and place them on a CD. This way there is not looking around....

Best of luck with the upgrade...

 

[jjkrogs]

Tks much! Very helpful.

 

[supermorph]

Hello all, this is my first forum post and I am new to TH. Let me start off by saying that I am a noob at all this computer building stuff. I own a DELL XPS 600, had it about 2 years, and I love gaming and multimedia, I play alot of FPS games(COD 4), and I would like to make some upgrades. I know alot of you out there are saying, " YOUR UPGRADING A DELL!!!!!!", yeah I am. I am not ready to make the leap into building my first PC yet,but I feel I am comfortable enough with upgrading hardware, and software. So I am wondering you all could share your thoughts with me on what I can do tp upgrade my PC. I will list my PC stats below. Please let me know if you see something I am planning on getting that isn't going to work, or if you have a better idea.


Dell XPS 600
Nvidia C19 mobo
Pentium d 840 (3.2)
4gb ddr2 5300 (667mhz)
2x 80gb WD raptors Raid 0
Seagate 750gb SATA
Dual geforce 7800GTX SLI
Soundblaster X-FI

Your suggestions are much appreciated. Personally I would like to upgrade the processor to one that is more efficient like the (E6850) maybe, and eventually faster RAM, and the video cards. Let me know guys. Thanks.

Hello all, this is my first forum post and I am new to TH. Let me start off by saying that I am a noob at all this computer building stuff. I own a DELL XPS 600, had it about 2 years, and I love gaming and multimedia, I play alot of FPS games(COD 4), and I would like to make some upgrades. I know alot of you out there are saying, " YOUR UPGRADING A DELL!!!!!!", yeah I am. I am not ready to make the leap into building my first PC yet,but I feel I am comfortable enough with upgrading hardware, and software. So I am wondering you all could share your thoughts with me on what I can do tp upgrade my PC. I will list my PC stats below. Please let me know if you see something I am planning on getting that isn't going to work, or if you have a better idea.


Dell XPS 600
Nvidia C19 mobo
Pentium d 840 (3.2)
4gb ddr2 5300 (667mhz)
2x 80gb WD raptors Raid 0
Seagate 750gb SATA
Dual geforce 7800GTX SLI
Soundblaster X-FI

Your suggestions are much appreciated. Personally I would like to upgrade the processor to one that is more efficient like the (E6850) maybe, and eventually faster RAM, and the video cards. Let me know guys. Thanks.

the last bios update allows core2duo processors,
i have a hd5770 1GB in myne it supported on A01 bios 1TB drives out of the box, so it has potential, i even think a hd6770
(which i have 2 of in a crossfire arrangement would work)

ive 3GB of ram in it, and use it as a whs2011 server,
already have a NICE rig, its not latest and greatest processor, just a 2.4 core2duo, but its water cooled and super-clocked, so it works nice.

i would suggest either single cards for amd/ati or 2x nvidia if sli