PC 2300

onebxr · January 4th, 2007

OK, while at my inlaws house I was tasked to see what was wrong with their computer. It runs very slow and takes forever to load anything. I downloaded CPUz to find out what the specs were on the computer. Lo and behold they are running xp pro on 512gb of pc 2300(this is right not 3200) I think that this is the problem, so I have been trying to find some ram that will work on their computer. Can pc2100 or pc2700 work? My father in law is a tight wad so I am looking to get him out of this as cheap as possible. BTW this computer is a POS systemax that is about 5 years old. I told him he needed a new computer but he said there was nothing wrong with this one. I hate working for family!
-1

yurimxpxman · January 4th, 2007

To be honest, it doesn't sound like a RAM issue to me, or at least not the clock speed. The very first thing I'd check is the software. Post a hijackthis log for us to take a look at and/or try a Linux LiveCD. The next thing I'd check is the RAM. Run memtest86 on it. If that doesn't show any errors, it's probably the hard drive (a LiveCD would not run slowly if it's the HDD).

onebxr · January 4th, 2007

He lives in San Antonio, I live in Dallas not easy to pop over and do this. I think its memory because most of his memory is being eaten by the os. Also too much garbage running in the background. Probably could use a good defragging or a atom bomb.
-1

**Capper** · January 4th, 2007

I don't ever recall seeing PC2300 back in the day....its probably either PC2100 slightly overclocked or PC27 thats running at a slower speed....regardless, 512mb of RAM will run it fine....i think the i9ssue is what they have running in the background. See what they have running by using hijack this as yuri said, then also download Diskeeper 10 (Trial), and also maybe some other utilities to clean up the system.....a good guide is the article Paulwrote a few months back that list the 25 most useful apps.

Cyberlon · January 4th, 2007

... or you could wipe his drive, reinstall Winders, and make him get all the "crap" reloaded.

-- just a suggestion!

wtcnbrwndo4u · January 4th, 2007

I vote Diskeeper as well. I have it running for me, great app. Also, make sure it's clear of viruses and the such.

I think it'd be easier to reformat first and then install all these apps. A five year old computer can't have a hard drive bigger than 40GB.

**One4yu2c** · January 4th, 2007

A 5-year computer likely has plenty of bottlenecks holding it back, particularly an OEM machine. 512MB is enough to run WinXP adequately, and I would guess the problem lies in a combination of slow/dated hardware (hard drive, processor, chipset) and too many background programs, as pointed out. And of course malware could be a culprit too. In all honesty, the biggest free boost in speed would probably come from a format and reinstallation of Windows, particularly if it's never been done in 5 years. Barring that, I would look at the following:

- malware scans (AVG, Spybot, ASquared Free)
- defrag (Diskeeper 10)
- clear out temp files and uninstall any programs not being used
- sort out startup programs and keep only the essentials

**Capper** · January 4th, 2007

the only problem with a format/re-install of something that old might be little things we all take for granted....a good backup of important stuff (which can get overlooked or lost on a system that old), drivers for different components (which might sound silly, but does happen), and some people's fear of listening to others (especially older people who don't know much about computers....try telling them you need to format their HDD and reinstalling the OS....and you'll get that fearful "deer in the headlights" look).
Try the simplest first, defrag and clean it up the best you can, if that doesn't work....then you can always format and start over

polobunny · January 4th, 2007

512 gigabytes! =O (more than enough to run Windows XP (and 2 DVD bruners))

I suggest you check for malware, run a defrag, check the hard drive speed with HDTach and see how it goes from there. Besides, I highly doubt it's the memory. My P4 Wilamette 1.5ghz on PC133 used to run quite well (compring to it's current state) and while it doesn't have any malware the capacitors started leaking a while ago. Check the on the motherboard too, so you don't end up trying plenty of things when the board is about to die.

screwballl · January 5th, 2007

a tightwad liek that tends to work best using AdAware, a-squared, CCleaner plus a stick of memory... most DDR nowadays is 3200 for same or cheaper than 2100/2700 and would still work as it has the SPD chip for speed adjustments upon post

January 4th, 2007	#1
onebxr BAM-BAM Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Frisco, TX Posts: 1,264 Blog Entries: 3	PC 2300 OK, while at my inlaws house I was tasked to see what was wrong with their computer. It runs very slow and takes forever to load anything. I downloaded CPUz to find out what the specs were on the computer. Lo and behold they are running xp pro on 512gb of pc 2300(this is right not 3200) I think that this is the problem, so I have been trying to find some ram that will work on their computer. Can pc2100 or pc2700 work? My father in law is a tight wad so I am looking to get him out of this as cheap as possible. BTW this computer is a POS systemax that is about 5 years old. I told him he needed a new computer but he said there was nothing wrong with this one. I hate working for family! -1

January 4th, 2007	#2
yurimxpxman Banned Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: /home/yurimxpxman Posts: 1,695	Re: PC 2300 To be honest, it doesn't sound like a RAM issue to me, or at least not the clock speed. The very first thing I'd check is the software. Post a hijackthis log for us to take a look at and/or try a Linux LiveCD. The next thing I'd check is the RAM. Run memtest86 on it. If that doesn't show any errors, it's probably the hard drive (a LiveCD would not run slowly if it's the HDD).

January 4th, 2007	#3
onebxr BAM-BAM Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Frisco, TX Posts: 1,264 Blog Entries: 3	Re: PC 2300 He lives in San Antonio, I live in Dallas not easy to pop over and do this. I think its memory because most of his memory is being eaten by the os. Also too much garbage running in the background. Probably could use a good defragging or a atom bomb. -1

January 4th, 2007	#4
Capper We take both criticism and positive comments very positively Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Las Vegas, NV Posts: 6,066 Blog Entries: 6	Re: PC 2300 I don't ever recall seeing PC2300 back in the day....its probably either PC2100 slightly overclocked or PC27 thats running at a slower speed....regardless, 512mb of RAM will run it fine....i think the i9ssue is what they have running in the background. See what they have running by using hijack this as yuri said, then also download Diskeeper 10 (Trial), and also maybe some other utilities to clean up the system.....a good guide is the article Paulwrote a few months back that list the 25 most useful apps. INTEL QX9650 // Gigabyte EP45 Extreme // 8GB PC2-8500 // BFG GTX260 MaxCore // DD Torture Rack // Seagate 750GB HDD // OCZ Vendetta // PC Power & Cooling 620W PSU

January 4th, 2007	#5
Cyberlon Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Higher than you! Posts: 179	Re: PC 2300 ... or you could wipe his drive, reinstall Winders, and make him get all the "crap" reloaded. -- just a suggestion! ____________________________ _= AMD 2700+ OC'd to 3200 =_ -=1GB RAM, ATI 9600XT 512MB=- --------------------------------

January 4th, 2007	#6
wtcnbrwndo4u Teh Brown Staffer Join Date: May 2006 Location: KS Posts: 2,291	Re: PC 2300 I vote Diskeeper as well. I have it running for me, great app. Also, make sure it's clear of viruses and the such. I think it'd be easier to reformat first and then install all these apps. A five year old computer can't have a hard drive bigger than 40GB. - Core 2 Quad Q6600 - DFI Infinity 975X - 4GB Corsair XMS2 w/ DHX DDR2-800 - 250GB Seagate 7200.10RPM + 160GB Hitachi 5400.4RPM - ATi Radeon X1900XT 256MB - Cooler Master Centurion 5 + OCZ StealthXStream 600W - Acer 19" P191W Monitor - Logitech Z-5500 Digital + Logitech MX Revolution - Vista Ultimate x64

January 4th, 2007	#7
One4yu2c I don't know how to put this, but, I'm kind of a big deal. Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Land of the Lounge Lizards Posts: 2,735 Blog Entries: 3	Re: PC 2300 A 5-year computer likely has plenty of bottlenecks holding it back, particularly an OEM machine. 512MB is enough to run WinXP adequately, and I would guess the problem lies in a combination of slow/dated hardware (hard drive, processor, chipset) and too many background programs, as pointed out. And of course malware could be a culprit too. In all honesty, the biggest free boost in speed would probably come from a format and reinstallation of Windows, particularly if it's never been done in 5 years. Barring that, I would look at the following: - malware scans (AVG, Spybot, ASquared Free) - defrag (Diskeeper 10) - clear out temp files and uninstall any programs not being used - sort out startup programs and keep only the essentials

January 4th, 2007	#8
Capper We take both criticism and positive comments very positively Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Las Vegas, NV Posts: 6,066 Blog Entries: 6	Re: PC 2300 the only problem with a format/re-install of something that old might be little things we all take for granted....a good backup of important stuff (which can get overlooked or lost on a system that old), drivers for different components (which might sound silly, but does happen), and some people's fear of listening to others (especially older people who don't know much about computers....try telling them you need to format their HDD and reinstalling the OS....and you'll get that fearful "deer in the headlights" look). Try the simplest first, defrag and clean it up the best you can, if that doesn't work....then you can always format and start over INTEL QX9650 // Gigabyte EP45 Extreme // 8GB PC2-8500 // BFG GTX260 MaxCore // DD Torture Rack // Seagate 750GB HDD // OCZ Vendetta // PC Power & Cooling 620W PSU

January 4th, 2007	#9
polobunny T-Rex Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 5,096 Blog Entries: 6	Re: PC 2300 512 gigabytes! =O (more than enough to run Windows XP (and 2 DVD bruners)) I suggest you check for malware, run a defrag, check the hard drive speed with HDTach and see how it goes from there. Besides, I highly doubt it's the memory. My P4 Wilamette 1.5ghz on PC133 used to run quite well (compring to it's current state) and while it doesn't have any malware the capacitors started leaking a while ago. Check the on the motherboard too, so you don't end up trying plenty of things when the board is about to die.

January 5th, 2007	#10
screwballl Colonel Calamity Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Sandy South Posts: 6,278 Blog Entries: 6	Re: PC 2300 a tightwad liek that tends to work best using AdAware, a-squared, CCleaner plus a stick of memory... most DDR nowadays is 3200 for same or cheaper than 2100/2700 and would still work as it has the SPD chip for speed adjustments upon post Thanks HL and Corsair! My opinions are my own and not representative of this site or its members.