Question on matching FSB speeds

[ocean]

Hi guys,

Just a quick question:
I am replacing an AMD cpu in an old system, but i want to keep the motherboard if possible. The problem is that the motherboard only has a 200 FSB and any cpu I can find runs at least at 266 FSB. So the question is can I put a cpu with a higher FSB speed in a board that has a lower one?

[Martoch]

Which motherboard are you using? Post up the specific brand/model and we'll find out exactly what processors it will support.


BTW, welcome to TechIMO!!!


Mike

[ocean]

hey thanks for the welcome,
the board is a compaq uwave, and the documentation says that it will support duron cpus up to 900mhz and athlon cpus up to 1.0ghz, but what i really need to know is if it is really necessary to match the FSB speeds.

thanks

[Martoch]

Sure, they can run at slower speeds...you're just "underclocking" the cpu rather than OCing it. For example, a 1GHz Athlon running at normal 266Mhz speeds will run at normal speeds (266 x 3.5 multiplier=1000)...but at 200Mhz it may only show up as a 750Mhz (200 x 3.5=750).

[muno]

I wouldn't necessary say it will run on slower speed, many old mobos do not support certain core types.
Eg. you can run spitfire core duron in it, but not morgan core.

You can always ask the shop if they will replace it if it doesn't run.

[ocean]

great! thanks for the help

[Martoch]

Originally posted by muno
I wouldn't necessary say it will run on slower speed

Right...that's what I was trying to get to at first...with specific info on your board/chip, we can answer questions tailored to your case.