CPU Compatibility Question
 

alright, my current CPU is a P4 1.8 ghz...I was wondering if i could purchase a P4 3.0 ghz, lift the little latch, pop out my old P4 1.8 and pop in the new 3.0 P4, are all P4's/Celerons compatible w/ socket 478? Thanks.

check your motherboard manual for a list of compatible cpu's.

yeah... i lost that a while back. you see... in theory, if all P4's are socket 478's i should be able to just put in a P4 w/ a higher clock speed, but i'm not certain.

your board is unlikely to support that new chip. 800fsb boards can handle 400fsb chips, but not vice-versa. if you lost the manual, just look it up on the web. just because it fits in the socket doesn't mean it will work, might be different voltages or whatnot

thank you longjohns, after much thinking, i say f it, and wait 2 years to buy a 64 bit chip.

It all depends on which motherboard you have. Most motherboards support certain front side bus maximums but not necessarily CPU clockspeed maximums. In other words, you can put most CPUs in at whichever clock speed ya want as long as the front side bus is in the range of the motherboard.

Pentium 4 motherboards support 400 MHz, 533 MHz, and 800 MHz front side buses. Intel only makes 400 MHz FSB 1.8 GHz chips, so your motherboard may only support 400 MHz FSB speeds. If that's true, Intel DOES make a 400 MHz FSB 2.6 GHz Pentium 4 which would be a hell of an increase. According to Intel's site, you should be able to put a 2.6 Ghz A core (400 MHz FSB) in your PC and it work fine. Hope this helped!

-Lasereth

Yep. It all depends on the FSB of the chip and what the motherboard supports. Assuming they support each other, then yes, you just drop the new processor in.

no
1.8 is based off the 400mhz fsb

you need a new mother board

although it will fit, and may work (it will be underclocked to 400mhz fsb)

1.8 is fine for speed, ide wait another 6months for the new PCI standard to come into being (PCI express)

SiphonX doesn't know if his motherboard is only 400 MHz FSB compatible. That's what this entire thread is about. Will a newer processor work in his PC? We're not sure, because we have no idea what motherboard he has. It may be 400/533/800 MHz compatible for all we know. The only information that we can be absolutely sure on is that a 2.6 GHz A core Pentium 4 will work in his motherboard.

-Lasereth