XPS 410 upgrade question

[jhariya]

I recently received a Dell XPS 410 tower for $300 from my dad.
Here are the specs (to the best of my knowledge):

Windows 7 32 bit (have the 64 bit disk as well, unsure why he installed 32 bit)
E6300 Core 2 Duo 1.86ghz
Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 1TB HDD
2GB Kingston PC2 6400U
2GB Samsung PC2 5300U
Dell's E210882 Mobo ( http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/xps410/en/SM_EN/specs.htm is the link for the manual )
Ultra 650W PS
XFX Radeon HD4890 (ordering this weekend)

I am considering upgrading the processor, but I'm not entirely sure it would be beneficial. Would upgrading to a 3.0 Core 2 Duo, or possibly a Quad, make a noteable difference in performance? I plan on running the pc in dual DVI, althought I haven't decided on an exact monitor combo just yet. OC'ing isn't something I feel comfortable doing, and from what I've read, you can't OC a Dell machine anyhow.

Thanks in advance guys. I hope to get a response soon as I plan on doing the upgrades, if any, this weekend.

Jason

 

[enzo matrix]

Yes it would provide a major performance increase in games. That processor will hold back the 4870.

You can't overclock any OEM motherboard because retailers like dell, hp, acer etc, remove most of the bios features. While on the topic, you will want to check with dell to make sure your motherboard can support a new core 2 quad if you decide to go that route. OEM motherboards sometimes will not support more than the CPUs they were intended to be sold with. With that video card for games I doubt it will make a significant difference from 3GHz core 2 duo to a core 2 quad in most current games (notable exceptions include GTA4, FSX and Dragon Age. These games will utilize more cores a lot better and having a dual core for GTA4 or FSX will impede performance a lot).
Your ram is running at different speeds. They will default to the lowest speed and timings. Not a major performance hit, just something to be aware of.
If you tell us what games you intend to play, that could help more (I assume you are gaming since you are getting such a high end card).

 

[jhariya]

Thanks for the response Enzo, much obliged. I appologize in advance for the long post.

As far as gaming, I currently play Aion and Final Fantasy XI and in the near future I will be playing Final Fantasy 14 online. It's difficult to guage what specs I need for Final Fantasy 14 at the moment because the game specs have yet to be released.

I found the list of compatible CPU's for the Dell Mobo and I have to admit, my hopes of upgrading this machines processor are fading quickly. I have found 1 compatible CPU on Ebay and it's used. It's a Conroe E6600 2.4. I know the speed of the E6300 will not make me very happy, so I have another idea that I could most definatly use some valuable input on.


My current pc is a build I did last year. The machine started out as an emachines t6410, and then I changed the Mobo, CPU, RAM, GPU, CPU Fan, and PS. I think it does ok speed wise, but under heavy load during an instance in Aion it really bogs down and lags out. The specs for this machine are as follows:

AMD Athlon 64X2 4600+ Windsor
MSI K9VGM-V Socket AM2 VIA K8M890
G.Skill DDR2 800mgh 2-1gb sticks
650W Ultra PS
Thermaltake R1 CPU fan
XFX 9500 GT 1gb
Stock emachines HDD, IDE 160gb
Windows XP SP3
Stock emachines T6410 case

I'm now considering buying a new micro case (possibly better air flow) and swapping out the 1TB seagate hdd w/ windows 7 installed. Then possibly OC'ing this machine, assuming the risk-reward is worth it.

Thoughts anyone?

Thanks again
Jason