Could someone explain what I might do to improve this?


And how I might go about it.
Just minor tweaks, I don't want to go and nuke my computer.

system specs would be nice before we can help ya also might wanna try raising thre CPU FSB to atleast 200 or higher!

With the info you have provided I must revert to my standard suggestions when I have no way to provide a real answer.

"OC it till it burns up and fries. Then buy a new one and don't go quite that far."

Edit: I guess I could tell you what we need.
Cpu specs, Ram type and specs, Mobo, PSU brand and rated specs, OS, cooling, and current temps.

CPU-Intel P4 2.66 gigahertz
m/b- Dell OC2425, intel i845G chipset,
RAM-256mb DDR-SDRAM
PSU-PowMax 450 watt Ac Input-115v/230v 10a/6a 60/50Hz
OS-Windows XP home edition
Cooling-80mm fan x4, 120mm fan x1
Temps- Any suggestions on an accurate way to messure temps?

You'll want to upgrade your ram to at least 512mb, if not more, as Windows XP is supposed to recommend at least 256mb for basic tasks, never mind actual games and everything. Secondly, if your mobo is a dell one, then i doubt you can OC much, if at all. Dell's are notorious for their locked, crippled BIOS' and it's hard as hell to find a good, reliable one that will let you OC. That being said, you could try a modded BIOS by a guy named SpongeBob, among other tweakers (seriously, i had one of his on my old 8200) and/or a software utility like Clockgen or something. As always, your mileage may vary, but what the hell, it's worth a try!

yeah, I am going to upgrade the motherboard pretty soon and try and get a gig of ram.

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-130-450&depa=0
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-145-440&depa=1

The Dell motherboard will not allow overclocking, as far as that goes, about the only thing in there worth keeping is the CPU!
And at that, it is 3 generations old, and not the greatest choice for overclocking, but not terrible either.
(Well maybe the CD and floppy drive might be worth saving) Even the power suply won't handle overclocking happily.

I would suggest selling the whole thing on EBAY or the forums here as an option, and start from scratch rather than and end up building a PC around a old CPU. You could also just buy a few items at a time and upgrade that way

Here would be some of what I would pick If I were building a budget rig with overclocking and gaming in mind

76$ Chaintech Mobo (Good budget OC board)
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...152-043&depa=0
112$ AMD 64 2800+ (Can run over 2.4ghz)
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...103-491&depa=0
75$ Kingmax PC3500 (good for up to around 240FSB)
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...156-008&depa=1

Thanks for the help necro, I'd just end up with another lame pc I thought was good If I didn't have the pimprig forumers to help me.

You're welcome, Canus, and don't beat yourself up about it. we were all noobs once, ya know... And I second Necro's suggested specs, they're definitely one of the best budget configs out there. Do you have an AGP videocard though? if not, i'd suggest looking into one. Recommendations: ATI 9800se (only the 256bit one, though) and 9800pro, Nvidia 6600/6600gt. The 9800se/6600 should be in the 120-150 range, and the 9800pro and the 6600gt are $200, occasionally more.

Yeah I have a geforce fx 5200 and I already started on rounding up those components.
I bought the ram yesterday.

Quote: Originally Posted by Canus Yeah I have a geforce fx 5200 and I already started on rounding up those components. I bought the ram yesterday.

The 5200 is not realy much of a gaming card, but it will work for now. If you play older games at low to medium res, it works fine.

Doom 3 and HL-2, and other new games will bring it to it's knees though.

9600 and up for ATI

6600 and up for Nvidia

You get what you pay for in a Video card, a 6800 or X-800 would realy be a huge step up....high res with the eye candy turned up realy brings the games to life.

I would rather have a slow CPU and a fast vid card, than the other way around.

Even your Dell would wake up alot with a top end card and 1GB of memory

BTW. which system did that mobo come out of?

dimension 2400

That wouldn't have an AGP slot then. Cheap bastards. I would have guesed by the model of the mobo (OC2425), but that confirmed it. Your system wouldn't have taken a CPU higher than 533fsb or an AGP video card.

yeah I knew I couldn't use the AGP card yet but for some reason my parents got me the AGP card before the motherboard I need. lol

Rofl...well good luck on the purchase and keep us posted on how everything goes.

Well I live in tennessee and my Ram is in louisville TN as of 2:00 AM this morning. I have no idea where Louisville TN is but I assume its the fedex shipping headquarters given the time of departure from wherever it departed this morning. I expect it today in short terms. lol

Ram secured

now all you need is a decent mobo...by the way, IMHO, you eat way too much Toblerone . Also try not to double post - use the EDIT button at the bottom of your post to add pictures or extra info to your last post.

Just saves on server resources, and the Staffs' patience

First too, much, and toblerone are three words never to be used in the same sentence unless it reads as follows. "I never have too much toblerone."
Second I'll stop double posting.