Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Well, while sitting in the hospital, I've been trolling ebay for a couple
computers for my home automation project. I picked up two inexpensive
computers.

The first is a SFF GX240. It is a P4-1.8 with 256MB. From what I can
research, it can handle much faster chips. I also am guessing it is USB1.1
(likely similar to the Dimension 4400 or 4500). I also believe it used
PC144 SDRAM (surprising for a P4, but I believe Crucial)

The second is a mini-tower GX260. I am guessing this one is equivalent to my
Dimesion 4550, as it has USB2 ports and uses PC2100/2700 memory.


OK, so the questions are:

1) What's the fastest processor each will accept
2) What form factor is the processor
3) What 'type'. I read Northwood, etc. and have no clue what any of that
means (I know it is the series, but how do you identify them?)

Thanks!

Tom

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Tom,

Off the top of my head, I know that both systems have Socket 478s. The rest I
would have to research out. If the GX240 uses PC133 SDRAM, it is restricted to
400MHz FSB. I think that the fastest 400MHz P4 is 2.2GHz or so, and the fastest
Celery is either 2.7 or 2.8GHz... Ben Myers

On Mon, 29 Aug 2005 21:21:02 GMT, "Tom Scales" <tomtoo@softhome.net> wrote:

>Well, while sitting in the hospital, I've been trolling ebay for a couple
>computers for my home automation project. I picked up two inexpensive
>computers.
>
>The first is a SFF GX240. It is a P4-1.8 with 256MB. From what I can
>research, it can handle much faster chips. I also am guessing it is USB1.1
>(likely similar to the Dimension 4400 or 4500). I also believe it used
>PC144 SDRAM (surprising for a P4, but I believe Crucial)
>
>The second is a mini-tower GX260. I am guessing this one is equivalent to my
>Dimesion 4550, as it has USB2 ports and uses PC2100/2700 memory.
>
>
>OK, so the questions are:
>
>1) What's the fastest processor each will accept
>2) What form factor is the processor
>3) What 'type'. I read Northwood, etc. and have no clue what any of that
>means (I know it is the series, but how do you identify them?)
>
>Thanks!
>
>Tom
>
>

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

<ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote in message
news:43138459.15211532@nntp.charter.net...
> Tom,
>
> Off the top of my head, I know that both systems have Socket 478s. The
> rest I
> would have to research out. If the GX240 uses PC133 SDRAM, it is
> restricted to
> 400MHz FSB. I think that the fastest 400MHz P4 is 2.2GHz or so, and the
> fastest
> Celery is either 2.7 or 2.8GHz... Ben Myers
>

GX240:

http://support.dell.com/support/ed [...] tm#1106346

Fastest P4 will probably be the 2.6/400mhz. Or, as Ben said, the Celery
2.8/400mhz.

GX260:

http://support.dell.com/support/ed [...] tm#1110653

Looks like the equivalent to the Dim4400; meaning 400mhz FSB only - no
533mhz like the Dim4550. Same CPU specs would probably hold true. Natively
uses PC2100 DDR, but can also use PC2700 at slower speeds.

Beware pricing of PC133 SDRAM.....


Stew

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

"S.Lewis" <stew1960@mail.com> wrote in message
news:LrOQe.16124$N1.9531@bignews4.bellsouth.net...
>
> <ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote in message
> news:43138459.15211532@nntp.charter.net...
>> Tom,
>>
>> Off the top of my head, I know that both systems have Socket 478s. The
>> rest I
>> would have to research out. If the GX240 uses PC133 SDRAM, it is
>> restricted to
>> 400MHz FSB. I think that the fastest 400MHz P4 is 2.2GHz or so, and the
>> fastest
>> Celery is either 2.7 or 2.8GHz... Ben Myers
>>
>
> GX240:
>
> http://support.dell.com/support/ed [...] tm#1106346
>
> Fastest P4 will probably be the 2.6/400mhz. Or, as Ben said, the Celery
> 2.8/400mhz.
>
> GX260:
>
> http://support.dell.com/support/ed [...] tm#1110653
>
> Looks like the equivalent to the Dim4400; meaning 400mhz FSB only - no
> 533mhz like the Dim4550. Same CPU specs would probably hold true.
> Natively uses PC2100 DDR, but can also use PC2700 at slower speeds.
>
> Beware pricing of PC133 SDRAM.....
>
>
> Stew
>
>
>
>


The specs say 400/533 for the bus for the GX260, which led me to use the
4550 comparison.

Tom

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

"Tom Scales" <tomtoo@softhome.net> wrote in message
news:QUOQe.67123$Yx1.32917@tornado.tampabay.rr.com...
>
> "S.Lewis" <stew1960@mail.com> wrote in message
> news:LrOQe.16124$N1.9531@bignews4.bellsouth.net...
>>
>> <ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote
>> in message news:43138459.15211532@nntp.charter.net...
>>> Tom,
>>>
>>> Off the top of my head, I know that both systems have
>>> Socket 478s. The rest I
>>> would have to research out. If the GX240 uses PC133
>>> SDRAM, it is restricted to
>>> 400MHz FSB. I think that the fastest 400MHz P4 is
>>> 2.2GHz or so, and the fastest
>>> Celery is either 2.7 or 2.8GHz... Ben Myers
>>>
>>
>> GX240:
>>
>> http://support.dell.com/support/ed [...] tm#1106346
>>
>> Fastest P4 will probably be the 2.6/400mhz. Or, as Ben
>> said, the Celery 2.8/400mhz.
>>
>> GX260:
>>
>> http://support.dell.com/support/ed [...] tm#1110653
>>
>> Looks like the equivalent to the Dim4400; meaning 400mhz
>> FSB only - no 533mhz like the Dim4550. Same CPU specs
>> would probably hold true. Natively uses PC2100 DDR, but
>> can also use PC2700 at slower speeds.
>>
>> Beware pricing of PC133 SDRAM.....
>> Stew
>>
> The specs say 400/533 for the bus for the GX260, which led
> me to use the 4550 comparison.
>
> Tom


Since both systems use the 845 chipset their abilities
should be
similar and perhaps the info available here might be of help
in
selecting a new cpu.
http://support.intel.com/support/c [...] 009236.htm

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Depending on the variant of 845 chip and the overall motherboard design, some
845 chipset boards can handle CPUs running at 800MHz FSB. Others top out at
533. Those with 168-pin DIMMs, not SDRAM, can handle only CPUs at 400MHz FSB.

.... Ben Myers

On Tue, 30 Aug 2005 06:49:54 -0400, "Pen" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote:

>"Tom Scales" <tomtoo@softhome.net> wrote in message
>news:QUOQe.67123$Yx1.32917@tornado.tampabay.rr.com...
>>
>> "S.Lewis" <stew1960@mail.com> wrote in message
>> news:LrOQe.16124$N1.9531@bignews4.bellsouth.net...
>>>
>>> <ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote
>>> in message news:43138459.15211532@nntp.charter.net...
>>>> Tom,
>>>>
>>>> Off the top of my head, I know that both systems have
>>>> Socket 478s. The rest I
>>>> would have to research out. If the GX240 uses PC133
>>>> SDRAM, it is restricted to
>>>> 400MHz FSB. I think that the fastest 400MHz P4 is
>>>> 2.2GHz or so, and the fastest
>>>> Celery is either 2.7 or 2.8GHz... Ben Myers
>>>>
>>>
>>> GX240:
>>>
>>> http://support.dell.com/support/ed [...] tm#1106346
>>>
>>> Fastest P4 will probably be the 2.6/400mhz. Or, as Ben
>>> said, the Celery 2.8/400mhz.
>>>
>>> GX260:
>>>
>>> http://support.dell.com/support/ed [...] tm#1110653
>>>
>>> Looks like the equivalent to the Dim4400; meaning 400mhz
>>> FSB only - no 533mhz like the Dim4550. Same CPU specs
>>> would probably hold true. Natively uses PC2100 DDR, but
>>> can also use PC2700 at slower speeds.
>>>
>>> Beware pricing of PC133 SDRAM.....
>>> Stew
>>>
>> The specs say 400/533 for the bus for the GX260, which led
>> me to use the 4550 comparison.
>>
>> Tom
>
>
>Since both systems use the 845 chipset their abilities
>should be
>similar and perhaps the info available here might be of help
>in
>selecting a new cpu.
>http://support.intel.com/support/chipsets/sb/cs-009236.htm
>

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

OK, I'm getting confused. Dell's doc on the GX260 says 400 or 533. The
GX240 uses SDRAM and I am guessing you mean it is limited to 400.

Regardless, CPUs are EXPENSIVE. I'll likely leave it alone unless someone
has a suggestion for a cheap source. All the ones that I can find cost more
than I paid for the systems.

Tom


<ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote in message
news:43145cde.3376359@nntp.charter.net...
> Depending on the variant of 845 chip and the overall motherboard design,
> some
> 845 chipset boards can handle CPUs running at 800MHz FSB. Others top out
> at
> 533. Those with 168-pin DIMMs, not SDRAM, can handle only CPUs at 400MHz
> FSB.
>
> ... Ben Myers

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Yes, if the GX240 uses SDRAM, its supported CPUs are limited to 400Mhz FSB. I'm
not sure about the GX260, although I have a GX260 board and some 533MHz FSB P4
CPUs here that I could play with if I had the time. I think I would trust
Dell's documentation, which seems to be very accurate.

Yes, CPUs ARE expensive. If you track CPU prices through a life cycle, they are
very expensive when they are top-of-the-line state-of-the-art, then the price
drops, but kicks up again when the model goes out of production. Same with
memory. Checked SDRAM prices lately? More expensive than DDR... Ben Myers

On Tue, 30 Aug 2005 13:45:04 GMT, "Tom Scales" <tomtoo@softhome.net> wrote:

>OK, I'm getting confused. Dell's doc on the GX260 says 400 or 533. The
>GX240 uses SDRAM and I am guessing you mean it is limited to 400.
>
>Regardless, CPUs are EXPENSIVE. I'll likely leave it alone unless someone
>has a suggestion for a cheap source. All the ones that I can find cost more
>than I paid for the systems.
>
>Tom
>
>
><ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote in message
>news:43145cde.3376359@nntp.charter.net...
>> Depending on the variant of 845 chip and the overall motherboard design,
>> some
>> 845 chipset boards can handle CPUs running at 800MHz FSB. Others top out
>> at
>> 533. Those with 168-pin DIMMs, not SDRAM, can handle only CPUs at 400MHz
>> FSB.
>>
>> ... Ben Myers
>
>

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

One more thing about price curves. At some point, CPUs (and memory) become
almost totally obsolete, rarely used in serious computing, interesting to
hobbyists and a few others who relish being on the trailing edge. At that
point, prices plummet to something barely above scrap value.

I remember selling some company 4MB 30-pin SIMMs for $50 apiece not too long
ago, and they were ecstatic to pay such a low price. Now you can melt them down
for scrap. Same with 60MHz Socket 4 Pentium chips, which always ran too hot
anyway, and they got Intel started down the path of lower voltage CPUs.

.... Ben Myers

On Tue, 30 Aug 2005 17:19:27 GMT, ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben
Myers) wrote:

>Yes, if the GX240 uses SDRAM, its supported CPUs are limited to 400Mhz FSB. I'm
>not sure about the GX260, although I have a GX260 board and some 533MHz FSB P4
>CPUs here that I could play with if I had the time. I think I would trust
>Dell's documentation, which seems to be very accurate.
>
>Yes, CPUs ARE expensive. If you track CPU prices through a life cycle, they are
>very expensive when they are top-of-the-line state-of-the-art, then the price
>drops, but kicks up again when the model goes out of production. Same with
>memory. Checked SDRAM prices lately? More expensive than DDR... Ben Myers
>
>On Tue, 30 Aug 2005 13:45:04 GMT, "Tom Scales" <tomtoo@softhome.net> wrote:
>
>>OK, I'm getting confused. Dell's doc on the GX260 says 400 or 533. The
>>GX240 uses SDRAM and I am guessing you mean it is limited to 400.
>>
>>Regardless, CPUs are EXPENSIVE. I'll likely leave it alone unless someone
>>has a suggestion for a cheap source. All the ones that I can find cost more
>>than I paid for the systems.
>>
>>Tom
>>
>>
>><ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote in message
>>news:43145cde.3376359@nntp.charter.net...
>>> Depending on the variant of 845 chip and the overall motherboard design,
>>> some
>>> 845 chipset boards can handle CPUs running at 800MHz FSB. Others top out
>>> at
>>> 533. Those with 168-pin DIMMs, not SDRAM, can handle only CPUs at 400MHz
>>> FSB.
>>>
>>> ... Ben Myers
>>
>>
>

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

I found a good ebay price on both SDRAM and DDR. Bought 512mb for the GX240
(takes it to 768) and 1GB for the GX260 (takes it to 1.25 GB).

Got any CPUs laying around you want to sell at a good price

Tom


<ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote in message
news:43149416.17514999@nntp.charter.net...
> Yes, if the GX240 uses SDRAM, its supported CPUs are limited to 400Mhz
> FSB. I'm
> not sure about the GX260, although I have a GX260 board and some 533MHz
> FSB P4
> CPUs here that I could play with if I had the time. I think I would trust
> Dell's documentation, which seems to be very accurate.
>
> Yes, CPUs ARE expensive. If you track CPU prices through a life cycle,
> they are
> very expensive when they are top-of-the-line state-of-the-art, then the
> price
> drops, but kicks up again when the model goes out of production. Same
> with
> memory. Checked SDRAM prices lately? More expensive than DDR... Ben
> Myers
>
> On Tue, 30 Aug 2005 13:45:04 GMT, "Tom Scales" <tomtoo@softhome.net>
> wrote:

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

<ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote in message
news:43145cde.3376359@nntp.charter.net...
> Depending on the variant of 845 chip and the overall motherboard design,
> some
> 845 chipset boards can handle CPUs running at 800MHz FSB. Others top out
> at
> 533. Those with 168-pin DIMMs, not SDRAM, can handle only CPUs at 400MHz
> FSB.
>
> ... Ben Myers
>


Right. If my memory serves correctly, the Dimension 4500 and 4550 were
essentially separated by support for 400mhz and 533mhz FSB CPUs.

Just for safety and $$$ sake, I'd stick with 400mhz FSB chips unless someone
gave me a 3.06/533mhz they didn't want


Stew