********Looking for a full featured P4 MoBo*****

[Daytona572]

I have been trying to choose parts for a new system to run 3D CAD on. I have basically three questions.

After checking out what Intel and AMD currently have to offer, I am leaning heavily towards a P4-2.53. Maybe a cheaper AMD XP2200 would be fine for my use, or maybe a P4-2.8 would show a noticeable gain, I?m not certain. Of course money is always a concern, but I do not mind paying if there is an appreciable gain.

I have been reading reports on the various Motherboards, but haven?t come to a clear answer. Here are some of the features I want (or at least think I want):

RAID 1 (to keep a backup drive)
1024MB of DDR333 or faster ram
Good over clocking abilities
LAN (could add a card, but onboard would suit me fine)
Audio (same as the LAN, onboard would suit me fine)
Compatible with Geforce Ti4600 or Radon 9700 Pro graphics card

The problem is, I am having a hard time finding many boards that have all these features. I thought the Asus P4S8X with the Sis648 chip was the answer, until I read too many stories about it being unstable. The Gigabyte GA-8SG667 (SiS648) and Asus P4PE (845PE) seem to have it all except the RAID.

1) Do you think there would be much noticeable difference, in real world use, between the 2200 class and higher CPUs?

2) So far, it looks like the Gigabyte GA-8PE667 is the only one that fits the bill. Are there any comments on this choice, and am I missing some other choices?

3) Also, since there are several boards that would fit the bill but don?t have on board RAID, other than cost, are there any pro?s or con?s to just using a separate RAID card?

Thanks for any help.

 

[oldfart]

How about an Epox 4G4A+?

 

[Daytona572]

Thanks, but since the 845G has onboard graphics and uses PC2100 ram I hadn't been considering a board based on that chipset.

 

[oldfart]

845G supports PC2700 just fine. Its not "officially" supported, but it's just a simple matter of setting an option in the BIOS. There are countless 845G users running DDR333 and much higher. As far as the onboard graphics go, you dont have to use them. If you cant live with that, get a board based on the 845PE chipset.

 

[Daytona572]

I didn't know for sure if the PC2700 would work in a 845, thanks for the tip. Also, I went back to the link you gave and see that the Epox 4G4A+ board does have an AGP slot. Have you used that board?

 

[GT1999]

I'd get the Asus P4PE and just get a seperate RAID card, probably a 3Ware. The P4PE looks to be the best board of this chipset thus far.

Better yet, just wait for DC-DDR. It isn't that far off now. It's due out this quarter; Kyle at HardOCP has a pre-production version, and posted some Sandra memory scores, and they were in mid 4k scores

 

[GT1999]

By the way, the reason I say get the P4PE is because of the memory situation with the Gigabyte. It doesn't like to run high mem speeds with more than one slot populated, a lot like 845E/G boards out there. I can run 2x 512MB in my Abit IT7 (845E), and overclock fairly well, but not all motherboards hold the same high mem stability. The P4PE, according to Anandtech's recent review, is stable as a rock at aggressive mem times with all of the slots populated. That's a huge plus for someone like you who wants gobs of RAM at hand. Think about that before you buy the Gigabyte.