Dell Dimension 8300 General Hardware Questions

Ok - I have a Dell Dimension 8300 PC I've upgraded it a fair bit like a 512 ATI card and some ram here and there but i want to know if i can put in a gaming CPU like mid range intel or AMD cpu. if i cant, ill probably have to buy a new computer because i've notice a mother board tray holding the motherboard. The Dell case isnt that great with the air flow so i was considering throughing it into an antec case.And is their a better card than a 512 thats AGP??. Also will the 8300 DDR2 it has 4 slots so its pretty good mother board for its time i think.

THANKS!!!

Your PC is running a 3ghz P4. There is not much left you can do to upgrade this PC.
The processor you have is about the max for the system, and AGP graphics?
Truthfully, any money spent is a waste. If you feel the old rig just ain't getting it done anymore, it is time for a new one.

That CPU is likely to have 478 pins - I don't think you can buy anything lower than 755 now. The P4 was the best CPU that 478 pin supported. I agree with above, I think there's not much point in upgrading - buy something new.

My brother upgraded to the best availiable AGP card (he's still running a P4 system) last year which cost him just under $300 NZD. You can buy a 9600GT for about $150 NZD which hugely out performs the 7700GS he purchased.

If you really don't want to buy new, get a decent heatsink and overclock the system a little.