Upgrading from 1Gz Athlon

[WelshRob]

Hi guys. I am looking to upgrade my Athlon Thunderbird 1gz Socket A system. The system is used for latest games and internet, as well as occasional office use. My motherboard is a Gigabyte GA7-ZX KT133 chipset. Can you advise whether my existing motherboard can take an XP processor (I believe the FSB is limited to 100mhz?? on my board?). If not, which motherboard would you recommend - I like the idea of DDR memory instead of SDR - would I notice much difference in games? Lastly, which XP processor would you recommend - I have never overclocked before but dont rule it out - should I aim for XP1900 or opt for XP1600 - is there REALLY that much noticeable difference in games etc? I have Geforce 2 MX card (original not MX200 or MX400)
Thanks guys

 

[svol]

The KT133 doesn't support 266 FSB, but the KT133A does. You said you have the KT133 so it wont support 266 FSB CPUs or the Athlon XP, so you'll have to buy a new board if you want the XP. But why do you want to upgrade it, it is pretty fast and with a better videocard it will run most games at top settings.
But if you really want a XP and DDR combo, then I suggest the Abit KR7A which is one of the best boards and it also has many OC options.

My case has so many fans that it hovers above the ground .

 

[MeTaLrOcKeR]

Well........I'll Recomend the IWill XP333 Motherboard OR the Epox 8KHA+...both are VERY good boards with MANY Tweakers options........also....its not really worth ti to buy the high end XP's unless you dont want to overclock......

I Have my XP 1600+ Overclcokde to an Athlon XP 1900+......VERY Fast.......

What you shoudl realyl do for now, is Pencil in your L1 bridges on your CURRENT CPU.....and adjust the Multiplier from 10.0 - 12.0 and see if it works......if it does......stick with your current comp. keep in midn u might need to raise the voltage........and if u do, ull probbally stick it to 1.85 VCore.....also.......i can GAURANTEE you'll need a new Video Card........you'll find a MUCH bigger performance increase with a new video card on your athlon 1GHz than to upgrade to an XP CPU and board and stick with same Video Card......Anythign of the GeForce 3 lien is adequit...or ATI's Radeon 8500 is good too.....

-MeTaL RoCkEr

My <font color=red>Z28</font color=red> can take your <font color=blue>P4</font color=blue> off the line!

 

[WelshRob]

Thanks for the reply svol. I was under the impression that a 1Ghz processor will limit my choice of new graphics cards (which I am also looking to upgrade) - A colleague said that a GeForce 4 Ti4600 (which I am keen on) would be severely limited by an Athlon 1gz. Comments welcome. Thanks again

 

[WelshRob]

Thanks MeTaLrOcKeR - very informative See my reply to Svol - I would have liked my next graphics upgrade to be to GForce 4 Ti 4600 for stunning performance now and futureproofing and am concerned that the cpu will hold it back....Would I be better off getting a GeForce 3 ti500 instead or go for the GeForce 4 ti4600?
Thanks again

 

[FatBurger]

I agree, replacing your MX would make much more of a difference. You might check out the GeForce3 Ti200, around the same price as a mid-range XP, and great performance.

I hate it when that happens. I had the reply window open while two people stopped by my desk, so by the time I could actually submit, there were three new replies :tongue:

<font color=orange>Quarter</font color=orange> <font color=blue>Pounder</font color=blue> <font color=orange>Inside</font color=orange><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by FatBurger on 02/14/02 10:16 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[MeTaLrOcKeR]

Well, the performance of the GeForce 4 Ti 4600 is amazing........but do u really want to fork over that kinda cash ?

I know a GeFroce 3 woudl suffice...its really a matetr of personal preference....as far as you 1Ghz Athlon holdign it back....well, yes and no......its still fast enough to play any current game........but just to be on the safe side, overclock it to say 1.2GHz or actualyl gfo as high as u can without giving yourself instability problems.......

-MeTaL RoCkEr

My <font color=red>Z28</font color=red> can take your <font color=blue>P4</font color=blue> off the line!

 

[phsstpok]

Aceshardware has a very nice article on upgrades, going from a Duron based, SDR system, with a Geforce2 GTS up to an Athlon XP, DDR system, with a Geforce3. The article also addresses the performance gains (and in some cases losses) of upgrading just the CPU, upgrading just the video card, upgrading just the motherboard and memory, and many other combinations. Take a look. You might get some good information for making your choices.

Here's the link.

<A HREF="http://www.aceshardware.com/read.jsp?id=45000224" target="_new">http://www.aceshardware.com/read.jsp?id=45000224</A>

<b>We are all beta testers!</b>

 

[lhgpoobaa]

the fastest thing u can stick into that kt133 mobo of yours is probably an athlon 1400B.

you COULD stick in an XP, but you would either have to unlock it and hope your multipliers go higher than 14 or run at a loss due to the slower bus speed giving less Mhz.

far better route is a better graphics card... by far.

Overclocked athlon 1200C @ 8.5 x 166FSB + PC2700 = GOOD!

 

[WelshRob]

Thanks for the advice guys and phsstpok - thanks for the link