Is my motherboard too out of date to upgrade GPU and or CPU?

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1

My laptop is several years old, I believe almost 6 now, and have finally
decided it's probably about time to do some upgrading; all of the
components which I believe will be vital to your assistance are below.

System Model M17xProcessor Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU Q 740 @ 1.73GHz, 1730 Mhz, 4 Core(s), 8 Logical Processor(s)
BIOS Version/Date Alienware A10, 1/17/2011Installed Physical Memory (RAM) 8.00 GB
AUDIO: IDT High Definition Audio CODEC and AMD High Definition Audio Device
VIDEO: AMD Mobility Radeon HD 5800 Series
HD: 1TB

my main concern is my video card, but I am also not sure if my CPU is too out of date at this point as well. I am not super computer knowledgeable, but I do know a little bit so I just ask you keep it simple for me to understand.

Main question: Is my motherboard too out of date to upgrade my video card and or CPU?
Additional info: Are there any compatibility issues I need to worry about with a video card and CPU?
P.S. If I have not covered something that should be a concern please let me know.

2

well, the CPU isn't too bad but it's pretty low on the clock speed

what's your budget for the upgrades?

3

I would like to keep it under $300, but I understand components have probably gotten a bit pricey of the years.

4

If that's US not really, If you just wanted something totally new you could go this route, not actually sure if the CPU itself would be much faster, it probably would be anyways, according to this the FM2+ Quad core would be faster

http://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i7-Q-740-vs-AMD-Athlon-II-X4-860K/m415vs3265

or just throw in like a 360/750ti and call it a day
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PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ZhW7t6
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ZhW7t6/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD A8-7600 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($80.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A78M-D3H Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard ($53.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.98 @ OutletPC)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($38.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $287.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-15 15:13 EST-0500

5

Thanks! I'll take a look at those different components. What do you think about a new GPU?

6

@Streetguru : Seeing as the OP wants to upgrade his laptop (Alienware M17x), factor in the cost of a screen, keyboard and mouse. Assuming he wants to go to a desktop at all.

The CPU and graphics card can be upgraded indeed, there are videos about those procedures on Youtube. However I'm not really an expert on upgrading laptops so I'm not familiar with the parts, their power requirements and thermal designs. I'll leave that up to those who have more knowledge.

7

wait, ya so do you need everything else for it? I wouldn't bother upgrading an old laptop

some benchmarks for the APU the A8 7600 is just TDP optimized so no overclocking on it, otherwise it should be about as fast as the one below , it's somewhat possible to fit an APU build at that price range with a display

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A8
7650K | CS:GO/Dota 2/SC2 benchmarks Tested With 1866Mhz
RAM

A8
7650K | Various AAA titles Tested with 2133Mhz
RAM
http://www.anandtech.com/show/9217/the-amd-a8-7650k-apu-review-also-new-testing-methodology/7

8

@Streetguru No, sorry. I believe the only actual upgrades I need for the time being are a GPU and possibly a new CPU.

@anon37371794 I've watched a few videos on how to replace the components. I just need help with deciding what I need now, thanks.

9

According to this you have the best CPU for that socket

http://www.cpu-upgrade.com/CPUs/Intel/Core_i7_Mobile/i7-640M_%28PGA988%29.html

and I can't imagine anything you could upgrade to on the GPU side that would give you much more performance, you're probably going to need a new machine, an APU would be the cheapest option for a desktop replacement

10

this thing? http://www.cnet.com/products/alienware-m17xr2-17-core-i7-740qm-windows-7-home-premium-64-bit-6-gb-ram-500-gb-hdd/specs/

there's this and add an SSD if you don't have one already, but not worth it, go desktop.

12

The i7-740QM is still a great CPU. The 1.73GHz is just a base clock, it boosts to 2.93GHz in most gaming scenarios.

Boost clocks are as follows:
2933 MHz (1 core)
2533 MHz (2 cores)
1867 MHz (3 or 4 cores)

Decent enough. However if that doesn't do it for you, there are the i7-920XM and i7-940XM chips with overclocking capabilities. So long as you have the A09 or A10 BIOS from Dell (which you do), you can usually get these guys running at 3.4GHz on all cores, or with a spread from 3.3 - 3.6GHz following the boost pattern displayed above.

The i7-920XM will run you about $120. Here's one on eBay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Core-i7-920XM-SLBLW-2-0-3-2G-8M-Extreme-Processor-CPU-Mobile-km-/311489291405?hash=item488635648d:g:BQwAAOSwiwVWTz0H

Next up you're looking to upgrade the GPU. Going off the CPU and BIOS info, I'm going to guess you have the M17x R2. This is important because the R2 has dual graphics, I.E. CrossfireX or SLI. You could order the laptop without a second card installed, but the board remained the same and you can still install a second card at any time.

IF: You have dual Radeon Mobility HD 5870s, that's actually already pretty good. However the Radeon HD 6970M, or GeForce GTX 675M are both huge increases in performance. Two of either in SLI/Crossfire would very quickly stack up to modern graphics.

IF: You have a single Radeon Mobility HD 5870, go straight to a Radeon HD 6970M, GeForce GTX 675M, or put all your money into a Radeon HD 7970M (provided you can find one from a reputable seller).

Upgrading from a single GPU to dual may require the purchase of the GPU interconnect cable, and the second heatsink for the card.

Hope that all helps.

Quick Edit:

For the people telling you to go with a desktop, the M17x R2 is one of the most flexible, upgradeable, and powerful laptops you can buy for under $1000. Upgrading it for $300 - $350 puts it WAY AHEAD of any APU system you can build for the same amount of money. Honestly, along with the Sager NP8150 the M17x R2 is a fucking great machine and with an i7 Extreme + dual graphics will continue to be one of the best gaming laptops for the money.

Oh yes, and with a few BIOS tweaks the M17x will support the GTX 980M.

1 Like
13

Thank you very much for your response. I honestly didn't want to have to build a desktop from scratch. I enjoy my laptop because it's portable and the fact that I can open it up and upgrade things is amazing as well. I do have another concern that one of my friends brought to my attention. He had said that upgrading my GPU or CPU could be precarious because it may require more power and in turn create more heat in my system. What are your thoughts on this and how can I maybe control this factor?

Ps I do have the M17x R2.

14

Get the 240W AC (Dell/Delta PA9E) adapter if you haven't already got one. That will handle dual graphics and the CPU without issues. If you are worried about cooling, use HWMonitor64 to create a custom fan curve for both the CPU and GPUs. I used it with my M15x R2 and it worked like a dream, kept my OC'd 6990M well below 80C and the CPU (i7-740QM) never went over 75C, although it was not overclocked. It will be a bit noisier, but not so much that it's distracting.