The Ultimate PC Upgrade Guide - Part 1: Motherboards
Staff writers
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Jan 9, 2009 4:47 PM
Want to perform an extreme makeover of your system's motherboard, processor, memory or hard disk? We'll show you how.
If there's one thing that keeps people loyal to desktop PCs over laptops, it's their sheer upgradeability. A judicious upgrade can give your ageing system a big enough boost to keep it going for a year or more, and what's more it takes no great technical expertise to do so. In fact, all you need is this guide.
We've split it into four sections. We start with the biggest and most satisfying upgrade of them all – the motherboard at the heart of your system. Next up is upgrading your processor. Our step-by-step guide not only covers the physical steps, but also shows how to choose the right CPU.
Although motherboard and processor upgrades usually go together, it's often possible to add a newer, faster and cheaper processor into an old motherboard.
An even quicker way to speed up a nslow system is to install extra memory. You can instantly invigorate your system by doubling or even quadrupling the RAM. This has never been easier – sites such as cruical.com make it as straightforward as following a wizard to guide you to the right upgrade.
Finally, we'll show you how to increase your storage space and boost your speed at the same time with a hard disk upgrade. It can be more complicated that it first appears, but we explain how standards have evolved over time and help you select thr right disk.
No matter what component – or components – you upgrade, the rewards can be stunning. Even if you've never opened the side of your PC's case before, our comprehensive step-by-step guides should give you a clear explanation of what to do with your system. But lets not overstate the simplicity.
If you're unaware of the jargon, it's easy to buy tech that won't conveniently slide into your system. That's why each section includes a compatibility checklist to identify the key potential slip-ups.
Upgrade your motherboard
How long does it take?
Replacing your motherboard is an evening's work.
How Hard is it?
Replacing your motherboard requires a decent amount of tech savvy
Moving your PC to a new motherboard can revolutionise its capabilities - and open the door to a host of useful money-saving features.
Fitting a new motherboard could give your PC a new lease of life. At a stroke, a new motherboard can add support for cutting-edge technologies such as quad-core processors, DDR3 memory, and multiple graphics cards.
Installing a new motherboard brings your PC right up to date, allowing you to install all the latest components. Upgrade to a new processor at the same time and your PC could enjoy a major speed boost, allowing you to do things that your system previously struggled with, such as video and audio editing.
Most modern boards also come with lots of useful extras, such as surround sound, an integrated ethernet connection and even built-in antivirus capabilities. And upgrading your motherboard is a great way to improve your understanding of PC hardware – once you’ve done it you’ll literally know your PC inside and out.
In this step-by-step guide we show you how to choose the right motherboard, how to install it and how to deal with any problems you might encounter.
Choosing a motherboard
Most people combine a motherboard upgrade with a processor upgrade – keeping an older processor will severely restrict your choice of motherboards, and upgrading the motherboard alone won’t visibly improve system performance.
Whichever processor you go for, there will be a wide range of motherboards that can support it, so pick your processor first, then focus on motherboards with the appropriate CPU socket. There are two main socket types currently in use – Socket 775, used by Intel processors, and Socket AM2/AM2+ used by AMD. See page 26 for more on CPU sockets.
Checking compatibility
Picking a motherboard with the right socket means your chosen CPU will physically fit, but before settling on a motherboard it’s worth double-checking that it supports the specific model of CPU you’re planning to buy. Download the motherboard’s technical specifications or manuals from the manufacturer’s website for a full list of supported processors.
The next thing to consider is whether your case, power supply, graphics card memory and drives will work with your new motherboard. If your existing PC is more than a few years old, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to bring all of these components across onto a modern motherboard.
The case (or chassis) is the part you’re most likely to be able to keep. Unless your PC is extraordinarily old, it will probably conform to the ATX form factor, which governs the size of the motherboard and the placement of its connectors and screw-holes. You can find out by looking up the form factor of your old motherboard: if it’s an ATX board, you’ve got an ATX case.
ATX remains by far the most common form factor today, so it should be easy to find a board to fit your existing case. Even models built to the smaller microATX standard can still be fitted into an ATX chassis, though you’ll waste some space inside the case.
You may well be able to keep your existing power supply too. Check that the main power plug is of the newer 24-pin design, as the older 20-pin connector is now obsolete. Some power supplies have a 20-pin connector with a supplementary 4-pin connector, so they can be used with either. Also check that there’s a free 4-pin 12V connector, as modern CPUs need this as a dedicated power line. And, naturally, you need to be sure your power supply has sufficient wattage for any new components.
Your old graphics card is likely to be a problem. Unless you bought it within the past two years, it’ll probably use the old AGP connector, which is all but extinct. Sad to say, your card is almost certainly a write-off. However, many current motherboards have integrated graphics processors, which are perfectly powerful enough for everyday tasks and older games.
Memory is another common casualty of a motherboard upgrade. The vast majority of today’s boards use DDR2, with a significant minority using the faster (but far more expensive) DDR3. If your motherboard is more than a few years old, it’s likely to use an older memory technology, and you’ll just have to ditch your RAM.
Even if your old system did use DDR2, it may run too slowly for a new motherboard. But don’t despair – memory is now so affordable that you can buy two fast 1GB DDR2 DIMMs for under $80.
Finally, consider your drives. Older systems use the IDE interface (also called PATA) to communicate with hard disks and optical drives. Current motherboards still support IDE, but where in the past it was normal to offer two IDE connectors, modern boards now offer only one. Each connector supports two drives, so you’re limited to bringing a maximum of two IDE drives across from your old system – typically a hard disk and an optical drive.
It’s sometimes claimed that running an optical drive and a hard disk on the same IDE channel will slow the hard disk down; but so long as both devices support UDMA addressing, they’ll happily work together at full speed. You can check that UDMA is in use in the Windows Device Manager, or often in your PC’s BIOS.
Once you’ve worked out which components you’ll need to update, you can set a realistic budget for your planned upgrade – or abandon it if it turns out to be uneconomical.
- Continued next page -
** For more information on how to upgrade your computer, including the ultimate guide to upgrading your processor, memory, hard disk, graphics and power supply - make sure you check out the Febuary 2009 issue of PC Authority. It's out now! **Buying your motherboard
Once you’ve dealt with compatibility issues, you need to decide what kind of motherboard you want and how much you’re willing to spend. If you’re just finding your old PC a bit slow, and want to give it a boost by installing a new CPU, you can combine a budget processor with a $70 motherboard and get a much-improved PC. If you have bigger ambitions – such as multi-GPU gaming, or the flexibility to tweak and overclock your system – you’ll need to spend more on a more fully featured board.
Whatever your budget, it’s important to consider the peripherals you want your new board to work with. If you have an old printer, for example, it might use a parallel connection, which is a rarity on modern motherboards. You’ll have to choose between upgrading your printer or limiting your motherboard search to boards with the appropriate port. The same applies if you have any peripherals connected to a serial port.
Consider internal expansion cards too. The standard PCI slot is still supported by most modern boards, but many models only have one or two slots, with the rest of their sockets using the newer PCI Express format. Don’t pick a board that can’t accommodate all your hardware.
Then, look at what integrated peripherals and connectors each board offers. A bargain basement board may have little more than a few USB connectors and an Ethernet port at the back, while more lavish options have up to eight USB connectors, plus extra features like eSATA, FireWire and digital audio.
Some, as noted above, have onboard graphics, which may offer DVI, TV output and even HDMI. You can always add capabilities to your PC at a later date with expansion cards, but it’s simpler and more economical to pick a board that has them built in.
Check how many Serial ATA (SATA) connectors are offered too. SATA is the modern way to connect hard disks and optical drives, and it’s faster and simpler than IDE. If you ever expect to add extra drives to your machine in the future, they’ll almost certainly use SATA instead of IDE, so pick a board with enough connectors.
Many motherboards also have a built-in SATA RAID controller. RAID allows you to configure two hard disks to work together as one drive, giving you either twice the speed or twice the reliability.
Finally, look at the diagnostics and power management utilities a board offers. Many boards come with software to monitor things like the temperature of your processor, the rotation speed of its fan, the voltage at which various parts of your system are running, and so on.
Many also use smart power management systems, which can intelligently drop speeds and voltages when top performance isn’t needed. This can cut power consumption by 20% or more, making your computer greener and cheaper to run.
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- Continued next page - Motherboards: What to look for
No matter what kind of motherboard you want, there are some universals that everyone should look for. The first is good design and layout. Switches, slots and connectors should be easily accessible and well labelled.
The BIOS should give you detailed control over the way the board works. Issues like this can be hard to judge by yourself, but the reviews in PC Authority can advise you. For a selection of our current recommendations, see the A List in the magazine and the website.
Another important issue is support. Some manufacturers’ support sites are difficult to navigate or lacking in resources. Others don’t have a dedicated site for the UK. Even if you’re only a casual computer user, at some point your motherboard may need a BIOS update. It’s crucial to have confidence that your board will be supported for its whole lifespan.
If you’re a subscriber to PC Authority, you already have the Reliability and Service Awards 2008 in your armoury to see exactly how all the major motherboard makers rate for customer support. As a guide, Gigabyte won our Motherboard Award in part for its customer service, with Asus in close contention.
Motherboard Clinic
Your motherboard questions are answered here:
Q)I’ve installed my new motherboard and hooked everything up, but my PC says there’s no boot disk. What do I do now?
A)Boot into the motherboard’s BIOS (the manual will tell you how). Look under IDE or SATA in the BIOS for your hard disk. If it’s missing, turn off and try it on a different connector. Once the drive is detected, make sure that it’s enabled and selected as the first boot device.
Q) I’ve changed my motherboard but now my PC won’t start up at all. Help!
A) Listen carefully for a number of beeps after you turn the computer on; then turn it off again. The motherboard’s manual will explain the meaning of the beeps (some use lights instead). Overheating is one possibility, perhaps from having used too little thermal paste; or it could be a case of dodgy RAM. If there are no beeps, the problem could be a loose connection: try unplugging and reconnecting internal components, especially the CPU, RAM and any IDE drives.
Q) I’ve upgraded but why is my system now so slow?
A) In the BIOS, check that the CPU is set to run at full speed. There will probably be an option to ‘Load optimised settings’ that should do this for you. If your board has dual memory controllers, make sure you have two identical sticks of RAM, one on each.
- Continued next page - Step by Step: Replace your motherboard
1) FIT THE PROCESSOR
All processors have markings to tell you which way they fit in their socket. These usually include a triangle in one corner, which you line up with a triangle on the socket. Be careful not to fit the processor the wrong way.
2) FIT THE CPU COOLER
Once you’ve placed the processor in its socket, you’ll need to apply thermal paste, fit the heatsink and connect the CPU fan. See page 12 for full instructions on fitting a processor.
3) INSTALL RAM
If you’re reusing memory from your existing motherboard, remove it by pushing apart the clips at either end of each socket. To install memory in your new motherboard, slot the modules into the sockets – there is a notch at the base of the slot to make sure the contacts are properly lined up. Press down firmly until the clips at either end of the module close into place.
If you have to push very hard something’s wrong – perhaps the module is the wrong way round. Almost all motherboards use a dual-channel memory controller, which can speed up RAM access by accessing two modules at once. Dual-channel RAM sockets are colour-coded in pairs. To take advantage of dual-channel memory, you’ll need to install two identical sticks into two sockets of the same colour.
4) ATTACH DRIVES
Remove your drives from the case of your old PC and attach them to the new board with the appropriate connectors. If you’re bringing across more than one IDE drive, make sure the IDE master/slave configuration is correct for all drives. If it’s not, your computer may fail to recognise any of your IDE drives, or refuse to switch on at all. Use an 80-cable connector, rather than the older 40-cable type, to ensure IDE hard disks can achieve their maximum speed.
If you’re fitting a floppy drive, be warned that some drive cables have one pin hole filled in, while your drive or motherboard connector may have a pin in this position. If it does, you’ll need a cable with all the holes open. SATA drives don’t require any configuration – you can just plug them in and go. Once done, however, you may need to go into the BIOS to tell your PC which disk to boot from.
5) FIRST BOOT
If you need to install Windows XP or Vista to support your new motherboard, put your Windows installation disc in the DVD drive now and restart your PC. If it doesn’t boot from the DVD, you’ll need to enter the BIOS (press the required key shown onscreen) and configure it. After installation, reboot.
Once the version of Windows you’ll be using is on screen, install the drivers that came with the board. You may need to install drivers for other bits you upgraded, such as the graphics card; download these from the relevant website before starting.
6) REMOVE THE OLD BOARD
Remove the old motherboard and put it somewhere safe. It will probably have been mounted on little posts attached to the metal of the case. These are unlikely to be in the right places for your new board, and may have to be moved.
You may also need extra spacers, or new ones that allow more clearance between case and board. Most new boards have large mounts for the processor’s heatsink and fan; these require ample space under the board. Most PC shops sell motherboard spacers.
7) REFIT THE COMPONENTS
Screw the studs or spacers into the holes in your case that correspond with the screwholes in your motherboard. It will come with a port panel, a thin sheet of metal containing cutouts for all its ports. This needs to be snapped into the back of the case, replacing the old one.
Next, gently place the new board on top of the studs and screw it into place. Refit all components you installed when the board was outside the case. Be gentle and don’t touch the contacts on any cards or chips: you can break parts by giving them a static shock. Fit your expansion cards and any other components you want. Screw the drives and power supply back into place.
8) GET CONNECTED
Connect your case’s Power, Reset and other switches according to the motherboard manual. If your PC was from a big brand, the wires going to the switches may end in a single block-like connector, and you’ll need to transfer them to smaller individual connector blocks, which you can buy from a PC shop. Ease the wires out of the integrated connector, then transfer the wires for each switch into individual connectors.
- Continued next page - Compatibility Checklist
MOTHERBOARD SIZE
Motherboards come in a few standard shapes. Most new models are ATX (up to 305 x 244mm) and require an ATX case. Smaller standards also exist – the most popular one is microATX, which can be fitted into either an ATX case or a dedicated microATX case. These standards have been in effect for over a decade, so your existing case can almost certainly accept a new board.
POWER SUPPLY
Current motherboards need a 4-pin 12V plug to power the processor, as well as a 24-pin main power connector. If your power supply doesn’t offer these, you’ll need a new one. If you’re ugprading other components you may need a PSU with greater wattage as well. SATA devices use a different power connector to IDE drives, but many boards come with an adapter in case your PSU lacks this connector.
GRAPHICS CARD
Follow the monitor lead to check your graphics setup. An older PC is most likely to have an AGP card (easily recognised as a brown slot on the motherboard). You’re unlikely to find a motherboard that supports your AGP card any more; but the good news is that there are now numerous affordable boards with built-in graphics which are perfectly up to ordinary desktop tasks.
MEMORY
If your PC is more than a few years old, the odds are it uses outdated memory modules which won’t be supported by a modern motherboard. If it’s more recent, it might use DDR2, in which case you can reuse it. Check the motherboard’s documentation, though: older DIMMs may be comparatively slow, and some boards won’t accept RAM that runs below a certain speed.
STORAGE
Almost all current motherboards have an IDE controller, so you can easily bring your old hard disk and optical drive across into your new system. But if you want to reuse more than two devices, you’ll need a board with multiple IDE connectors, and these are very thin on the ground. You’ll be set for the future, though, as most boards offer at least four SATA connectors, and some offer as many as eight.
WINDOWS
When you first boot up with your new motherboard, Windows will detect that several key system devices have changed. Expect it to prompt you to install various new drivers, and to require at least one reboot. The requisite drivers will be provided with the board, but you may be able to download newer versions, and BIOS updates, from the manufacturer’s website.
** For more information on how to upgrade your computer, including the ultimate guide to upgrading your processor, memory, hard disk, graphics and power supply - make sure you check out the Febuary 2009 issue of PC Authority. It's out now! **