Give me your opinions on best combo for cpu & MB

[aznboi64]

Well I've decided to upgrade once again from my weakling celly 600 @ 928mhz. But I know tons about cellys but very little about AMD. Can someone give me a good bang for the buck for an AMD cpu w/ MB. Something with good overclockablity and stablity at the same time. I also checked the database but I prefer recent experience from fellow Overclockers.

[Kendle666]

well the Abit KG-7 is a very stable board and is not to Expencive...................as for the Chip with the best bang for the buck.................it looks like the Athlon 1.4 Ghz thunderbird sounds like it ..................or maybe a 1.2 Ghz duron which is selling for the mid $70's USD

[deathstar13]

well id say any board with via266a chipset.
ive been watching the soltek. great overclocker and highly recomended by many sites. under $100
as far as chips go id say a amd xp1700 or xp 1800
prices are dropping and thats great.
1700 was like $120
1800 -$145
would be a great combo id say

[Morbid]

ABIT KG7-RAID (or KG7 if you dont use RAID)
Athlon 1.4GHz or XP 1800+ and up.

I'm on a ABIT KG7-RAID with a XP 1800+, working wonders for me :)

[FRANK]

There's no easy answer for that question. Depending on what you're looking to accomplish, there are a couple of paths to follow.

First, if you already have good PC133 RAM that you want to migrate to the "upgraded" system, I would recommend a motherboard with the VIA KT133A chipset. Note, make sure that it is the KT133 "A" chipset, the earlier KT133 chipset is limited to a FSB in the 107 / 110MHz range, where as motherboards with the KT133A chipset have been reported to reach 150MHz FSB and beyond with good RAM.

All of the major manufacturers offer a good motherboard that meets these criteria, ASUS, Abit, Iwill etc. My experience with this chipset would suggest the ASUS A7V133, very stable with good overclocking options.

As far as the CPU, the 1G T-BIRD with AXIA has shown me good results as well. This CPU will run at 1.4G+, air cooled, without much effort, topping out at about the same place as the 1.2G chip at a lesser price.

If you want to go up the ladder to the next step, go with a DDR board utilizing the VIA KT266A chipset, again emphasizing the "A". Although the original KT266 chipset returned good results, the later KT266A chipset has some enhancements that yield better memory management and much higher potential for FSB overclocking. Again there are several choices available from the major players in this arena. Epox, Shuttle, Soyo, ASUS etc. all have good boards out now. If you look around and do some research on these motherboards, I think you'll find the best results are coming from the Epox 8KHA+ board. Many are reaching 200MHz+ FSB, myself included. I would highly recommend this board.

If you are going to go with a DDR board, you might as well get the most out of it in the CPU department and get the one of the new XP processors, With the SSE instructions and other enhancements, you get the best performance from AMD's latest, all of the newer DDR boards support these CPUS. As far as the most bang for your buck with the XP's, it looks like the "sweet spot" is the XP1600+ with either AGOGA or AGNGA stepping. These 1600+ CPU's run at 1.4G default, but reach 1600MHz+ rather easily.

Regardless of the path you follow, keep in mind that the AMD CPU's are much more sensitive to heat than their Intel counterparts. A good cooling solution is mandatory. Another thing to watch out for is the "fragile" core. Many have had problems when attaching the hsf. If not done correctly you risk chipping the core. Check your procedure and take your time.

There are new motherboards just hitting the market that utilize the ATA 133 standard, along with the potential for a faster memory bus. The early reports have not shown much, if any improvement over the KT266A boards. Unless you have a need for the faster ATA133 hard drive, I wouldn't recommend these.

Whichever you choose, we'll be here for all of the support that you'll need.

I hope this helps.

Good Luck!

[aznboi64]

Frank - Thank you for your words of wisdom. And the time to write out everything. To help limit the search of what I need. I'm look for a combo that has a mild gap for speed. Such as I see like how Frank you have a Duron 600mhz O/C to 1.1ghz thats a gain of 500mhz free. Thats what I'd like to do to my AMD cpu. I might though go your way in the form of the T-Bird 1ghz hitting 1.4ghz.

[aznboi64]

So will a Asus A7V133 w/ AMD 1ghz T-Bird be a nice package?I've pretty much made up my mind on the cpu. Now its about the MB.

[Yodums]

Hmmm.. I personally like the Shuttle or Epox boards and they are very good clockers and very good quality! I'd say a Shuttle AK35 (Release is soon) or Epox 8KHA+ with an Athlon 1600+ or if you want to go a low class abit then a 1Gig TB (Try to find in the classifieds)...

The combo should last you sometime (Possibly 1.5 years)...

Yodums

[aznboi64]

Yodums - With the Epox 8KHA+ whats a good cpu w/ air cooled will give me a nice jump in speed. Like the T-Bird 1ghz can hit 1.5ghz easily. Thats 500mhz free. Is there any other cpus that can do that?