Why chose a PE over a GE board?

[arklab]

Somebody help me out 'fore I goof.

I can't for the life of me figure out why anyone would choose an i845PE board over the same companies i845GE board?

Both have Hyperthreading for future (or lucky) chips.

And in the case of the new Epox EP-4GEA+ vs. the EP-4PEA+ the difference in price is only $6.00!

What am I missing???

 

[BaldHeadedDork]

Maybe nothing but a well-honed reflex to run from any board with intergrated graphics.

Or maybe you're missing out on being a real cheapskate. Six dollars isn't much. But still, why spend even six bucks for something you wouldn't use at gunpoint?


BHD

 

[Coz]

The integrated graphics are worth the extra money for when you eventually sell the board but want to keep your NV30 or ATi R350.

The chump you sell it to might not need a hardcore 3D card for gaming and the IG will do just fine. Then, the IG becomes a very handy feature. Or, if you demote the board to a server role then the IG will come in handy there too.

C'mon dude, it's only $6 and you never know. Whoa, talk about the hard sell.

 

[arklab]

Thanks, guys

My main concern was mostly some kind of "hidden gotchya".
Say, ... cripled video bandwidth even after disabeling the onboard video and inserting that new All-In-Wonder 9700 Pro card I keep drooling over.

My reason for the GE's is this will be an additional (new) PC, and if I can just get the monitor to work for six bucks ('till I can get a new video card) , well GREAT!

Looks like my question is getting answered.

But before we bury this thread, hows the GE's IG compair with that other 3D speed demon, the Matrox G400?
(Thats my "high-end" card right now)

 

[Coz]

My main concern was mostly some kind of "hidden gotchya".
Say, ... cripled video bandwidth even after disabeling the onboard video and inserting that new All-In-Wonder 9700 Pro card I keep drooling over.

But before we bury this thread, hows the GE's IG compair with that other 3D speed demon, the Matrox G400?
(Thats my "high-end" card right now)

When you plug an AGP card into a GE board it disables the IG and memory sharing etc. With an AGP card installed there is NO performance difference between i845GE and i845PE.

The IG you get with i845GE is probably the best IG there is IMO (on the P4 platform). It's improved over the IG you get with i845G thanks to DDR333 support and a faster clock speed - 266MHz over the original 200MHz. It's no R9700 Pro killer but good enough for some 800x600 gaming by non-hardcore players. A bit like the G400 really.

 

[arklab]

Great, Coz,

Now my only search will be to check out other brands for price, features, and OC-ability.

But, frankly, the others will have to go some to beat the Epox.

Oh, and I'll have to check with each likely companies Tech Support people to verify that the current BIOS supports HT!
I'm hoping the Dell 1.8A is a remarked 3.06G with it still enabled!

 

[pby5cat]

theres no need to bash IG, and for six bucks more thats cool. I like my Geforce2.

 

[*foo]

Coz is right on.

I use the integrated graphics on several servers -- 815 on one, 845G on two others. It's great. Nice to have if you use it as a build for mom, etc.

So there is no reason to get a PE over a GE, really, unless there are board features a PE board has that the GE doesn't (Raid, etc).

 

[toymaker]

Maybe nothing but a well-honed reflex to run from any board with intergrated graphics.

Or maybe you're missing out on being a real cheapskate. Six dollars isn't much. But still, why spend even six bucks for something you wouldn't use at gunpoint?


BHD

LOL!!!!!

 

[asw7576]

With PE chipset, your mobo is 100% eligible to accept Hyper Threading Processors. ( currently above 3+ GHz ).
With GE chipset, you should check out which GE revision (usually later production / batch) that have HT capabilities. Secondly, GE chipset have NO AGP capabilities. The AGP slot actually use for additional VGA memory. Consider the G chipset which still have built in VGA as well as AGP.

 

[Coz]

With GE chipset, you should check out which GE revision (usually later production / batch) that have HT capabilities.

You're thinking of i845G (where only the B-step supports HT). All i845GE boards support HT (as long as it has an HT-supporting BIOS).

Secondly, GE chipset have NO AGP capabilities. The AGP slot actually use for additional VGA memory. Consider the G chipset which still have built in VGA as well as AGP.

This is incorrect. i845GE is no different to i845G in that they both have fully-functional AGP 4x slots that override the built-in graphics when a card is inserted. i845GE simply has DDR333 support and a faster onboard graphics clock (266MHz compared to i845G's 200MHz). i845GE is the best i845x chipset to go for IMO.

 

[arklab]

My order is placed with MultiWave - for a EPoX EP-4GEA+.
(Thanks to all, and Special Thanks to Coz)

But the BIG news is what's going into it.

Yes, the Dell came in and it IS a SL6LA C1 stepping!

Of course the CPU comes out and onto the Epox mobo.

If anybody wants to continue following this wild goose chase, check my new post on Intel CPU's:

http://forum.oc-forums.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=141923

 

[asw7576]

OK geekboy....

Coz: ... you are right, I am not resourceful as you are..... and I wasn't thinking ( I was mistaken between GL and GE chipset ) ..... geez...... me and my big mouth....

arklab: Good Luck on your SL6LA C1 stepping!!! share with us with your C1 experiences.