How would I go about replacing my Motherboard?

Question

You see I have most of my PC componants and little by the way of money yet I need to replace the one I have.

The componants inc processor =

Nvidia Geforce 7600GT * 512MB * AGP
NANYA DDR MEMORY 512MB 400mhz PC3200
And a Intel p4 Processor
the rest are universal and if needbe i'd by a new case

For a rough guid my current (with problems) Motherboard is a
648FX-A2 (V1.0)
Socket 478 for Intel Pentium 4

A Link to the Manufacturer details are - http://www.ecs.com.tw/ECSWebSite/Products/ProductsDetail.aspx?detailid=426&DetailName=Manual&MenuID=1&LanID=8

Answer 1

I'm doing the same thing but im upgrading from AGP to PCI card slot, Look for gigabyte motherboards, Usually you should have a local computer store, future shop *might* have some but doubt it, if all else fails resort to ebay,kijiji or some other site. But if you wanna just replace the mother board make sure ** It has the same memory slot speed, and the cpu socket number matches your other one. so you save money..

Answer 2

I had to buy a new motherboard last week for my older desktop due to problems and what I did to find one was to find one of the websites which index shopping sites and typed socket 478 into it and that found me a new motherboard easily enough.



Due to the age of the motherboard/socket set there aren't many places with new ones these days, the motherboard I ended up purchasing was an "Asrock P4I65G" which would suit you as well I'd think, another option is looking on eBay but then you have to hunt around for something suitable that may or may not have problems since a lot of them are pulled out of computers and are secondhand.

Answer 3

Just out of interest - why do you feel you have to replace the MB? What's wrong with it? It might require something less drastic...





As others have pointed out - buying an older motherboard is a bit of a waste of money. If you really must, go to a local computer shop, and ask if they have any system pulls from upgrades that would suit your needs.



You can buy a new chip (AMD X2 4800) for about 40 quid, a new board (MSI or Gigabyte) for about 25, and memory (1gb) for about 15. You will end up with a much better computer if you go this route.

Answer 4

the short answers is to just go buy a socket 478 motherboard that will work with your processor. Once you have the motherboard, you have to take out all your cards from your computer, unmount the motherboard, mount the new motherboard. Transfer the memory, CPU and fans. Finally, reinstall all the cards.



To be honest though, unless something is wrong with your current motherboard. You probably will not benefit much by upgrading your motherboard without upgrading your memory, CPU, etc.

Answer 5

hi mate

i have similar specifications to yours,socket 478 epox 4plmi motherboard,geforce 7600gt agp,2gb ddr pc3200 ram,and a 3.2ghz pentium 4 (ht)

however the biggest problem you are going to encounter is finding a socket 478 motherboard that supports pci-express,it wouldnt make any sense getting another agp based motherboard

however theres some manufactueres(god bless em) that still make pci-express based socket478 motherboards

a excellent example is the Asrock P4VM890 PCI Express x16 socket 478(http://www.pcupgrade.co.uk/productdetails.asp?ProductID=3702&categoryid=259) and the ASROCK SKT-478 P4VM900 S/V/L(http://www.pcb-plus.co.uk/store/product/1593/ASROCK-SKT-478-P4VM900--S-V-L/),and to be honest these are about your only choice

but these motherboards are excellent and will bring you into the world of mega fast graphics with the pci-express x16 interface

however when changing the socket 478 processor make sure you are careful when removing the processor,the socket 478 fan and heatsink assembelys are difficult to disamantle,and since the actuation lever is hidden by the massive heatsink this can become a bit difficult

however heres a tip: when you have uncliped the fan assemebely take hold of the heatsink and gently move it ,only ever so slightly until you hear a "pop" or "crack"..this will be the "thermal compound" releasing its hold on the socket 478 pentium 4

you are now safe to remove the fan assembely and heatsink,then raise the actuation lever and gently remove the socket 478 pentium 4

when you fit the processor on your new motherboard use a more efficent and easy to remove heatsink/fan such as the Zalman CNPS7500-ALCU CPU Cooler (Socket 478/754/939/940/AM2/LGA775)(http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-030-ZA&groupid=701&catid=57&subcat=821&name=Zalman%20CNPS7500-ALCU%20CPU%20Cooler%20(Socket%20478/754/939/940/AM2/LGA775)

this is a very efficent fan and the heatsink is in a bowl like shape alowing for better circulation,the fan also has a Fan Mate 2 controller allowing you to change the speeds..a excellent fan

also consider the Zalman CNPS9500A-LED CPU Cooler (Socket 478/754/939/940/LGA775) from http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-015-ZA&groupid=701&catid=57&subcat=821&name=Zalman%20CNPS9500A-LED%20CPU%20Cooler%20(Socket%20478/754/939/940/LGA775)..nice design and excellent cooling potential,this is popular with overclockers and pc modders,they are also easier to replace and clean

as for a new case,well it depends on the size of the new motherboard,the asrock boards are both m-atx which should fit in any case,thr atx size sometimes requires a larger case

a excellent case upgrade is the Apevia X-Plorer Black/Blue Neon Midi Tower (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-030-OK&groupid=701&catid=7&subcat=505&name=Apevia%20X-Plorer%20Black/Blue%20Neon%20Midi%20Tower%20No%20PSU),this is a excellent pc case with some nice touches,these include a rear and side panel fan,a temperture monitor and a cool looking front access door

i hope this helps,however any problems let me know

good luck mate !

Answer 6

Want to fully upgrade with a P4 processor and want to also use a true PCI videocard (not at 4x speed)? Get this motherboard...



http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?Model=P4Twins-HDTV&s=478



----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Socket 478 for Intel® Pentium 4 / Celeron D processor

- Chipset capable to ***FSB 1066 MHz***

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Yes, with a 478 Williamette and Northwood, not 775 Prescott/Smithfield!



Can use DDR/DDR2 memory; and IDE and SATAII HDDs.



It's a bridge board, and made by the "cheap" Asus division, Asrock. It'll last you long enough to upgrade piecemeal, and still get more than most P4 motherboards (that like mine here, can't even use SATA 3.0).

Answer 7

Hi,

These components are far cheaper these days, you may want to buy a better one. I would go for something like a Ge-force, and possibly 2GB of memory.

GDJ.