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Dell XPS 710 H2C upgrade/build suggestions

Mar 14, 2015 1:08PM PDT

I have an old Dell XPS 710 H2C that I would like to upgrade as much as possible and don't know where to begin. Here are the specs; any suggestions on what can be replaced would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance:

- Intel Core2 Extreme processor QX6700 (3.20GHz,Overclocked) w/Dual Core Technology and 8MB cache
- 4GB DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz
- Dual 768MB NVIDIA GeForce 8800GTX
- Serial ATA2 RAID 1 With Dual 500GB Hard Drives
- No Floppy Drive
- Vista
- 16X DVD-ROM and 16X DVD+/-RW
- X-Fi PCI Sound Card
- Ageia PhysX Processor
- Dozer Chassis
- Motherboard 7-slot BTX
- 750-watt Power Supply
- Copper Heat Sink
- Two 120mm x 38mm front fans

Discussion is locked

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why?
Mar 14, 2015 11:48PM PDT

Having any problems?

http://www.cnet.com/products/dell-xps-710-h2c-edition/

http://downloads.dell.com/Manuals/all-products/esuprt_desktop/esuprt_xps_desktop/xps-710-h2c_Service%20Manual_en-us.pdf

First upgrade would be thoroughly clean it inside.
Second upgrade would be to replace the temperature paste between the current processor and HSF.

Addressing Memory Configurations
If you are using a 32-bit operating system such as Microsoft ® Windows ® XP, your computer will support a maximum of 4 GB of memory. If you are using a 64-bit operating system, your computer will support a maximum of 8 GB (2-GB DIMMs in each of the four slots) of memory


Notice the RAM limit. You could double current RAM but modules can't exceed 2GB in size. There shouldn't be a speed limit, so get faster than the 667 Mhz you currently have.

A new video card.

You could go with a quad core CPU, but don't really think it's worth the extra bucks.

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What for?
Mar 15, 2015 1:11AM PDT

While I rarely see folk change out the CPU, maxing out the RAM is an easy first step.

The RAID 1 usually blows up on folk so be sure you have a firm handle on backup, restore and maintenance. Raid 1 is not a substitute for backup as all it does is copy the infected files from one copy to the next along with whatever else can cause a system to fault. Owner's choice but usually not an informed decision.

After RAM you might swap up the GPU to something current. The 8800 if working can be sold off. Just clean it with canned air so it looks nice. Here's my goto list:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html
Bob