Windows 7 - CPU upgrade question

Hi all I am looking for some advice on upgrading my CPU.

I currently have a P4 3ghz but was looking at this one on ebay:

Intel Pentium Dual Core E5300 2.6GHz Socket 775 800FSB on eBay (end time 01-Apr-10 11:44:03 BST)

This is my motherboard: ASUS PTGD1-LA HP/Compaq name: Grouper-UL8E
and its says Socket LGA775

I was wondering if the CPU is any good and if it would fit in my mother board and also would i notice much diffrence?


Thanks in advance

i think that would work for you, visit the asus site and have a look at your mobo,s cpu compatibility , there will be an improvement in performance

That E5300 is much faster than your pentium 4, but I doubt that your board will work with that processor even though they are both Socket 775.

this is probably that fastest chip that is supported on that old board,

• Intel P4 LGA-775 CPU
• 3.40 GHz/1M/800
• Supported Processors:
• Intel LGA-775 CPU
• 800 MHz FSB
• 3.4 GHz max

Hmm ok cool thanks for the info...just out of curiosity would it be better if I replaced the motherboard at the same time too? if so what would you recommend I look for? I have no idea about motherboards. Are they hard to replace? Last year I updated my power supply to 530watt and got a Nvida 9600gt graphics card which should do me fine for the next couple of years.

Personally, I've never upgraded a CPU without upgrading the motherboard as well. Of course, that's generally because I'm moving from something that's incompatible with the current motherboard I have so it's necessary. You don't *have* to upgrade your motherboard if it supports the CPU you're going to buy, but it's nice to rule out an old motherboard if you have any issues by simply replacing it during the upgrade of the CPU

I think its time I started shopping for a new board at the same time, are they expensive?

burtie, have a look here Scan.co.uk: Leading supplier of Computer Hardware or try ebuyer .co.uk

Not really it depends what you're looking for. Are you dead set on that CPU and or buying from eBay? There are plenty of other places where you'll get a better deal especially on a much better CPU/Motherboard combo. That CPU is a Dual Core, but it pales in comparison to a Core 2 Duo or even a Core Duo. It's one of the first dual cores.

For instance this is a very good deal, and the CPU is a much better investment: MSI G31TM-P21 Motherboard and Core2Duo E7500 CPU - $159

I should note that you need to know what kind of RAM you have as well. For instance the motherboard I linked uses DDR2. You don't want to upgrade your motherboard and find that you have to replace your RAM as well.

No not really dead set on that particular CPU, I was just browsing. I don't really mind where I buy it from as long as its a good deal I think a CPU/Motherboard combo would be a good idea. I didn't realise there was a difference in Dual Core, Core 2 Duo and Core Duo's as I thought they were the same thing LOL so thanks for clearing that up for me

That combo you linked to looks good and I don't mind paying that much if it means I get a better experience and manage to breathe some more life in to my machine.

I have 2gb of DDR2 RAM but was thinking of maybe throwing in some more too

I you fill me in on your budget, I don't mind helping you find the best bang for your buck.