Alienware x51 cpu upgrade?

[Principe]

I have i3 currently and want an i5, can anybody link me a cheap one that would fit into the x51?

I heard you have too get a special sized one.


(yeah yeah alienware sucks and what not, gf got it for me for christmas)

I just want to stream wow at a decent fps.

[Deleted]

I have an i5 3450, it works great for me. Although I must say CPUs generaly don't come all that cheap. (although what isn't cheap to me might be really cheap to you)

Edit: I don't know a single thing about Alienware computers so I don't have a clue if it would fit.

[chazus]

I cant think of any reason an i5 wouldn't fit. They're the same size, everything.

Can you link what specific system you have? Maybe some specs? It might be an older i5, but if it's a 3220, a 3470 will work. Hard to tell without more info.

[Principe]

This is what I have Intel® Core™ i3-3220 3.3GHz (3MB Cache) with Hyper-Threading and Turbo Boost Technology 2.0
Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64Bit, English
6GB2 DDR3 SDRAM at 1600MHz
1TB SATA 3Gb/s (7,200RPM) 32MB Cache
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 640 1GB GDDR5
Different gpu though.
Gtx 555

---------- Post added 2013-02-23 at 12:05 PM ----------

Also I was tipped that I should get a different hard drive for streaming, is this true? Im not looking to stream in hd, just 360-480p for funzies.

[stellvia]

Dell really is milking the Alienware name for all its worth, aren't they? A Core i3 with a GT 640 is a "gaming desktop"?

Principe: What wattage is the power supply that comes with your system? The X51 has an external power supply it says, which varies from 240W to 330W. And I'm actually shocked by that -- since they have a Core i7 3770 with a GTX660 running on 330W...

You have a socket 1155 system, so it should support all current Intel chips. I recommend something like the 3570K:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819116504

I would contact Dell support to confirm if the CPU will work. As I said, one model of X51 supports the 3770, so I would assume it can also use a 3570K. Another issue is the old CPU is 55W and new one is 77W -- I don't know how tight your power constraints are with how tiny the PSU is they supply with it. Especially since you have an upgraded GPU apparently.

[Ineko]

Hmmm.... you would probably be better off upgrading the GPU.

CPU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819116504
GPU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121649

The 7870 is only $30 more plus you get Bioshock Infinite and the new Tomb Raider for free, if you're into that. I've never actually streamed though, so not sure what would scale more, GPU/CPU/HDD or SSD.

[stellvia]

Hmmm.... you would probably be better off upgrading the GPU.

He has a Micro-ITX system with a weak external PSU -- I'm 90% positive he can't fit a full length card in the case, let alone power it.

At that rate he should just build an entirely new system. Although he could theoretically create some kind of Frankenstein system where he bought like a Fractal Design Core 1000 case, put the Alienware motherboard into it, and got like a Corsair 430W or 500W internal PSU lol...

[Butler to Baby Sloths]

He has a Micro-ITX system with a weak external PSU -- I'm 90% positive he can't fit a full length card in the case, let alone power it.

At that rate he should just build an entirely new system. Although he could theoretically create some kind of Frankenstein system where he bought like a Fractal Design Core 1000 case, put the Alienware motherboard into it, and got like a Corsair 430W or 500W internal PSU lol...

That is assuming the motherboard is an ATX or ITX standard format, and not BTX or a derivative thereof.

[Ineko]

He has a Micro-ITX system with a weak external PSU -- I'm 90% positive he can't fit a full length card in the case, let alone power it.

Oh... didn't realise. Should be advertised as a media PC, not a gaming PC. >_>

You might still be able to fit a full size GPU, you'd have to measure inside the case and do some research etc. but even then your PSU is apparently 330w so I'm not sure if that would go so well.

I guess if you're really intent on upgrading get the i5-3570k, should help out a bit. I don't think the HDD matters, since your're streaming to the internet not recording, but like I said never streamed before so don't take my word for it.

[stellvia]

They actually went forward with the BTX standard? I remember like....7 years ago hearing BTX was supposed to replace ATX and be the future, etc. Then it never panned out and I didn't hear anything about it again.

[Butler to Baby Sloths]

They actually went forward with the BTX standard? I remember like....7 years ago hearing BTX was supposed to replace ATX and be the future, etc. Then it never panned out and I didn't hear anything about it again.

A couple of OEMs picked it up because it basically meant they could build un-upgradable PCs, to make sure that customers had to buy a whole new one when it broke.

[n0cturnal]

They actually went forward with the BTX standard? I remember like....7 years ago hearing BTX was supposed to replace ATX and be the future, etc. Then it never panned out and I didn't hear anything about it again.

Dell uses BTX from time to time, mostly in their XPS series IIRC.

[chazus]

It hasn't been mentioned, we still don't know what EXACT motherboard is being used, so an i5-3570K may not be an option.

Do you have a link or receipt of the actual system? They may change parts from time to time, and knowing the chipset is important.

[Dizey]

I suspect its an h61 motherboard with updated bios for IvB support, which makes the K processor pointless.

Best way to confirm that OP would probably be for you to run CPU-Z.