Upgrading my HP Pavilion p6210f

[Snake14777]

I've recently aquired this desktop and was looking to upgrade it. I've already gotten a 450W PSU aswell as a GTX 750 Ti and have 16 gb of DDR2 PC2-6400 (4x4 gb sticks) on the way. But, when I was viewing the CPU Upgrade Information it doesn't have the family of cpu's that is pre-installed, the Athlon II X4. I've noticed that the pre-installed Athlon II X4 620 is better than the Phenom X4 9850 which is said to be the "best" possible upgrade by your CPU Upgrade Infomation.

Does this motherboard support any other CPU's from the Athlon II X4 family? And what is my best option for upgrading this system's CPU?

[DavidSMP]

Hi @Snake14777,

Thanks for visiting the HP community. 🙂 A very good day to you! 🙂 I read the post regarding upgrading your computer’s processor. I will be delighted to assist you here. 🙂

You’ve done an excellent job on diagnosing the issue from your end. Superb effort and spectacular research were done as well. 🙂 Kudos to you on that score. 🙂 . I take it as a privilege to share this platform with you. 🙂

For better clarity and to assist you better, I would require more information regarding this:

• Did you check with a local technician and find out if the Athlon II X4 620 is better than the Phenom X4 9850.

For now please try these steps:

I did some research and found out a few things.

First off, the supported processors are listed in the link: https://support.hp.com/us-en/product/hp-pavilion-p6200-desktop-pc-series/3999459/model/4006883/docum... which are the only HP tested processors for this motherboard.

• However, that may not be a complete whitelist of tested processors for this motherboard. You hit the nail right on its head. The Athlon II X4 620 is better than the Phenom X4 9850.
• However, the Athlon II X4 620 has not been tested by HP. If it is compatible with the motherboard, then you should proceed with this upgrade. Please consult a local technician before doing it as it will save you time and money later on. I don’t live in Bill Gates’ neighborhood and am trying to assist you by keeping your best interest in mind.So please check its compatibility with your computer's motherboard before upgrading it.

• The benchmark result link: http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_lookup.php?cpu=AMD+Athlon+II+X4+620 for Athlon II X4 620 suggests that it is (press control and F on the keyboard once you visit this website and type AMD Athlon II X4 620 and click on search the up or the down arrow)
• AMD Athlon II X4 620 IS 2,951 and costs $64.95 as reported by this site.
• 
  The benchmark result link: http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Phenom+9850+Quad-Core for AMD Phenom 9850 is AMD Phenom 9850 Quad-Core 2,896 and it costs $57.92 as reported by this site.

These are third party sites but reputed benchmarking sites. Please do not click on any ad, image, download or link. Please check and read the available information only. That is very critical.

Please note that HP does not recommend upgrading either the operating system or the computer’s hardware as the components that were initially installed with the unit are certified by HP for optimal performance. However, as you are very technically inclined, I would still request you to consult a local technician like Best Buy or Staples before proceeding to upgrade the unit.

So please contact a local Best Buy or Staples technician and perform the upgrade so that there are no compatibility issues with the CPU for your computer and everything works smoothly.

Hope this helps. Let me know how this goes. I hope the issue gets resolved without hassles and the unit works great. I'm always there to assist you. Please reach out anytime. 🙂

To simply say thanks, please click the "Thumbs Up" button to give me a Kudos to appreciate my efforts to help.

If this helps, please mark this as “Accepted Solution” as it will help several others with the same issue to get it resolved without hassles.

Take care now and have a splendid week ahead. 🙂

[Snake14777]

For your first question, no I did not contact a local technician but I believe that I'm qualified after enough research and experience refurbishing PC's.
Secondly, Are you saying that the CPU that is PRE-INSTALLED BY HP, the Athlon II X4 620, is not tested by HP? Also as a second part of this question, did you even bother to read my post and the computer's specs in full before writing that reply?
And third, I DO NOT RECOMMEND taking any computer's to a chain store such as Best Buy the last time tried to do that they said my computer was infected with viruses and needed to be sent off for a couple of weeks. And after that, when I finally got it back it was full of Geek Squad bloatware. The system had died shortly after a fresh install of Windows and was because of a cheap PSU that had died.
Also, the system is going somewhere from ~5-10 years old they most likely won't deal with my PC and try to sell me a new one.
Please be sure to read this in full before your response, if that ever happens as I see one reply unfinished answers are commonplace here.
I'd like to make this machine decent by today's standards without a complete overhaul and will be finding parts from eBay and such so I know about the risks I'm taking but, that is really my only choice because this old of hardware isn't being manufactured today.

[DavidSMP · Accepted solution]

Hi @Snake14777,

I read through the post completely before replying. I put in a lot of research checking the benchmarks for both these processors.  Please note that HP does not recommend upgrades. It is done at the customer's sole discretion. This is because what came preinstalled with the machine is designed and tested for optimum performance by HP.

Yes, to answer your last question, the list of processors in the product specs link that you mentioned and that I later included are the only processors tested by Hp for this PC. So as I see that you are a very competent technician yourself, please check first if it is compatible with another local technician perhaps another knowledgeable friend to get a second opinion and then proceed with the upgrade at your own discretion as this processor is not tested by HP.

Hope this helps. Let me know how this goes. I hope the issue gets resolved without hassles and the unit works great. I'm always there to assist you. Please reach out anytime.

To simply say thanks, please click the "Thumbs Up" button to give me a Kudos to appreciate my efforts to help.

If this helps, please mark this as “Accepted Solution” as it will help several others with the same issue to get it resolved without hassles.

Take care now and have a splendid week ahead.

[DavidSMP]

Hi @nake14777,

It has been a fabulous experience working with you. 🙂 I thank you greatly for accepting this as a solution. 🙂 You've been simply amazing with your technical expertise and thanks again for giving me the privilege to share this platform with you. 🙂

I hope the unit works great and stays healthy for a long time. 🙂

To simply say thanks, please click the "Thumbs Up" button to give me a Kudos to appreciate my efforts to help.

Please take care, stay healthy, keep smiling big and do have a blessed year ahead. 🙂

[DavidSMP]

Hi @Snake14777,

I reviewed the post again comprehensively. You hit the nail right on its head. The Roman numerals I and II  always confuse me. AS you rightly said e CPU that is PRE-INSTALLED BY HP, the Athlon II X4 620 has been tested by HP. It came preinstalled with the computer.

It is your safest and best bet as of now. 

Take care and have a splendid week ahead. 🙂