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What motherboard for P4 1.6?

T

Tullphan

Diamond Member
I've been reading about the overclocking results for this particular chip on a couple of different motherboards, but it seemed they all ran DDR ram. Can one not overclock the fsb using rdram? Isn't the ddr ram a bottleneck for the P4?
Given the overclocking results on that particular chip, how do the benchmarks compare to a comparable XP chip?
Where's the info on the new Soyo socket A motherboard?
 
The ASUS boards have been pretty much cleaning up shop when it comes to the P4. The only chipset that they don't make a mobo for is the VIA P4X266. I personally like the Gigabytes when it comes to the P4s. I feel more comfortable with DDR ram than RDRAM. You can overclock with RDRAM, but you have to make sure you get the good stuff. I hear that Samsung makes the best RDRAM. I haven't seen any comparisons between overclocked P4s and XPs. Atleast not the lower end northwoods.
 
EPoX makes a very good P4 i845 board using DDR RAM. Overclocks better than the Asus P4B266, and costs less.
 
Andy, just so I'm clear on this, are you recommending the P4B266, not the P4B266-C? Every online listing of the P4B266-C indicates it's an OEM board, and that concerns me re BIOS updates, support, etc. Just what is the difference between the P4B266 and the P4B266-C? I'm going to be building a new system soon and unlike six months ago when the AthlonXP was the clear choice, now w/ the 1.6A and 1.8A P4's, I'm leaning toward them. I'm not going to overclock (for what I do w/ a computer it isn't worth the issues), so I'm simply looking for a solid board. I've amassed a few components (Crucial DDR when it was $35/256MB stick, TB Santa Cruz, Yamaha 24x1-x40 CDRW) and I'm now trying to figure out which mobo, HD, and video card to go with. Right now the P4B266 is at the top of the list, along w/ the P4S333.
 
I'm recommending both the P4B266 and the P4B266-C. The P4B266-C lacks one DIMM slot, a CNR slot, and the USB 2.0 controller.

In the case of the OEM P4B266-C, you should have no problems with BIOS updates. This is not a board produced for big vendors like the P2B-VT for HP, Sony, etc.
 
Andy, thanks for the quick response. IMO CNR is a non-issue these days. The extra DIMM slot may be an issue some day, but right now two 256MB DDR's should get one where one wants to go <g>. Probably the biggest issue is the USB2.0. That could be a big factor in the not too distant future. I build my systems for the longer haul, and the P4B266 sure looks like a winner.

I'm also intrigued by the P4S333, but I keep falling back to the safety presented by Intel chipsets. Paint me chicken!
 
I use a P4S333 and it's been real good to me. No crashes yet even when overclocking as high as 150MHz FSB. Haven't tried any higher...

There was a really long P4B266 vs. P4S333 thread recently that you might want to do a search for that and read through it. Might have some good info. In the end I'm sure you would not be disappointed in either board, though.

AFAIK USB2.0 cards are not expensive at all (<$30 I think) so I would go with the P4B266-C over the P4B266, if it comes down to that. You can always get the expansion card when you need it and the total price of the P4B266-C will end up being comparable to its big brother, and maybe even cheaper if USB2.0 prices drop further.
 
I started the long thread between the P4B266 and P4S333. I am still up in the air but leaning towards the more exspensive P4B266. They are really close and arguements can be made for both. It really is a tuff choice. Here is the thread.
 
herbage11, thanks for the link. I'm anxious to read the responses as I do my coin flip re P4S333 vs. P4B266. Then I only have to decide on 120GXP vs. DX740 vs. Baraccuda IV <g>.
 
YW for the earilier thread link. I also had a few threads about hard drives and found the favorites are Seagate and Maxtor. Both are reliable. Maxtor maybe a hair faster and louder. The Seagate has a nice plate to avoid static and Maxtor has great customer service. I was looking at the 40-60GB 7200 RPM drives. Hope this helps.
 


<< Does the p4b266-c comes with the asus case sticker? >>



I bought P4b266-C from NewEgg and it came with the case sticker, yes.
 
I can't figure out from the asus site the different versions of the P4B266. The options I know of are, onboard sound, lan, USB2.0, micro ATX, and I believe I saw a RAID board there also.

There is the 266,
266-SE
266-C
266-E
and 266-M

When you bring up the info on each version, they list sound, lan, etc. as optional. Makes it tough to figure out which version includes which features.

I've got an email in to asus on this, but in the meantime, has anyone got a handle on this?

As a side note, are neweggs shipping costs going up or is it just me?
 
So anyhow...back to my original post...
What's up with the RDram...is it better suited to the P4? Will one get better results (benchmarks) with the P4/RDram vs. P4/DDR ram vs. AMD XP/DDR ram?
Considering the XP2000 is over $200 & one can get a P4 1.6 AND a motherboard for that much (or not more), is the price/performance on Intel's side now?
If one should go with the RDram for the P4, what are some good motherboards that support it?
 
boomerang, do a Google Groups search on P4B266 and you'll find a discussion on the varieties available.

herbage11, I had an opportunity a few weeks back to install a Baraccuda IV in my main system. A buddy w/ an older machine bought the drive to replace an aging WD 6.4G drive. His system is old enough that it won't recognize a drive >30G, so we put my IBM 30G in his machine and put the BIV in mine. It is overwhelming how quiet that drive is. Sometime in the next week or so I'll be helping another friend upgrade his system to a Maxtor D740X 40G, and I'm anxious to see how it compares to the Baraccuda IV. It will be about as fair a comparison as possible as he has the same board as me (Abit BH6).
 
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