What motherboard to get for an AMD XP that supports DDR Ram?

[DrDOOM4sure]

Hey,
Im building a system and am having trouble deciding on a good motherboard. I am going to get and XP, probably 1.5 or 1.6, and I have 512 Mb of DDR ram so I need a motherboard that supports Athlon XP and DDR memory. I see that the ECS K7S5A appears to have its share of problems, but its also the cheapest that I can find. I am hoping to get a motherboard/CPU/Fan combo deal. So I am asking for you help in deciding what would be the best motherboard for my XP. I will not be overclocking if that helps. Here is a list of the compononents I have so far:

ENLIGHT EN-72370X3C4 MEDIUM ATX TOWER CASE
Floppy drive
Lite on 16x DVD drive
16x Sony CDRW with burnproof
Soundblaster Live 5.1 value
Logitech wireless keyboard and mouse (I think its called the navigator or something)
512 MB PC2100 Mushkin RAM
GeForce2 Pro 32 Mb w/ TV out
5.1 Creative Desktop Theatre speakers

I still have to get a mobo/CPU/Fan, and monitor, and if the mobo doesnt have it, a NIC card
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[AGodspeed]

I'd get the Shuttle AK31A (KT266A) board for $92 here.

I'd also suggest you wait until nForce boards are released this week. If you're looking for decent graphics and want great sound, I'd wait for nForce. It has integrated everything basically.

 

[DrDOOM4sure]

Hey,
I allready have sound and graphics cards, so they dont need to be on the motherboard, I wil check out the shuttle though

 

[Athlon4all]

I 2nd AGod, if u have solid Video and Audio cards, go for EPoX 8KHA+ or Shuttle AK31A (both KT266A) both solid boards

 

[Bovinicus]

I would just get the ECS K7S5A, it has an integrated NIC. Sounds like the perfect board for you. I really don't think there can be that many boards manufactured by ECS that are just plain faulty as a lot of people are complaining. I think the people who put those system together are just inexperienced. If you are inexperienced then you should probably get the Shuttle board, people seem to be running into problems less with it.

 

[DrDOOM4sure]

Any other opinions?
Im still deciding, the ECS has a NIC integrated, but it sounds like there is a lot of problems, and this is my first system build so I want it to go smoothly. The Shuttle looks good for the price. Also whats the difference on the EPoX between the 8HKA+ and the normal one? the + is 20 bucks more and I want to know what it has that the regular does not. Can anyone answer this?

 

[human2k]

<< I think the people who put those system together are just inexperienced. If you are inexperienced then you should probably get the Shuttle board, people seem to be running into problems less with it. >>



AGREED..........I have built two systems with the AK31A.............setup was simple........both running smoothly.

 

[LXi]

Nobody mentioned MSI, doesnt seem like anyone is aware of their presence. Their K7T266 Pro2-RU is one of the best out there, if you're into USBs, this is the one to get, plus it's the only board with IDE RAID integrated, you'd have to pay a little more for the features, or you can get a vanilla version for about the same price as Epox.

 

[human2k]

For $135 the MSI k7t pr-RU looks very attractive for all the features it offers you, a USB 2.0 card would run you $35, a good IDE RAID card another $60, it saves you almost $100. But the shuttle is still a solid "basic" board for the money($85).

 

[gplracer]

I am about to order a EPoX 8KHA+ myself

 

[John]

I have an 8KHA+ on the way. MSI has left a bitter taste in my mouth w/ their KT133 boards (Pro2, Pro2A) failing like mad.

 

[Medea]

The Asus A7V266-E is due to be released in the U.S. in a few days (from what I've read). Is pricey ($160's) but Asus is a solid mobo. OTOH, the nForce board seems likes it's going to be a good buy.

 

[DrDOOM4sure]

Whats the diference between the 8KHA+ and the normal 8KHA? I cant seem to find any information on this

 

[LXi]

Epox 8KHA is based on the KT266 chipset, the 8KHA+ is the exact same thing except it has the KT266A chipset. Shuttle's AK31v2 and AK31v3 is the same thing.