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| 5/24 |
| 2001/4/18 [Computer/HW/Memory, Computer/HW/CPU] UID:21010 Activity:very high |
4/17 I'm between jobs and want to build a fast Athlon Thunderbird box.
Any suggestions? I'm not sure about which motherboard to get
(KT133A?), what the diff is with the T-bird 200 and 266 MHz bus
versions, and whether PC133 or DDR memory is what I need. Thanks!
\_ What does being between jobs add to your query? Does that mean
you want one on the cheap? --dim
\_ stop being impertinent.
\_ Go to http://www.anandtech.com Lots of info there. They just did a review
of KT266 vs. all the other DDR 266 MBs out there. The forums are
of great help too.
\_ Thanks. The message I took home was:
"If anything, you should still stay away from the KT266, the
platform is simply not mature enough." So I guess I'm
going with a KT133A chipset, probably an Asus. After reading
a # of articles, I'm still not sure about whether a 200 or
266 is what I need, and whether the KT133A supports DDR.
\_ Um. There are othe choices than those two. Go with an
Asus A7M266; it's gotten good reviews, wins all of the
benchmarks, and isn't based on that chipset.
\_ What is "those two"? Thanks.
\_ Currently there are 3 chipsets:
AMD 760
Ali Magik something or another
Via KT266
\_ KT133A? KT133? Are these older?
\_ Yup.
\_ The two stated: KT133A (old tech) and the KT266
(unstable)
\_ Is there a winning combo for Athlons? For Intels, you
get a Pentium 3 866 with PC133 CAS2 memory on a CUSL2-C
and whatever video card you want. (since the Pentium 4's
blow, currently, and the higher-speed Pentium 3's have
heat problems, to say the least)
\_ just one word about the KT133A, dont get any orb-type fan with it
it'll bash and cut the capacitors situated right next to the CPU
\_ I think this fall will be a much better time to buy, fwiw. The past
six months have not brought enough advancement to be worthwhile.
Laptops will get more choices by then too, with amd and ati getting
new chips out.
\_ "later" is always a better time.
\_ You keep talking about this filling some need but never say what
your need is. Is this a game box, a cpu cruncher, a web server, or
just a random toy because you're bored? http://www.tomshardware.com is a
good place to start for opinion/info/benchmarks.
\_ Get the 266 FSB. This means that the cpu bus is running at 133MHz
(or DDR if you have DDR RAM), and the mult is much lower. The 133
bus wins all around over a 100mhz bus, imo. Also, it would behoove
you to get a system that can eat the $50 256M DIMMS. This memory
can only be used by certain chipsets. I have a 1000/266 TBird with
$512M of the cheap RAM. It's on an ASUS A7V133. --sowings
\_ jee-zuz. That will get you, what, 2500 terabytes of RAM?
\_ All of you giving advice don't have a basis for it. You don't know
what he wants it for. |
| 5/24 |
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Mobo manufacturers have traditionally shied away from using external PHYs to tap the VT8237's extra two SATA ports, so I wouldn't hold out for a KT880 board with four SATA ports hanging off the south bridge. Even when only two of its Serial ATA ports are tapped, the KT880 still has a leg up on NVIDIA's current nForce2 chipsets, whose MCP south bridge chips lack any Serial ATA functionality. However, NVIDIA has pledged to bring Serial ATA support, among other features, to the nForce2 chipset with a new MCP, so VIA's Serial ATA advantage may not last. It accepts many different types of media: Compact Flash I/II, Multimedia Cards, Secure Digital, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, MicroDrive, & SmartMedia memory cards. It also has a 3 port USB hub, & it's all wrapped up in one very sleek package. And I have a good relationship with him, to the point that either he or I can just pick up the phone and talk to each other. There's no secretary that screens you out and calls you back. 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