upgrading from P133 to higher

[promann]

I wish to upgrade my old computer from P133 to something higher such as AMD 500 or Pentuim processor of similar speed. Could I just pull out the old processor and push in the new one? Or, do I need to change the motherboard as a whole. I have not bought the faster processor yet - kind of look before you leap!

[scroatbagg]

Welcome Promann... Can I just say that every time I read a post in here from the UK they are all trying to save money, in the UK we pay double what our US friend pay for the same gear.. Anyway you wont realy be able to upgrade you P133 to anything that is much faster than it currently is and its worth only about £100 second hand if your lucky. I changed from a P120 at the start of this year, built my own system from a bare bones setup, have a look the this site http://www.aone.co.uk, they are good and reliable and I dont get paid by them. You can select what components you want and the total price is shown on screen, so if its to expensive you can go back and change. If you do change your old system now is a good time to do it as memory PC133 has crashed in price to £40 inc VAT for a 256mb stick so now is the time to buy. Splash out £300 to £400 and keep you old monitor and software,dont go for an all in package what ever you do.. Good luck..

[krayzie]

I concur. Get a new box, keep your old stuff, and you get a new pc w/ new parts. instead of an already obsolete box & processor.

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"MS-DOS, the only Microsoft OS that doesn't crash, or have bugs. Maybe they should have someone else write Operating Systems for them again."

There are no stupid questions, just stupid people.

[Paleo Pete]

To answer the original question, upgrade possibilities depend on the type of CPU and motherboard. If it's a Socket 4, the 133 is as fast as it will ever get. If it's Socket 5 or 7 chances are it could support up to a 233 or 266MHz CPU. You'll need to know exactly what CPU's are supported by the board, some will only use Intel, for instance, and some no MMX. Get a motherboard manual, that will tell you the info you need.

Oops...Socket 4 is 60/66MHz only, to be a 133 it would have to have an overdrive CPU already, and 133MHz is still all you'd ever get...

You'll also need the manual to find out what the proper jumper settings are for the bus speed, multiplier and voltage. They all must be correct for it to work properly.

Write down the BIOS ID string, use the [Pause] key to hold the first screen while the memory counts up, it will be at bottom left, about 20 digits or so. At Wim's BIOS (http://www.ping.be/bios/) you should be able to identify it and maybe find a downloadable manual.

Guys (and gals), please answer questions of this type with the info they actually ask for, rather than telling them to junk their old machine, quite often they ARE upgradeable, and will work for some time. I'm using a P-233MMX to post this message that's been running perfect for several years, and had a P-200MMX in it a year ago. It's still running the Sound Blaster 16 I bought 5 years ago for my 486 and a Cirrus Logic vodeo card that's older than that, a hard drive that's at least 4 years old, 2.8GB...Just because all your friends and possibly you have newer high speed computers doesn't mean the older, and admittedly obsolete ones are totally useless. The person may also be unable to afford to build a new screamin' computer that will do everything but make waffles...Tell them how to upgrade it or move on to the next question...

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So many idiots, and only six bullets...
Note: Please post your questions on the forums, not in my email.

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[This message has been edited by Paleo Pete (edited 06-27-2001).]

[promann]

Thanks to all for the info. I'm following up all the links. Thanks again.

[scroatbagg]

Paleo Pete, have to agree to disagree. I agree that some old machines go on and can be used for many things, but there are limitations to what you can do and how much you spend. My old P120 is being used by my daughter and she is happy with it but she does not use graphic intensive progs like I do. I do however have to disagree that upgrading on old machine is worth it. In the UK we dont have places that you can get old P1 processors, the oldest thing you can get hold of is a AMD 500 and that will cost you in excess of £50 or $80 so its cheaper to buy a newer Duron,it may be different in the States!? Software moves on and older machines are not capable of running said software so an upgrade is the only option. Also the post did ask if he could upgrade to a AMD 500 or P500 and the answer you gave him was still no so if he wants the speed he will have to upgrade. My opinion was based on my knowledge of computers and what I see in the marketplace in this country we call the UK, the US is a different world. I just wanted to help out a fellow countryman and point him in a direction that would help him find a system within his budget.

[skhips]

With Respect,

At work we use Spacewalker MOBOS that can take Socket 7 CPU from 100mhz to 466mhz (AMD K62) and although unable to buy from a reputable chain store can be brought at computer fairs in UK. However the chances are that this particular will not be capable but as mentioned by others it is worth looking at.

http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/smile.gif

[not bob the builder]

I use a couple of local trade shops but they'll ship if you can't travel. www.scan.co.uk (http://www.scan.co.uk) www.la-technologies.com (http://www.la-technologies.com)
Download the pricelists if nothing else, give you some idea of prices and available mobos/chips etc.

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Putting the "Personally, mate, I'd chuck it out and get myself a new one.." into "PC".

[Paleo Pete]

scroatbagg: I don't really have a quarrel with what you posted, and you did make a very good point or 3, if this person does want to move up to 500MHz or so, then a complete upgrade will be necessary. I don't know of a board that supports a 133 that will also handle a 500...

Availablilty in the UK is of course an issue as well.

The main point I was trying to make is that I see plenty questions concerning upgrades, and the usual suggestion is to ditch it and build a new high speed machine. That doesn't answer the actual question, and doesn't take into consideration that the person might not be able to afford the components necessary to build a state of the art machine, or may not want to.

As far as parts availability goes, parts should be available if you're resourceful. Resale shops, flea markets, auctions, garage sales all from time to time will turn up some useful older items, if nothing else an entire machine, dead, but with usable components. An ad in a newspaper might also be helpful. Individuals and businesses may have older machines they would be willing to part with cheaply. Shipping costs from the US might be prohibitive, but as a last resort, components are available from here.

I mainly want people to get out of the habit of seeing something like P-133 or P-166 and automatically suggesting the person junk it and build a new 800 or something similar. The person is asking what can be done with the present hardware-let them know that it's probably fairly limited, find out or estimate the possible maximums available with that hardware. Then also posting the alternatives is not a real problem, but it should be suggested as alternative options, not a blunt "ditch it and build a new one" approach.

Not one of the first few responses to any of the last few topics of this nature I've seen in the past few months actually offered suggestions concerning what could be done with the existing components. In every case, everyone took the build a new one approach without trying to offer advice on upgrade possibilities for the existing hardware.

Yes, hardware and software options will be limited in some cases, but the older machines often can be upgraded, keeping in mind that some newer software might not be supported, and some newer hardware, like AGP video, might be out of the question. If they weren't still useful, I wouldn't be typing on a P-233MMX right now with a 10 year old IBM keyboard, Sound Blaster 16, 64MB RAM, PCI video and 2.8GB hard drive...

On the other hand, trying to build a newer machine could easily turn out to be much more expensive. Many newer components won't work on the lower wattage power supplies, when added to all the other components the power supply has to handle. Larger drives over 8GB make a newer motherboard almost mandatory, AGP video cards are much more expensive than older PCI cards, etc. So the shipping cost could be outweighed by the total cost of the alternative. $50-100 or so (American dollars) for a CPU and some memory is a whole lot cheaper than $500 or more to build a 1 gigger... Unless the person is aiming for a screaming game machine, the 233-266MHz class will handle most average programs for the home user, internet and word processing, etc. But software would have to be chosen carefully to stay within the possibilities of the machine.

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So many idiots, and only six bullets...
Note: Please post your questions on the forums, not in my email.

Computer Information Links (http://www.geocities.com/paleopete/)

[jpm]

I'd just like to put my 2 pence in if I may. Back in the dark days of my degree (94) I got the top of the range P133 and still use it happily. I'm at this moment upgrading the CPU from 133 to a wopping 200MHZ with MMX. Not bothered about the speed just want to know if I can do it!
To answer the question if you have a p133 it is probably a socket 7 going into a socket 7 motherboard. This is your limitation. My board manual tells me the top speed is 200 and thats what I'm going to do. I'm also up grading 2 P75 to 166 and 133 having checked the board allow them.
If you do decided to bin the computer let us know I'm a sucked for old computers and they're a great way to learn about computers.
A good place to find 'old' computer parts are with the UK online auction houses such as Yahoo or ebay.

Does MOBO mean motherboard? now wheres my state of the art 386/SX....

[scroatbagg]

Paleo Pete, I dont have a quarrel with you either, and as I said I dont advocate just chucking out your old PC, put it to some use thats why I said its not worth selling. But I do think that if you have some knowledge of the market place you should help poeple to get the max for the £ or $ . Since your last post it seems that a couple of others have decided to add their two pence worth and give some ideas where this guy can find some upgrade gear. A word of warning to all who venture into the world of Computer Fairs in the UK... Most wont take credit cards, why? You have to pay to see what they are selling, why? As for Ebay all I have found on that is products you can but elswhere for half the price, but if you believe you are getting a deal go for it, but once again why dont they take credit cards??? If you have to pay cash for it DONT!!!! If you go to a computer fair dont expect to find that person who sold you that burnt out ram, dont even mention the copied software that they sell over the table..