KT266A or AMD 761 ???

[elektronic]

I'm building a SOHO fileserver for a small, local company.

Which board is more stable?
(they are not chiefly concerned with performance, they are currently running a PP180 server that will be replaced by this)

To on-board LAN or not to on-board LAN?

Or, do I just wait a little while for nFORCE and get on board sound, video, and LAN?

If I'm not mistaken, nForce doesn't use more CPU for its on-board components, but it'll steal some RAM for the video.
However, 9 times out of 10, this board won't be connected to a monitor, so maybe I go 3x256 DDR with the nforce vs. 2x256 for the non nforce combo.

hrmmmm......

 

[BrunoPuntzJones]

epox 8k7a runs on the 761 and seems to be a solid board. if i were building it i would definately got he 761 route. less VIA to deal with

 

[John]

It is too early to draw a conclusion about the KT266A. However it is very stable for me, but so was the AMD761. If you want cutting edge technology, get the 266A. No need for onboard LAN unless it is a "freebie" feature of the board (K7S5A comes to mind). 10/100 PCI NIC's are dirt cheap anyhow.....

 

[Pacinamac23]

The kt266A has MUCH better performance but as of now there aren't a lot of mobos out tha thave that, soon there hsould be though.

 

[Noriaki]

I prefer the more proven AMD761.
The KT266A looks to be a good platform, probably the next major one for the sucessor to the Athlon XP, but I'd like to give it 4-6 months to see how it shapes up before I commit to it.

 

[kreno]

If you want a stable system with good performance I would probably advise that you go with a 761, it's a proven stable chipset. Get something in the area of an Asus, Gigabyte or MSI board though, from my experiences they seem to be the most stable of them all.

 

[Smbu]

Well, if you go for the Shuttle AK31 KT266A mobo you can have 4 DDR Ram slots available to use.

 

[VBboy]

KT266A had better results in most benchmarks. There seem to be no incompatibilities with Sound Blaster and other hardware, that were present with the KT266...

 

[RolyL]

The kt266A has MUCH better performance

Er, no it hasn't. Yes, it performs a little better than the 761, but you'll be pushed to get more than an extra 10% (and that's at the top end). For SOHO fileserving duties, they're probably about even. The speed / quality of the hard disk and NIC are probably going to have a greater effect in determining the performance than 266A vs. 761.

I would probably advise that you go with a 761, it's a proven stable chipset. Get something in the area of an Asus, Gigabyte or MSI board though, from my experiences they seem to be the most stable of them all.

Yep, I've had three Gigabyte motherboards (one a 761) and all have been great.

Wouldn't the Tyan Thunder / Tiger fit the bill better than either a 761 or 266A? No VIA bull whatsoever (although I have to admit my 686B hasn't caused any problems), and dual Athlon support. Stuff a pair of Morgans in and you're go!

 

[smp]

I really like the Gigabyte GA-7DXr .. (amd 761) .. I've had my heart set on one of those for some time. Now that 266a is out though, I would get one of those for my workstation. For a server though I'de get the Gigabyte.

 

[elektronic]

<< The kt266A has MUCH better performance

Er, no it hasn't. Yes, it performs a little better than the 761, but you'll be pushed to get more than an extra 10% (and that's at the top end). For SOHO fileserving duties, they're probably about even. The speed / quality of the hard disk and NIC are probably going to have a greater effect in determining the performance than 266A vs. 761.

I would probably advise that you go with a 761, it's a proven stable chipset. Get something in the area of an Asus, Gigabyte or MSI board though, from my experiences they seem to be the most stable of them all.

Yep, I've had three Gigabyte motherboards (one a 761) and all have been great.

Wouldn't the Tyan Thunder / Tiger fit the bill better than either a 761 or 266A? No VIA bull whatsoever (although I have to admit my 686B hasn't caused any problems), and dual Athlon support. Stuff a pair of Morgans in and you're go! >>



Doesn't the Tyan Thunder Require MP processors? So I'd spend an extra $20-30 vs the XP equivalent.
Also, that board is around $200, and the server doesn't require a dual processor. After all, there are only 6 people working in this office. They aren't even requiring SCSI or RAID!!!

Of course, they offered me $100 to build the system, which is a decent profit for me. Plus, I can "sell" them my old parts, and use the money for my new system (I am already looking at SCSI setups for myself)

I have a Gigabyte 7A-DXC OEM just sitting here, but it has only 2 DIMM slots, wish I could use it, but I don't like to sell crap systems.

 

[Smbu]

"Doesn't the Tyan Thunder Require MP processors? So I'd spend an extra $20-30 vs the XP equivalent."

Actually, I'm pretty sure that you can use XP cpu's in smp, it's just that the MP's are certified for smp usage. You can even use regular Thunderbird cpu's in smp form. I'm not sure about the regular Duron's though, although the Morgan Duron's have been used in smp.

 

[RolyL]

One can use all Athlon / Duron processors in the dual boards, although technically only the MP variety are certifiably guaranteed to work. The Tyan boards will operate with only 1 CPU if necessary.

I really like the Gigabyte GA-7DXr .. (amd 761)

Yep, using one right now and it's cool. Very fast and no problems whatsoever, even with aggressive memory timings. A few have reported issues using a GF3 and onboard RAID, but that's not going to be a problem for a fileserver

I think your 7DXC would be fine. It's a decent board, and for 6 people a 100 MHz FSB Athlon will suffice. You said yourself the performance doesn't have to be top-drawer. AMD use Gigabyte boards for their demo systems, so I'm sure that would offer enough proof of their stability.

 

[elektronic]

I was thinking of getting the GA 7DXR for use in this system, the third dimm slot would give them some room for expansion over the 7DXC.

I think I'll go with that +
2x30gb Maxtor 7200RPM ATA 100 Drives in Raid Stripping or mirroring (their choice) (3 year warranty)
1.33ghz Retail T-Bird (3 year warranty, so i can wash my hands off it)
ATI Xpert 2000 AGP (heck, this isn't my gaming rig I'm building)
Antec 1030B
Floppy Drive
Realtek-based NIC
2x256 Crucial ECC RAM (heck, its only $4 more than non-ecc)

Total: $614 + Shipping

 

[RolyL]

The 7DXR is definitely a great board. Why not switch the 1.33 T'bird for a 1500+ XP though? There's only an £8 price difference.

Check out the Gigabyte forum on www.amdmb.com You'll see the absolute worst side of Gigabyte motherboards, so don't let it put you off (I promise the other manufacturers' forums have just as many complaints ). You may want to ask about using ECC memory, a RealTek NIC, and the RAID controller.

 

[Yvo]

Well unless your getting the new Abit board (KR7A-RAID with 4 dimms) then go AMD761

If you aren't, go KT266A all the way, sure its VIA but hey... AMD wants VIA to produce their main market chipset (hence why AMD chipsets are so damn expensive and they are going to stop producing them)

Shuttle & Epox are where you want to be for KT266A. STAY AWAY FROM ECS, just believe me on that one. The 7DXR I am not familiar with, but I will have to familiarize myself with it pretty soon.

Until then go Shuttle or Epox when KT266a is what you want or Abit KR7A-RAID for AMD761

Yvo