text: is it possible to change the cpu without changing a motherboard? my cpu is very slow because it only has 432 mhz of cpu speed running with window xp pro and i'm not going to downgrade my operation system (turning back to window 98 etc.)  note: i also have 384 mb or memory (ram) and 60 gb of hard drive in my computer. 432mhz is extremely slow for running winxp. you can upgrade, but it sounds like your system is pretty old, and the motherboard is likely imcompatible with some of today's faster cpus.   the good news is that you can get a pentium 4 cpu for under $150 and compatible motherboard for well under $100.00. it doesn't make too much sense to have that much memory paired with such a slow cpu.  on the other hand, you might want to keep in mind that microsoft is coming out with windows vista, their newest operating system, this november.