Upgrading mobo and cpu

I bought a Dell something or other a few years ago, and have since upgraded everything in it, save for the motherboard and the processor. It is becoming severely dated now, and I have decided it is time to get a new mobo and cpu. As for the other parts of my system, I have a 350 watt psu, 1.5 GB PC2700 ram, a Radeon X800 Pro, a SoundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS, an 80 gig 7000rpm hdd, and a 200 gig 7000rom hdd. As for my optical drives, I have a dvd burner and a dvd drive.
I was thinking about getting this mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813157081
and this CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103547
What I need to know is, would getting that mobo and cpu work for my system, is my psu good enough, etc. I've never messed with a mobo or cpu before, so anything else I should know would be greatly appreciated.

 

Ok cool thanks. It looks like I'll be coming in just like 4 watts under my PSU amount, without any of my USB and firewire stuff connected, so I might wanna get a slightly better PSU to be safe. I'm thinking this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817153023.

Thanks again for the help.

 

You should upgrade to a higher output PSU...the 430 Watt PSU looks good...always buy well-known brand power supplies... or go for 450 Watts...Quality is VERY important...I'm running my Intel 3.2 GHz Extreme Edition cpu with a 350 Watts PSU but it's made by Coolermaster and is very reliable and provides a STEADY voltage for my cpu so my system is stable...I've even overclocked to 3.7 GHz with this PSU and had no problems with power comsumption useage or decrease...Quality...that's the main thing...good luck

 

Awesome, thanks. I'll get a nice PSU to complement everything, then.

 

well keep in mind that a new PSU might not fit in your DELL case. also the mobo may or may not fit and if it does the plugs might not work that connect to the mobo. Just a warning. If it were my DELL pc I would be buying my new CPU, MOBO, and PSU and putting it all into a brand new atx case. then I would take all the parts out of the dell that I can use and place them into my new case.

Companies like DELL, Compaq, HP, eMachine and others like to make it hard to build apon their equipment on your own. They would rather you either buy the updated parts from them or buy a new pc through them. They build their cases so standard parts you buy in the stores don't just pop in and work. connectors are usually different and so on. You might get lucky but just be aware.

add in cards are easy to install in those computers, it's changing the mobo, and PSU that usually cause the most head aches.

 

Your gonna have to upgrade everything not just the mobo and cpu,if you put pc 2700 in that system you will have just wasted your money on a new cpu,your video card also wont fit the new mobo as it agp,you need a pci-e card

As has been said your case is probably micro atx,there are only a few psu's that will fit non of them good enough to trust 4200 dual core to,your current dell 350 watt psu will probably explode,literally or burn your house down,I'm not even joking get a 500w quality psu I wouldnt trust one thats less than $70 minimum enermax,antec,coolermaster,thermaltek,ultra,tagan, ect

The cooling on that case will also be minimum that wont cut it for a modern cpu or video card,at least you need 2 fans a 120mm intake and exaust

To be honest I'd sell your current computer and put the cash toward a complete fresh build

 

Thats the best advice in this thread right there.

Also I bet the OP doesn't realise that he needs a mobo that supports his video card or that he needs to upgrade the video card as well.

PC3200 ram should be used with a 4200+ X2. most of these boards use a PCI Express slot instead of the AGP slot. Now you can find a couple mobo makers that have a socket 939 mobo with AGP instead of PCI Express.
Gigabyte, and ECS mainboards both make one. ECS actually have a couple but the Extreme version is the one to go for. These mobo's support all the latest tech except for the newer PCI Express. This will save you a few bucks if you don't want to replace your video card. Doing this though means when you DO decide you want to upgrade your video card you will be forced to either find another AGP card or upgrade your mobo as well.

 

If you are going to get a fresh rebuild don't, DON'T buy a DELL they come loaded with spyware and then want to charge you $49US to remove it, article from this site:

http://www.michaelrighi.com/2005/07/21/dell-spyware-my-way/

Any built computer company that sells systems with pre-loaded spyware NEEDS all the negative publicity they can get. DON'T BUY A DELL, tell all your friends.

 

Buy yourself a new ATX case and power supply and transfer your mobo and components to the new case...you won't have any problems and this upgrade will cost you less than $300 but first, make sure that you find out if your new PSU will fit your existing mobo setup (then you won't have to go through all the hastle of setting-up a new system...)

 

I hate double posting but my only other suggestion is that you WILL have to upgrade your memory to PC3200 or DDR400...use OCZ or Kingston brands...but I would ask the store technician what he or she would recommend...remember to buy dual-channel ( usually sold in pairs) memory dimms and if you buy performance type memory, it should have cooling metal strips on them, to reduce heat buildup...I hope this helps