AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core

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michael_google

hey folks, just a quick upgrade question, i'm currently running vista
on a dell dimension c521 with a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 3800+
2.00GHz processor and i want to upgrade to a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual
Core 6000+ 3.00GHz. can anyone tell me if this new processor is
compatable, they both have the same socket type so i hope it will just
be a quick pull out and slot in job instead of something more major!
thanks in advance michael
 
On Sat, 1 Mar 2008 13:44:29 -0800 (PST),
hey folks, just a quick upgrade question, i'm currently running vista
on a dell dimension c521 with a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 3800+
2.00GHz processor and i want to upgrade to a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual
Core 6000+ 3.00GHz. can anyone tell me if this new processor is
compatable, they both have the same socket type so i hope it will just
be a quick pull out and slot in job instead of something more major!
thanks in advance michael
Click to expand...

It probably is that simple, though you might check on a bios
update first. As for guarantees, there are none unless Dell
specifically states it is supported, but it should cause no
damage to try it and odds are it will work.

Also keep in mind that the Dell heatsink/cooling design was
not meant for this processor which creates more heat. It
may stay cool enough, may ramp up the fan becoming louder,
or may be running a little too hot depending on the ambient
temp. At worst you might be able to use the retail heatsink
with a fan on it and remove part or all of the fan shroud if
it's so-equipped, unless that shroud isn't a separate piece
from what holds the fan, in which case you might screw or
nylon wire-tie the fan to the case wall instead or use a
(hacksaw, etc) to cut back the shroud till it's short enough
to be out of the way.
 
hey folks, just a quick upgrade question, i'm currently running vista
on a dell dimension c521 with a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 3800+
2.00GHz processor and i want to upgrade to a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual
Core 6000+ 3.00GHz. can anyone tell me if this new processor is
compatable, they both have the same socket type so i hope it will just
be a quick pull out and slot in job instead of something more major!
thanks in advance michael
Click to expand...

The C521 has a 280W power supply.

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/dimC521/en/SM_EN/specs.htm

The 6000+ draws 125W max.

http://products.amd.com/en-us/DesktopCPUDetail.aspx?id=34

I would check the power supply label. It will have current ratings
per output DC rail. The 12V could be split into two circuits.
On ordinary desktop systems, 12V2 powers the processor alone, and
12V1 powers motherboard slots, fans, hard drive, CDROM etc.

The Vcore converter is somewhere in the order of 90% efficient.
So, to get 125W to power the processor, actually takes
125W/0.90 = 138.8W, and 138.8-125 = 13.88W of waste heat will
rise from the power components near the processor socket.

That means a max of 138.8W will come from 12V2.

138.8W/12V = 11.57A

So your 12V2 must be rated for 12A or a bit more, to make the
6000+ a good investment.

If the power supply has a single (combined) 12V rail design,
then you'd have to analyze all hardware present in the machine.

As Kony pointed out, cooling via the Dell cooler can be a
potential issue. On one other Dell design I looked at, when
you buy a processor upgrade from Dell, they include a different
cooler to be placed under the shroud. The cooler in that
case used an extra heat pipe, compared to the original.

I only point that out, to illustrate that the thermal design
for the higher power processor, can be a bit different. And
due to the shroud+cooler design of the Dell, after market
solutions wouldn't work.

So if you pass the power supply issues, then you could buy it
and see what happens from a cooling perspective. The C521
case is kinda tiny, so there isn't much room to rig up
stuff. (But I suppose, if you bought a water cooling system,
you might be able to fit a water block to the processor.
It would depend on whether the holes in a Dell motherboard,
are standard enough, to match up with a water block mount.
And a water cooler needs more 12V1 to run the pump, unless you
ran it from a second power supply of some sort.)

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/dimC521/en/SM_EN/anchors5.jpg

The original 3800+ X2 processor, is available in several power
ratings. The 35W one seems to be non-existent (a joke). There
are 65W and 89W ones, so my guess would be you might have a 65W one
right now. You can see the OPN (part) numbers for the processors, here.

http://products.amd.com/en-us/Deskt...00&f4=512&f5=AM2&f6=&f7=90nm+SOI&f8=&f9=2000&

Paul
 
cheers for the replies,
i've taken the side off the computer to check the powersupply and it
says:
output: +12v/16A, -12V/0.5A,
then is goes on to say
max power 280W +5V/15A, +5VSB/4A, +3.3V/10A

does this mean that the power supply can cope?? -as you can probably
work out i'm quite a novice about upgrading hardware! :)

michael
 
cheers for the replies,
i've taken the side off the computer to check the powersupply and it
says:
output: +12v/16A, -12V/0.5A,
then is goes on to say
max power 280W +5V/15A, +5VSB/4A, +3.3V/10A

does this mean that the power supply can cope?? -as you can probably
work out i'm quite a novice about upgrading hardware! :)

michael
Click to expand...

You cannot work out everything in there with great precision. But
we can start with the +12V consumption.

In the previous post, 11.57A was to be used by the processor.
I allocate 0.5A for cooling fans, but your machine has only one
fan (the one for the processor). The one inside the PSU doesn't
count against the rating on the PSU label.

An optical drive might be 1.5A, and only when media is spinning in
it. I've measured my simple CD, and it draws 1A. Various other kinds
of opticals, are harder on the +12V. So 1.5A is a good estimate for
now, but there may even be a boilerplate number on the drive.

A 3.5" hard drive idles at about 0.6A on the 12V rail.

You know the count of these items, how many are in the box. I'm
assuming one of everything.

11.57A + 0.5A + 1.5A + 0.6A = 14.17A (of 16A available).

Next is a total power consumption estimate.

I use 50W for motherboard and RAM, because there isn't a good way of
estimating it otherwise. I've measured two systems here, and they
differ in which rail they draw the most power from. But 50W is a
start at covering the 3.3V/5V based consumption by the motherboard.

5V @ 1A for the hard drive five volt rail (controller board)
5V @ 1.5A for the CDROM five volt rail (controller board)
5V @ 2A to give some power for USB and standby stuff

12*11.57 + 50 + 5 + 7.5 + 10 = 211.34W

Based on the hardware I know about so far, you're OK on power.

If you had a PCI Express video card added to the unit, chances are
that would chew into the remaining margin. But if you're using the
integrated video, then it is still OK.

So the cooling ability of the Dell cooler, is the remaining
consideration. And I don't know if there is any way to
estimate what will happen there. Since the processor will have
an overheat detection and shutdown feature, with the new processor
plugged in and the machine sitting in the BIOS, you can watch the
temps and see what happens. Assuming the BIOS has a hardware
monitor that monitors temperatures for display. The shutdown
feature is independent of the measurement aspect, and the processor
has a signal it sends to the computer, that says it is too hot.
The computer then shuts down without further ado. So the processor
can protect itself (and that helps with cases, like where the
heatsink clip broke and the heatsink fell off).

Have fun,
Paul
 
hey folks, just a quick upgrade question, i'm currently running vista
on a dell dimension c521 with a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 3800+
2.00GHz processor and i want to upgrade to a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual
Core 6000+ 3.00GHz. can anyone tell me if this new processor is
compatable, they both have the same socket type so i hope it will just
be a quick pull out and slot in job instead of something more major!
thanks in advance michael
Click to expand...


if you do upgrade the cpu get a decent cooling fan it will make all the
difference.
 
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