Motherboard upgrade

[zen]

I've decided to do a small upgrade of the motherboard and processor.The new configuration will be (if it goes o.k):

Asus A7V133-c motherboard (not cutting edge i know but times are hard )

and a retail Athlon 2100XP+ processor

As it stands this motherboard according to Asus will support this processor,but only if I flash the bios.So the question is;

Can I install this processor onto this board and then flash the bios or,do I need to fit a supported processor first,then flash,then fit the newer processor?

[ChiMusic]

I love the MSI I have for Athlon XP 2000+. Cheapere than Asus I think too. Still running factory settings.

[dx]

If I was you I would get an Asus A7V333 instead of dealing with all the tricks you are going to have to put up with getting the 2100+ to work with the A7V133-C.

Have a look at AMDmb.com forums. http://www.amdforums.com You will see a lot of frustration over this board and Athlon processors. You are going to have to tweak your voltages, settings, and play with the Mobo jumpers to get it working right. And then there is no garantee it will be stable (esp. with games).

The Asus A7V333 is an incredibly stable Mobo (which many here own.... including Moi), which supports the Athlon 2100+ processor perfectly. I have seen it go for as little as $90 USD, which can't be that much more than what you are getting the A7V133 for. I mean is the approx. $25 worth all the hair pulling and grief?! I guess you will have to decide that.

[zen]

Thanks both for your responces.I've taken the plunge and gone for the A7V333 (cos I like Asus),I suppose it was a bit short sighted on my part going for the A7V133-C,but I was hoping to re-use my RAM,but I've gone the whole hog and bought some new RAM aswell.Saves me upgrading again for another couple of years !

Gonna have to re-sell that other board now !

[dx]

NP bud! You will like the A7V333. It is a more modern Mobo with ATA-133, RAID, USB2.0, and Firewire. Even the onboard sound is pretty good. Best of all it's stable and rock solid. Very few peeps out there ever have a problem with it.

[The-poacher]

me got nice board

[dx]

Originally posted by The-poacher
me got nice board

LOL!

Yeah, the Asus A7V333 is a nice board..... isn't it bud!

[Fox Mulder]

me too

[scarecrow]

The way to buy a good motherboard is typical:
First you buy an Asus, and then you check the specs.

[Phil K]

I've got an MSI. No complaints whatsoever. But I believe Motherboards are so good now, even cheapies like PC Chips are excellent, and very reliable and fast.

[The-poacher]

Yep cheapos do seem to work my DVD puter has an ASRock K7VN2 series board (cost about £45 .. On board Sound & graphics does a good job (but I dont play games on it)

[Phil K]

Originally posted by scarecrow
The way to buy a good motherboard is typical:
First you buy an Asus, and then you check the specs.

Beg to differ. No offence, but have you tried other Motherboards to judge ?

[weboneando]

Originally posted by Phil K
Beg to differ. No offence, but have you tried other Motherboards to judge ?

I have tryied all the brands that are avaible in here (MSI, GYGABYTE, DFI, SUPERMICRO, etc...)and always come back to Asus, big trouble around here is that they are not always avaible.

[Phil K]

Originally posted by weboneando
I have tried all the brands that are avaible over here (MSI, GYGABYTE, DFI, SUPERMICRO, etc...)and always come back to Asus, big trouble around here is that they are not always available.

Thats fair enough. Personally, while I believe Asus is a quality brand, I dont paticularly believe that they are so much better (if at all) to warrant being say 10% - 20% more expensive. The same also applies to MSI, and even more so to Abit. The others have just caught up with them, I believe. It seems that all boards are good now.

[scarecrow]

I have built systems on Soyo, Abit, MSI, Elite, Chaintech, DFI, Gigabyte, QDI mobos... both on Intel and AMD CPU's.
The only ones that could run 24/7 without EVER having the slightest problem are the Asus mobos.
Myself I still have an old Asus CUSL-2C mobo which is simply bulletproof and idiot-proof... but I had to pay at the time twice the sum a QDI mobo costed. IMO it was one of the best buys I ever made.