• We’re currently investigating an issue related to the forum theme and styling that is impacting page layout and visual formatting. The problem has been identified, and we are actively working on a resolution. There is no impact to user data or functionality, this is strictly a front-end display issue. We’ll post an update once the fix has been deployed. Thanks for your patience while we get this sorted.

which mobo for xp 1800/1900

S

Smokey0066

Senior member
well i've been outta the loop for a while but have finally given in.... movin up from a 550..

i've been told by friends to look at the nforce as a good cheap starting point. But 1) no one seems to talk about this board much here 2) if they do talk about it people dont say much good about these boards.

SO what should i be looking at? the nforce is appealing since it comes with everything for under 100(abit) hmm is it worth it to jump right into the ddr333. Idunno if i need top notch performance, just good performance. i will be making the purchase next week; shopping alot this weekend.. would like to stick to abit/asus as i'm familiar with their quality...

and my lian li case should be coming soon.. 🙂 man 2yrs is along time to go without an upgrade.. hehe
 
Depends on what you need Smokey0066, do you need RAID? Do you need support for the latest XP CPU? Do you need on-board LAN? ETC...

A few more details and I'm sure we can help you out w/ a M/B that will fit your needs and budget 🙂
 
hmmm well as i noted it'd be nice if it was like the nforce with everything on it.

i need lan. dont need raid but it'd be nice. i will be going for an XP 1800/1900 dunno yet depends on prices. my budget? well i was looking to spend less than 150 shipped; would like to stick to asus/abit. i know i'll pay a premium for the latest technology so i dunno if i need that; i know i want that though. i dunno about sound; if onboard solutions arent good i'd opt for a card but i heard the nforce on board audio was really good. i know the performance of that board isnt great though which is why i come here..

i have my cooler already an alpha 8045. my case and ps is already purchased[lian li and antec] and i will be purchasing a GF4 4200 for this system also. just got in on that lite on dvd deal at dell also. burn with plextor ide drive w/burnproof. i have 2 hd and looking to grab more as soon as theres a deal. i guess raid would be nice for the addition controllers but im not sure i'd use the raid feature.. Maybe??

i do everything; i use it for homework, gaming, surfing. i guess right now everything is okay with my sytem cept i cant play any of the games! all in winxp...

anymore detials needed?

thanks guys.

 
Looking at your current system, I would suggest taking a long look at the MSI KT3 Ultra. The non-raid version goes for $73 at newegg and has solid on board audio. That would leave enough money to upgrade your video card, too which you also probably need to do. The Nforce on board video is comparable to the geforce 2MX, from what I have read. Edit: just noticed you are picking up a GF4 Ti4200, so obviously you won't be needing the Nforce onboard video. Maybe you could use the extra money for more/better ram.
 
I would look for a motherboard with the via kt266a or the via kt333 chipset. Since the kt266a is an older chipset it will be cheaper. The overall performance with these chipsets are excellent. The Epox EP-8KHA+ is a great board. Had this one for a long time until I switched to the P4. My friend has the Epox EP-8K3A+ motherboard with the via kt333 chipset. He has had no problems with this motherboard and loves its overall performance.
 
Hey?I know you are pretty aliment about going with Abit/Asus. These are both good choices. I personally have, and like the Asus A7V266A-E w/RAID. Lately however I have been using shuttle boards in computer builds for my clients. The boards are fast and economical. If like you said you don?t need the newest and latest features like DDR333 I would recommend something like the Shuttle AK35GTR. One reason I like the shuttle over the Asus is its use of a HighPoint RAID controller as opposed to a Promise. Not only does the HighPoint allow adjustable stripe sizes from 64K to 2mb (I think) it also allows you to use RAID 0+1 or build an array of up to four drives. The Promise only lets you use two drives. The reason I would recommend the VIA KT266A chipset over the VIA KT333 is that there is not that much speed advantage for the newer chipset. The Athlon XP can?t take full advantage of the DDR333 speeds. Now some one please correct me if I am wrong here, but I have heard that PC2100 at CAS2 in a KT266 board runs as fast as PC2700 at CAS2.5 in a KT333 board. So why spend the extra money if you don?t need to. With the Shuttle AK35GTR selling at newegg.com for $88 w/shipping you can use the extra money and buy you self good CAS2 PC2100 RAM and run just as fast.

Good luck with your new system.

P.S. If you are planning on overclocking your GeFroce 4 please let me know how it turns out. I am looking into buy one of the new GeForce 4 cards and can?t decide between the 4200 and the 4400.
 
man school started and i've been hella busy.. didnt get as much shopping in as i wanted.. case is coming tomorrow and ps is here already so i just need my mobo cpu hsf ram GeF4 n i'll be ready to go..

i'll look at the shuttle.. what about abit? they use highpoint no? i have abit be6 now and it has highpoint ctrl aswell..

yea i'm not so sure i need to go with kt333 and with kt400 around the corner maybe i should save my money and go kt266 now and up it to 400 later...

thanks.. as soon as i get some time in i'll be shoppin more but school is really a pain in da BUTT
 
Smokey,

I can wholeheartedly recommend the Abit NV7-133R. If you are not into overclocking, this is a great board. Onboard USB 2.0, LAN, nForce sound (with Dolby Digital), ATA133 RAID, you name it. All for under $100! I just built a system with one over the weekend and so far it is rock solid. As far as I'm concerned the small performance gain you get from PC2700 right now is not worth the cost.
 
Pheran:

I'll have to disagree with you. PC2700, when overclocked to a 200Front Side Bus Speed X2 is ALOT faster than 166X2. The Epox 8K3A+ board can hit this with the right Ram (True Samsung), and I've seen many people hit close to 2.0 Ghz with the Athlon XP's Overclocked.

Smokey:

Personally, I'm looking to buy the ABIT AT7 MAX. You may not like it that the serial and PS2 ports are now zapped in favor of firewire and USB, but let's face it, this is where the future's headed. The AT7 can support up to TWELVE hard drives (if you wanted!!!!) using the RAID feature. Talk about ballsy! And as far as overclocking features go, you can't adjust the vcore CPU voltage above 1.85 like on the Epox, but so what? Most of the XP's don't need juice above that rating anyhow.

Of course, I digress, because you don't want to overclock (you suuuuure about that???) 😉

Price range for the AT7 will be over $150, but it has 5.1 sound built in, USB 2.0, you can fit up to 12 Hard Drives, onboard LAN, and awesome BIOS and Overclocking options. This board is VERY competitive as well in comparison with the Epox and Asus KT333 boards, and just as stable. Of course, the choice is yours! 🙂
 
😉 The VIA KT333 is pretty much just a KT266A (note the 'A') but with support for an async bus (ie 266FSB + 333RAM) and 1/5 PCI divider. It does also sport ATA133 and I had heard the blurb about 333FSB, USB2 & AGP 8x, but I don't think it officially does any of those three. Don't expect to gain perf over 3% using 266+333 over 266+266. The SiS mobos are even worse with 266+333 being slower on their mobos than 266+266. I don't think nForce mobos gain much from 266+333. I would rec just o/c the FSB synced to get around 290+290 for maximum perf. The VIA KT mobos are excellent for o/c the FSB, not so sure the nForce o/c at all well though.

🙂 nForce does have great o/b stuff though. Okay the o/b gfx are GF2mx but versions without this are now very common. Other o/b nForce stuff is good LAN with adjustment for CPU usage, and excelent 5.1 sound (also low CPU usage) which I've heard from many easily equals SB Live cards.

🙁 The nForce are also supposed to have PCI issues, at least you can get a patch for VIA mobos. I would choose VIA personally but if you don't want to o/c and are attracted by the o/b goodies then the nForce are fine mobos too. I would see what the price diffs are.

😉 I wouldn't pay over the odds for a SktA mobo at the mo, not with how poor the 0.13 T.bred AthlonXP's are, I think AMD will really be rushing the new Hammer/Opteron CPUs and the new Skt archy they will bring. It can't be good to have your new 0.13 CPU sweating and wheezing at 1.8ghz even if it can take on a 2.2ghz P4!

😀 What ever you decide you PC will fly, esp compared to a 550 system.
 
thanks for all the insight guys.. i decided on abit nv7 cuz it was CHEAP w/ everything cept video.. it was only 80. I figure if i make my next upgrade within a year for mobo cpu that'll be cheaper and more managable compared to doing it all at once every couple years around. plus the kt400 is just around the corner right?? so I can always look there if im not satisfied with the nv7 but i figure this is a good starting point for me.

one things for sure this case is NICE and i'd probably only give it up to another lian li case. Dont think i can go back no mo.

Thanks again fellow anandtechies..
 
Originally posted by: SP33Demon

I'll have to disagree with you. PC2700, when overclocked to a 200Front Side Bus Speed X2 is ALOT faster than 166X2. The Epox 8K3A+ board can hit this with the right Ram (True Samsung), and I've seen many people hit close to 2.0 Ghz with the Athlon XP's Overclocked.
Click to expand...
That may be true, but since I don't overclock, that's irrelevant to me. Perhaps I should rephrase my statement: PC2700 is nearly pointless when running at the standard 133 MHz FSB.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Back
Top