What is the hands down best mobo for an Athlon XP????

[SNoWyV82]

I am building a system right now however I am not going for top of the line. I will build a really nice system once the ClawHammer comes out. I have decided to go with an Athlon XP since I am not planning on doing any overclocking. I will get something between a 1800+ and a 2100+. What is the best motherboard out there right now for the XPs?? I will not be doing overclocking, USB 2.0 and RAID would be really nice, onboard NIC is not a must but I would like it, I have an SB Audigy and a Visiontek GF4 TI4200 so I don't need onboard sound or video (but if it comes with it then I don't mind). I read a lot of good things about the Gigabyte GA-7VRXP however I heard Revision 2 was supposed to be out and fix a lot of bugs. Should I wait for this (I don't want to wait too much longer) or is there something with a good set of features and reliability that is out now? Also, what is the best CAS 2 PC2700 ram out? Thanks for any help!

 

[Zim Hosein]

SNoWyV82, I have an EPox 8K3A+ and I love it, I'm not overclocking either. As for what the best XP MB is, take a look here for a start as there really isn't any one definative answer, it depends on your preference:

http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.html?i=1636

Hope this helps

 

[SNoWyV82]

The Epox looks good, however it doesn't have USB 2.0. If I got a case with USB 2.0 ports on the front, wouldn't this prevent me from using them at the new 2.0 spec?

 

[oldfoof]

Epox Hands Down Love Em.

 

[tsnyder]

The best board I've seen for compatibility, features, all around performance, and price would be the ABIT NV7-133R. The board has RAID, the best integrated sound you can buy (better than most sound cards in my opinion), not to mention ethernet. Compared to VIA chipset boards I am extremely satisfied with the nforce boards I've used. They are very stable and most likely to not have compatibilty problems, which isn't the case with VIA and some hardware. I've built a few boards with Nforce chipsets lately and haven't had problems, in fact my 2nd system with the 415D chipset outperformed my KT266A board with the exact same hardware. I never broke 8000 in 3dmark2001 with the VIA board and a G3 but with the Nforce board I hit 8200. I have a friend with a Ti4400 that scores just shy of 10,000 (9700) with no overclocking of his xp1900+ or ram. The Abit is currently $89 dollars at newegg (what a steal) and the board comes with USB 2.0 and USB 1.1.

 

[render]

another vote for ABIT NV7-133R

I can't believe it's only $89

 

[MistaTastyCakes]

I'm loving this Gigabyte 7VRXP. It's the 8K3A+ with some more features, including USB 2.0. According to most benchmarks, it's almost as fast as the Epox as well. I'm using Rev. 1.1 and I have no problems. Running my 1700+ at 1800+ speeds with my DDR at 350mhz.. Prime95 for 10 hours straight, no probs.

Some people have been having voltage probs with it an their GeForce 4 cards, but I've had none of the sort, and my Ti4400 is running at Ti4600 speeds. I'm not sure if 1.1 resolved that, or if it's just a hit or miss sort of thing. However, this board has been the easiest, most solid setup I've had in a long while.

 

[RandomFool]

I'd go with the GA-7VRXP i know i am anyways. I ahven't set one up yet but my friends have set up and are running these (rev1.1)and they had no problems and they run great. Anyways as for rev 2 i don't know much about it but if it's out when i buy mine i'll get it if not it's 1.1 for me. My friend gets around 10000 in 3dmark (i hate him for it) with it and he seems to have a very similar set up to what you are buying. Well that's my 2 cents.

 

[xenolith]

ASUS A7V333

 

[SNoWyV82]

The GA-7VRXP sounds good because it has the most features....however I just read a post above this (Titled "GA-7VRXP owners...tell me your experience with RAM" or close to that) and it has increased my doubts about this board. It seems like it is a hit or miss, however I don't want to get stuck with a miss. Also, I haven't had much experience with the nForce boards, so it looks like the Epox 8K3A+ is the next most recommended mobo. It's either that, or wait for rev. 2 of the GA-7VRXP....hmmm...

 

[30wolverine30]

Epox 8K3A+ is one kick a$$ board!!!

 

[nemo160]

epox 8k3a+
highpoint 372 raid onboard
reads the diode temperature for cpu temp
fast, very fast
6 pci slots so adding usb 2.0 won't be a problem
diagnostic leds
excellent board..i'm very happy with mine

 

[XBoxLPU]

The Abit KX7-333 or Epox KT333 board

 

[MrCodeDude]

WAIT until the end of June.

The 8K3A+ will drop price to make way for the 8K5A2+ (look for news post @ techfreaks). It will be the 8K3A+ with 2.0 USB support If the link is down, check out epox's site
-- mrcodedude

 

[SNoWyV82]

Sounds perfect....Epox has been recommended a great deal here, and this new board is going to take care of my USB 2.0 issue. So I'm going with either this new Epox board or the 7VRXP (maybe rev. 2 if it's out then) now. There were a lot of great suggestions, but it seems like these are the most popular/recommended.