Buying suggestions?

[ConnyG]

Hi everyone!

I plan on buying an AMD-rig after summer when I've got some cash but
I'm having trouble deciding what mobo to get. Initially I was thinking
of getting DDR, but I have a feeling DDR is young and still got plenty
of room to mature and add features.

I am not too fond of VIA but the KT133A seems like a decent chipset.
I will buy a mobo, processor (T-Bird/133FSB), memory and a chassi and then
take some stuff from my old computer over, Asus GF2, SB Live!, Plextor CDRW,
Pioneer DVD, 3Com 10/100 NIC and IBM 40GV hd (might buy a new 7200RPM if I have
some money left).

I am totally new when it comes to AMD-platforms so I'm looking for buying suggestions
from you outthere who has more experience. Also, what patches are a must-have for
an AMD system? Anyone know of any incompatibility issues? I know a local retailer warns
about problems mixing Asus GF-cards with ABit mobos and I have also heard of some SB Live!
problems.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Pers]

mobo choices for kt133a are either Iwill KK266, Asus A7V133, or EpoX 8KTA3
All of those would need the via 4 in 1 driver...

If you do decide that ddr is worth the performance gain, get the EpoX 8K7A

 

[boran]

Well i'm intending to do exactly the same ... but I'm kind of waiting for the nForce cous the testing of the beta boards showed that even the beta system was very stable (meaning more stable than lesser boards) the only prob is the price of the nForce which proves to be quite high .. but I think an nForce with an athlon MP would be a nice thing to have in my sys

 

[Boonesmi]

yeah if your waiting till after summer then its to soon to know what to get

two new chipsets are coming out in the next few weeks/months sis 735 and nvidia nforce
both of these new chipsets should totally dominate anything out right now.

 

[Redstar7]

I just did the same thing last week, was new to PC building and wanted to go AMD as an upgrade from my P2 450 MX rig. First decision was on DDR vs Via mobo. After careful reading on the latest boards and technology I decided on a VIA chipset, and the choice was (and still is) clear. Iwill KK266!!! Newegg has em for $107.00 making this board less expensive than other top rated boards, plus if you do decide on a VIA board, check out this link:
Iwill Unofficial FAQ <--take note of the large number of glowing reviews all linked on the bottom!

I don't know where the prices will be at by the end of the summer, but the KT133a boards support from like a 600 Duron up to a 1.3 Athlon so whichever of these boards you go with will give you plenty to consider on cpu choice. I started out thinking I'd be fine with like an 850 Duron but then I broke down and forked over the cash for a 1.2 'C' Tbird

Umm good luck with it all one thing I just noticed in your post is you are using SB Live! card and some people do have issues with this card and the Iwill KK266 I suggested. Possibly all VIA KT133a boards have similar problems with a SB Live card, I don't know. Do yer research and just have fun with it, I know I did!

My specs: Iwill KK266... Athlon 1.2G 'C' (AXIA9). currently @1388MHz... ThermoEngine black anodized HS w/ delta 7k Fan... Maxtor 40GBultraATA/100 @7200 HDD... Hercules Prophet 32MB GeForce2 MX... Phillips Acoustic Edge sound... Creative 12-10-32X CD-RW... NetGear RT314 w/ FA311 cards networked... ViewSonic PF790 19&quot; flat...
and SERIOUS SAMready to play at all times!!

 

[Redstar7]

Oh, I also highly recommend this link Amdmb.com- mobo forums for your research.

 

[ConnyG]

Thanks for your input!

Since I won't be having enough money till the end of the summer I will wait a bit
on deciding. In the meantime motherboards with SiS735, nForce and KT266 should start appearing
and we should hopyfully see some benchmarks of them and I can take them into consideration.

The SB Live! has been nothing but trouble, even on my P3/440BX platform right now. I don't
know for sure but I have a feeling most of my crashes are due to it. Think I will look around
for buying recommendations for soundcards in the forums.

 

[Zuluwarrior]

I've had so far for the Tbird platform:

Epox 8kta2
MSI K7t pro2a
and now the Epox 8k7a

The choice on whether to do the ddr thing
is easily made for me by looking at pricing at
crucial.com/webpromo.

last i checked 256meg of pc2100 could be had for less
than pc133 (55.00 or so)

After some teething issues, I'm extremely pleased with this
epox board and I was very pleased with the 8kta2

I was very &quot;NOT&quot; pleased with the MSI despite good reviews.

My impressions are based on a comination of things like perceived speed, performance,
stability and just general lack of BS.

My vote would definetely go to the 8k7a and some &quot;cheaper&quot; DDR from crucial

My system is fast as hell right now!

 

[chainbolt]

7DXR, see the review, best in quality and best in looks

 

[AppleTalking]

Definitely wait for the benchmarks to come out on the Sis 735, the (hopefully) improved KT266, and the nForce chipsets. I bought an 8K7A, but that's just because I couldn't wait any longer to get a new computer. If you aren't going to have the means to buy a new board until after the summer, wait and see what the next few months bring!

As for the SB Live!, ditch it and buy a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz. Excellent card, excellent sound, no compatibility issues with motherboards or chipsets.

Good luck!
Nick