[SOLVED] Processor Upgrade from i7-2600

[BeardedDad94]

What processors are compatible my Dell 990?

 

[Diddly]

At a guess I'd say you might be able to go up to a i7-3770K but no higher.

https://downloads.dell.com/manuals/...esktop/optiplex-990_service manual4_en-us.pdf

 

[SamirD]

Dell's official documentation says the 2600 is the fastest, but I bet a 2600k and 2700k would work no problem. There's nothing listed for the 3770 or any 3xxx series and I couldn't find anyone that did that upgrade successfully so I don't think that's possible:

PC doesn't boot after CPU upgrade!

Hi Everyone! I replaced my current core i5 2400 3.1 ghz cpu with core i7 3770k 3.5 ghz. All i get is a black screen after i power up the computer. There are no beeps either. I'm not sure if there are any compatibility issues here. Thanks for any input!

forums.tomshardware.com

 

[King_V]

I know the XPS 8300 Dells would ONLY support the Sandy Bridge CPUs, and not the Ivy Bridge ones.

My assumption would be that the OptiPlex has the same limitation. If searches of Dell forums confirm that, then I don't think the extra 100MHz for an i7-2700K is worth the investment.

 

[punkncat]

The issue would be the availability of a BIOS option for that upgrade. The spec sheet is specific to 2nd gen, and the Q chipset doesn't leave me confident that the VRM would support the higher TDP of a K chip of any i7 sort 2nd or 3rd.
Even with that said, the price on an i7 to swap to is a significant part of a new upgrade, certainly $100 or more.

I would consider what aspects of your current build are reusable and look towards whole system upgrade. Even a R5 1600 would be a significant upgrade to the now aging 2600. (wipes tear from eye)

 

[SamirD]

I have 2x Dell Inspiron 620, one of which is running a 2600k. These use a similar motherboard and chipset to the optiplex 990 (hence why I bought my 990). I know the 620 can't use a 3xxx processor.

 

[Marculadimorte]

Long time reader, first time poster. I'm in a bit of the same boat here, looking to upgrade a xps 8300 i7 2600 cpu to a i7 3770k. Everything I've read seems to point to it working, with just having to update my bios, as the 2600 is sandy and the 3770k is ivory, but having never really messed with cpu swaps before i wanted to ask the pros here if that sounded correct. Plus is it worth it? The comparisons between the two that I've seen seem incredibly close.

 

[SamirD]

Long time reader, first time poster. I'm in a bit of the same boat here, looking to upgrade a xps 8300 i7 2600 cpu to a i7 3770k. Everything I've read seems to point to it working, with just having to update my bios, as the 2600 is sandy and the 3770k is ivory, but having never really messed with cpu swaps before i wanted to ask the pros here if that sounded correct. Plus is it worth it? The comparisons between the two that I've seen seem incredibly close.

I don't know where you have found a bios update that proves that an upgrade works. Every search I did on the xps 8300 and 3770k pointed to threads of people finding that it cannot be done. I also searched to see if there was a single xps 8300 system in existence with a 3770/3770k and came up empty. I do not think it is possible.

 

[King_V]

I have to concur with @SamirD - I've done some digging, as I have an XPS 8300, and whatever I've been able to find seems to conclude that the particular motherboard and BIOS that Dell uses only allows the 2000 series CPUs, and not the 3000 series.

I am not sure if the motherboard COULD support it, but if it could, Dell's not offering a BIOS to allow it.