newbie here with questions

Discussion about systems that do not use the K6-x processors.
ronnidonni
Newbie K6'er
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2006 7:16 am

newbie here with questions

Post by ronnidonni »

Hey everyone. I'm brand spanking new here and just want to know if I can speed up my computer.
It's a Compaq 7360 Presario with 15 gig hard drive I added.
Here is some info that might be helpful.
Any help is appreciated.

Operating System System Model
Windows 98 SE (build 4.10.2222) Compaq Compaq PC
System Serial Number: 2H9CDCT6V1XP
Enclosure Type: Mini-Tower
Processor a Main Circuit Board b
500 megahertz AMD K6 3D
64 kilobyte primary memory cache
512 kilobyte secondary memory cache Board: Compaq 0648h
Bus Clock: 100 megahertz
BIOS: Compaq 686S4 07/25/2000
Drives Memory Modules c,d
15.28 Gigabytes Usable Hard Drive Capacity
9.70 Gigabytes Hard Drive Free Space

BTC BCE3212IM [CD-ROM drive]
COMPAQ CD-ROM LTN403
Generic floppy disk drive (3.5")

Maxtor 51536U3 [Hard drive] (15.30 GB) -- drive 0, s/n EK3HGAV7C,
rev DA620CQ0, SMART Status: Healthy 504 Megabytes Installed Memory

Slot '0' has 256 MB
Slot '1' has 256 MB
Local Drive Volumes

c: (FAT32 on drive 0)12.35 GB8.37 GB free
d: (FAT32 on drive 0)2.93 GB1.33 GB free

Network Drives
None detected
Users (mouse over user name for details) Printers
Default
WORKGROUP domain logons
Default
None detected
Controllers Display
Standard Floppy Disk Controller
Primary IDE controller (dual fifo)
Secondary IDE controller (dual fifo)
VIA Bus Master PCI IDE Controller Trident Blade3D/MVP4 (63) [Display
adapter]
DELL D1028L [Monitor] (14.9"vis, s/n 66746JBB7348, April 1998)
Bus Adapters Multimedia
VIA Tech 3038 PCI to USB Universal Host Controller (2x) ESS Allegro
PCI Audio (WDM)
Gameport Joystick (no joystick connected)
Gamesurround Muse 5.1 DVD
Communications Other Devices
HSP56 MicroModem
User avatar
halfpennies
Newbie K6'er
Posts: 9
Joined: Sat Sep 03, 2005 9:07 pm
Location: Minnesota

Post by halfpennies »

I have a 7360 that I use on a regular basis running Windows Me. I changed the CPU to a K6III+ 400 ATZ overclocked at 500 MHZ (5x100). I have the 1/28/2000 686S4 Compaq BIOS. I also added a Nvidia GeForce4 MX 440 PCI video card. Here are some quick benchmarks of my system from PCPitstop.com.

CPU speed rating - 1339
Memory (128 MB) speed rating - 982 MB/sec
Video performance - 74.92 MP/s (16 bit color, 1024x768)
Compaq Presario 7360
K6III+ 400 ATZ @ 500MHZ/2.1 volts /128 RAM

Compaq Presario 5184
K62 500MHZ/64 RAM

PC Chips M599LMR
K62+ 533MHZ/160 RAM
ronnidonni
Newbie K6'er
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2006 7:16 am

Post by ronnidonni »

Sorry about not getting right back. I didn't realize I did not have the email notification turned on, and I couldn't remember the name of this forum. :lol:
Anyway, I'm not into putting any money at all into this computer because I only use it for recording my guitar stuff which I don't take super seriously.
I did find a download called K6 Pro and am trying it. I don't know hardly anything about tweaking settings, parameters, all that stuff. I just want to try and make this computer run smoother. It hangs up really bad when it's been on for awhile. I realize there could be a multitude of issues causing the hang ups.
Jim
K6'er Elite
Posts: 1745
Joined: Wed Jan 21, 2004 7:10 pm
Location: Toronto

Post by Jim »

You can speed it up some though it helps if you are willing to spend a few bucks. Without spending money the first thing to do is clean out your cookies, which will get rid of about 99% of the adware and spyware you have accumulated. Having done that, do a defrag; and if you have a registry checking program, run it to clean up the registry. Also if you have anti virus software, you should check at least your "C" drive. Doing that much should help solve your "Hanging" problem.

As for "Speeding it up", step 1 is probably to download the WIN98-SE "Unofficial Service Pack", because it has been my experience that without it Win 98 will NOT use more than 256 Meg of RAM. It will report however much you put in there; but usage is limited to 256 Meg. The "Unofficial Service Pack", (you can find a link to it by searching this site), will raise the usable limit far beyond what your mobo will support. Ideally you should install the "Unofficial Service Pack" on a fresh install of windows before it has been updated, because the "Unofficial Service Pack" sometimes overwrites newer files without telling you about it; and that can cause problems with those programs that require the newer versions.

Having done that, you may be able to gain some speed by tweaking your bios, though that is unclear because you have given no indication of what settings you are using. Finally you can also overclock your processor to some extent. Some people here have gotten that type of processor up to 600 Mhz, though you are best off seeking expert advise before going that far on account of RISK of DAMAGE. You should however be able to get it up to 550 Mhz without risk by changing the motherboard multiplier to 5.5 and the processor voltage to 2.3v. There is also the option of overclocking the "Front Side Bus", i.e. changing what you refer to as the "Bus Clock" to some higher value, e.g. 105 if your board has that option available. Overclocking the FSB has the advantage that it speeds up pretty well everything in the machine, not just the processor; but at the same time, for some reason using the 5.5 multiplier will give the best results in regards to enhancing "Memory Speed" e.g. 5.5 x 105 (if available) = 577 Mhz, which will result in a machine that is significantly faster than one that is set @ 6 x 100 strangely enough; at least as far as memory operation is concerned.
Superpuppy 3
K6-3+ 450 ACZ (6x100)
DFI K6BV3+/66 Rev B2 (2 Meg) w/ 2x28mm Chipset Fans
2x256 Meg PC 133 Hynix SDRAM
1x 20G Maxtor (7200)
2x 80G Maxtor (7200) Ducted w/ 2x486 Fans Mount
52/24/52/16 LG CDR/RW/DVD
8/4/3/12/24/16/32 LG Super Multi
ATI 9000 aiw Radeon AGP
SB Audigy 1 MP3 Sound
CMD 649 IDE Controller
NEC USB 2 Card
ronnidonni
Newbie K6'er
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2006 7:16 am

Post by ronnidonni »

I really appreciate the help, but most of this is way over my head. I will try the unofficial win 98se upgrade though.
Unfortunately with my Compaq there isn't any way to adjust the BIOS except the very, I mean very basic stuff. I can't even pull up what is on and what isn't!
It's not that important to me to go through a bunch of hoops to change a bunch of settings. Most of the stuff you listed I'm not familiar with at all. This CPU info is pretty much all brand new to me.
I'll let you know how the upgrade goes.

Thanks again for all you guy's help.
Jim
K6'er Elite
Posts: 1745
Joined: Wed Jan 21, 2004 7:10 pm
Location: Toronto

Post by Jim »

K, well 1) Going online on the internet gets items called "Cookies" downloaded onto to your machine without your knowledge or permission. Frequently these "Cookies" contain "Adware" and "Spyware" which can compromise your financial information, (if you do online banking, i.e. keyloggers); and also drastically slow down your machine if you get too many of them. There is a folder in Windopes called "Cookies" where these things wind up. What you do is Double click your "C" drive, then doubleclick "Windopes", then when it gives you the "Show files?" bit click on that, which will show you the Windopes folders. (I hate Microsoft). Select the "Cookies" folder and double click on that. When it opens use the "EDIT" dropdown menu to "Select all", then use the "File Menu" to delete them. At some point it will stop and say index dat is a system file do you want to delete it? Click on "NO" then let it delete all the "Cookies" .That will get rid of 99% of all Aware and Spyware on your machine; though you will lose some links to websites you have previously been to.

Get that done then come back for more.
Superpuppy 3
K6-3+ 450 ACZ (6x100)
DFI K6BV3+/66 Rev B2 (2 Meg) w/ 2x28mm Chipset Fans
2x256 Meg PC 133 Hynix SDRAM
1x 20G Maxtor (7200)
2x 80G Maxtor (7200) Ducted w/ 2x486 Fans Mount
52/24/52/16 LG CDR/RW/DVD
8/4/3/12/24/16/32 LG Super Multi
ATI 9000 aiw Radeon AGP
SB Audigy 1 MP3 Sound
CMD 649 IDE Controller
NEC USB 2 Card
ronnidonni
Newbie K6'er
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2006 7:16 am

Post by ronnidonni »

I delete cookies frequently, and run a program called Cleanup by Steven Gould frequently also. I have Adaware and Spybot and run them once or twice a week too. I'm pretty savvy on that stuff, it's just all the technical info and internal settings, etc. that I'm unfamiliar with.
I installed the unofficial service pack, but I think I already did that once because I had a different opening screen and all the updated icons. That link is a good site though, and I think I'll browse there for a bit and find someother stuff.
Probably a bad habit but I've always sort of been a download junkie. I like to download programs, check 'em out and delete them if I don't like them.
Anyway, I'll be back.

Thanks
Jim
K6'er Elite
Posts: 1745
Joined: Wed Jan 21, 2004 7:10 pm
Location: Toronto

Post by Jim »

Unfortunately I can't help you w/ your bios tweaking, because your machine is a "Compac", and I don't know what you have to do to get into the bios on one of those; just know that the normal method, (the delete key), doesn't work. Re registry checking software, I use "Registry First Aid". It tends to find a lot of minor problems that are a nuisance to have to sort through; but it is pretty thorough, (finding things that other programs don't), at cleaning up the registry, which does help make Windoze run faster.

As for the "technical stuff" it is actually fairly simple. Every computer has some or other "Speed" in Megahertz. That speed is arrived at by taking the "Front Side Bus" speed, (or "Bus Clock") in Megahertz, and multiplying it by a multiplier value. Most mother boards from the timeframe we are dealing with had "Jumpers", (small plastic shorting plugs), on the board which allow you to set the multiplier value. They also have jumpers which allow you to set the FSB value in Megahertz. Usually, but not always, there will be instructions printed right on the board re how to set the jumpers to achieve different FSB speeds; and different multipliers.

Your processor is apparantly a K6-2 500 AFX; and your FSB is apparantly set at 100 MHZ; so the multiplier will be set at 5x. i.e. 5x100 = 500 MHz. Your motherboard should have multiplier jumper settings ranging from 2x up to 5.5x in .5x increments. That is pretty well standard for those machines w/ a K6-2 500 in them. What FSB speeds your mobo can support is far more variable. Some have FSBs settings up to 133 MHz Others do not have any setting higher than 100 MHz. The later K6-2 and K6-3 processors also remap the 2x mutiplier as 6x; so in theory it might be possible to set one of these boards as high as 6x 133 MHz; - BUT COUNT ON IT, IT WON'T WORK. ALL you would achieve by trying it would be to damage something.

Realistic overclock speeds for that type of processor lie in the range 5.5x95 = 525 MHz, 5.5x97 = 533 MHz, 5.5x100 = 550 MHz. You can also achieve 6x95 = 570 MHz, and 6x100 IF you take special measures to insure the processor is adequately cooled; but DO NOT ATTEMPT doing that sort of thing until you are sure you know what you are doing, or it is very likely you will wind up damaging either your processor or motherboard.

All the foregoing overclocking is just messing w/ the multiplier. You can also increase the FSB if your board has provision for that. It is kind of a trial and error type thing seeing what will work, but remember it is best to be conservative. Don't go in off the deep end or you will just blow something up.
Superpuppy 3
K6-3+ 450 ACZ (6x100)
DFI K6BV3+/66 Rev B2 (2 Meg) w/ 2x28mm Chipset Fans
2x256 Meg PC 133 Hynix SDRAM
1x 20G Maxtor (7200)
2x 80G Maxtor (7200) Ducted w/ 2x486 Fans Mount
52/24/52/16 LG CDR/RW/DVD
8/4/3/12/24/16/32 LG Super Multi
ATI 9000 aiw Radeon AGP
SB Audigy 1 MP3 Sound
CMD 649 IDE Controller
NEC USB 2 Card
ronnidonni
Newbie K6'er
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2006 7:16 am

Post by ronnidonni »

I think I get it, sort of. Maybe this weekend I'll open up the tower and look for these jumpers. Are they those little sliders? I mean, really tiny. I would just try stuff on a conservative basis as you recommend. This isn't our main computer anymore so if I really screw something up we won't be in trouble, know what I mean?
Thanks for the support.
Jim
K6'er Elite
Posts: 1745
Joined: Wed Jan 21, 2004 7:10 pm
Location: Toronto

Post by Jim »

Not sliders, that is a "Dip Switch", though some mother boards do use dip switches to set the FSB, Multiplier, and Core Voltage. Jumpers are little plastic plugs with a bit of metal inside them that are used to short, (connect), two upright pins on the mobo. Should mention too that there are also jumpers to set the core voltage for the processor. Your processor has a rated core voltage of 2.2 volts, which is a setting that is ok up to 533 MHz. If you want to go higher than 533 MHz, then you also have to raise the core voltage. Usually 2.3v will suffice for 5.5x100; and I have never tried more than that with that type of processor; though there are some people here who have gone up to 600. DasMan2 & Tazwegion have both done it I think. But bear in mind that you are getting into danger territory up there, so get some expert advice before trying to go that high.
Superpuppy 3
K6-3+ 450 ACZ (6x100)
DFI K6BV3+/66 Rev B2 (2 Meg) w/ 2x28mm Chipset Fans
2x256 Meg PC 133 Hynix SDRAM
1x 20G Maxtor (7200)
2x 80G Maxtor (7200) Ducted w/ 2x486 Fans Mount
52/24/52/16 LG CDR/RW/DVD
8/4/3/12/24/16/32 LG Super Multi
ATI 9000 aiw Radeon AGP
SB Audigy 1 MP3 Sound
CMD 649 IDE Controller
NEC USB 2 Card
ronnidonni
Newbie K6'er
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2006 7:16 am

Post by ronnidonni »

Gotcha. I know what you're talking about. Like the jumpers on the back of a cdrom or other piece of hardware. I've never looked very close at the processor and internal components before although I've had the towers on all my computers open many times.
So, I should be able to see the appropriate numbers such as voltage, etc. when I get into it?
It would be good for me to take a look so I don't keep asking questions with obvious answers. :D This weekend I'll see if I can get some time to check this all out.
The main reason I'm searching this out is because the computer tends to start hanging while I'm doing recording with my guitar, using Cool Edit Pro 2.1 and some other programs I have. Basically I just need a faster computer but must do with what I have for now.
Thanks again for your help and patience. 8)
Jim
K6'er Elite
Posts: 1745
Joined: Wed Jan 21, 2004 7:10 pm
Location: Toronto

Post by Jim »

Could be that the software you are using for recording is a resource hog, (like my webcam software). In that case, it helps if you shut down ALL other background items that are running when you do your recording. I.E. shut down windows messenger, shut down your anti virus, etc.
Superpuppy 3
K6-3+ 450 ACZ (6x100)
DFI K6BV3+/66 Rev B2 (2 Meg) w/ 2x28mm Chipset Fans
2x256 Meg PC 133 Hynix SDRAM
1x 20G Maxtor (7200)
2x 80G Maxtor (7200) Ducted w/ 2x486 Fans Mount
52/24/52/16 LG CDR/RW/DVD
8/4/3/12/24/16/32 LG Super Multi
ATI 9000 aiw Radeon AGP
SB Audigy 1 MP3 Sound
CMD 649 IDE Controller
NEC USB 2 Card
User avatar
jsc1973
Veteran K6'er
Posts: 394
Joined: Sat Jun 09, 2001 11:55 am
Contact:

Post by jsc1973 »

Windows 98se Unofficial Service Pack: http://exuberant.ms11.net/98sesp.html

I'm not sure that system will even use 512MB of RAM efficiently even with the service pack, though. Does that motherboard have a chipset that can cache that much RAM? (If it's an Intel chipset, it probably can't.) If not, you'll need a K6-III, K6-2+ or K6-III+ upgrade to make your RAM run properly. It would be a good idea, anyway, because CoolEdit would run much better on a K6-III than on a K6-2.
ronnidonni
Newbie K6'er
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2006 7:16 am

Post by ronnidonni »

I wondered earlier about this, but I was under the impression I already have a K6 III. Are there any downloadable upgrades? I installed K6 Pro last weekend but I don't know if it made any appreciable difference.
Heck, I might even get into that computer tonight!! :D
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halfpennies
Newbie K6'er
Posts: 9
Joined: Sat Sep 03, 2005 9:07 pm
Location: Minnesota

Post by halfpennies »

The 7360 has a "Camaro" micro ATX motherboard (Mitac 5114VU) with a VIA chipset (MVP4, I believe) that probably won't cache that much RAM. I don't know the exact number, the PC Chips lottery website is down and was a good source of information. I would guess with 512K of onboard L2, the cacheable area would only be 128MB. A "plus" chip or K6III will really help, and the bios will have no problem with it. You have the K6-2. Don't let the "3D" mislead you. A new CPU may also help with the "hang up" issues you have, since sometimes a computer that hangs or freezes can be caused by hardware problems (cpu, bad caps), not software.
Compaq Presario 7360
K6III+ 400 ATZ @ 500MHZ/2.1 volts /128 RAM

Compaq Presario 5184
K62 500MHZ/64 RAM

PC Chips M599LMR
K62+ 533MHZ/160 RAM
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