Cpu change

[Danny862]

Hi,

how simple is it to change a CPU??
i am currently using a Intel Pentium Dual-Core E2180 2.0GHz @2.66 (OC just to get RAM at 1066)

i am considering a E7500, i was going to get an X4 or i3. but now havent got the money.

would this be a decent improvment? i will also need to overclock this a bit to get my RAM clock right.

SPEC
Radeon HD5770 single slot
4 (2x2GB) DDR2-1066
530W bequiet
GigaByte GA-P31-DS3L
BIOS F6
Windows 7 Pro 64 bit

Would it be worth it?
will it just be a plug and play sort of thing?
what do i have to change in BIOS?
will i have to reinstall windows?
will by 5770 work better then?

you can tell i have never upgraded a CPU before
i know how to install but not sure on upgrades.

thanks

 

[Corasik]

Gains (at stock.. multiply by your overclock factor).

2180 - 7500
65NM -> 45NM, Newer process should overclock better, also it will be marginally faster even at the same clock speed. There were some slight tweaks to the core when they switched from 65Nm to 45Nm, although this is fairly marginal
2Ghz - 2.93Ghz, Faster stock clock speed, will still overclock well
1MB -> 3MB, Larger cache, will help some applications
800mhz -> 1066mhz, Higher stock FSB, will give more bandwidth and lower latency to memory. Will improve performance a little, although Core 2 processors are very good at guessing what is coming next and generally preload most of the data they need in advance, so benifits can be marginal sometimes.

Its a better chip overall, but you will definatly need to overclock to see a decent benift, otherwise all your really doing is going from 2.66ghz to 2.93 which isnt a massive gain.

Upgrading is easy enough, firstly run the system for a bit, make sure the CPU is as hot as possible, some thermal pastes set when cold, almost gluing the cpu to the heatsink. Heat makes it easier to remove the heatsink.

Give the heatsink a gentle twist as you remove it, that will help break any suction too. Dont just "yank" it off.

No need to reinstall windows, its probably best to remove your overclock before you swap the processor, and then start the overclock proceedure from the start once your happy the new chip is working correctly.

It will be more or less plug and play.

If your reusing the same heatsink, then make sure you clean off any residue of thermal compound from it. Otherwise the new chip wont get cooled properly. You can use alcohol based cleaners, or "tim clean" sold by OCUK.

Its an easy enough job, and it will give you a boost. Just how big really depends on how good an overclock you can get. Probably someone on here will be able to estimate an average overclock for the E7500

Otherwise, keep saving and get an i3.. I have an i5 in my laptop and it blows away my Q6700 quad core desktop PC in terms of raw cpu power.

 

[Philtor]

You might need to update your BIOS first to support the new processor. As long as your running a BIOS version of F10a then you will be fine but anything below that and you'll need to update first before installing the new CPU.

 

[kristmace]

You'll definitely need to update your BIOS (to F10a apparently)

See this list:

http://www.gigabyte.com/support-downloads/cpu-support-popup.aspx?pid=2615


Should be a good improvement by the way

 

[Danny862]

Will the improvement be enough for gaming?? Or is it worth waiting?
If the latter, is a Phenom X4 955 OC better than u2-2120 at stock??

 

[DragonQ]

is a Phenom X4 955 OC better than u2-2120 at stock??

Depends if the games you play can take good advantage of 4 real cores or not.

 

[Danny862]

Battlefield BC2 , Assassins creed 2, sims 3, call of duty (any of them)...?


Want a upgrade but at the moment the E7500 is looking more likely. with a small overclock to about 3.5GHz will it be good??

thanks again

 

[Idleman]

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/253329-11-e7500-4ghz

Check out the above link, may help. Good luck.