Need help, might have got ripped off..

[nelska]

So I went to microcenter saying I wanted to upgrade my dell xps8900 and put it into a new case. long story short I got the case and psu. Which I think is all I actually needed. I bought a msi 250b pc mate motherboard thinking the dell mobo wouldnt transfer over to the new case. After I installed everything i booted up and did some research I guess i could have kept the dell mobo.. I dont mind having the new msi one but if its a downgrade Ill rebuild it and get my 70 dollars back.. I also have to rebuy windows with the new mobo.. Is the new msi mobo a downgrade? I cant find the specs anywhere online but all i know is the dell mobos are still going for $200 and the one i built the rebuilt on was only $70. What should I do guys.. Keep the downgraded mobo and rebuy windows(would literally be throwing away $170 on a downgrade) or go back and rebuild it in a new case with the old mobo.. and take the mobo back to microcenter. And before anyone says it wont fit which is the reason i bought a new one i guess its compatible.. so i dont see a reason not to do this.. besides the fact itll take another 2-3 hours to do it and get it back to microcenter.. Will windows still be broke if i go back because the license is on the dell mobo. the new one says i can renew it with activation in settings but it keeps saying we cant renew try again later. its a big mess. thanks for reading. any thoughts?

[LukeSavenije]

sounds weird, the dell board is matx, so it should technicly fit

[iBabySlapper]

4 minutes ago, nelska said:

So I went to microcenter saying I wanted to upgrade my dell xps8900 and put it into a new case. long story short I got the case and psu. Which I think is all I actually needed. I bought a msi 250b pc mate motherboard thinking the dell mobo wouldnt transfer over to the new case. After I installed everything i booted up and did some research I guess i could have kept the dell mobo.. I dont mind having the new msi one but if its a downgrade Ill rebuild it and get my 70 dollars back.. I also have to rebuy windows with the new mobo.. Is the new msi mobo a downgrade? I cant find the specs anywhere online but all i know is the dell mobos are still going for $200 and the one i built the rebuilt on was only $70. What should I do guys.. Keep the downgraded mobo and rebuy windows(would literally be throwing away $170 on a downgrade) or go back and rebuild it in a new case with the old mobo.. and take the mobo back to microcenter. And before anyone says it wont fit which is the reason i bought a new one i guess its compatible.. so i dont see a reason not to do this.. besides the fact itll take another 2-3 hours to do it and get it back to microcenter.. Will windows still be broke if i go back because the license is on the dell mobo. the new one says i can renew it with activation in settings but it keeps saying we cant renew try again later. its a big mess. thanks for reading. any thoughts?

Well, I'd say it was a good call for the guys in that shop to sell you a new mobo, since most OEM motherboards (including many Dells) aren't compatible with standard cases/PSUs. If I were you I'd just keep the new mobo and minimize costs by getting a grey-market £5 W10 Pro Key off eBay, since the Msi mobo is most likely better.

[nelska]

10 minutes ago, ibabyslapper said:

Well, I'd say it was a good call for the guys in that shop to sell you a new mobo, since most OEM motherboards (including many Dells) aren't compatible with standard cases/PSUs. If I were you I'd just keep the new mobo and minimize costs by getting a grey-market £5 W10 Pro Key off eBay, since the Msi mobo is most likely better.

well, that helps.. I have no information on the specs of the dell mobo not sure what would make the one better than the other i just know the dell one has way better audio outputs for it.. theres nothing that makes one better than the other than the sata cable speeds and stuff right? cuz the ones legit gaming mobo and i think the others just a dell mobo but the dell one came with some good gaming upgrades. but you could tell it wasnt really built for gaming. more of an editing pc

[LukeSavenije]

well, as said this one should be a normal matx motherboard. and some are just normal format. that's said by someone that built an mitx mobo in a 2003 pc

[LogicalDrm]

You can use same Windows key as long as its registered to your MS account. Next time do your own research or ask on forums BEFORE buying. At least you can notice if sales people are trying to trick you or not.

[Arika]

19 minutes ago, LoGiCalDrm said:

At least you can notice if sales people are trying to trick you or not

The way I read this thread was that it was OPs choice to buy the new motherboard, not swayed by the sales reps. So I don't think "ripped off" is the right wording in the title 

[LogicalDrm]

2 minutes ago, Arika S said:

The way I read this thread was that it was OPs choice to buy the new motherboard, not swayed by the sales reps. So I don't think "ripped off" is the right wording in the title 

Thats the way I read it too. But i was trying to be nice, and not like "you are stupid, suck it up and next time do better".

[Howitz]

Clone your drives?

[AngryBeaver]

OP, if it is an OEM system you should still have a windows product somewhere on the case via the nice little sticker. Far as I know even with having partition backups they still have to put these stickers on these machines. In that case you can still use the CD-Key to activate windows on your new motherboard, you might have to call in to get it done, but just tell them you had to replace the motherboard due to the other one failing, etc.

 

 

[Tribalinius]

13 minutes ago, AngryBeaver said:

OP, if it is an OEM system you should still have a windows product somewhere on the case via the nice little sticker. Far as I know even with having partition backups they still have to put these stickers on these machines. In that case you can still use the CD-Key to activate windows on your new motherboard, you might have to call in to get it done, but just tell them you had to replace the motherboard due to the other one failing, etc.

 

 

In the case of 8, 8.1, 10, it's just a "Windows" sticker ;).

[AngryBeaver]

12 minutes ago, Tribalinius said:

In the case of 8, 8.1, 10, it's just a "Windows" sticker ;).

Nice. The Manufacturers all go away from them, but if you buy an OEM copy you still get the sticker.

[Tribalinius]

7 minutes ago, AngryBeaver said:

Nice. The Manufacturers all go away from them, but if you buy an OEM copy you still get the sticker.

Yes, my bad I was referring the manufacturers as the OEMs in general since OP has a Dell on his hands.

[MandoPanda]

We need the full specs of your current Dell, and the new mobo you bought. Often times Dell puts in an 'express' chipset, so we need both specs to see if it is actually a 'downgrade'. By bull specs I mean everything, even things you don't think we need.