I'm pretty much sold on the fact that the k7s5a is asking for trouble, so i'm willing to shell out lil more money for more reliable mobos...does anyone know the names of other mobos that support both ddr and sdram? thanks
What mobos allow SDRAM and DDR Ram besides K7s5a
- Thread starter Lapchern
- Start date
The A7M266 is DDR SDRAM only.
The ASUS A7A266 and A7A266-E support both SDRAM and DDR SDRAM; the A7A266-E performs much better than the original A7A266, as it is based on the c0 stepping of the ALi Magik1 Chipset. Performance is on par with the VIA KT266A chipset.
The A7A266-E is a very reliable motherboard....doesn't have VIA PCI issues, and you only need one driver: for the AGP.
The ASUS A7A266 and A7A266-E support both SDRAM and DDR SDRAM; the A7A266-E performs much better than the original A7A266, as it is based on the c0 stepping of the ALi Magik1 Chipset. Performance is on par with the VIA KT266A chipset.
The A7A266-E is a very reliable motherboard....doesn't have VIA PCI issues, and you only need one driver: for the AGP.
Don't judge the ECS board so harshly. Just put one in my machine and it booted up flawlessly. No problems whatsoever. I have 4 friends that have bought one and they are all working great. Three of us are using PC133 and 2 of them are on DDR. One person had some issues with the SB Audigy but it is a Creative problem under Windows XP. I do miss the OC'ing options but I'll live with it.
ECS mobos have a history of just dying after about a year, they should be hated far more, but they will be... as soon as peoples k7s5a start to die on them and no warranty to the rescue.
BS. I've been using dozens and dozens of ECS and PC-Chips boards over the years. Death rate: Zero, if you count out those toasted by clumsy customers' DIY attempts.
ECS has a full line of SDRAM-or-DDR boards: There's the hugely successful (and actually pretty good) K7S5A with SiS 735 chipset aka M830LR, its microATX little sister M831LR, K7AMA with ALi chipset aka M817LR (using chipset revision C0, and just updated for UDMA-133 support), equally freshly updated K7VTA2 with VIA KT266A/8233A chipset, and finally M841LR with integrated-VGA SiS 740 chipset.
Believe it or not, they all offer good performance and reliable operation. What you don't get is 300-page manuals with color photo sequences on how to insert a DIMM into a DIMM slot and how to jumper a jumper, overclocker's toys, and as much tolerance toward skimpy power supply units as seen on boards twice as expensive. Know your skills, pick adequate components, and you'll be happy with them.
regards, Peter
ECS has a full line of SDRAM-or-DDR boards: There's the hugely successful (and actually pretty good) K7S5A with SiS 735 chipset aka M830LR, its microATX little sister M831LR, K7AMA with ALi chipset aka M817LR (using chipset revision C0, and just updated for UDMA-133 support), equally freshly updated K7VTA2 with VIA KT266A/8233A chipset, and finally M841LR with integrated-VGA SiS 740 chipset.
Believe it or not, they all offer good performance and reliable operation. What you don't get is 300-page manuals with color photo sequences on how to insert a DIMM into a DIMM slot and how to jumper a jumper, overclocker's toys, and as much tolerance toward skimpy power supply units as seen on boards twice as expensive. Know your skills, pick adequate components, and you'll be happy with them.
regards, Peter
The only problem with the A7A266-E is that I have yet to see it anywhere, I the original A7A needs to be avoided.
- Oct 30, 1999
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At risk of starting a flame war, I will reserve my opinions/experiences with PC Chips. 
I really just have to ask... Why is it so impotnant that you get a board with both types of slots? You know you can't use them both at the same time, right?
If it's because of the "future upgrade" theory... why bother? If you have SDRAM now, get an SDRAM board. If you plan on getting DDR later, get the DDR board now or later. If you get the DDR later and the board now, the board's going to be obsolete by the time you get the memory!
Remember, this is the computer industry. Obselenity is in. Case and point: The A7A266. There's a winner.... NOT! Board runs horribly with an Athlon XP. Go figure. It wasn't engineered for that as it pre-dates the XP. It has a problem with two sticks of double sided DDR and any 266 FSB CPU. THAT sucks fo upgrading! Just get one stick of RAM and you're fine. Whoopie! Get my drift? For the longevity and stability and compatability and expandability of your PC, it's best that you plan the big picture in one shot than get a make-shift-go-between component like a motherboard that supports both DDR and SDRAM.
Just my opinion.
I really just have to ask... Why is it so impotnant that you get a board with both types of slots? You know you can't use them both at the same time, right?
If it's because of the "future upgrade" theory... why bother? If you have SDRAM now, get an SDRAM board. If you plan on getting DDR later, get the DDR board now or later. If you get the DDR later and the board now, the board's going to be obsolete by the time you get the memory!
Remember, this is the computer industry. Obselenity is in.
Case and point: The A7A266. There's a winner.... NOT! Board runs horribly with an Athlon XP. Go figure. It wasn't engineered for that as it pre-dates the XP. It has a problem with two sticks of double sided DDR and any 266 FSB CPU. THAT sucks fo upgrading! Just get one stick of RAM and you're fine. Whoopie! Get my drift? For the longevity and stability and compatability and expandability of your PC, it's best that you plan the big picture in one shot than get a make-shift-go-between component like a motherboard that supports both DDR and SDRAM.Just my opinion.
what jonnyguru said...
exactly! (i'll also hold back my experience and opinion with ecs/pcchips mbs)
and it's definitely worth it to pay the small incremental cost to go with a technology that is current (to the extent that anything stays current very long) if you plan on holding onto your pc and possibly upgrading later, you'll have more workable options.
i.e. go with ddr ram and a good cheap mb -- maybe the shuttle ak31a if you dont need bells and whistles
-my opinion
good luck
exactly! (i'll also hold back my experience and opinion with ecs/pcchips mbs)
and it's definitely worth it to pay the small incremental cost to go with a technology that is current (to the extent that anything stays current very long) if you plan on holding onto your pc and possibly upgrading later, you'll have more workable options.
i.e. go with ddr ram and a good cheap mb -- maybe the shuttle ak31a if you dont need bells and whistles
-my opinion
good luck
sigh...ddr or sdram hmmm
ps. im kicking myself for not jumping on the DDR ram deals a few months back on crucial
ps. im kicking myself for not jumping on the DDR ram deals a few months back on crucial
I have nothing to say good about the a7a266 but I ran two sticks of double sided ddr and a cpu running 133/266 and that part ran fine.
damnit all these ecs stories scaring me off again.....a7a266-e is looking good now...how come it's not popular like other mobos of this type(ecs k7s5a)
Cause of the initial problems with the Magic chipset and $$$$
ECS offers value for speed.
If you do get the ECS just make sure its not a rev 4 board 'little sticker' between the PCI slots
The rev 4 board seems to be the most problematic. . .
ECS offers value for speed.
If you do get the ECS just make sure its not a rev 4 board 'little sticker' between the PCI slots
The rev 4 board seems to be the most problematic. . .
urgh? how do u check if it's revision 4? if there's a sticker between pci slots? does anyone know what revision newegg distributs currentlY?
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