There are two types of motherboard upgrades;

1)  Buy a new motherboard, power supply and case and then transplant all your other hardware to make your new system.

2) Buy a new motherboard that will fit into your existing Packard Bell case and then transplant all your other hardware to make your new system.

The first type will be easier because you are not limited by the type of motherboard you are currently working with.  This will give you a wider range of upgrade options and allow you system to be more generic.  You will also have more choices on the form factor of the motherboard if you buy a new case designed to fit your new motherboard.  Some have even said it will be cheaper in the long run to have a standrd case and motherboard.

The second type of upgrade will be what I will concentrate on this page because it is a little more complex but it will allow you to keep your Packard Bell Computer Case and if you are like me I like my case.  I know I am a little vane but I have been looking at it for a coupple of years and I like the style.

The first thing you need to do is to determine your motherboard type, to find this out determine your motherboard and then consult my PB Pentium Systems chart. On this page you will see a column for motherboard style this shows the motherboard form factor used on your PB systems.  There are at least 2 types of motherboards that Packard Bell has used in recent years.

1)  The first and most common type of Packard Bell motherboard is the LPX form factor, this motherboard is characterized by the riser card that extends out of the motherboard.  The LPX standard (from what I have read) is not much of a standard at all.  In fact LPX motherboards are know for not being very standard at all because of different connectors on the different boards.

2)  The other type is the newer ATX form factor and this is an industry standard motherboard.  The ATX motherboards have riser card, the PCI slots are right on the motherboard.

The type of motherboard you have is important, because you will need to buy the same style motherboard in order to get it to fit into your Packard Bell case.

Once you determine the style of motherboard you will need to decide on the featurs you require.  You will also have to decide if you want to buy a Packard Bell motherboard or another brand.

The Packard Bell motherboards could have a better fit in your case, but you may pay more.  There are a few venders that will sell you PB motherboards, see my veder list on my links page.  While non Packard Bell motherboards will give you a wider range of features to choose from while selecting a new motherboard.

Selecting a motherboard is like buying a new computer your selection will also determine the upgrade path that you can choose in the future.  I will only discuss a few of the major points because there are too many features to talk about on this web page, I would suggest you try some of the great motherboard web pages to lean more about all your options.

Depending on how much new stuff you want to buy for your new PC you will have to examine the following carefully.

• Dimensions of your current motherboard -  you will need to make sure your new motherboard is the same size or ver close to the smae size.
• Also look at the physical and electronic compatibility of riser cards and riser card connectors.   I don't know  alot about this subject, but it is important for you to use your PCI slots.
• CPU -  If you want to keep your current CPU then you will need to make sure your new motherboard will accomidate it.
1. If you have a Socket 5 upgrade to a socket 7 that is MMX compatable.
2. Don't buy a Slot One (Pentium II) motherboard if you want to use socket 7 CPU's
3. If you find a LPX Pentum II motherboard "pay extra close attention to ventilation of the CPU inside the case, adding an extra fan to blow across the CPU, even if the CPU has its own fans  so stick with socket 7 if you have an LPX form factor" - Newsgroup post.
• BIOS - This is critical many Packard Bell system max out on the upgrade path because Intel does not make new Socket 7 chips and the BIOS on a lot of PB systems was crippled by Packard Bell on Intels request to support only Intel chips.
1. Look for motherboards that support AMD, Cyrix and IDT processors this will let you upgrade more in the future.  Third party BIOS is not a good as having the original manufacture support the BIOS.
2. Check out the features of the BIOS the BIOS can control many feature of your motherboard.  Some high end motherboards even let you watch the processor temperature to prevent over heating.
3. Also be sure that theres is a bios recovery procedure for any motherboard you buy.
• CLOCK MULTIPLIERS -  This is important because it will allow you to upgrade in the future,l but it is not the most critical because you can always use a Powerleap adapter to increase toe clcok multiplier on Socket 5 and Socket 7 mother boards.
• BUS SPEED -  This is critical.  Make sure that the new motherboard at least supports 66 MHz.  If you can find motherboards that give you 75 MHz, 83MHz, 100 MHz 112 MHz and maybe even higher then spend the little extra on them.  The higer the bus speed goes the higher the potential performance of the motherboard and the better your chances of overclcoking a CPU.
• RAM - Well if you don't want to buy more RAM then you better make sure your new motherboard supports your current RAM.
1. If you have SIMMS and want to keep using them stick with SIMMS.
2. If you are willing to buy more RAM then you may want to upgrade to a motherboard with 128 Pin DIMMS.
3. You may even find motherboards that support both DIMMS and SIMMS, what you need to ask about these systms is can you use both the SIMMS and the DIMMS in the system at the same time.
• VIDEO - A lot of Packard Bell motherboards came with the video on the motherboard.  You will basically have two choices with these
1. You may want to get a new motherboard that has the video on the motherboard like the system you are replacing
2. or you may perfer to buy a separate video card and put it into the PCI slot or into the AGP slot if the motherboard has one.
• SOUND -  There is even a sysms or two that has the sound on the motherboard and if that is the case you will have to get a sound card or buy a unit with the sound on the motherboard.

This is an important question because if you can pay someone else to upgrade the motherboard for you you can save some of the hastle and forget about some of the details.  There are vendors on the web that say thay can upgrade your motherboard for you.  Thse venders usually replace your Packard Bell motherboard with another Packard Bell motherboard, if you do this route make sure you know what motherboard you are upgrading to.

However if you want to attempt it your self make sure you do your homework.  I inquired to one motherboard vender and they had no idea if the motherboard I was asking about would fit into my Packard Bell case, which is too bad since I could have recommended that product to you all if they could garentee it would work.

I have not replaced my motherboard because my PowerLeap adapter is serving me well, Therefore I can not add a lot more to this discussion.  however, if I were to try a replacement  I would love to try to replace my PB 640 with a Super Soket 7 LPX motherboard with an AGP.

 I have seen a few LPX motherboards on the net, these are (I have not tested any of these motherboards to see if they fit a PB case, let me know what you find out):

• Vextrec Technology Inc.'s -  GMB-P58Vpa Super Socket 7
• Vextrec Technology Inc.'s -  GMB-P6Bipa VBX Pentium II
• DTK High Performance Slot 1 LPX Mainboard
• ICP POS-566

If you find others or if you attempt a motherboard upgrade, let me know.   Those of you with other form factors should have an easier time finding replacement motherboards.

I hope this page has at least pointed you in the right direction to persue this subject more.