Suggestions for good motherboard to go with AMD 3200+ XP?

[stndn]

First of all, please bear with me for i have software background instead of hardware.

Anyways, i'm planning on getting a new system. Right now i am thinking about getting AMD Athlon XP 3200+ (Barton). For the record, i had 1800+ paired with ECS K7s5A, which i got from Fry's bundle way back then..

With the limited resources here in indonesia, i couldn't find much information as to what i should be looking for when searching for motherboard to go with this processor. So, i would like to get suggestions on what motherboard i should get to get the best bang for the rupiahs (or bucks). And no, i don't get to shop from Newegg or Fry's for that matter -(

So, any choices i should consider to pair up with AMD 3200? I've heard of ECS L7VMM3 (seems to be the most popular choice), Asus A7V-600X, MSI KT4AV, Gigabyte GA7VM400, and.. what else?

And oh, i don't think i'll get anything PCIe, so i'll be looking at motherboard with AGP 8x support.

I haven't thought of what video card to get yet, so suggestions on this is also appreciated (although the most important is motherboard).


On a side note, i plan on getting Kingston PC3200 DDR memory.
It's mostly for gaming and a little bit of Photoshop and simple image manipulations. Most likely won't overclock since that's not what i'm good at (yet).

Thanks in advance.

 

[joelslaw]

have you considered a athlon 64 3200. I don't know what prices are like in indonesia, but here (USA) the difference between the 2 is a lot of performance for not much rupiah I was going to go with the xp3200 when I upgraded, but then I saw the prices on the 64's and decided it was definately worth it! It's worth taking a look before you go with an XP.

If you still decide XP the Asus A7V880 is a good choice:
http://usa.asus.com/products/m...ta/a7v880/overview.htm

However there are about a million and a half options when it comes to socket A. And I'm sure if you search through some old threads the "which is best" question is probably answered many times.

Hope it helps, and I hope you find what you're looking for!

 

[imported_Kiwi]

For anyone on a very tight budget, the Shuttle motherboards are quite reasonably priced for the decent quality they offer. The A35N is an NF2 board that is very popular. The Socket A Via boards haven't fared terribly well against nVidia's products, at least not the earlier ones, and the 880's aren't lowball price items that I've seen.

That Gigabyte MB model you named is an NF2, with included GF3 graphics, not a bad way to go. I've had really good luck with Gigabyte products, myself.

 

[stndn]

Thanks for the responses.
I actually thought about AMD 64 for a while, but i'm not sure if i can still run everything just fine like i do with AMD 1800+.
I'm using windows 2000, and from what i heard there's a compatibility issue between running AMD 64 and older windows version?
What about the software and other programs?

And that's what scared me in going to 64bit ...

From the price list on my hand, AMD 3200+ 32bit vs 64bit is USD 143 vs 239 ...
And the price of hardwares here is based on the exchange rate of USD -> IDR (which i can say is not that good nowadays with all the terrors and stuffs)

However there are about a million and a half options when it comes to socket A. And I'm sure if you search through some old threads the "which is best" question is probably answered many times.

So if i'm looking for a motherboard for AMD XP, i'll be looking at socket A boards? And what about 64bit?

For anyone on a very tight budget, the Shuttle motherboards are quite reasonably priced for the decent quality they offer. The A35N is an NF2 board that is very popular.

not sure if i can find Shuttle motherboards around here, but i'll put that into thought -)

Thanks for the help. Any more suggestions are also welcomed

(starts a search for socket A boards)

 

[stndn]

Oh, assuming i decide to go with AMD 64 bit later ...
1. Which one (processor) should i get, or what should i consider when picking one up?
2. I'm assuming 64bit AMD 3000 is much faster than its 32bit counterpart?
3. What are good motherboards to go with it?

Thanks again.

 

[ts3433]

For quick comparison, A64 2800 >>> AXP 3200 in most cases. You'll be able to run everything fine--there's no emulation necessary. Chaintech, Epox, and Soltek offer some good cheap NF3 250 motherboards to go with those chips.

If you're looking at Socket A, the Shuttle AN35N-Ultra's a good option; you can also try other NF2-based things from Abit et al.

 

[NoRAM4U]

The Epox 8KDA's are great boards for the $$

 

[fibes]

If money is an issue, I would go with a AMD XP-M(mobile) CPU and the Shuttle AN35N-Ultra. I just recenty built a sytem with a XP-M 2400 and the Shuttle AN35N-Ultra. The stock speed for the 2400 is rated at 1.8GHz and I now have it overclocked to 2.25Ghz. That's higher than 3200+ speeds. I believe all AMD Mobile processors come OEM(bare chip only), so you would have to purchase an aftermarket heatsink. It's not worth spending the extra cash on a XP 3200+, when you can buy an XP-M CPU much cheaper. This is what I spent on my system, just to give you an idea.


Chieftec case $30+XP-M 2400 $77+ Shuttle mobo $57+Zalman heatsink $35+Super-Flower PSU $25+80Gig Maxtor hard drive $30+Geil 3200 Value DDR $69+Rounded cables,fans and lights $20

Total= $343(USD)

Hours of overclocking entertainment, PRICELESS.... (Sorry, I couldn't resist)



*recycled parts: DVD drive and GF4 MX440 video card(soon to be replaced).

 

[stndn]

The problem with buying AMD processors over here is that there's a very limited selection of what's available here...
Seems like more distributors prefer Pentium to AMD -(

I've decided to stay with AMD Athlon XP (Barton?) to save money and all that. The cost of 32bit vs 64bit AMD can go to about 200$ (including the motherboard) at the very least, and that's about more than one month of the average salary over here -(

I guess i'll be getting either Abit NF7S or Asus A7N8X-X based on similar suggestion here

Will save up the 200$ for memory and better graphic card, i guess ...

Edit: The available AMD chips here are up to Barton XP 3200+ (also earlier), Sempron 2200 to 2600, and AMD 64 2800 to 3200 ....

 

[joelslaw]

Originally posted by: stndn
So if i'm looking for a motherboard for AMD XP, i'll be looking at socket A boards? And what about 64bit?

if I understood, you were asking what socket the 64's use. You have the option of socket 754 or socket 939. It's generally agreed that 939 is the better choice. (if you search the forum you can find plenty of comparisons of the two)

Hope your upgrade turns out well!

 

[ChineseDemocracyGNR]

I'd like to clarify that the Athlon 64 is not a 64-bit only processor. If you must get an Athlon XP I wouldn't suggest anything faster than a 2600+, as you can just learn to overclock.

What are the prices for A64 and AXP processors over there?

 

[stndn]

if I understood, you were asking what socket the 64's use. You have the option of socket 754 or socket 939. It's generally agreed that 939 is the better choice. (if you search the forum you can find plenty of comparisons of the two)

I was actually looking for socket A when i started the thread. As i learned and researched a few differences in the motherboards and processors (although still far from enough), i started to have doubts to whether i should stay with 32bit or go to 64bit AMD's ...

Depending on the overall price difference, i may get 64bit instead of 32bit ...

I'd like to clarify that the Athlon 64 is not a 64-bit only processor. If you must get an Athlon XP I wouldn't suggest anything faster than a 2600+, as you can just learn to overclock.

In a way you're saying that Athlon 64 can work just the same way as previous 32-bit processors without any changes whatsoever?

The prices of 32 bit AMD's (barton):
2600 - USD 80
2800 - 95 (retail box = 158)
3000 - 104
3200 - 143

The prices of 64 bit AMD's (not sure which cores):
2800 - 158
3000 - 180
3200 - 239

And i don't see many boards with socket 939 here.. -(

I'm starting to think that this thread has gone from motherboard to processor issue.. So maybe i should have mods move this to general hardware or maybe i'll create a new thread later... But for now, i gotta work -(

Thanks for all the suggestions btw. Really appreciate them (and all your patience)

 

[joelslaw]

acctually chinesedemocracy was (i think) just dispelling the mith that the 64's won't run 32 bit apps as well as 32 bit cpus. And he's right. In fact quite the opposite is true. google some benchmarks for XP 3200 vs 64 3200 (or even 3000, or 2800). The 64 bit chips have quite a dramatic performance gain over the 32 bit's

On the subject of skt939 boards, there aren't as big of a selection as skt754 (from what I've seen). Also, it may be hard to find a skt939 cpu below a 3500, because they made them later. (models from 2800 to 3400, initially came out in only skt754, i think)

Just be patient and keep searching! It's better to wait and really get what you want than to rush it and get something you'd wish you hadn't. Hope it all works out for ya!