Motherboard recomendations?

[James R. Lunsford]

I'm looking for a motherboard to replace my Biostar M7VIW. I have 512MB of
PC2100 RAM that I'd like to use as well as an ATI Sapphire Radeon 9600. I'd
also like it to have onboard audio and LAN. Anyone got any suggestions?

TIA

 

[kony]

I'm looking for a motherboard to replace my Biostar M7VIW. I have 512MB of
PC2100 RAM that I'd like to use as well as an ATI Sapphire Radeon 9600. I'd
also like it to have onboard audio and LAN. Anyone got any suggestions?

TIA

A bit of background info might help... I don't necessary mean help me,
I'd just advise buying Asus or Gigabyte, in that order, whichever suits
the budget.

For example, why are you replacing it?
Did it die or you need new features or support for newer CPU or not, you
already have a CPU and do or don't want to be able to upgrade that CPU
later, if perhaps this ability to upgrade later dramatically affects the
price of the board?

Does the replacement need to be mATX like the M7VW?

If it needs be mATX, do you need more than 2 memory slots?
Is your memory generic, or similar value-grade stuff, OR is it potentially
good enough to run in dual-channel mode on an nForce2 board?

What's the target budget?

Do you want/need USB2, firewire, SATA, etc?
I mean, of course lots of features are nice, but worth a price
differential considering that a USB2 card is around $10, yet if you need a
mATX board you have a limited number of PCI slots.

Overclocking desired?

Does it need to be, uhhh, pretty, so it looks good in a case with a
window?

Do you use cheap basic computer speakers so audio quality differences
wouldn't be noticable or a good HQ setup that would benefit from better
integrated sound? Do you need center or rear channel, 5.1 sound or
digital output?

Do you just want the cheapst thing that fits your original description and
is expected to last a couple years?

Does the rain in Spain stay mainly on the plain?

 

[Matt]

I'm looking for a motherboard to replace my Biostar M7VIW. I have 512MB of
PC2100 RAM that I'd like to use as well as an ATI Sapphire Radeon 9600. I'd
also like it to have onboard audio and LAN. Anyone got any suggestions?

TIA

Biostar M7NCD Pro or Shuttle AN35N-Ultra, depending on whether you like
red or blue. See the reviews at newegg.com.

 

[kony]

Biostar M7NCD Pro or Shuttle AN35N-Ultra, depending on whether you like
red or blue. See the reviews at newegg.com.

The board he wants to replace got pretty good reviews too with only a few
exceptions:
http://secure.newegg.com/app/CustratingReview.asp?DEPA=0&item=13-138-223

Biostar boards have been at the bottom of the barrel for years now.

 

[James R. Lunsford]

A bit of background info might help... I don't necessary mean help me,

I'd just advise buying Asus or Gigabyte, in that order, whichever suits
the budget.

I had my eye on a Gigabyte board when I got the Biostar.

For example, why are you replacing it?
Did it die or you need new features or support for newer CPU or not, you
already have a CPU and do or don't want to be able to upgrade that CPU
later, if perhaps this ability to upgrade later dramatically affects the
price of the board?

The ATI Raedon card doesn't work with the board I have now. I'd like to put
the AMD XP200= CPU that I have now in the new board, but support for future
processors would be nice.

Does the replacement need to be mATX like the M7VW?

Yes, so that it can fit into the 400 w case that I just got

If it needs be mATX, do you need more than 2 memory slots?
Is your memory generic, or similar value-grade stuff, OR is it potentially
good enough to run in dual-channel mode on an nForce2 board?

2 are good. I've got (from the reciept) "OEM quality DDR PC2100" for VIA
chipset PC 266 only RAM

What's the target budget?

~ $100 preferably less

Do you want/need USB2, firewire, SATA, etc?
I mean, of course lots of features are nice, but worth a price
differential considering that a USB2 card is around $10, yet if you need a
mATX board you have a limited number of PCI slots.

USB2, LAN, and audio are about all that I need on it. To tell teh truth I
don't have any PCI cards anyway. The only card in my case is the video card
and it's AGP.

Overclocking desired?

Never really fooled around with it, if it's there and easy to use ok, if
not, that's ok too.

Does it need to be, uhhh, pretty, so it looks good in a case with a
window?

Do you use cheap basic computer speakers so audio quality differences
wouldn't be noticable or a good HQ setup that would benefit from better
integrated sound? Do you need center or rear channel, 5.1 sound or
digital output?

Cheap JBL's

Do you just want the cheapst thing that fits your original description and
is expected to last a couple years?
Yep.

Does the rain in Spain stay mainly on the plain?

Mostly. Unless the marsupial howls at midnight, then all bets are off.

Thanks for your reply

 

[Allen_L]

I'm looking for a motherboard to replace my Biostar M7VIW. I have
512MB of PC2100 RAM that I'd like to use as well as an ATI Sapphire
Radeon 9600. I'd also like it to have onboard audio and LAN. Anyone
got any suggestions?

TIA

In news:[email protected],[/QUOTE]

A bit of background info might help... I don't necessary mean help
me, I'd just advise buying Asus or Gigabyte, in that order, whichever
suits the budget. <<snipped>>

Although I agree with the choice of Asus, I just got the latest and greatest
model and went through the hassle of installing it and booting and all, and
discovered that two of the Motherboard fan headers were dead as a doornob.
Just hope they are not slipping on quality control. Ended up going to
Intel's latest (I know there not that highly rated, but I'm not an
overclocker), as I've never had a bad one and this sucker is fast! The Asus
I had took about 25 seconds or more, I didn't time it, to boot with
raid...the Intel boots in about half or less. MaxPC Mag. liked Intel boards
in one of there recent reviews, and I tend to really respect their opinions.
Intels are not *that* expensive, and super stable...as not stated what kind
of processor, might want to consider if not using AMD.

....Allen

 

[Dick Sidbury]

Does the rain in Spain stay mainly on the plain?

As I was channel surfing last night, I ran into Hollywood Squares where
this question came up. The celebrity said yes and the contestant
agreed. But as the host pointed out, Spain is like most other countries
in that the rain in Spain stays mainly on the coast.

HTH

dick

 

[kony]

I had my eye on a Gigabyte board when I got the Biostar.

Yep, Biostar usually beats the other brands by a few dollars, but it's a
gamble in the long run. They don't seem to last as long and have more
compatibility problems, shorter support interval for things like BIOS
updates.

The ATI Raedon card doesn't work with the board I have now. I'd like to put
the AMD XP200= CPU that I have now in the new board, but support for future
processors would be nice.

It theory it should've worked, right? Did you determine why it's not
working? Just wanted to make sure it's the board and not an insufficient
power (especially generic) power supply.

Yes, so that it can fit into the 400 w case that I just got

A mATX case with a 400W power supply? That sounds a bit mismatched,
hopefully not a generic power supply.

2 are good. I've got (from the reciept) "OEM quality DDR PC2100" for VIA
chipset PC 266 only RAM

Hmm. Sounds generic. I'll make the assumption that you don't want to buy
new memory and rule out nForce2 boards.

~ $100 preferably less

Ok, plenty in the budget but considering the timetable for AMD's CPUs, you
might just get a board that supports the XP2000 to tide you over till the
next large-scale upgrade, moving towards an Athlon64 (or whatever) which
would require much faster memory, different socket interface so a
different board altogether.

USB2, LAN, and audio are about all that I need on it. To tell teh truth I
don't have any PCI cards anyway. The only card in my case is the video card
and it's AGP.

The USB2 will rule out some of the cheapest boards at surplus type
websites, generally ~$30 boards, and move you up into the $50+ boards,
generally speaking.

Cheap JBL's

As-in home stereo speakers or speakers specifically for computer use?
Even speakers considered junk by home stereo audiophile standards are far
better than cheap computer speakers, particularly they have enough treble
to hear distortion and noise on the cheapest onboard sound. Even so, your
present board has poor sound so if you're not concerned with upgrading it,
there's no need to make the search any harder.

If you wanted a Gigabyte board previously that's still a good option,
except they seem to be short on offerings for modern chipsets with mATX
size except for nForce2. Since you already have a good video card there'
not much point in paying more for nForce2 IGP (integrated video), though
KM400 or nForce(1) integrated video isn't as costly these days, and as
more mATX boards come with integrated video you might more easily find
something by getting a board with a lower-end integrated video but with
the AGP slot too, so the integrated video is simply disabled when you
install the AGP card.

WIth that in mind I would've recommended an Asus A7N266-VM, except that it
doesn't have USB2. The next Asus board going upwards in price that has
USB2 is the A7V8X-VM,
http://usa.asus.com/products/mb/socketa/a7v8x-mx/overview.htm
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-131-489&depa=0

However, I don't personally have experience with that particular board,
can only assume it's decent based on Asus' track record. That's just a
suggestion for a current model board from a mainstream vendor... if you're
willing to look around enough you might be able to find an older chipset
board, perhaps a KT266A or KM266, for around $30 then buy a USB2 card
separately.

 

[James R. Lunsford]

It theory it should've worked, right? Did you determine why it's not

working? Just wanted to make sure it's the board and not an insufficient
power (especially generic) power supply.

This is the case I got:
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=11-154-021&depa=1
it came with a 400w PSU. Under the newegg descriptions for the Biostar
board that I have, the first review says that the poster couldn't get a
GeForce FX5200 to work with it nor an ATI 9600 like I have. I've tried both
of these boards actually and had the same experience. The FX is currently
up for sale on Ebay (fooled around with it past the 30 day return period)
but I'd like to keep the 9600.

This case will take a standard ATX board as well.

A mATX case with a 400W power supply? That sounds a bit mismatched,
hopefully not a generic power supply.

Probably, but I hope not.

Hmm. Sounds generic. I'll make the assumption that you don't want to buy
new memory and rule out nForce2 boards.

I'd like to avoid it if possible...

As-in home stereo speakers or speakers specifically for computer use?
Even speakers considered junk by home stereo audiophile standards are far
better than cheap computer speakers, particularly they have enough treble
to hear distortion and noise on the cheapest onboard sound. Even so, your
present board has poor sound so if you're not concerned with upgrading it,
there's no need to make the search any harder.

True, these are cheap JBL PC speakers. Picked them up at a computer show
about 3 years back for around $25 or so. Good enough for me, all I want to
do is to hear the explosions when I blow something up in Tribes 2, Quake, UT
2004, or Halo.

If you wanted a Gigabyte board previously that's still a good option,
except they seem to be short on offerings for modern chipsets with mATX
size except for nForce2. Since you already have a good video card there'
not much point in paying more for nForce2 IGP (integrated video), though
KM400 or nForce(1) integrated video isn't as costly these days, and as
more mATX boards come with integrated video you might more easily find
something by getting a board with a lower-end integrated video but with
the AGP slot too, so the integrated video is simply disabled when you
install the AGP card.

That sounds like a plan. I *could* return the 9600 to newegg and take the
%15 hit (around $15) and upgrade to a board with graphics included. And
since my case can (I think) take standard ATX as well as mATX, does that
open my range of choices?

WIth that in mind I would've recommended an Asus A7N266-VM, except that it
doesn't have USB2. The next Asus board going upwards in price that has
USB2 is the A7V8X-VM,
http://usa.asus.com/products/mb/socketa/a7v8x-mx/overview.htm
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-131-489&depa=0

However, I don't personally have experience with that particular board,
can only assume it's decent based on Asus' track record. That's just a
suggestion for a current model board from a mainstream vendor... if you're
willing to look around enough you might be able to find an older chipset
board, perhaps a KT266A or KM266, for around $30 then buy a USB2 card
separately.

It looks good, the only thing that worries me is the memory that I have.
The reciept says it's PC2100 for VIA chipset PC266A only. Does that mean
that I'm limited to the 266 *only* or if I find something that can use the
PC2100 it's cool?

Hey thanks for all of the help, I appreciate it.

 

[kony]

This is the case I got:
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=11-154-021&depa=1
it came with a 400w PSU. Under the newegg descriptions for the Biostar
board that I have, the first review says that the poster couldn't get a
GeForce FX5200 to work with it nor an ATI 9600 like I have. I've tried both
of these boards actually and had the same experience. The FX is currently
up for sale on Ebay (fooled around with it past the 30 day return period)
but I'd like to keep the 9600.

That's a regular mid-tower case, you aren't limited to a mATX (sized)
motherboard. The power supply is low-end, figure it's worth about
250-300W.

This case will take a standard ATX board as well.

LOL, I should read ahead more often.

That sounds like a plan. I *could* return the 9600 to newegg and take the
%15 hit (around $15) and upgrade to a board with graphics included. And
since my case can (I think) take standard ATX as well as mATX, does that
open my range of choices?

I was suggesting that if you got a board with integrated video, that you
simply wouldn't use the integrated video, rather using the Radeon 9600.
It'll be faster but if you're not into 3D gaming then nForce2 video should
be sufficient, but again the issue arises, that your memory may not be
suitable for an nForce2 board, as they're a bit pickier than average when
it comes to memory.

It looks good, the only thing that worries me is the memory that I have.
The reciept says it's PC2100 for VIA chipset PC266A only. Does that mean
that I'm limited to the 266 *only* or if I find something that can use the
PC2100 it's cool?

DDR266 FSB CPUs, like your Athlon XP2000, would typically run a
synchronous memory bus, also at 133MHz clock rate, but DDR, sometimes
called "266MHz". That's what you memory, being PC2100, is spec'd to run.
The wording on the description for it, about "Via Chipset PC266A" is
basically nonsense, the KT266A chipset your motherboard is based around
doesn't require specific memory. Your memory might run fine on an nForce2
board, but it's another variable, potential for problems. The most you
can do is just buy the board you want and then go from there.

Since you're not limited to mATX boards, you have a vast variety to choose
from. You might go to http://www.newegg.com and in their motherboard
section there's a search page where you can make feature selections and
search for available offerings. My 1st suggestion still applies, mainly I
suggest an Asus or Gigabyte board.

 

[Terry Wilson]

The board he wants to replace got pretty good reviews too with only a few
exceptions:
http://secure.newegg.com/app/CustratingReview.asp?DEPA=0&item=13-138-223

Biostar boards have been at the bottom of the barrel for years now.

Never trust reviews at newegg. Great place to buy though.

 

[kony]

Although I agree with the choice of Asus, I just got the latest and greatest
model and went through the hassle of installing it and booting and all, and
discovered that two of the Motherboard fan headers were dead as a doornob.
Just hope they are not slipping on quality control. Ended up going to
Intel's latest (I know there not that highly rated, but I'm not an
overclocker), as I've never had a bad one and this sucker is fast! The Asus
I had took about 25 seconds or more, I didn't time it, to boot with
raid...the Intel boots in about half or less. MaxPC Mag. liked Intel boards
in one of there recent reviews, and I tend to really respect their opinions.
Intels are not *that* expensive, and super stable...as not stated what kind
of processor, might want to consider if not using AMD.

I can't claim to know what was wrong with your specific board but
sometimes when they have the variable fan control feature the fans may not
spin up if those fans have integral temp sensor or manual control set too
low.

 

[Matt]

The board he wants to replace got pretty good reviews too with only a few
exceptions:
http://secure.newegg.com/app/CustratingReview.asp?DEPA=0&item=13-138-223

Biostar boards have been at the bottom of the barrel for years now.

The M7NCD Pro is a great board. Sorry if this specific truth negates
your cherished generality about Biostar boards. You seem to like
generalities: the chipset is more important than the board maker. See
also www.nforcershq.com.

 

[Allen_L]

Although I agree with the choice of Asus, I just got the latest and
greatest model and went through the hassle of installing it and
booting and all, and discovered that two of the Motherboard fan
headers were dead as a doornob. Just hope they are not slipping on
quality control. Ended up going to Intel's latest (I know there not
that highly rated, but I'm not an overclocker), as I've never had a
bad one and this sucker is fast! The Asus I had took about 25
seconds or more, I didn't time it, to boot with raid...the Intel
boots in about half or less. MaxPC Mag. liked Intel boards in one of
there recent reviews, and I tend to really respect their opinions.
Intels are not *that* expensive, and super stable...as not stated
what kind of processor, might want to consider if not using AMD.

[/QUOTE]

In news[email protected],

I can't claim to know what was wrong with your specific board but
sometimes when they have the variable fan control feature the fans
may not spin up if those fans have integral temp sensor or manual
control set too low.

Thanks for the input kony, but the fans (in a Coolermaster Praetorian case)
had no speed controls, or temp controls. I tried a couple of other fans to
the headers and no joy, so sent it back to Newegg as a RMA refund and
ordered the lastest and greatest Intel board they had which was about $20
cheaper so I broke about even on the re-stocking fee. Now 'kind' of wish I
had just asked for a replacement Asus, as I know it was a fluke for the
board fan headers to be bad...but, too late now!
Just a little PO'ed as after the board posted I went ahead with installing
everything to it but Windows XP but caught the back case fan not spinning so
didn't install WinXP then really checked the fan headers...then went and
RMA'ed and ordered the new board in a little fit of anger...stupid me. ;((

....Allen

 

[James R. Lunsford]

Since you're not limited to mATX boards, you have a vast variety to choose

from. You might go to http://www.newegg.com and in their motherboard
section there's a search page where you can make feature selections and
search for available offerings. My 1st suggestion still applies, mainly I
suggest an Asus or Gigabyte board.

Went to newegg, and a few other sites, came up with a few possibles:

Asus A7V600 / A7V8X

But from the reviews these cards seem to have a bit of a problem with ATI
cards

Gigabyte GA 7VT600 / 7VAXP

Any comments?

TIA

 

[DaveW]

Asus P4P800 Deluxe.

 

[kony]

Went to newegg, and a few other sites, came up with a few possibles:

Asus A7V600 / A7V8X

But from the reviews these cards seem to have a bit of a problem with ATI
cards

Gigabyte GA 7VT600 / 7VAXP

You might research and pose questions to fellow users of specific boards
at a web forum like http://forums.amdmb.com/

 

[kony]

Thanks for the input kony, but the fans (in a Coolermaster Praetorian case)
had no speed controls, or temp controls. I tried a couple of other fans to
the headers and no joy, so sent it back to Newegg as a RMA refund and
ordered the lastest and greatest Intel board they had which was about $20
cheaper so I broke about even on the re-stocking fee. Now 'kind' of wish I
had just asked for a replacement Asus, as I know it was a fluke for the
board fan headers to be bad...but, too late now!
Just a little PO'ed as after the board posted I went ahead with installing
everything to it but Windows XP but caught the back case fan not spinning so
didn't install WinXP then really checked the fan headers...then went and
RMA'ed and ordered the new board in a little fit of anger...stupid me. ;((

...Allen

It happens.... these days I usually set a board up on a bench and test it
as much as possible before ever putting it into a case. There's just so
many dongles and brackets and USB leads, etc, plus with optical and hard
drives so cheap these days it's common to have more drives. It's a lot
more work to build a good system compared to yesteryear.

 

[kony]

The M7NCD Pro is a great board. Sorry if this specific truth negates
your cherished generality about Biostar boards. You seem to like
generalities: the chipset is more important than the board maker. See
also www.nforcershq.com.

Maybe it's great relative to other Biostar boards, but it would be
breaking the long-set trend. Even so, a bunch of people claiming a board
is good, must be offset by the percentage of owners that had
non-resolvable problems, the time spent and number of boards not only DOA
but with short lifespans.

The chipset actually isn't more important than the board maker though.
WIth a certain chipset you'll have a feature set and performance level,
certain bugs, but how the manufacturer designs the board, debugs the bios
(the first time AND with updates) and overall board layout, part quality,
etc, usually makes much more of a difference than the chipset.

 

[James R. Lunsford]

Went to newegg, and a few other sites, came up with a few possibles:

You might research and pose questions to fellow users of specific boards
at a web forum like http://forums.amdmb.com/

Already did, several different sites. Because we'd been talking about it,
thought maybe you'd have an opinion on one or more of them. Anyway, I'm 99%
certain I'm going with the Asus A7V8X.