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Question

Upgrading XPS 420 CPU

Jul 6, 2018 6:27AM PDT

Intel 2 Quad CPU Q6600 2.40GHz
Nvidia GTX 545
4GB ram

I am having some CPU bottle necking while playing games I think, and I'm not sure what I can safely upgrade too.

Would appreciate some recommendations. Thanks!

Discussion is locked

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Answer
Re: Dell XPS 420
Jul 6, 2018 7:05AM PDT

I see that this model is some 10 years old. Forget about upgrading the CPU, or anything, although - if you really are attached to this machine and it runs Windows 7 or higher - you can consider to add an SSD for a faster boot (don't do it if you still use the Windows Vista it came with).

Buying another PC is the only feasible option.

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Answer
Upgrade
Jul 6, 2018 3:41PM PDT

Assuming the OS is 64 bit.

Assuming the ram is a 4GB stick.

Remove the ram stick and read the label on it.

Now go shopping for an exact match.

Put the new stick in the proper slot for dual channel.

Do some testing to verify windows sees all the ram and dual channel is enabled.

Are you sure that gpu is a gtx 545?

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thanks for all the help.
Jul 7, 2018 4:25PM PDT

Yes it is GTX 545. I put it in.

What would upgrading my ram do? Will it improve fps in games?

I am running windows 7 64bit

There is 4 ram sicks 1GB each, I have 2 4GB sticks but they are they don't fit.

Im considering getting a different motherboard.

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Ram
Jul 7, 2018 9:57PM PDT

Here's the ram you want.
http://www.crucial.com/usa/en/xps-420/CT1167039
You want 2 of those kits.

Yes it will increase fps.

If you replace the mobo you will need to buy another OS.

That gpu seems to be an unique thing....can you post a link?

Where did w7 come from it's not a supported OS from Dell.

If it's something you installed where did you get the drivers to support that mobo?

Msft support for w7 ends in about 18 months so think about that before sinking bucks into that machine.

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idk
Jul 8, 2018 12:26AM PDT

I took the GPU out of my Alienware x51.

The harddrive died and I had this computer so I threw in the GPU and upgraded to w7 with usb.

I tried putting the harddrive from my XPS420 after upgrading it to windows 7 on the XPS420 with usb. The x51 just beeped on boot, so i put the gpu back in the XPS420 and have been using this since. I'm not sure if the motherboard is bad but ideally i would like to move my x51 motherboard into my xps420 since I already have better ram and cpu in it if that is even possible.

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Mobo
Jul 8, 2018 1:33AM PDT

Will the x51 mobo fit in the xps 420?

Does the x51 mobo use proprietary connectors?

If it will fit in the case and you can use your xps 420 psu then I suspect you will need the factory restore media to load the OS on your hdd.

Then it's off to dell to get the driver updates for the mobo.

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beep
Jul 8, 2018 3:56AM PDT

So was it just beeping at me b/c it did not have the mobo drivers? Meaning i need to fresh install windows through that mobo onto the hdd.

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Beep
Jul 8, 2018 4:15AM PDT

What does the manual say about the beep code.

You can't take an OS from one machine and boot it on a different machine.

That rarely works.

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Answer
Beeping on power up.
Jul 8, 2018 8:22AM PDT

Is not a driver or OS issue. I'm off to the Dell Docs on this model to see what the beeps or rear LEDs tell me but go back to what worked then change ONE PART AT A TIME. Do everything and you can't tell what it was.

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beep
Jul 8, 2018 4:53PM PDT

Originally my computer(x51) froze up an upon restart the HDD would not be detected, thinking the HDD died I then moved my gpu to the XPS420 and upgraded the OS it had to w7 on its HDD. Then I moved the HDD to my x51 and this is when the beeping happen. Just some clarification. I will do some testing later but it is quite a hassle to put the x51 back together. Could trying to boot the HDD from a different computer cause the beeping and no display output? I would think it would at least show setup bios.

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The beeps
Jul 8, 2018 5:32PM PDT

Have nothing to do with the disk.... it is a failure during POST.

You don't need a disk or disc connected it should still pass POST and give a bios screen.

So your back to the manual to see what it says about the beep code.

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Moving an OS HDD?
Jul 8, 2018 6:49PM PDT

That fails over and over. I'm not sure if you know about the problems and how far off the support map you are on that.

You don't need the HDD yet. You should go back to what worked. Then try moving forward.