CPU Upgrade for my ProDesk 400 G3 MT

[jnz1]

Recently I got a ProDesk 400 G3 MT computer second hand, and it's been great.

As a little hobby project, I'm trying to push the little machine to it's limits by upgrading all the hardware.

So far I already upgraded the 180w power supply to a 550w 80+ Gold one, and the 2x4 ddr4 sticks to 2x16 for a total of 32gb.

Next up is the processor. The computer comes with an i5-6500 cpu.

I've searched all over the internet, and found that my best bet would probably be an i7-7700.

The HP support page mentions the max supported cpu to be an i7-6700, but if I look in the latest BIOS changelog, I can find support for 7th gen cpu's

Also, I cant think of a reason why an intel K series processor wouldn't be compatible either.

If I could I would like to go with an i7-7700K.

Is there anyone who's got more experience in with these products would could help me out?

Thanks in advance!

[NonSequitur777]

@jnz1,

Welcome to our HP User Forum!

Unfortunately, the HP ProDesk 400 G3 MT, according to: http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c04887112.pdf, and looking at actual HP ProDesk 400 G3 MT Users: https://www.userbenchmark.com/System/HP-ProDesk-400-G3-MT/25963, can only be fitted with 6th generation core processors, the i7-6700 (TDP=65 watt) being the best CPU you could pick -not even the i7-6700K (TDP=91 watt) is compatible.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[jnz1]

Thank you for taking the time to look into this! 🙂

Though, while I can understand that a K-series won't work due to the 95watt power requirement, I still don't believe a 7th Generation i7 non-K wouldn't fit.

Looking at other ProDesk models from the same generation you can find support for 7th gen Intel CPU's: HP ProDesk 400 G3 Desktop Mini Business PC Product Specifications | HP® Customer Support

Also, if you look into the revision history of the latest BIOS update, you can see that in Version: 02.18 Rev.A the notes read:  Rollback the CPU microcode for Intel 6th generation processors (Skylake) to 0xBA, and 7th generation processors (Kaby Lake) (link to the BIOS update: Driver - HP ProDesk 400 G3 Microtower PC | HP® Customer Support)

Which to me makes it look like a 7th gen CPU will work.

[NonSequitur777 · Accepted solution]

@jnz1,

You are welcome.  Look, I don't disagree with you at all. The ProDesk 400 G3 MT's Intel H110 chipset should indeed make it compatible with 7th gen Intel processors: CPU-Upgrade: Intel H110 chipset processor support, but HP can override this with their own motherboard code. And checking up on ProDesk 400 G3 MT super users -if a 7th gen Intel processor were to be compatible, it would have showed up here: UserBenchmark: HP ProDesk 400 G3 MT Compatible Components

If you don't believe me, buy an inexpensive, returnable 7th gen Intel processor such as the i3-7100, and see if it will work.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[jnz1]

Wanted to let you know that I ended up agreeing with your comment and bought an i7 6700.

The differences between the 6700 and 7700 models are way too small for me to be risking my money.

Thanks for your help! 🙂

[NonSequitur777]

@jnz1,

You are welcome!

An i7-6700 is still an excellent gaming processor for gaming when paired with a decent GPU. I would recommend playing your games in high 1080p 'rendering resolution' but not higher than 1440p.  I would also recommend sticking with a high quality 1080p or a 1440p monitor with a high refresh rate such as 144 Hz.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777