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Pentium 4

R

Rydawg5143

Supreme [H]ardness
Joined
Apr 22, 2008
Messages
6,781
OK, I've been watching these boards for quite some time but finally i registered so i can start asking lots of newb questions....

So I have a pent4 631 800 3.0 cpu, which seems to have fried ( when i start the computer it tells me there is a error with the cpu and the system is being shut down) I'm looking at buying a new one but i have a couple questions.

Where is the cheapest place to buy a cpu of this sort?
Would it work if I took out the exsisting MB and installed a new one with a AMD x2 64 and able to keep my windows version ( I bought the comp at bestbuy and didn't get a OS CD)?
What yall think? Any and all help is greatly appreciated

Oh and I forgot, when buying stuff. What is the difference between OEM items and not.?
 
1. eBay would probably be the cheapest place to buy a direct replacement for the CPU. If you have a 945 or newer chipset, you may be able to get a dual core Pentium D for about the same price.

2. Most oem systems use normal sized motherboards (usually microATX, especially for HP/Compaq systems). It is possible to replace the motherboard without reinstalling the OS, but you may have to reactivate Windows.

3. Yes, I think a modern X2 motherboard and CPU upgrade would be the better option if you don't mind doing the work.

"OEM items" are really nothing different from most standard hardware. Sometimes people assume (incorrectly) that OEM items are proprietary, although there are occasionally some parts that can't easily be replaced with "standard" parts. Examples:

BTX based computers won't generally fit ATX motherboards

Dell used some oddball sized ATX and BTX motherboards in their "mid-tower" systems for years (others used easily replaceable microATX boards)

Dell P3 and older systems used non-standard pinout power supplies

older dead end LPX format motherboards don't have easy replacements

Only the 2nd and 3rd examples above is a proprietary parts. The other two are/were standards. There can be more than one. :p

Usually it's better to mention what hardware you're talking about (manufacturer/model) so answers can be more specific.
 
There should be a sticker with your Windows CD Key on the side of your computer and it should have come with a recovery disk with Windows on it among other things.
 
I had never thought about that. So recovery disk + side # would = easy reinstal if i put a new Mobo and cpu in ?

Thanks in advance
 
pxc said:
1. eBay would probably be the cheapest place to buy a direct replacement for the CPU. If you have a 945 or newer chipset, you may be able to get a dual core Pentium D for about the same price.

2. Most oem systems use normal sized motherboards (usually microATX, especially for HP/Compaq systems). It is possible to replace the motherboard without reinstalling the OS, but you may have to reactivate Windows.

3. Yes, I think a modern X2 motherboard and CPU upgrade would be the better option if you don't mind doing the work.

"OEM items" are really nothing different from most standard hardware. Sometimes people assume (incorrectly) that OEM items are proprietary, although there are occasionally some parts that can't easily be replaced with "standard" parts. Examples:
Click to expand...

Just an addition - many OEM items you can buy also typically lack the stuff you'd get from the retail equivalent of the item. For example, Intel OEM CPUs are not warrantied by Intel, only by whomever you bought it from, whereas Intel covers retail processors with a 3 year warranty. OEM CPUs generally don't have a heatsink either, or the fancy packaging. For enthusiasts, neither of these points is probably very important, since they'll use aftermarket heatsinks and void warranties with OCing, but just keep it in mind.

OEM hard drives don't come with retail packaging nor cables. OEM video cards are the same way, pretty much.
 
It's very rare for the CPU to die/malfunction in my experience.

I would tend to look toward something on the motherboard being faulty... It would help if you had another system to put that CPU in, or another CPU to test in that system.
 
When i put CPU back in and try and start computer it gives me an error before any boot screen and tells me to replace the CPU and then shuts off /shrug
 
1) i have a Pentium 4 540 that i'll sell you cheap, pm me :)

2) your license should def be on the side of the tower, sometimes replacing the mobo and trying to keep the OS on the HDD will work, and you'll just need to install drivers, sometimes it doesn't go so well and you have to reformat/re-install. just depends, sometimes it works, sometimes it does not.

3) did any cables come undone from the motherboard? i know i'd get the same message if my 4-pin cpu power connection wasn't plugged in to the board.

4) buy my processor! haha
 
OK so here is the whole story
I play Everquest and couple weeks back it would start to run horribly slow. At 1st i thought it was the video card so i replaced that, didn't work. After talking to a friend online he said to clean my fan and check to see if the cpu was damaged or something. So i take the fan/hs ous and clean it w/ vacuum, took a quick peak at the cpu and nothign appears wrong visually. Put cpu back in and wam, computer wont start with the above message.
 
It would be pretty unusual for the CPU to have gone bad. If the warning is coming from the OS and not a POST screen, it may be a corrupted OS or a problem with the memory or motherboard. I'd suspect the CPU very last.

Troubleshooting can be easier if you download memtest86+ and start narrowing down the problem. If you get errors, start removing memory and test with 1 DIMM at a time. If it's a problem with a DIMM or basic system instability, that should be easy to find. If you get no errors and have another hard drive or free partition, I'd recommend installing Windows again there to test.
 
sent you a pm

did you plug the fan back in when re-installing the HSF? and did you seat the silly thing properly? like does if have screws or those push pin thingies that stock intel HSF's have?
 
ya i put it all back together properly.
I'll try the mem thing tonight. hopefully
It's my 3rd PC and I don't use it much, but stil. Like to have em all runnign :(
 
I forgot to add this as well. After i figured out it was the cpu( or so i thought) I scraped off the grey substance off the cpu. How do i properly clean this and what can i get at microcenter ( right next door to my work pretty much) to replace it

Sorry for the 1000 questions. I'm real putdated on lots of this stuff. Last time i built a PC, was like 7-8 years ago.

Thank you in advance.. again :)
 
if they don't have what dhc014 said, pretty much any thermal compound will be better than the silver crap that was on the heatsink.
 
It's the fan, now i have to find a good replacement for it without spending a bunch of money :( any idea?
Thanks in advance
 
Rydawg5143 said:
It's the fan, now i have to find a good replacement for it without spending a bunch of money :( any idea?
Thanks in advance
Click to expand...

Here are all the CPU coolers @ Micro Center organized lowest price first, just find one that fits your socket and you're good to go.
 
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