Motherboard for Athlon XP --- argh still can't decide...

[ku]

I'd say epox 8kha+ price/performance wise. If you want just performance, i'd suggest abit, soyo, etc.

 

[SpeedTester]

<< "Overclockers will probably be disappointed - the FSB clock speed is limited to 133 MHz, while the maximum CPU core voltage is 1.85 volts." >>



Can someone tell me why Anand says it can go up to 164mhz?
Or is the -RU Version a newer one that supports higher FSB adjustments? (I ordered this 1)

CPU Interface Socket-462
Chipset VIA KT266A

Form Factor ATX
Bus Speeds 100 - 131MHz (in 1MHz increments)
134 - 164MHz (in 1MHz increments)

Core Voltages Supported Auto Detect
1.725V -1.850V

DIMM Voltages Supported 2.5V - 2.7V (in 0.1V increments)
Memory Slots 3 184-pin DIMM Slots
Expansion Slots 1 AGP Slot
5 PCI Slots
1 ACR Slot

On-board Audio Avance Logic ALC201A

 

[foofoo]

shuttle ak31a
i have 2. they are fast and stable. it's a great board.

 

[Mooncalf]

Has anyone used the Soltek yet?

 

[CraigRT]

<< Has anyone used the Soltek yet? >>



Just what I was wanted to ask... I am thinking of getting that board, it looks great!

 

[beefkake]

Is anyone successfully using the Enermax 340W power supply with the Epox 8KHA+ mainboard? I've got an enermax psu that I want to use in my next system, and that Epox mainboard is looking like the champ.

 

[EtOH]

I have used 3 different kt266a boards in the last month. MSI, Asus, and Abit. I will recommend any of them depending on your situation.

Save $: MSI
Most Features: Asus
Best Bios: Abit

In order of performance it looks like this:
1: Asus
2: Abit
3: MSI

In order of difficulty in setting up it goes like this (most difficult first):
1: Asus
2: MSI
3: Abit

In order of stability it looks like this:
1: Asus/Abit
2: MSI

Hope that helps. I decided to go with the Asus A7V266-E and recommend any of the 3 depending on who hard you want to work at it, how much you want to spend.

EtOH

 

[EtOH]

Also keep in mind 1 important thing about reading posts on the boards. 99% of people that post are the ones with problem, however they may only represent a small fraction of the owners. So keep in mind when you read negative posts that people without problems aren't posting as aggresively.

Basically posts depend on 3 things.
# of people with that board
# of people with problems that are posting
# of people without problems that aren't posting

I am willing to bet that alot more people have the board in question and are happy with it than are posting negatively.

 

[Paladin]

<< Also keep in mind 1 important thing about reading posts on the boards. 99% of people that post are the ones with problem, however they may only represent a small fraction of the owners. So keep in mind when you read negative posts that people without problems aren't posting as aggresively.

Basically posts depend on 3 things.
# of people with that board
# of people with problems that are posting
# of people without problems that aren't posting

I am willing to bet that alot more people have the board in question and are happy with it than are posting negatively. >>



That may be a good indication that there aren't many problems with the A7V266E. 😉
I have one and would highly recommend it, sets up easily, great performance, and of course qualitly and stabilty are top notch. The only down side is the price.

 

[CPA]

<<

<< I like my Soyo Dragon +, fast, stable and alot for the money. >>



I think what he MEANS to say is: Fast, Stable, and ALOT OF MONEY!

they are good, but too expensive for people, such as me. >>



So Yield adding a sound card and/or Lan/modem card to your K7T266 still makes it cheaper than a Dragon+? With a Dragon+ you don't have to add those, they already come with the board.

 

[MoFunk]

For me, Epox or MSI. Can't go wrong with either IMHO.

 

[Pabster]

Personally, I'd go with a SiS 735 solution -- or better yet, wait a week or two for the first SiS 745 boards to appear. SiS 735 is very competitive with KT266A in real-world performance, and SiS 745 promises to oust it from the leaderboard with native support for PC2700 modules.

There's been way too many issues with KT266A boards already. Most of them I can attribute directly to faulty core logic (VIA) but you've got some issues which plague boards from several vendors. For example, the "NO POST!" topics are not exactly far and few between.

But, it's your money. 😀

 

[joecool]

how come nobody's talking about the abit board? i've been thinking about this one myself - has the combination of features & performance i want. is there something wrong with it i should know about ... besides it's high price?

 

[goog]

<< how come nobody's talking about the abit board? i've been thinking about this one myself - has the combination of features & performance i want. is there something wrong with it i should know about ... besides it's high price? >>



Abit vs Soyo thread
One guy posted about some possible issues.
What I see is a good board, but there are several others with more features for less money, so I'm not considering the KR7A eventhough I have an Abit board (KT7-RAID) currently.

 

[So]

Joecool and Goog: I just switched from the KT7-Raid (no A) to the KR7-A raid - no, I'm not an Abit zealot, I just heard a number of good things about the KR7A-Raid and the KG7 so I decided to go for it (seemed like they cleaed up their act after a few recent debacles). I like the features and although the board has it's minor setup issues (namely: 1. you have to bend the thermistor down a little when installing the CPU, otherwise it will sit funny and consequently overheat; 2. You have to put a lot of pressure on the memory to get it to seat correctly) it has been very stable and nice and fast. 😎

 

[goog]

Hmm, I seem to recall having to do those same things with the KT7, though the PCI slots were a lot easier than my comp before where it took hours just to force in a network card.
I don't doubt it's one of the top boards I just think there are better deals out there. I'll likely try something else but who knows I'm not buying right away.

 

[joecool]

<<

<< how come nobody's talking about the abit board? i've been thinking about this one myself - has the combination of features & performance i want. is there something wrong with it i should know about ... besides it's high price? >>



Abit vs Soyo thread
One guy posted about some possible issues.
What I see is a good board, but there are several others with more features for less money, so I'm not considering the KR7A eventhough I have an Abit board (KT7-RAID) currently. >>



Thanks for the link, goog. i'll check it out. the abit is expensive but what other boards have more features? the abit actually seems ideal to me - 6 pci slots instead of 5 & a worthless amr slot, 4 dimm slots instead of just three, on-board RAID, great board layout, full oc support, & extra USB connectors included. on-board sound may seem like a nice freebie but i'll always be using extra sound anyway. the only think i can see that the abit is missing is on-board LAN. i've got this on my k7s5a & love it. the card reader w/the soyo is slick but mostly just a gimmick - i need a reader for other formats so i'm going to have an external reader anyway.

just my two bits,

joe