8kha+ or IWILL XP333 ?

[BeauJangles]

They are both the same price at newegg, I know the ALi chipset isn't as good clock for clock but it can clock higher. If you guys were to buy one which would it be?


Thanks,
Bomber

 

[Austin5]

Tough call there. I've never had one of either but have heard good things about both. I'd prolly pick the 8KHA+ because a friend of mine has one and he has it smoking. But then again I like trying new things

 

[BeauJangles]

Yea, I checked AT's roundup of mobos and that didn't help either.

The 8kha+ recieved silver, which is second best. The best was the ABIT (far out of my price range), and the Iwill wasn't rated with the rest of them...:disgust:

 

[Austin5]

Well to really answer your question. I just ordered a Epox from Newegg...LOL I've got to send my current mobo in for RMA and I cant live without a PC so I chose the Epox. Only thing I really don't care for is the VIA drivers but it seems to be the way to go right now

 

[BeauJangles]

haha, that's actually quite a coincidence. My 8k7a (from Epox) got lost in their RMA department and I am now fighting them to get something out of it. In the meantime I need a computer. God I'm such an addict

I still can't decide though. They both look appealing, the Iwill because it can clock so much higher, and the Epox because they are a good company and i've heard nothing but good about the motherboard.

Bomber

 

[Furor]

Depends what you do really, if you want to spend hour after hour tweaking and overclocking your system to get the most out of it, go for the XP333, because it will end up being faster if you do..if you just want something you don't have to fool around with to get real fast, i'd go with the 8KHA+

 

[BeauJangles]

Furor - I was thinking the same thing, but I have had bad experiences with Iwill before (kk266 died on me and their tech support is awful). Also I saw some comparisions and the ALi chipset doesn't seem any faster then the kt266a when clocked at higher frequencies. Anand's own article shows the ALi runs at about the same as the Asus KT266a board when clocked 33 mhz on the FSB. I think I will go with Epox because I know their tech support is good and have had good experiences with their mobos before.

 

[RaymondY]

I loves my Iwill KK266-R motherboard but I just upgraded to an Epox 8KHA+ motherboard. No problem with the Epox at all. Easy install and setup just like my old KK266-R.

I would recommend the Epox 8KHA+ motherboard as I am still unsure of the ALI chipset.

 

[EXman]

Happy XP333-R owner

you can Add more Vcore than EPoX

Better sound! C-media 5.1 sound

ATA/133 support as well as you can run your single HD off Raid (highpoint) and get better scores as well as let your optical drives have their very own IDE channel.

Stable stable stable

and you can OC the Bejesus out of it!

and of course easy set up!

features to price XP333 is a winner and this is from a Happy 8K7A owner.

also for the $ the new shuttle AK35GT is a winner!:Q

 

[Mark0999]

As long as you are not using an ATi video card, the Iwill XP333 is a solid board. BTW... spend the extra $$$ and get the XP333-R to allow for future expansion.

If I was buying a KT266A board today, I would go for the Abit KR7A-Raid.

 

[Wind]

One happy Epox 8KHA+ owner here. Fast & stable mobo w/ good bios support.

 

[BeauJangles]

<< As long as you are not using an ATi video card, the Iwill XP333 is a solid board. BTW... spend the extra $$$ and get the XP333-R to allow for future expansion.

If I was buying a KT266A board today, I would go for the Abit KR7A-Raid. >>



why should I buy the Abit? Because it has onboard firewire, usb 2.0, and RAID that I will never use? Nothing about it justifies spending the $40 more then an 8kha. I can understand; for someone who needs those features it's an incredible mobo, but for someone who doesn't need the features and wants to spend less money if possible it is not a very good upgrade solution.

Well then, 8kha + XP1700 for me

 

[KouklatheCat]

I have said it before and I will say it again ....

I am extremely impressed with my 8KHA+. I thought it would be a cheap board and I would get what I paid for in performance. It is extremely stable and it was easy to overclock. I usually do a fresh install with a mobo change, I didn't need to with the 8kHA+. I went from my A7V to the 8KHA+ without any problems. I eventually did a fresh install but my system ran fine for about two months before. I am impressed.

 

[ShinSa]

I built two system recently both with XP 1700. one with Kr7A and other with 8Kha+
I must say each board has thier own unique features.

I love Abit for their 8 IDE deivce support over anything. 4 Dimm slots are useless to me since most I'll probably use is 3 ( each slot can take up to a gig)
I love Epox for their Hexadecimal LED that lights up on the board for troubleshoot and the bootup screen which tells you the system temp and CPU temps.

I enjoyed Abit put extra features in their board which I beleive justifys its price like the extra 4 USB header for total of 6 USB devices! already saving you the cost of USB splitters that cost 10 bux.

Epox has a price advantage and thats why it was my second system after spending so much on the ABIT.

One complaint about the EPOX board is that it's bigger than most boards and their IDE connectors are way on the edge of the board towards the bottom.
My UDMA66 cable is stretched tight from the burner thats sitting at second bay all the way down to the board.

Other than that, you cant go wrong with either board.

 

[rayma2]

<< One happy Epox 8KHA+ owner here. Fast & stable mobo w/ good bios support. >>



dito

 

[hoomza444]

heard good things about the epox, i went for the xp-333. it's stable and fast, i am happy. as some one siad earlier, if you want more options, go with the iwill, if you want to save money, go with the epox. both are good boards and can hold their own.