Go for Athlon 64 now (Socket 754) or wait for Socket 939?

[BoomAM]

The KT133 and KT133A are supposed to be ridled with USB problems, yet on my KT7A-RAID, ive had none whatsoever. My modem isnt even supposed to work with my system!.

 

[MSIuser]

Just to add to it, I got a KT266a board and no problems with it. I think you need to cut some slap to VIA, they only make the chipsets, its the mobo manufacturer who puts it together.

 

[BFG10K]

I certainly didn't wait and I went with a 3200+ XP 64 with an nForce 3 150. I should have the parts today or tomorrow.

 

[Maximilian]

Originally posted by: AIWGuru
VIA = NO!
I'm not kidding.
Don't buy VIA for any reason.
I don't care if it's the most stable, bestest product VIA has ever produced. DON'T BUY VIA.

Woah u have a reaaal problem with VIA.
Personally i think theyre fine, my K8T800 runs great. Also in response to the original post, you might as well get the 754 chip as that sockets gonna be around for a while unlike the 940 go buy!!

 

[Venomous]

Originally posted by: AIWGuru

Originally posted by: Schnieds
Yeah... I have heard not to get Via from others to... but no one can tell me why. I have heard that in the past people have had problems with Via, but their current Athlon64 chipset seems good, so why not? Specific info would be greatly appreciated.

Does anyone have any idea when the Via K8T800 Pro is expected to be released? Are they supposed to show it at CeBit? Also, what are they changing from the current Via K8T800?

Thanks for the advice and comments!

Schnieds

They make a generally shoddy product. It's a problem with the company, not individual products but when you buy from them, it's like playing russian roulette.

I've had some via based systems KT133 (no A) (tons of problems. USB, stability, PCI busmastering) I've had a KT266a which had stability problems [infinite loop] (which were fixed by via's drivers some year after I bought the thing) and now I have a board with an SIS chipset (second SIS chipset - no probs) and I only have 1 problem with this sytem. It's with the one and only VIA chip in the whole thing. The USB 2.0 controller on the pro version of this board. It's very flakey and when I have my remote wonder hooked up to it, it has no range.
My roommate has a dual P3 system with some kind of VIA apollo chipset in it and his AIW 9600 Pro won't even run at AGP 4. The drivers detect the crappy chipset and slow it down. He also WAS plagued by VIA USB bad mojo until he bought an add in NEC USB 2.0 card. He also has compatibilty issues with his soundblaster live platinum and that chipset (PCI busmaster issues) but of course, the same card works fine in his intel system.
Not long ago - maybe two months VIA launched a set of their 4in1s which kind of destroyed any system with an ATI card in it and some nvidia cards. They pulled it within hours but that's some tight quality control right there.

Take a look at the system requirements and read me for C&C Generals and NFSHP2. They both lists problems specific to VIA chipsets and no one else's. That should tell you something.

As you can see, I have a lot of reasons not to trust this company, their QC or development quality. They produce generally inferior products. They might have, right now, the bestest chipset in the world but I won't buy it. You just can't trust the company.

VIA draws a lot of animostiy from people with experience with them. This can be attested to by the number of people in this thread saying: "Everyone says not to buy via..." or "I've never had all of these well known issues..." Of course, there are lucky people who have no problems. Good for them. And they'll always chime in. But, that doesn't make for a generally good quality product.

Re: the person who took a shot at me for buying ECS. It was the only replacement board I could afford locally and it works PERFECTLY! It uses a trusted SIS chipset. Also, I don't advocate anyone buy an ECS board unless they have to. Since I don't advocate it, it's not analogous to what I'm saying here.

Re: the FX 5200. This is a good card. Rock solid stability. Has it occured to you that I don't game with it? Has it occured to you that this is actually the best card for $78Cdn? Has it occured to you that this card will actually support the high end render for longhorn's GUI when it's released? I doubt it.

You = Assclown

Things have changed since 2000...

 

[AIWGuru]

Originally posted by: Venomous

Originally posted by: AIWGuru

Originally posted by: Schnieds
Yeah... I have heard not to get Via from others to... but no one can tell me why. I have heard that in the past people have had problems with Via, but their current Athlon64 chipset seems good, so why not? Specific info would be greatly appreciated.

Does anyone have any idea when the Via K8T800 Pro is expected to be released? Are they supposed to show it at CeBit? Also, what are they changing from the current Via K8T800?

Thanks for the advice and comments!

Schnieds

They make a generally shoddy product. It's a problem with the company, not individual products but when you buy from them, it's like playing russian roulette.

I've had some via based systems KT133 (no A) (tons of problems. USB, stability, PCI busmastering) I've had a KT266a which had stability problems [infinite loop] (which were fixed by via's drivers some year after I bought the thing) and now I have a board with an SIS chipset (second SIS chipset - no probs) and I only have 1 problem with this sytem. It's with the one and only VIA chip in the whole thing. The USB 2.0 controller on the pro version of this board. It's very flakey and when I have my remote wonder hooked up to it, it has no range.
My roommate has a dual P3 system with some kind of VIA apollo chipset in it and his AIW 9600 Pro won't even run at AGP 4. The drivers detect the crappy chipset and slow it down. He also WAS plagued by VIA USB bad mojo until he bought an add in NEC USB 2.0 card. He also has compatibilty issues with his soundblaster live platinum and that chipset (PCI busmaster issues) but of course, the same card works fine in his intel system.
Not long ago - maybe two months VIA launched a set of their 4in1s which kind of destroyed any system with an ATI card in it and some nvidia cards. They pulled it within hours but that's some tight quality control right there.

Take a look at the system requirements and read me for C&C Generals and NFSHP2. They both lists problems specific to VIA chipsets and no one else's. That should tell you something.

As you can see, I have a lot of reasons not to trust this company, their QC or development quality. They produce generally inferior products. They might have, right now, the bestest chipset in the world but I won't buy it. You just can't trust the company.

VIA draws a lot of animostiy from people with experience with them. This can be attested to by the number of people in this thread saying: "Everyone says not to buy via..." or "I've never had all of these well known issues..." Of course, there are lucky people who have no problems. Good for them. And they'll always chime in. But, that doesn't make for a generally good quality product.

Re: the person who took a shot at me for buying ECS. It was the only replacement board I could afford locally and it works PERFECTLY! It uses a trusted SIS chipset. Also, I don't advocate anyone buy an ECS board unless they have to. Since I don't advocate it, it's not analogous to what I'm saying here.

Re: the FX 5200. This is a good card. Rock solid stability. Has it occured to you that I don't game with it? Has it occured to you that this is actually the best card for $78Cdn? Has it occured to you that this card will actually support the high end render for longhorn's GUI when it's released? I doubt it.

You = Assclown

Things have changed since 2000...

I wasn't JUST talking about products from 2002 but also ones that are still sold today (USB controller) and drivers which were just released and whipped back.
If you want to comfort yourself saying "it was two years ago!!!!" (an eternity

) but the fact remains: VIA has a track record of poor products.

 

[KristopherKubicki]

Do you want a budget system or are you looking for a high end rig?

A 3000+ on Socket 754 is pretty impressive. Wait for the NF3-250 benchmarks to show up tonight/tommorow and then make your decisions based on that. I think 754 with NF3-150 is still pretty good. Youll get good performance for a cheap buck.


Kristopher

 

[XBoxLPU]

AIWGuru,



The VIA AMD 64 chipsets are great and stable. You are basically bashing via on older chipsets.

I love my A64 setup and my Asus K8V has caused no problems what so ever. Same can be said for the KT266A and KT333 boards I have owned

 

[jdogg707]

Originally posted by: AIWGuru

Originally posted by: Venomous

Originally posted by: AIWGuru

Originally posted by: Schnieds
Yeah... I have heard not to get Via from others to... but no one can tell me why. I have heard that in the past people have had problems with Via, but their current Athlon64 chipset seems good, so why not? Specific info would be greatly appreciated.

Does anyone have any idea when the Via K8T800 Pro is expected to be released? Are they supposed to show it at CeBit? Also, what are they changing from the current Via K8T800?

Thanks for the advice and comments!

Schnieds

They make a generally shoddy product. It's a problem with the company, not individual products but when you buy from them, it's like playing russian roulette.

I've had some via based systems KT133 (no A) (tons of problems. USB, stability, PCI busmastering) I've had a KT266a which had stability problems [infinite loop] (which were fixed by via's drivers some year after I bought the thing) and now I have a board with an SIS chipset (second SIS chipset - no probs) and I only have 1 problem with this sytem. It's with the one and only VIA chip in the whole thing. The USB 2.0 controller on the pro version of this board. It's very flakey and when I have my remote wonder hooked up to it, it has no range.
My roommate has a dual P3 system with some kind of VIA apollo chipset in it and his AIW 9600 Pro won't even run at AGP 4. The drivers detect the crappy chipset and slow it down. He also WAS plagued by VIA USB bad mojo until he bought an add in NEC USB 2.0 card. He also has compatibilty issues with his soundblaster live platinum and that chipset (PCI busmaster issues) but of course, the same card works fine in his intel system.
Not long ago - maybe two months VIA launched a set of their 4in1s which kind of destroyed any system with an ATI card in it and some nvidia cards. They pulled it within hours but that's some tight quality control right there.

Take a look at the system requirements and read me for C&C Generals and NFSHP2. They both lists problems specific to VIA chipsets and no one else's. That should tell you something.

As you can see, I have a lot of reasons not to trust this company, their QC or development quality. They produce generally inferior products. They might have, right now, the bestest chipset in the world but I won't buy it. You just can't trust the company.

VIA draws a lot of animostiy from people with experience with them. This can be attested to by the number of people in this thread saying: "Everyone says not to buy via..." or "I've never had all of these well known issues..." Of course, there are lucky people who have no problems. Good for them. And they'll always chime in. But, that doesn't make for a generally good quality product.

Re: the person who took a shot at me for buying ECS. It was the only replacement board I could afford locally and it works PERFECTLY! It uses a trusted SIS chipset. Also, I don't advocate anyone buy an ECS board unless they have to. Since I don't advocate it, it's not analogous to what I'm saying here.

Re: the FX 5200. This is a good card. Rock solid stability. Has it occured to you that I don't game with it? Has it occured to you that this is actually the best card for $78Cdn? Has it occured to you that this card will actually support the high end render for longhorn's GUI when it's released? I doubt it.

You = Assclown

Things have changed since 2000...

I wasn't JUST talking about products from 2002 but also ones that are still sold today (USB controller) and drivers which were just released and whipped back.
If you want to comfort yourself saying "it was two years ago!!!!" (an eternity

) but the fact remains: VIA has a track record of poor products.

Is everything you post BS flame bate, or am I the only one who has noticed this? Via made the best Athlon chipsets for quite some time, at least until the Nvidia Nforce came onto the scene. I have a Via chipset on my A64 rig and personally have no troubles with either C&C Generals or Need for Speed. Via has always been good about driver updates to fix issues within their products, so I can't complain, especially since there is no perfect product...the best I can hope for is a speedy update to any problems I am having! I have used the KT133, KT133A, KT266A, KT333, and now the K8T800...never a problem with any of them. I personally think you need to stop being so defensive, realize that if you are controversial people with react, and take it in stride. Nothing can be acheived by calling someone an "Assclown" other than more petty name calling, which is ultimately pointless to the topic of conversation in this thread. That being said, I am sure you had many good reasons to purchase an FX5200 and the ECS motherboard...none of which were performance.

 

[jdogg707]

Originally posted by: KristopherKubicki
Do you want a budget system or are you looking for a high end rig?

A 3000+ on Socket 754 is pretty impressive. Wait for the NF3-250 benchmarks to show up tonight/tommorow and then make your decisions based on that. I think 754 with NF3-150 is still pretty good. Youll get good performance for a cheap buck.


Kristopher

I am looking forward to information on these, as I am deciding if the PCI/AGP lock will give me enough of a reason to switch motherboards.

 

[GonzoDaGr8]

Originally posted by: nitromullet

Originally posted by: AIWGuruVIA = NO!
I'm not kidding.
Don't buy VIA for any reason.
I don't care if it's the most stable, bestest product VIA has ever produced. DON'T BUY VIA.

What exactly are you trying to say here? Your message just doesn't seem to be clear.

I agree. I have been having great luck with VIA chipsets lately.

 

[MichaelD]

Originally posted by: KristopherKubicki
Do you want a budget system or are you looking for a high end rig?

A 3000+ on Socket 754 is pretty impressive. Wait for the NF3-250 benchmarks to show up tonight/tommorow and then make your decisions based on that. I think 754 with NF3-150 is still pretty good. Youll get good performance for a cheap buck.


Kristopher

:Q

Benchmarks? As in "AT Benchmarks?" I can't wait! I've only seen one review of the NF3250...and it wasn't impressive at all. I can't wait; bring'em on!!!

 

[GonzoDaGr8]

Originally posted by: XBoxLPU
AIWGuru,



The VIA AMD 64 chipsets are great and stable. You are basically bashing via on older chipsets.

I love my A64 setup and my Asus K8V has caused no problems what so ever. Same can be said for the KT266A and KT333 boards I have owned

KT266A was a sweet step up from the KT133A..

 

[knouri]

Wait for the NF3-250 benchmarks to show up tonight/tommorow and then make your decisions based on that.

Am I the only person refreshing the AT homepage every 5 minutes? Yeah I read that other review that was out a week ago or so, but AT is where the real dirt is found.

 

[jdogg707]

Originally posted by: knouri

Wait for the NF3-250 benchmarks to show up tonight/tommorow and then make your decisions based on that.

Am I the only person refreshing the AT homepage every 5 minutes? Yeah I read that other review that was out a week ago or so, but AT is where the real dirt is found.

haha, I find myself in the same position...I am looking forward to a set of quality AT benchmarks on this chipset, it will be good to set aside the rumors and get to the facts.

 

[Sideswipe001]

I had a VIA motherboard previous to my nForce2 one. All I can say is that my 9700 Pro locked up like mad on the A7V8X, and it wasn't until I switched over to the A7N8X that I had stability again.

Anyone can change, but for now, if the benchmarks are even, I'll take nVidia's chipset.

 

[Berkut]

OK, is there any chance at all t swing the discussion away from "Via sucks donkey balls", "No they don't", "Yes they do", and get back to the pros and cons of waiting for socket 939 on any chipset?

I am in almost the exact same position as the original poster - looking to upgrade to A64, wondering whether to pull the trigger now or wait for socket 939.

 

[Schnieds]

Thanks for all of the comments and information.

I think that I am going to go for a socket 754 chip in the next week or two. I want to wait and see if the NForce 250 has PCI/AGP locking and how quickly they get the boards to retailers. If there are boards out in the next week or two I will probably go with one of those, if not I think I might try a VIA based MB. Also, one reason I am going to use MonarchComputers for my new machine is that I have heard they have really, really good customer service. So if I do get a VIA based MB and things don't work right I am not too worried about it because Monarch will replace the components under the warrenty.

I figure that at this point there is no reason to wait for socket 939. By the time I want to upgrade the CPU I will want a new motherboard anyways, so why not just get a socket 754 now to enjoy...

There is a review of the NForce 250 over at Hexus.net for you that are interested... pretty much looks to be equal to the VIA K8T800. You can find it Here

 

[Kadarin]

Originally posted by: Berkut
OK, is there any chance at all t swing the discussion away from "Via sucks donkey balls", "No they don't", "Yes they do", and get back to the pros and cons of waiting for socket 939 on any chipset?

I am in almost the exact same position as the original poster - looking to upgrade to A64, wondering whether to pull the trigger now or wait for socket 939.

I agree, and I am in the same postion. Whether to wait for 939, and whether to go nforce or Via in either case. Linux support will be important in my case.

 

[txxxx]

Originally posted by: AIWGuru
VIA = NO!
I'm not kidding.
Don't buy VIA for any reason.
I don't care if it's the most stable, bestest product VIA has ever produced. DON'T BUY VIA.

Stuck in a time machine?

Ive owned 2 x KT266A boards and 1x KT133A board, all good brands (Gigabyte, Abit, Asus) and there as stable as my SIS735 and nforce2 based boards, even combined with an audigy and seperate PCI network cards.....

Needless to say, you'll find many happy VIA users around here. Welcome to 2004.

 

[txxxx]

And those who expected the nforce250 to be a "wonder chipset" , well it certainly is featurewise.... although the IDE controllers (on both SIS's and NVIDIA's chipsets) are pretty dam efficient as they are, so unless they come with new memory controllers, I wouldnt bet on the chipset improviing performance much at all.

And as for the original thread, given that chipsets arent going to boost performance substancially, you may be better off waiting for a 939, that way, should you get bored of whatever you have, you should be able to slip in another generation 939 socket based cpu.

 

[Markfw]

In regards to the comment about "better memory controllers", for the Athlon64, the memory controller is in the CPU, and thus no northbridge, so that can;t be happening.

 

[JediJeb]

Originally posted by: Markfw900
OK, shoddy product means "motherboard manufacturers problem". Also, in 2 years PC's are almost obsolete. Most big companies (the last two I have worked for with over 120,000 employees) "refresh" as in replace every PC in the company every 3 years. Yes, they are on lease, but thats why they do that, since they go obsolete in 3 years. And I still won;t believe it until I troubleshoot it myself.

Man I wish I worked where you do, where I work we still have a P75 Win3.1 and several PII 333's. Only time a computer here gets refreshed is when it is totally dead LOL.

 

[MDE]

My laptop (K8T800 based) has been rock solid, as has a KT266a board I've got around here. IMO, VIA just isn't very good overclocker's material.

 

[JackHawksmoor]

What's the deal with people screaming "user error" if anyone has a problem with a VIA product? It's always VIA, for some reason. I know they're supposed to be better now, but I won't touch one (yet) after my experiences with whatever their first chipset for the Thunderbird was. 6 months of constant bios and driver updates, and it still was never 100% stable. (Ironically I couldn't read or write through a regular serial port for more than 5 minutes without a lockup-one of dozens of inital problems.) Never wasted more time on a system than that one (finally tossed the board and bought a cheap Intel board/CPU). It was an Asus board too.

I wish AMD would develop their own chipsets. It seems weird to me that they don't, when they're as important as the CPU. Or too bad Intel dosen't make chipsets for AMD CPUs

I know the Nforce chipsets haven't been perfect either, but geez... (And the Nforce 3 150 performance seems about the same as everything else with more recent drivers)