Mainboard question

[TenPercent]

Hi, I was just wondering why the ECS EliteGroup
L4VXA2 motherboard is selling for so little ($15 to
$20). This is incredibly low compared to other
motherboards. It supports Pentium 4's and has a
VIA chipset. You can read more about it at this URL,
if you like:

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=L4VXA2&cat=MBB

Would you buy it?

Thanks for any help.

 

[Jim]

Hi, I was just wondering why the ECS EliteGroup
L4VXA2 motherboard is selling for so little ($15 to
$20). This is incredibly low compared to other
motherboards. It supports Pentium 4's and has a
VIA chipset. You can read more about it at this URL,
if you like:

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=L4VXA2&cat=MBB

Fry's dumps 1000's of these type ECS boards all the time on their CPU+mobo
combo deals. Based on my observations and ancedotal evidence, many of these
boards are returned, perhaps as much as 20%. Quality control is pretty low
@ ol' ECS. But once you get a working board, it's usually pretty reliable
from that point forward. That's why buying an ECS board online is an iffy
proposition, there's a decent chance you may end up returning it for refund
or replacement. It's just less of a hassle when that happens to have
purchased from B&M, like Fry's.

As you might imagine, these ECS boards are "no frills", at least when
compared to their nearest competitors. The PCB itself may have fewer layers
than higher quality boards. No on-board diagnostics. Usually passive NB
cooling. Fewer RAM slots, often as few as two. If you get a sound chip,
it's often the cheapest, least featured. Etc., etc.

It's just a plain, vanilla board. Nothing special, nothing that going to
make anyone ooh and aah. As long as you find a good one, and one that
satisifies your needs, there's nothing wrong with it. Would probably be
ideal for a small server, for example. Or building a PC for mom's email and
recipe tracking, a Linux server, etc.

Would you buy it?

If mom needed a PC? Perhaps, but only from B&M, too much risk it will need
replacement. But for my primary desktop? No. You get what you pay for.
This specific board doesn't support Intel P4 800MHz, limited to PC2700 (I'd
insist on PC3200 at a minimum), no dual channel, has a CNR port (which is
intended for OEM installs, but a wasted slot for you), VIA chipset (I much
prefer Intel or nForce, VIA just has too many "issues"), uses a very old SB
chip (VT8235), etc.

Again, for the right task, it's fine, we're talking about a board here
that's a little old in the tooth, no frills, and isn't going to give the
best performance. But if you have VERY basic needs, and you find a working,
reliable board, it can suffice.

Jim

 

[Jim]

P.S. If you're serious about this or similar ECS board, you might want to
check out Outpost.com (Fry's website) and their online CPU+mobo deals. If
you look at the price of those combo deals, and consider what the CPU would
cost elsewhere, you'll see that you pretty much get the accompanying mobo
for $10-15 bucks anyway, maybe even less. Unfortunately, they don't alway
make it clear which model of mobo is in the combo, but it's usually ECS, and
based on the specs detailed, you can deduce which mobo it is by cross
referencing the ECS website (a hassle, but effective).

Of course, it's the same issue as before, it's an online purchase for a mobo
that has a higher than normal return rate. But if you're interested anyway,
esp. in ECS, you might as well visit Outpost.com and see if a combo CPU+mobo
might not be a better deal. Just a thought.

Jim

 

[ToolPackinMama]

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=L4VXA2&cat=MBB

Would you buy it?

NO!

 

[TenPercent]

Thanks so much for your advice! I will definitely
investigate Outpost.com.

I just remembered that my memory is PC133--about
750 Megabytes worth.

Other than Ebay, can anyone recommend a good place
to buy mainboards for older PC133 memory?

Thanks again.

 

[DaveW]

In a few words, "You get what you pay for." You'll get $15 worth of
motherboard quality. If that's what you want, go for it...

 

[David Maynard]

Hi, I was just wondering why the ECS EliteGroup
L4VXA2 motherboard is selling for so little ($15 to
$20). This is incredibly low compared to other
motherboards. It supports Pentium 4's and has a
VIA chipset. You can read more about it at this URL,
if you like:

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=L4VXA2&cat=MBB

Would you buy it?

Thanks for any help.

Because it's obsolete and ECS is cheap to begin with.

I've read the other negative comments and I wouldn't use it for a 'serious'
system either but if I had spare parts lying around gathering dust and
wanted to just slap something together, at that price, I'd give it a shot.

 

[David Maynard]

Thanks so much for your advice! I will definitely
investigate Outpost.com.

I just remembered that my memory is PC133--about
750 Megabytes worth.

Other than Ebay, can anyone recommend a good place
to buy mainboards for older PC133 memory?

Thanks again.

It isn't easy to find motherboards for PC133 memory. What processor?

Purchasing from individuals on ebay is risky, at best, because if it
doesn't work there's virtually no recourse.

At any rate, I've used these folks with reasonable success before when I
needed something old and cheap, and they apparently have free shipping at
the moment.

http://store.yahoo.com/justdeals/motherboards2.html

 

[Brian Campbell]

If it is a project board and you are not scared to lose $20, then buy it.
I would say it is a good gamble. I will tell you why.

I have never heard of this board, so it could not have been selling well.
It is made by ECS, using a via chipset. Both are not high end names. If
I saw this for $100, I would not buy it and get something more familiar
with a better track record and features because of piece of mind. That
does not say it is a bad board, just that some people have had bad luck
with ECS and or VIA when both made shitty products. Now there is not
too many shitty motherboards made anymore. Even the cheapies are stable.

Via chipsets are still harder to get working right, but once you do, they
are as stable as anything out there.

The bad is that is might be a crap motherboard, with duff components,
there is always that chance, but I am guessing it is just a little cranky
and not substandard. I would try it. it is not like it is a $100


TenPercent ([email protected]) wrote:
: Hi, I was just wondering why the ECS EliteGroup
: L4VXA2 motherboard is selling for so little ($15 to
: $20). This is incredibly low compared to other
: motherboards. It supports Pentium 4's and has a
: VIA chipset. You can read more about it at this URL,
: if you like:

: http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=L4VXA2&cat=MBB

: Would you buy it?

: Thanks for any help.

 

[tcsenter]

Discontinued surplus, like the K7VTA3 v6/8 and M811LU v3.1. I've
purchased many K7VTA3 and M811LU boards for as little as $20 shipped
(from Computer Geeks), or as a CPU combo from Outpost.com where the
motherboard was essentially free. Don't expect any support from ECS or
PC Chips, nor any further BIOS updates. No Prescott, Celeron D, or
800MHz bus support.

20% DOA or return rate is about right for this segment. Out of about
20 M811LU boards I purchased (PC Chips, Syntax, and Shuttle branded),
at least 5 were DOA or died within several days. OTOH, those that
survived longer than several days seem to be pretty solid.

FWIW, I've seen good deals on better motherboards. A couple months
ago, Geeks was selling the Matsonic (Eurocom) MS9087C with Intel 865PE,
Dual Channel support, SATA/150, support for 800MHz Prescott and
Northwood (up to 3.2G) for $30, and the Matsonic MS9377C+ with
SIS648FX, support for 800MHz Prescott and Northwood (up to 3.2G) for
$20.