overclocking... Options

[Maccabee]

I need your help.
I have a 2.2ghz intel celeron procesor.
I was suprised by how many ghz though cause it came with 128mb ram. but it currently has 500mb ram.
Its prety slow and laggy running ubuntu and i want to speed it up.
using overclocking.
How can i do this safely and whats the how high should i overclock it or whatever. It has some 10 yr old crappy loud fans. So the cooling is prob pretty bad.
Should i open it up? O and this computer is ancient so im not to worried if something goess wrong.

[heyo-captain-jac...]

I wouldn't suggest overclocking something thats already at 2.2 GHz when you have 10 year old fans, but overclocking involves editing the BIOS settings.

I would suggest getting some more ram, you can get a 2 gigabyte stick from Wal Mart for $50, or you can get 4 gigabytes for $50 if you're willing to wait for shipment from Newegg.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820220293

[sixfive]

Would you be willing to spend a little bit on fans/cooling? Would you be willing to spend anything on upgrades? Actually, is your motherboard also ten years old?

[Maccabee]

Actually its about 5 years old. and everything is 5 years old.
I guess theres no point in more ghz. i just need more ram.
is 2.2ghz intel celeron a really bad proccessor?

[heyo-captain-jac...]

No, it's pretty good for a 5 year old processor. It's a low-medium range even by today's standards. Even the current Core 2 can be as low as 1.06 GHz.

[Maccabee]

Then maybe its not such a bad idea keeping this baby. Buying some ram and monitors.
And i think if i buy any ram for it ill get 2gb cause linux doesnt need that much and i do most of my stuff on my laptop.
O also i remebered this computer only has a 40gb harddrive. haha

[heyo-captain-jac...]

Well you can get a 1 Terabyte external hard drive from Newegg for $99.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16822216041

[sixfive]

You can also get ram really cheap, too. Just make sure your motherboard supports DDR2, otherwise you might have to get regular DDR(i think).

[Maccabee]

Im pretty confused about the ddr ddr2 stuff.
Whats the difference between them?
And how can I find out what my mother board supports.

[heyo-captain-jac...]

Open up the case, pull out the RAM, and take a picture of both sides. I'll probably be able to tell you if it's DDR1 or DDR2.

[Maccabee]

Actually I dont think im gonna try and make this computer better.
Its so old and almost every driver has some sort of problem.
The video cards and graphic drivers or whatever are old and need to be replaced.
But i think im gonna start my computer setup.
I finally decided that id rather have a pc than a imac cause with the same 1200 it costs to get an imac i could buy 2 monitors have tons of ram and hard drive and buy leopord!

Edit:
Im not totally sure but i think my computer thinks i have only 128mb ram.
When i check like in linux it says 500mb but in bios it says cahe 128?
I think my ram sticks arent matching. could this be a problem? I think im mixing like a 256 with a 128. would it be faster to replace the 256 with the old 128? Im pretty confused right now. I think ill open up my computer and pull out the ram to check.

[heyo-captain-jac...]

It would be 500mb.

[Maccabee]

I took the pictures and ill post them later.
Its weird I took out the ram and put it back and now computer is a lot faster! I wonder if they werent in place correctly. or maybe it was all the dust.
I looked in bios but I cant find where you are supposed to change the bus settings or whatever.

[heyo-captain-jac...]

One of the sticks might have been in backwards or something.

[Maccabee]

Awesome!Now i just gotta buy those 20 inch monitors i found for 140!
Where have you found some monitors for cheap?
I really cant enjoy any computer whether decked out or not without big monitors!

[heyo-captain-jac...]

Cheap LCD monitors are hard to find. I've been looking to get a third monitor at 22". I might have to resort to getting an old CRT though.

You can get a good sized CRT for about $15

[Maccabee]

Is a crt those old big monitors?
Dont you currently have 2 40" monitors?
I saw a 20" at walamart for 140$

[heyo-captain-jac...]

Is a crt those old big monitors?
Dont you currently have 2 40" monitors?
I saw a 20" at walamart for 140$

Yeah, CRTs are the old big ones.
2 that total 38 inches.

[Maccabee]

I and i still need someone to tell me how to overclock my computer in bios?!
Once im in bios where do i go?

[heyo-captain-jac...]

http://www.ehow.com/how_11503_overclock-cpu.html

[*BOSS*]

500mb ram.

never knew you still lived in 2003

[Maccabee]

Its an old crappy desktop!
My current computer has 3gb ram and 2.3ghz procesor.

[*BOSS*]

processor*

[Maccabee]

processor*

[Maccabee]

I think my motherboard doesnt allow me to change anything cause there is nothing like that...

[Maccabee]

Ok ill also take a picture and ill also post the pics of the ram for 9001 to determine if its ddr1 or 2

[illriginal]

Hate to break it to ya, but no point in tryin to overclock that old machine. You'll end up wearing/tearing the crap out of it, thus killing it faster.


First learn about Overclocking here: http://www.overclock.net/

There's a lot to learn.. it's not an easy process especially if you don't know what you're doing.

And I strongly advise you to purchase new computer parts and build your own. Now a days it's best to go with a Dual Core Processor @ 3.0ghz (preferably Intel over AMD) and there's also Quad processors... they're both cheap now a days.

[Maccabee]

Well I found a computer wit a Athlon X2 5000 Dual-Core Processor at 2.6ghz.
But its amd. I also found a computer with a Intel Pentium Dual-Core Processor E5200 but i dont know how many ghz it is and its an extra 100 bucks. Does the proccessor being intel make such a difference? I saw some tests that said amd won?

[heyo-captain-jac...]

The E5200 is 2.5 GHz. There's Intel fanboys and AMD fanboys. There is rarely a big difference between the two.

[Maccabee]

Then I think im sold on getting the Athlon X2 5000 Dual-Core Processor at 2.6ghz.
With 3gb ram which ill prob upgrade and 320gb harddrive cause i dont need much hard drive space.
Also are there any other important parts on a computer that I need to focus on?

[heyo-captain-jac...]

You're probably going to need a cooling system. Studies show that 100% of computers without a cooling system will overheat.
And maybe a case, it's always good to have a case.
Also, power supply.


Go with this processor:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819103234
It's in the same series, but has an extra .4 GHz for only a few extra dollars.

[Maccabee]

O im talking about a already made computer! Im not making my own.
If i bought that proccessor id have no idea how to install it.
Are proccessors easy to install even if your a complete noob. I'd say im just a little more than a inside of computer noob if you know what i mean.

[heyo-captain-jac...]

It depends on the computer. If you have a laptop, then it's usually a bit difficult. But on a desktop, it's easy.

[Maccabee]

If im gonna be upgrading the proccessor and ram should I just look for the cheapest cp possible with enough hard drive space?

[heyo-captain-jac...]

Not really. There's other parts to a computer that are just as important.

[illriginal]

If im gonna be upgrading the proccessor and ram should I just look for the cheapest cp possible with enough hard drive space?

-.- I have no idea what the other person is tellin you because honestly, they don't have a clue.


First off if you're gonna get a new processor, make sure the current motherboard you have is the right chip set, so that the processor you're about to buy will fit. If you really want that processor but it's a different chip set than your mother board you need to replace the motherboard.

Second, if you decided to replace the processor and the motherboard, you'll more than likely need to buy new RAM/Memory. Again you need to make sure that the RAM/Memory is gonna fit on that motherboard.

Third, if you get a new motherboard, you need to check what sort of power supply you'll need. Because the power supply you have might NOT work with the new motherboard. If not, you'll need to buy a new power supply with the correct cable. That cable is called, "ATX Power Connector" They come in 20 pin and 24 pin. Now a days motherboards use 24-pin and also come with an additional power connector for PCIe (express)

Fourth, you need to make sure that the video card you have will be compatible with the mother board, if the motherboard only has PCIe and not PCI and you have a PCI video card, you're gonna have to buy a PCIe video card. If you have AGP, get rid of it because PCIe > AGP. If you have a built in video card, in other words on board video card that's built into the motherboard, you will need to buy another video card that will be compatible with the motherboard.

And finally, now a days there's a lot of motherboard that only come with SATA (serial ATA) connectors. So if you have hard drive(s) that are ATA and you don't want to get rid of them, make sure the mother board not only have SATA (which is way better than ATA) but also has ATA connectors.


The best way to know what you should buy to upgrade your PC is by looking up the specs of your motherboard, since that is the hardware that everything has to connect to. If your motherboard is outdated, I would recommend you purchase a motherboard.

If you end up upgrading the whole system, you'll end up spending between $600-$1200 easily.


EDIT: And I just realized you're not building a new computer nor don't know how to install a processor, so I just wasted my time

[Maccabee]

Unfortunatley I dont know where I can get any specs for the motherbpard?!
The site im buying from only says like the ram, hard drive and proccessor...

[heyo-captain-jac...]

Where are you buying from then?

[Maccabee]

walmart...I mean for what i'm doing this:
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?...uct_id=10859132
Should be all I need right?!
And I can upgrade ram or the proccessor later right?
Cause if the computer comes with a motherboard manual I can find out about it.
But the reason I wanted to know is cause theres know point in buying that when I can spend 100$ less on something that is the same just with less ram and a worse proccessor which is what id be upgrading.

[heyo-captain-jac...]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...kard-_-83107868

It's cheaper there and it gives you better stats.

It's a badass computer for the price. You'll have some fun with it.

[Maccabee]

^Thats the same thing but 20 bucks less.
And i need to get it from walmart cause im gonna have a 800 dollar gift card to there.
haha. Do you think 2.6ghz is enough? I mean i thinks its plenty. I might buy more ram though. How do i find out if that takes ddr2 or 3 or whatever? Cause i might upgrade the ram.

[heyo-captain-jac...]

2.6GHz dual core is better than most.

That one takes DDR2.

[Maccabee]

My current laptop has is a intel pentium duel core.
O wait... you said the newegg one had better stas? Whats better about it? Is it that geforce thing?

[heyo-captain-jac...]

It displays the stats better. The one from Wal Mart probably has the same one.

That Nvidia GeForce is a graphics card. Low to medium range gaming card. As long as you don't play Crysis, you're going to have good FPS in any games you play.

[Just_Dream]

GE Force 8800 runs Crysis decently. :D

/spam

lul @ overclocking.