SiS 648 or i845E

[Azk]

I have been studying P4 (I want the 2.4B to go with a GF4 4200 and the rollover stuff from my current machine) mobos for the last several days and have been getting steadily more and more confused. I need some help...

I want a 400DDR or 333DDR mobo with RAID (I need the extra EIDE connections, not the RAID functions). I have found 2 boards that I like but each is missing one of my requirements. Which do you guys like better: Gigabyte 8IEXP 845E or ABIT SR7-8X SIS 648?

On one hand the Gigabyte has 1394 and RAID (lacking on the SR7-8X) yet the Abit has DDR 400 and AGP 8x support. Slower DDR in the 8IEXP has me worried, am I likely to really feel the effect of this draw back?

Any suggestions for alternative boards with RAID/DDR333? I have a price limit of <$150.

Thanks for the help!

[Azk]

...overclocking is not a big issue for me. I have been smacked down by my last machine and feel the 2.4ghz should do just fine .

[streamliner]

current I845E will not do DDR333, best wait for the new board revisions if you want an Intel board

[speed freak]

Originally posted by streamliner
current I845E will not do DDR333, best wait for the new board revisions if you want an Intel board

correction: KJY9 hit DDR450! and that is with a P4B533-E

(it sypports it unofficially, just like the P4S533 supports DDR400 Unofficially)

Also, if you are overclocking, most people on any board hit 166 MHz and up!

[Craptor]

if i were you i would buy abit sr7-8x
its pretty cheap.it has agp 8x support and u can order it on newegg.com
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproduc...ription=sis648
i dont know a lot about mobos but this board looks good.
and u can upgrade ur gpu in the future

[CrawlingEye]

Originally posted by speed freak


correction: KJY9 hit DDR450! and that is with a P4B533-E

(it sypports it unofficially, just like the P4S533 supports DDR400 Unofficially)

Also, if you are overclocking, most people on any board hit 166 MHz and up!

Erm, nope. P4S533 has a divider for DDR400, the P4B533 doesn't. In order to get the divider at a higher fsb, you have to use the jumpers.

166fsb is debatable. 1.6a's average at around 150-157fsb. Higher is just unusual or a high OC. I've yet to see a 2.4a or 2.5b get 166fsb, also.

[speed freak]

Originally posted by CrawlingEye


Erm, nope. P4S533 has a divider for DDR400, the P4B533 doesn't. In order to get the divider at a higher fsb, you have to use the jumpers.

166fsb is debatable. 1.6a's average at around 150-157fsb. Higher is just unusual or a high OC. I've yet to see a 2.4a or 2.5b get 166fsb, also.

I was just stating that it is possible, and I was also talking about 166FSB for the mem. (aparently there is a new bios that allows you to use new dividers at higher bus speeds too)

[CrawlingEye]

Originally posted by speed freak


I was just stating that it is possible, and I was also talking about 166FSB for the mem. (aparently there is a new bios that allows you to use new dividers at higher bus speeds too)

Nothing new, in fact it was around with the P4B266 came out.
It's a trick that you do using jumpers.

It doesn't enable new dividers, it simply allows you to use the same dividers at higher fsb settings.

[Azk]

I heard someone (I believe it was in these forums) comment that the Abit 648 was a buggy board and should be avoided right now. How long have the 648's been out on the market? I scoured pricewatch but only could find a handful of mobo's with this chipset. Maybe I ought to wait a few weeks for the board to mature and other manufactures to get make their versions available???

[Azk]

Also, 1)what is this KJY9?
2)Running the memory at 166mhz = DDR????

[CrawlingEye]

Originally posted by Azk
Also, 1)what is this KJY9?
2)Running the memory at 166mhz = DDR????

1) KJY9 is a member at SF.
2) 166mhz is DDR333 (166x2=333)



To the other person, the 648 was just released and is buggy with the R9700, but most all boards are right now. It's ATi's fault, they're trying to release new driver updates to fix it.

[way2funni]

Originally posted by Azk
I heard someone (I believe it was in these forums) comment that the Abit 648 was a buggy board and should be avoided right now. How long have the 648's been out on the market? I scoured pricewatch but only could find a handful of mobo's with this chipset. Maybe I ought to wait a few weeks for the board to mature and other manufactures to get make their versions available???

I was chomping at the bit to get my hands on this board as well, based on my experience with the 645DX...everything I am reading on the board is less than stellar and it seems some boardmakers are waiting for the DX rev before jumping onboard...I also readsomewhere the 9700 will not run in the board

[CrawlingEye]

Wrong, R9700 will run in the board, but the R9700 won't run in agp 8x on any board right now. It's a problem with the R9700, which is why ATi's releasing "fixes" for it.

[therocksays]

The gigabyte 8iexp only has a 1:1 divider for ddr266, so if you want to use ddr333 or above don't get it. Most mobos based on the 845g chipset have 4:5 dividers, as do all based on the sis645dx/648 (along with 4:6 for ddr400)

[Azk]

Originally posted by therocksays
The gigabyte 8iexp only has a 1:1 divider for ddr266, so if you want to use ddr333 or above don't get it. Most mobos based on the 845g chipset have 4:5 dividers, as do all based on the sis645dx/648 (along with 4:6 for ddr400)

I had looked a bit at the 845g chipsets as they run faster DDR memory, but it seems to be somewhat of a waste to purchase a mobo with integrated video when I have no use for it.

As far as bugs with the 9700 go, that card is so far out of my price range that it is not funny. Currently I think that I might be worth my time to purchase a GF4 of one type or another and see if that will bide me over until Epox and others offer the 648 with RAID. This might also give more time to let the 648's existing bugs (if there are any) be ironed out.