Upgrading processor for A1610n PC

[matbhuvi]

I would like to upgrade my AMD Athlon 4200+ to the new 6000/6400+ or Phenom. What i am not sure is the socket for the motherboard. Is it AM2 or 939?

Alos, is it possible to upgrade the motherboard and processor and use the same hard drive which has the Windows XP OS? I mean, will the HP OS Disk will work on the new motherboard?

Product Name: A1610n

Model Number: RC652AA

[Bill_Hicks · Accepted solution]

here is a link to your motherboard spec:

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c00757531&lc=en&dlc=en&cc=us&product=3239117

[RasterBlaster]

Your motherboard socket is AM2 and supports AMD Athlon 64, Athlon 64 X2, and Sempron processors.

NodusM3 Mother Specification

If you replace the motherboard, you will probably not be able to have the software that came with your PC - that is, you can't do a system recovery. If you replace the motherboard, I believe you will have to reinstall Windows from scratch. Aside from that, you'll need to make sure it supports SATA or IDE or whatever the hard drive requires. But like I said, if you install a new motherboard - you'll probably have to start all over as far as software goes - and you will likely not be able to use system recovery to get all your software.

[matbhuvi]

Thank you for the reply. I am ready to reinstall windows from scratch. But, i dont want to spend another $100 for a new windows software.

I want to use the windows which HP has provided. Is that possible?

[RasterBlaster]

I don't think so. If you replace the motherboard, I believe you will need to install a new operating system. The entire "initial" software configuration that is restored via an HP system recovery (either by discs or from the hard drive partition) should be tied to information stored on the motherboard. If you think about it, if recovery wasn't tied to the mobo, anyone with a set of HP recovery discs could go around installing Windows an any PC they wanted too... even Dell PCs. This is how I THINK it happens.

[matbhuvi]

Perfect answer. Thanks a lot

[Darkkender]

Just as a point of reference all of your hardware in your PC is tied to the OS install when HP builds the machine.  It is a process called Tattooing.  There are some parts that can be upgraded without problems usually such as video cards, hard drives, Optical Drives, and RAM.  However if you should have to have your PC serviced with thse upgrades installed it would be advised to remove them prior to sending them to HP for servicing as they frequently return the PC to you in it's factory condition which means they remove all non-factory componnents and recycle or discard them.

[virex7]

I have an HP a1610n as well as an HP a1730n. The maximum CPU upgrade for the ASUS A8M2N-LA motherboard (HP/Compaq name: NodusM3-GL8E) is an AM2 5400+ Athlon 64 X2 (2.8GHz) dual core processor. The AM2 5400+ Athlon 64 X2 is not an expensive processor. You can probably find a new retail or OEM AM2 5400+ Athlon 64 X2 at NewEgg.com for less than $60 with free shipping sometimes too. Be sure to do the latest BIOS flash if you do install the 5400+. I am not sure if that CPU upgrade will register with BIOS if you don't do the new BIOS flash. I did the BIOS flash and put in a 5400+, and BIOS immediately picked it up. While some have said that the Asus A8M2N-LA (HP: NodusM3-GL8E) can hold a 6000+ or 6400+ Athlon 64 X2, even with the latest BIOS revision, BIOS will not recognize the processor. While a 6000+ may work and your system may boot or post and seem to work fine, it's not entirely recommended as you may have system instability problems with a high end processor that BIOS can not even recognize. This, of course, is an AM2 socket motherboard...not to be confused with the now older 939 motherboards that have 939 pin sockets and a different pin configuration than the AM2 CPUs with 940 pins and an entirely different pin layout. Given that the HP a1610n can't hold the highest end dual core that AMD makes - the 6400+ Athlon 64 X2 (3.2GHz) - it pretty much goes without saying that a Quad Phenom (Athlon 64 X4) or Tri-core (Athlon 64 X3) Phenom will obviously not work either.

[matbhuvi]

What you have said is mostly true. I am using AMD 6000 without any instability problems in A1610n. I did not flash my Bios. The bios did not pickup the processor, But, it is running fine. Instead of clocking 3.1GHz, processor is clocking 3.0GHz. The voltage to the processor might be the issue. AMD 6400 needs 125W and so it is completely ruled out. 

[2squirrelly]

I have the exact same motherboard, except that my desktop is a m7690e so I have an AMD Athlon x2 5000+ (2.6 ghz)

My question is... would I get much of a bump in power if I upgrade to a 5400+ ?

Would it help me run a GeForce 9800GT or is it a wash?

thanks