Motherboard and PSU change for PCI-E 2.0 GTX 460 [ Edited ]

[Diverse]

System: p7-1012

OS:Windows 7 64-bit

 Is it Possible to Change my Motherboard out for a new one on this System as i'm currently a major gamer,

and I brought this system and while back in December of last Year from aaron's and i'm wanting to know if their is any possible way to replace the motherboard for http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131767 and

 The PSU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027.

As for the GPU I already have a GTX 460 that my friend gave me still kinda new from his alienware, that he just put two SLI GTX 680's in his System.

I'm wanted to know if  this is possible I Currently don't have any money for a new system and I was i hoping to Play Guild Wars 2 on at least medium to high settings.

If Possible i can spend up to 300 bucks.

and yes i have measured the Card it will fix in the Case.

[Big_Dave]

Hi,

The motherboard that you referenced will not fit inside the HP case as it is not a microATX form factor. (9.6 by 9.6)  I can certainly see why you would like a new motherboard as the existing motherboard has no PCI-E x16 video card slot and only has two dimm slots.

If you change to a different motherboard then you will need a new Windows license and the HP recovery disks will no longer work.

The Corsair CX500 power supply will work in your HP case.  Since you want to get into gaming then perhaps you should consider the Corsair CX600 or HX650 in case you need a better video card in the future.

You should consider a larger case, PSU and motherboard.  That leaves you with transfering the CPU, memory dimms, hard drive and optical drive to the new case.

A word of caution.  Once you really get into gaming, you might find yourself in a vicious circle of replacing parts in the PC in an attempt to get more FPS.

[Diverse]

Any idea what would be a great motherboard and i can do with the OS.

[Big_Dave]

Hi,

The motherboard that you have already chosen is a great motherboard.  You just need a bigger cabinet and PSU to go along with that great motherboard.

[Diverse]

Any Idea's what would be a good Case for it and you also say i need to get a new windows 7 correct?

[Big_Dave · Accepted solution]

Hi,

Microsoft and HP tie the OEM Windows license to the original motherboard in the PC. Changing the motherboard in many cases is seen as changing PCs and OEM licenses are not transferable.  Check with Microsoft for the official position when you change a motherboard and the old motherboard has "failed" and an exact replacement can't be obtained.

There are lots of good cases and the choice is typically personal and perhaps based on the technical specifications and your expansion needs.

Cases:

Cooler Master

Corsair

Rosewill Future.

many other cases......

Another item to think about is the media card reader. You might be able to transfer you old reader to a new case. You need to match up your personal front port requirements with the case of your choice.  You might want USB 3.0, Audio, 1394, and maybe eSATA up front.  Might might need to do some research on cases.