Which KT266A board would you buy NOW?

[CraigRT]

I posted another thread in the Motherboards forum which can be be found here

I am going to be getting a new motherboard soon, and it's going to be either:

Shuttle AK35GT-R or,
Soltek SL-75DRV-4

Which would you guys buy? I like the purple PCB alot because I like showing off my PC, but I really like the 4DIMMs that the AK35GT-R has.

Which would you guys pick? I'll be using an Athlon 1333 and some Crucial PC2100 sticks, with an SX1040 - 400W PSU.

Thanks everyone!

 

[scoobydooby]

Personally I don't really see the point of having four dimms. Especially since it can cause stability problems. Personally I would rather just avoid those potential problems and just use two or three. Hell, you could throw a gig of ram into just two slots and that would be overkill.
Scoob

 

[CraigRT]

Yeah I agree.. but if I was going to keep the board longer, I might want to upgrade memory eventually... so 4DIMMs is nice, but not necessary.

I just want speed and stability.. My MSI K7T Turbo Limited Edition has spoiled me with extremely good stability and I want nothing less now, Just wondering which is the fastest/most stable of the 2. Probably going to go with the Shuttle from my point of view so far, but just wondering what other people thought. Hopefully someone who has this board can help me out.

 

[woodie1]

From what I have read both boards seem good choices. I have a SL-75DVR2 and am most happy with it. My first time building from the ground up and I had no problems.

 

[CraigRT]

Sounds good, I have heard that from Soltek users too, both boards like mighty attractive to me...

 

[Nate420]

Nice mobo roundup over Here

Both of the boards you mentioned are in the roundup.

I'll be buying soon myself, I'm going with the abit kr7a-r (also has 4 dimms)

 

[Athlon4all]

Niether. Go EPoX 8KHA+ or assuming you want the goodies like RAID and sound(I take it you do), then take the Soyo Dragon+ you pick

 

[CraigRT]

<< Niether. Go EPoX 8KHA+ or assuming you want the goodies like RAID and sound(I take it you do), then take the Soyo Dragon+ you pick >>



Dont want the EpoX, I've used them!
I don't want sound either, but it's cool that the Shuttle has nice onboard sound already. I do want the RAID, not to be used as RAID, I just want the added ATA/100 ports.

 

[konichiwa]

Dragon+

 

[gdawson6]

Im running on a soltek SL-75DRV-2 right now and love it to death, but i think i would go with the shuttle because of Raid and it has better on-board audio. I think you might get more for your money with the shuttle, even though soltek boards come with a nice software package.

 

[CraigRT]

<< Dragon+ >>



Too much money!! although it's a nice mobo..

 

[Athlon4all]

Ok, then out of those 2, I'd take Soltek SL-75DRV-4 just for the sake of seeing how it does since you have no use for the AK35's Sound and Audio.

 

[CraigRT]

<< the AK35's Sound and Audio. >>


hehe, I always thought they were the same thing!! :Q

I am still torn, I'll read some more comparisons and reviews later, I am to the point where I think both would be equally as good, so it makes it hard to decide.

 

[Aquaman]

I have the MSI K7T266 Pro 2.......... solid as a rock

Cheers,
Aquaman

 

[scoobydooby]

Yeah like Aquaman said, if you're like MSI stability then get the MSI. I have the pro2 and it's great.
Scoob

 

[rockhard]

If you need stability may i recommend the Gigabyte GA7VTXH+. This board must be the least bitched about KT266A mobo at the moment for good reason - its IMO Gigabytes best AMD platform motherboard to date.
Also if you want stability may i recommend no overclocking

 

[human2k]

Get the shuttle AK35GTR, it looks sweet and at that price you cant go wrong. I own two AK31A's and absolutely love em, also I have an MSI K7T266-PRO2, its as stable as my shuttle but doesnt quite overclock that well.

 

[Ionizer86]

I must recommend my 8KHA+. However, if you want something with four dimms that's solid, Abit KR7A is worth a look...you do need to use registered ram to use all 4 dimm slots though.

 

[WyteWatt]

Abit KR7A raid.

 

[Mltsao]

Shuttle AK35GT-R = Value, Raid, 4 dimm
Soltek Sl-75DRV-4 = Overclocking, Preformance (new verison is purple )
Epox 8KHA+ = Best Overclocking, Preformance
Soyo Dragon+ = Stablity, Sound
Abit KR7A = Preformance, Overclocking, 4 dimm, RAID


Actaully they all have great preformance... i just think the three I picked are the fastest.
I Would get the Soltek because it looks cool. lol

 

[LXi]

I would consider the following boards:

1. MSI K7T266 Pro2-RU
2. Shuttle AK35 GTR
3. Epox 8KHA+

Doesnt make much sense to buy anything else, these boards are priced competitively, with an considerable amount of features, and great stability. The other boards like Asus and Abit, they're either way overpriced, or lacking in some areas.

 

[John]

You have so many good choices, but from my personaly experiences the 8KHA+ is high on my "top" list.

 

[CraigRT]

Well I'm just looking for something you don't see very often, it may sound dumb, but I want to try some other things.. which is why I picked the Shuttle and the Soltek.

I don't personally know anyone who has either of these manufacturers so I wanted to give a go. I would buy the K7T266Pro2 because my K7T Turbo is an absolutely fabulous board, it has given me not a single problem, ever... but like I said, need for something new!

I would also consider the KR7A but I think the Soltek and the Shuttle are better for the money because they are both about 170-180 CDN dollars. For people recommending the Dragon+, I have had Soyo in the past and I love them, but that board is just too much money and has features I pay extra for, that I dont want. heh..

Still looking into it further, havent completely ruled out ANY boards yet really, just keeping closer in mind a certain few... keep the advice coming, It's going to be the deciding factor!

 

[Slatz]

Dragon = Dollars = Stability............

There is no other board...............

 

[ZzB]

Another nod for the Gigabyte, as long as you don't want to overclock. I've had the E version for two and a half months without a hitch.