CPU Scaling Analysis, Part 2: Intel Pentium III Scaling and Upgrading

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Upgrade Mania, Continued

There are three important conditions you need to be aware of before purchasing a new processor:

Does my motherboard support the core voltage for the new processor?

Slot-1 or Socket 370 motherboards that are not older than a year will definitely be able to support all Pentium III or Celeron processors. Not all of those motherboards will support the 133 MHz front side bus (FSB or processor bus clock) though.

Depending on the chipset of the motherboard and its age, you will see the following situation:

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Motherboard ChipsetSupported Processor VoltageSupported Processor Bus Clock (FSB)Supported ProcessorsRequires Converter Card
Intel 440LX/ZX chipsetusually 2.0 - 2.8 V66 MHzCeleron 333-533Pentium II 233-333Celeron 533A-766requires converter board with voltage regulator for 1.5-1.65 V
Intel 440BX chipset~1998, 1999usually supports 2.0 - 2.8 V66, 100 MHzCeleron 333-533Pentium II 233-450Pentium III Katmai 450-600Celeron 533A-800Pentium III 600E - 800Erequires converter board with voltage regulator for 1.5-1.65 V
Intel 440BX chipset2000, 2001~1.3 - 2.8 V66, 100 MHzCeleron 333-533Pentium II 233-450Pentium III 450-850Celeron 533A-800Row 2 - Cell 4
VIA Apollo Pro chipsetusually supports 2.0 - 2.8 V66, 100 MHzCeleron 333-533Pentium II 233-450Pentium III Katmai 450-600Celeron 533A-800Pentium III 600E - 800Erequires converter board with voltage regulator for 1.5-1.65 V
VIA Apollo Pro 133 chipsetusually supports 1.3 - 2.8 V66, 100, 133 MHzCeleron 333-533Pentium II 233-450Pentium III 450-850EPentium III 533B-1000EBCeleron 533A-800Row 4 - Cell 4
Intel 810E, 815, 820 chipsetsusually supports ~1.3 - 2.8 VRow 5 - Cell 2 Celeron 333-533Pentium II 233-450Pentium III 450-850EPentium III 533B-1000EBCeleron 533A-800Row 5 - Cell 4

Please note that the range of the voltage regulator is decided by the motherboard-maker! Some old boards may be able to supply 1.65 V, while others may not. The year given in the table is an estimate only and meant as an orientation for you. Please always check the features of your motherboard. It is also possible that certain motherboards supports even higher or lower voltages.