[cdeathjd]

Well the title should give you a clue... i'm looking to upgrade my HP Pavilion 3250 (UK Model) desktop. Here are the stats from the "computer overview" of SiS Sandra Lite:

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SYSTEM

• SYSTEM - HP Pavilion 061 EJ193AA-ABU t3250.uk
• MAINBOARD - AsusTek Computer INC. Puffer2
• BUS(es) - ISA X-Bus PCI PCIe IMB Firewire/1394 i2c/SMBus
• Multi-Processor (MP) Support - NO
• Multi-Processor Advanced PIC (APIC) - YES
• SYSTEM BIOS - American Megatrends Inc. 3.26
• Total Memory - 1GB DDR2

PROCESSOR

• MODEL - Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 3.20Ghz
• SPEED - 3.20Ghz
• CORES PER PROCESSOR - 1 Units
• THREADS PER CORE - 2 Units
• INTERNAL DATA CACHE - 16kb, Synchronous, Write-Thru, 8-way, 64 byte line size, 2 threads sharing
• L2 ON-BOARD CACHE - 2MB, ECC, Synchronous, ATC, 8-way, 64 byte line size, 2 lines per sector, 2 threads sharing

VIDEO SYSTEM

• ADAPTER - NVIDIA GeForce 6200 TurboCache(TM) (64MB DDR, PCIe 1.00x16, PS 3.0, VS 3.0)

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So what do i use this machine for? Well basically everything... web-browsing, downloading, gaming (new games), music creation and video editing... you get the picture im sure. It's not dirt slow, but i can tell it needs a kick up the PSU to do the latest games well!

I was thinking firstly of memory and thought of adding 2gb of ddr2-6400 ram. These would be 1gb sticks as they must be added in pairs, i have 2 free mem slots (four in total).

Next i was thinking of video power because i realise the GFX card is a little out of date in many respects (but will play bioshock and tf2 at good FPS rates if the res is low enough!). I was thinking of a Geforce 8800 with 640mb of memory PCIexpress x16.

After this i would be considering upping the processor from dual to quad core, choosing a core2 Quad 9.6Ghz Q9300 to boost it from 6.40ghz to 9.6.

However i think all this might be too much for the old board.... or possibly a new power supply might be required..... so i though i best check with some experts before blowing up my base!

Thanks for your help!

[infojunky50]

I'm a little mystified by your line:
After this i would be considering upping the processor from dual to quad core, choosing a core2 Quad 9.6Ghz Q9300 to boost it from 6.40ghz to 9.6.
According to Intel the Q9300 runs at 2.5Ghz. WHere on earth did you get the idea it runs either 6.4 or 9.6?

[BG-0]

If you are planning on the GFX, please, choose Radeon HD 4850 512MB. Way better than ANY GF 8800, and not too expensive either. You'll also need a new quality PSU if you want to upgrade anything. Also, I'm not sure if a Quad Intel is compatible with your MB, it seems like it isn't. http://www.scan.co.uk/Index.aspx?NT=1-0-94-549-0

[baladio]

infojunky50: Probably from the speed of the cores added together, but of course it doesn't work that way always.

cdeathjd: Well, it looks like your motherboard has the LGA 775 socket (which the current Intel Core 2 Quads use), but correct me if I'm wrong. Even with LGA 775 you'll want to see with the manufacturer of the motherboard/PC if the motherboard will handle Intel's quad-core CPU's, or just keep asking in forums until you get a sure answer if the mfr. doesn't help. It likely needs a BIOS update and/or new drivers, and it may not be able to handle the high FSB speeds that are normally associated with the new Core 2 CPUs (although you might be able to reduce the FSB speed, but that would reduce the whole speed of the CPU, unless you could increase the multiplier to adjust for it). If your current motherboard can handle, say, a 1067MHz FSB (it can handle at least 800MHz because that's the standard FSB speed for your CPU I believe) speed but not 1333MHz, I would get another model of the Core 2 Quad that uses a lower FSB yet a higher multiplier to get the same (or around the same) speed as the one you want, such as the Q6600 (slower) or the Q6700 (faster). And you mentioned you have a PCI-express slot, and that will do for an 8800 series card. But I advise you to buy a new power supply almost for sure, unless the mfr. gave you an oversized PSU, because the 8800 GTS with 640MB of memory uses way more watts than your current card, and the quad core will likely use at least a little more (the Core 2 Duos and Quads use smaller manufacturing process things so they are much more energy-efficient) than your current CPU. Figure out how much power your current parts are taking by using this calculator http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp
It gives a general idea (it's actually not perfectly accurate) as to how many watts your PC uses. Then find a good power supply (PC Power & Cooling, Antec, SeaSonic, Sparkle Power/FSP Group/Fortron, and some others); make sure it not only has enough wattage (+ a little more just for safety or upgrading parts) but enough amps available on the 12-volt rail(s) (the 8800GTS 640MB officially requires at least a 400w PSU with at least 26 amps on the 12v rails combined or on just one large rail), and don't forget about making sure it has all the connections you need (although adapters exist for connectors). The 8800GTS 640MB needs a six-pin PCI-express power connector (some come with an adapter for two 4-pin molex plugs to 1 6-pin PCI-e, or you can buy one if not).
As for the RAM, make sure your board can handle the speed of PC-6400 (which is DDR2 at 800MHz). Compare it to your current DDR2 memory's speed, and your board may just be able to handle a little higher speed (assuming DDR2 800 is faster than your current RAM).

If you want to have worry-free powerful gaming, I would get a whole new motherboard that is made for gaming, like one from ASUS or Gigabyte or DFI or something, and maybe a new case for better ventilation with the hotter-running video card.

Edit: Yes, there are several better video cards than the 8800's out now; although, in general, the better they get, the more power they use, so keep that in mind.

[BG-0]

The MB handles only 800 MHZ FSB, that's what I read. PSU list continued: OCZ, (Cooler Master??), well, that's quite it. Are you really sure your computer is a HP pav. 3250? I can't find such a computer by googling! :O I'd get a quality 450/500W PSU to be sure and for future expansions. I, too would recommend a new MB, as this line concerns me quite much: "Multi-Processor (MP) Support - NO"

[cdeathjd]

IRT "Infojunky50": I wasnt too sure but the quad core processors usually run at around 2.4Ghz per core, so in total that would equal about 9.6Ghz i think.

IRT "BG-0": That sounds good but that gfx card is PCIexpress 2.0.... i read somewhere that in a PCIexpress 1.0 slot the card will only perform half as well?

IRT "baladio" - thanks for all that advice... but i dont understand what you mean when talking about power rails and plug sockets, could you clafiry that? Also i really dont want to upgrade the motherboard because that would mean a lot of checking that all my current hardware would fit onto it and then i wouldn't know how to install it.

Regarding RAM.... i really dont know what speed it runs at besides it being DDR2, is there a tool for finding that out?

IRT "bg-0": Yes thats definately it... i dont think it was too popular but it certainly exists on the HP UK website.

[BG-0]

Theoretically it would sum up to 9.6 GHz, but all of the power won't be taken advantage of. Putting a PCI-e 2.0 capable card in a 1.0 slot will decrease its performance by up to 5 % or so. PCWizard will give you about all the info about your system that you'll ever need. Power rail amperages can be found on a sticker at the side of the PSU, and on some sites.

[cdeathjd]

Apparently i have: " DDR2-SDRAM PC2-4300 (266 MHz) - [DDR2-533]"

Does that mean that any memory i add to this has to run at a speed of 4300 also? And what about removing all the memory sticks and just adding 2x1GB pairs of 6400 speed? Also, will there be much of a speed difference anyway between 4300 and 6400 speeds?

I will probably upgrade memory first and then later move on to cpu/gfx components.

[BG-0]

Some difference yes. Also latencies affect the speed(The lower, the faster). Removing old and sticking in new sounds like a plan.

[cdeathjd]

is latency the Mhz speed? (533) ideally im looking for as fast as safely possible on the system!

[BG-0]

Latency is CL2/CL3/CL4/CL5/CL6, expanded to for example 5-5-5-15 or something like that. DDR2 memories, like PC6400 (800MHz) nowadays have latencies as low as CL4 at min. Maybe CL3. So, the best choice is something like a DDR2 800 (PC-6400), with CL5 or CL4 latencies. Also be sure not to choose cheap stuff like PQI, and, umm, whatever, just do get OCZ, Corsair, Crucial, G.Skill or Kingston.

[cdeathjd]

IRT "BG-0" ok thanks completely confusing.... and neither sis sandra or pc wizard actually says that the memory has anything related to CL numbers but there is the code 4-4-4-12 if that helps?

I went onto the asus website but theres no mention of an asus "puffer2" motherboard at all... which is highly confusing!!!

[BG-0]

4-4-4-12 means latency CL4. That's good for DDR2 memory. Sorry for the messy post. Again, I lost the idea because of the delay. What are you asking anymore?

[cdeathjd]

Ok hmmm i dunno if its safe to upgrade at all actually. Theres no way to get in touch with asus to ask them about my motherboard.... most start with P5 something and they have a damn big list... but "Puffer2" which is my model isn't in it.

The only help i can try is asking on their forums but theres as much chance of that as catching an egg dropped from a plane.

[BG-0]

Searching with your Hp Pavillion model number resulted me the finds I gave to you. Puffer 2 must be some codename for it that everybody has forgot about You can upgrade your memory, but I wouldn't be any sure about the processor, at least a quad-core one.