Replacing a motherboard

[nkhoi]

Quote from hefty1:

The other morning my utility PC refused to turn on, just giving me 6 beeps instead. Researching the prob I found that its a keyboard error. I replaced the keyboard with no results so I am thinking I need a new motherboard.

Since I am so adamantly DIY, I dont want to pay someone to make the switch for me.

How difficult is switching out a motherboard? Are the only tools I need a screw driver and possibly a solder gun?

Thanks,

Heft

you may as well build the whole thing.
http://elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=118742

 

[MandelbrotSet]

As suspected, T Gregg is a talented guy who is facile in dealing with computer hardware as well as all of the software required to put together a (decent) trading computer ...

... so his post needs to be read with that in mind.

***

For most guys figuring out what you want and purchaisng a computer with the right specs is enough of a challenge, especially when you factor in all of the software you have to be familiar with to trade well.

Last and certainly not least is the fact that not all hardware is comptabile with other hardware, and you'd better make darn sure everything you're running is mutually compatible when putting together a multi-monitor trading rig.

Good trading

 

[hefty1]

Thanks for everybody's suggestions. I was able to remove the board in about 10 mins and it doesn't look too daunting. Is it worthwhile to upgrade the CPU as well now that I have it apart? It's a pentium 4 3.2G.

 

[jprad]

Quote from hefty1:

Thanks for everybody's suggestions. I was able to remove the board in about 10 mins and it doesn't look too daunting. Is it worthwhile to upgrade the CPU as well now that I have it apart? It's a pentium 4 3.2G.

I'm assuming you're running Windows.

Going from a uniprocessor to multi-core requires upgrading the HAL and that, plus the mobo swap will probably require you to re-validate Windows due to all the hardware that's changed.

If it's an OEM Windows you might run into a dead-end.

 

[BigFunky]

Quote from hefty1:

Thanks for everybody's suggestions. I was able to remove the board in about 10 mins and it doesn't look too daunting. Is it worthwhile to upgrade the CPU as well now that I have it apart? It's a pentium 4 3.2G.

If you upgrade the CPU along with a newer motherboard, you'll most likely need to upgrade the ram as well. The new motherboard may only run DDR2 or DDR3 ram - assuming the old setup was using DDR or even older ram. By the time you've done that, you basically have built a new computer.

- As mentioned in the previous reply, activating windows XP may be problematic. But depending on the license it was sold with, you may be able to solve the activation problem by simply calling Microsoft and explaining the problem.