Dell to new build - possible?

AndrewNR

AndrewNR

AndrewNR

Soldato
Joined
18 Aug 2011
Posts
2,862
Location
Norfolk
Good evening everybody,

This is my first post here and I'm just a potential PC builder; please be gentle.

At the moment I have a Dell Studio 540 (curse at me now!):
Quad CPU 8200 @ 2.33 Ghz.
4GB RAM.
500GB HD (currently 450/580 free).
I replaced the standard PSU and upgraded to 405w.
I replaced the standard GPU and upgraded to a Radeon HD 5400 something or other.
Running Windows Vista 32bit.

Anyway that's the boring stuff out of the way. Most of you would've probably clicked 'back' by now, but for those that have read this far; the question is: Could this current stuff be taken out and replaced into a "gaming" case?

I did take out out the GPU, PSU, HD leaving just the motherboard (inc. CPU and RAM obviously) and the CD-Rom. However I got scared and put it all back again (there went 2 hours of my life - all good fun though).
The reason I stopped is that I had a few unanswerable hesitations, these being:
1. The on/off button has a sodlered wire going to the MB - wtf do I do with that?
2. The front of my PC has various USB slots etc, also with wires going to the mb - wtf do I do with them.
3. The mb obviously has all the usual gumph on the back e.g. mic in, sound, ethernet etc - is this standadised in sze and will fit with any case?

I took some pictures which I will hopefully add to help make things clearer. (Still uploading onto photobucket so will have to add later).

The overall aim is to get the PC ready for BF3 and if that is rubbish at least i'll have a solid starting place to upgrade, rather than buy a new Dell every 3-4 years.
I know i'll have to spend £100+ on a GPU (although the mb looks particularly rubbish, so not sure what will 'fit') and up to £100 on a new PSU but I really don't want to have to replace the mb, hd drive, cpu and RAM.

So, for those that went straight to the bottom; can I put my Dell into a new case?

I look forward to any feedback.

Thank you.

*edit 1* If it is possible, i'll try take some snapshots of how I did it too; I couldn't see a similar thread to this so apologies if this question gets asked week in week out.
 
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Hello and welcome to the forum :)

Problem with majority of Dell systems they tend to be designed to be used in Dell cases and try moving them to a new case can be awkward at best! This is mainly due to motherboard design and connectors.
 
Thanks RJC.

Indeed the motherboard is a bit of a stopper in building it into a new case.
I guess I should replace it and stick the RAM and CPU I already have into a new motherboard.
The motherboard is limiting the GPU possibilities too.

I assume when you buy a new case it already has wires soldered on for the on/off, usb's etc and these just plug straight into the motherboard?

What motherboard would be suitable for my current cpu and say, perhaps an i5?
 
AndrewNR said:
Thanks RJC.

Indeed the motherboard is a bit of a stopper in building it into a new case.
I guess I should replace it and stick the RAM and CPU I already have into a new motherboard.
The motherboard is limiting the GPU possibilities too.

I assume when you buy a new case it already has wires soldered on for the on/off, usb's etc and these just plug straight into the motherboard?

What motherboard would be suitable for my current cpu and say, perhaps an i5?
Click to expand...

yes, all cases will have the wires soldered on for you, so you just need to plug them in and they'll go.

unfortunately your processor and all the i5's use a different socket, so there isnt a single motherboard on sale that will accommodate both. if you want to keep your current processor, your going to be stuck with a motherboard that can only take core2duo and core2quad processors
 
Thanks Reaper.

No point buying a new motherboard and keeping the current processor then.

I assume, for example that the number 1155 refers to the relevant sockets of the chip and motherboard.
I think, having read these forums a bit i'd go for:
Intel Core i5-2500 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £161.99
What's the difference between the P67, H61 and H67 chipsets?
I gather, having looked at their website:
H61 is oldest, but probably the cheapest.
P67 has the option of upto 3 GPU's, has more SATA and PCI, "Intel extreme tuning" (whatever that is) and the option of "Rapid Storage Technology" (whatever that is).
H67 is the newer version of the H61 and is similar, but not as "tune-able" as the P67 (but it's cheaper).

The newer chips (P67 and H67) appear to have the same bus speeds (bandwidth) as the H61 except on SATA?
I doubt i'll need what the P67 can offer and the H67 doesn't appear to differ much from the H61, so I assume this motherboard will be more than adequate:
Asus P8H61 PLUS Intel H61 Chipset (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard **B3 REVISION** £69.98

Thanks

*edit* Oops I miessed the Z68, this appears to be the "daddy"; the same as the P67 but with the option of "Intel Smart Response" (whatever that is).
 
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both H61 and H67 can use onboard graphics of the CPU
both H61 and H67 cant overclock
most H61 are lacking Sata III and USB 3.0 unlike the other 3
P67 cant use the onboard graphics of the CPU
P67 and Z68 can both overclock
however Z68 can use the onboard graphics of the CPU
only the "K" versions of the CPU can be overclcocked

i hope ive made it as simple as i could :)

if youre not overclocking get these
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-362-IN&groupid=701&catid=6&subcat=1275
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-172-MS&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=1907

if you are planning on overclocking then get these
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-448-AS&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=1906
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-360-IN

you will need new sets of RAM as only DDR3 will work with Sandybridge.

4GB
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-203-CS

8GB
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-094-KS

RAM speeds have minimal effect on overclocking Sandybridge, but 1600MHz seems to be the sweet spot.
 
Thanks Jony27,

Makes perfect sense. Think i'll plump for an H67 + i5 setup + new RAM.
I'm not interested in overclocking.

Think i'd spend an extra £15.00 and get the 2500 over the 2400 though.

Looks like my dell may be set for Ebay! :o
 
Given your apparent lack of knowledge (and I appreciate that everyone has to start somewhere) have you considered buying one of the prebuilt machines OcUK sells? It could save you a lot of expensive mistakes.

Use it as a base for future upgrades and as a learning tool. Hopefully by the time you’re ready for the next major upgrade you’ll be up to speed.
 
billysielu said:
Chuck the Dell in the bin (it really is the worst thing ever) and get a prebuilt system from OCUK (because you'll fail at building your own).
Click to expand...

There's nothing wrong with the Studio 540, or Dell in general. For the type of customer they are targeted at they are fine. For most people they are a better bet than the machines many smaller suppliers sell into the same market.
 
Jony27 said:
:confused:
why is this?
if he can replace the psu and gpu, i dont see a problem replacing the mobo/cpu/ram?
Click to expand...
It's the problems you don't see that are the worst ones. I get the impression the OP doesn't have the depth of knowledge to resolve a problem with a build. Nothing against him, but I wouldn't advise him to undertake it.

bremen1874 said:
There's nothing wrong with the Studio 540, or Dell in general. For the type of customer they are targeted at they are fine. For most people they are a better bet than the machines many smaller suppliers sell into the same market.
Click to expand...
But it won't run BF3, which is the whole point. The OP could replace the GPU and PSU and it'll probably run - but there'll be a lot more juice available to crappy Dell components. You'd also want Windows 7 for definite. Before you know it you've got a quasimodo rig which is half junk and half reasonable and it'll need constant upgrading and cause problems for it's entire lifespan. It's better in the long run to start over.
 
@billysielu

Okay it won't run BF3, and trying to upgrade it so it will wouldn't be a good idea. No argument there.

However 'Chuck the Dell in the bin (it really is the worst thing ever)' is hardly helpful or accurate.
 
billysielu said:
It's the problems you don't see that are the worst ones. I get the impression the OP doesn't have the depth of knowledge to resolve a problem with a build. Nothing against him, but I wouldn't advise him to undertake it.
Click to expand...

well, isnt that what this forums for?
 
overclocking is incredibly easy on the sandybridge processors. you literally go into the bios, change the CPU multiplier from whatever its at to 40 then save and exit. one instant 4Ghz overclock.

however, before i suggest what you will need to buy i will suggest you download a free program called CPUz. this will tell you the make and model of all your components that are important except for the PSU and case.
unfortunately, i'll also need to know the make and model of your PSU because i wouldnt want to recommend you an upgrade that your PSU isnt powerful enough for.

if you post the makes and models of everything i'll know whats worth being kept and what needs to be replaced

also, i just noticed that we've all missed a few questions of yours:
1. The on/off button has a soldered wire going to the MB - wtf do I do with that?
if you are transferring case, all cases will have a wire soldered to the switch. this will plug into the motherboard. when you buy a new motherboard it will tell you in the manual where to plug it in. if you are keeping your current motherboard make sure you write down exactly where it plugs into the motherboard, making sure you note the exact pins it needs to go into. the new case will have a similar connector for the on off switch that plugs in there

2. The front of my PC has various USB slots etc, also with wires going to the mb - wtf do I do with them.
if you are transferring case, take all the wires out of the motherboard and note down where they went. whatever case you get will have wires coming from the front USB ports. they will go in exactly the same place as the old wires went

3. The mb obviously has all the usual gumph on the back e.g. mic in, sound, ethernet etc - is this standadised in sze and will fit with any case?
yes, this is standardised. all mATX and ATX motherboards have exactly the same sized motherboard back panel. the back panel cover also fits into every case in exactly the same way

*edit*
i'm not sure why people are discouraging you from building your own PC. with the help of the forums i'm sure everything will be fine
 
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Reaper 392 said:
*edit*
i'm not sure why people are discouraging you from building your own PC. with the help of the forums i'm sure everything will be fine
Click to expand...

With luck and assuming the OP can read and understand a motherboard manual (which most new builders seem to ignore).

People seem to take on very expensive first build projects nowadays. It normally works out okay, but we’ve all seen builds turn into expensive train wrecks.

People undertaking their first build also tend to lack the pile of spare parts that makes the diagnosis of a DOA part a quick and easy process.
 
I've built 5 PC's from no prior knowledge other than a few weeks browsing these forums and a guide on Youtube. Its not hard, put plenty of time aside, be careful, and dont force anything unless told otherwise :P
 
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