**Official Epox 8K5A Series (KT333) Thread** (Files, Reviews, and Info Inside!)

[RideFree]

FedEx just dropped AGOIA 1600+ Malay via Newegg.
Tomorrow should bring the most of the rest...
Oh! Happy day

 

[RideFree]

Samsung and Corsair are really the only two contenders to draw my attention

Talyn,
XtremeDDR (400 at least) comes in two flavors that I know...Samsung 6ns & 5ns.
Problem is, I don't know how to tell which is which.
See Extreme DDR400 and
this Updated Extreme DDR400 and
thisclosely examine Extreme DDR400
Which all leaves me

 

[1sikbITCH]

Ok I was all set to order an Abit KT333 type board with an AthlonXP 1700+ until I read this thread. I quickly switched my order to the Epox 8K5A.
Shipped out yesterday, be here tomorrow, I'll post after I get stuck trying to set the bios and jumpers right
Thanks for the heads up about this mobo.

 

[Insane3D]

Ok I was all set to order an Abit KT333 type board with an AthlonXP 1700+

Save your money and get a 1600+!

 

[NicColt]

does it have cpu overheating protection in the same way that asus has, I mean if the heatsink is not on right will it fry it or shutdown before dammage is done ?

 

[1sikbITCH]

Originally posted by: Insane3D

Save your money and get a 1600+!

Well, it's too late, but I only paid something like $8.00 more for the 1700 so no biggie

 

[Technonut]

AnMig, sorry I did not see your question to me until now:

techno nut: you have your fsb at 212mhz (wowza) I have the exact same memory as you do mushkin 3200 cas 2 and hope to max the fsb but have been too lazy to unlock my 1600 agoia , I need to decrease the multiplier to reach that high of fsb.

Actually, I am using the Corsair XMS 3200 Rev. 2.1 (Winbond chips) CAS 2.5 set to CAS2 in the BIOS. I have been running my 8K5A2+ 100% stable at a 213.75 MHz FSB (427.49 DDR) / 1923 MHz with the multiplier on my MP 2000+ set at 9.0 (WCPUID)

Did you run into problems with your peripherals? I know there is a 1/5 divider but at 212 mhz your pci is at 42 mhz.

No, not a hiccup. I am running 2 40GB Maxtor D740X ATA133 HDs, a 16X Pioneer slot loader DVD, Lite-On 40X burner, (Flashed to 48X ) Retail 128MB Radeon 8500, Acoustic Edge sound card, and an ATi PCI TV Wonder. I have the Radeon 9700 in one of my other rigs at a lower (190) FSB since it is one piece of hardware that cannot cope with the high FSB I run on the EPoX.

 

[AnMig]

Technonut

thanks for responding, I tried to unlock my 1600 xp agoia again and must have messed up some of the bridges, I lost my 9,9.5, but have my 8,8.5 and 10 multipliers.

I know the chip can run at 1.75 stable since I have been running at this setting 10.5 x166 past month now.


my goal is do 200 x 8.5 =1.7 but was afraid of the high bus speeds (pci 40mhz and agp at 80mhz) since we have similar setup I might just try it.
I have a corsair cmx512-3200 400mhz cas 2 memory so I believe the memory can handle it.

what voltage do you have your memory set at, mine is curently set at 2.7volts do you have all the memroy timings at fastest setting?
peace

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: NicColt
does it have cpu overheating protection in the same way that asus has, I mean if the heatsink is not on right will it fry it or shutdown before dammage is done ?

Yes, it does. It monitors the internal diode, and has a shutdown temp of 100C....5C over the max die temp.

Also, take a look at this thread..

Epox 8k5a on board thermal protection works!!!

 

[Toro 45]

Insane,I notice your using "512mb (2 x 256) Kingmax PC3200" at 172 fsb,are you able to use one of the more aggresive memory setting like fastest or Turbo?

Also is that the Kingmax Tiny BGA True PC3200 sold at Kommax?

I've got my XP1600 running at 173fsb default v. but my Crucial 2100 is maxed out, so I'm just looking for a good "lower" cost alternative to Corsair.I'm hoping to be able to run at 173 or higher with a higher ram setting than " the Normal setting"

Toro

 

[williamkusumo]

Ok, few more questions about 8K5A2 and 8K5A2+ then I am set to buy one!

True or False:

1. 8K5A2+ has 6 PCI BUS ~~ 8K5A2 has 5 PCI BUS (on the contrary to lots of typos on the web)

2. 8K5A2+ Realtek audio support up to 6 speakers ~~ 8K5A2's up to 2 speakers only

3. 8K5A2+ Realtek audio is significantly better than my current Creative SoundBlaster Live! Value

4. 8K5A2+ RAID won't do me any good if I only have one HD

5. 8K5A2+ is $30 more expensive, but it is worth the money for extra PCI, LAN, RAID and better sound card

6. 8K5A2+ LAN is an unsignificant option to be considered since you can get 10/100 LAN card now days for as low as $5


If most of you answered most of them "True", that means I am buying 8K5A2+
If most of them are "False", then 8K5A2 it is...

William

 

[Insane3D]

1. 8K5A2+ has 6 PCI BUS ~~ 8K5A2 has 5 PCI BUS (on the contrary to lots of typos on the web)

False. Both boards have 6 PCI slots.

2. 8K5A2+ Realtek audio support up to 6 speakers ~~ 8K5A2's up to 2 speakers only

True. The 8K5A2 uses the ALC201 CODEC for two channel output. The 8K5A2+ uses the ALC650 6-Channel CODEC for 5.1 channel outputs.

3. 8K5A2+ Realtek audio is significantly better than my current Creative SoundBlaster Live! Value

Depends... I would say they are pretty close to each other, with the Realtek maybe sounding a bit better. The Realtek may use a few more CPU cycles, but it's nothing that will be noticed in "real world" use. Sound quality always boils down to each person's ears. One other thing, IIRC, the original SB Live! was only capable of 4.1 channels, not 5.1.

4. 8K5A2+ RAID won't do me any good if I only have one HD

True. However, the extra two IDE ports do not have to be used for RAID. They can also work as a add-on ATA card would. So if you added more drives down the line, you would have some expansion headroom. For instance, say you have a CDRW, DVD, and a HD. You could make each device a Master on it's own channel. Each optical drive would be the Master on the Primary and Secondary IDE channels, and the HD would be the Master on the ATA/RAID Primary channel. A decent ATA card will cost you at least $25.

5. 8K5A2+ is $30 more expensive, but it is worth the money for extra PCI, LAN, RAID and better sound card

False. The 8K5A2 is $86 while the 8K5A2+ is $99 @ Mwave. That is only a $13 difference. Whether or not it's worth it is up to you and your wallet to decide.

6. 8K5A2+ LAN is an unsignificant option to be considered since you can get 10/100 LAN card now days for as low as $5

False. I'm not sure where you can get a LAN card for $5, but I think the average PCI NIC costs ~$10-$15 online before shipping. They are usually more in B & M stores. I guess if you can get a PCI NIC for $5 then maybe it's not worth it to you.

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: Toro 45
Insane,I notice your using "512mb (2 x 256) Kingmax PC3200" at 172 fsb,are you able to use one of the more aggresive memory setting like fastest or Turbo?

Also is that the Kingmax Tiny BGA True PC3200 sold at Kommax?

I've got my XP1600 running at 173fsb default v. but my Crucial 2100 is maxed out, so I'm just looking for a good "lower" cost alternative to Corsair.I'm hoping to be able to run at 173 or higher with a higher ram setting than " the Normal setting"

Toro

I can run it @ agressive settings, except CL2. With two sticks, I need to drop it to CL 2.5. I am planning on selling the Kingmax and picking up some of the Corsair later. If I were you, I would either buy the 512mb or 2 256mb sticks of the Samsung PC2700 @ Kommax. A 512mb stick was like $126 I believe.. That stuff should run CL2 with Turbo for up to 175mhz FSB or so at least.

 

[Talyn328]

Thanks to this discussion, I decided on the 8K5A2+ rather than the 8K5A3+ which I was originally planning on. The decision was mostly based on someone's argument of "do you really need the extra RAID?" No, I don't. At the most, I will use the RAID for my hdd(s) and the other IDE channels for any optical drives I decide on.

Still trying to decide on RAM though... If I go with Samsung CL2.5 is that noticeable over CL2.0 ? Money really isn't an issue, most CL2.0 PC2700 I've seen is ~$180 for a 512Mb stick anyway. I'm still looking at the XtremeDDR (though I'd prefer to know if any hardware site has used it with the 8K5A2+ or not) or the Corsair.

 

[Actaeon]

I have 256mb of that KingMax DDR400 PC3200 stuff, and its alright, I run at a 181FSB, and all Turbo (most aggressive) settings but CAS is at 2.5.

I can go a little higher, but I'm not too worried about it. My processor is already running at 1.9ghz, so I'm not sure if its the memory, or the CPU thats "limiting" my overclock.

One of my favorite features about this memory, is it runs extremely cool, even at 2.8V, I put my finger on it, its slightly warm. It does not get very hot at all, so there is no chance it'll increase case/board temps.

I would say it performs decently, Its very inexpensive, and great if you were on a budget Like I was, But if you can fork up the cash, I would go for some Crucial/Kingston/Corsair.

 

[Insane3D]

Still trying to decide on RAM though... If I go with Samsung CL2.5 is that noticeable over CL2.0 ? Money really isn't an issue, most CL2.0 PC2700 I've seen is ~$180 for a 512Mb stick anyway. I'm still looking at the XtremeDDR (though I'd prefer to know if any hardware site has used it with the 8K5A2+ or not) or the Corsair.

If you can afford it, I would go with the top of the line Corsair PC3200 C2. Googlegear has it for $182.50 shipped 2-day FEDEX. That stuff will do up to and above 200mhz with the fastest timings and CL2..

 

[Talyn328]

Why PC3200? Just for overclockability or something? I thought the PC2700 was the best for the KT333 chipset since they match speeds???

Not really planning on overclocking the 2600+ at least not immediately. Maybe in a year if I want some extra "umph" out of it, but I'm sure the stock CPU will suit me fine for now.

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: Talyn328
Why PC3200? Just for overclockability or something? I thought the PC2700 was the best for the KT333 chipset since they match speeds???

Not really planning on overclocking the 2600+ at least not immediately. Maybe in a year if I want some extra "umph" out of it, but I'm sure the stock CPU will suit me fine for now.

Well, it just gives you more headroom in the future if you want to run faster than 166mhz (PC2700). If you don't plan on running any faster than 166mhz FSB, then get the Corsair PC2700.

 

[Talyn328]

If nothing else, I may as well plan for the future. The PC3200 is the same price as the PC2700 CL2 anyway...

 

[SP33Demon]

Where can I buy this board for the best price? Mwave?? Googlegear doesn't have it, and Newegg is more than Mwave.... Thanks guys...

 

[Ray78]

Originally posted by: SP33Demon
Where can I buy this board for the best price? Mwave?? Googlegear doesn't have it, and Newegg is more than Mwave.... Thanks guys...

Mwave is the cheapest I've found so far, plus Newegg didn't have it in stock the last time I checked.

 

[MichaelD]

Originally posted by: Ray78

Originally posted by: SP33Demon
Where can I buy this board for the best price? Mwave?? Googlegear doesn't have it, and Newegg is more than Mwave.... Thanks guys...

Mwave is the cheapest I've found so far, plus Newegg didn't have it in stock the last time I checked.

Yep. Newegg is out of stock on the 8K5A2+. I bought one from MWave yesterday. $99. $109 w/shipping. Great price on such a full-featured kick-butt board.

 

[williamkusumo]

Insane3D, thank you very much for your response.

I don't really care if 8K5A2+ Realtek audio support 6.1 since I have Klipsch Promedia 4.1. But if I decided to buy 8K5A2+, should I leave my Creative SoundBlaster Live! Value alone or just use the onboard audio?

Thanks again,
William

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: williamkusumo
Insane3D, thank you very much for your response.

I don't really care if 8K5A2+ Realtek audio support 6.1 since I have Klipsch Promedia 4.1. But if I decided to buy 8K5A2+, should I leave my Creative SoundBlaster Live! Value alone or just use the onboard audio?

Thanks again,
William

I would try to use the onboard sound first, and see if you like it. If you aren;t sure, you can always pop in your SB Live and see if you like it better. I noticed in another thread in this forum, someone said the following...

I can tell you this much.

1) I no longer have a SB live in my pc.
2) I no longer have a nic card in my pc.
3) got a stick of kingston up to 200mhz
4) I have owned a few mobo's in my time. None of witch O/C'd like this one does!!!

Think I am Epox for life

You will be happy with this mobo. I have always been a Asus or Abit. But I will no longer look down that road!

Link

 

[Toro 45]

If I were you, I would either buy the 512mb or 2 256mb sticks of the Samsung PC2700 @ Kommax. A 512mb stick was like $126 I believe.. That stuff should run CL2 with Turbo for up to 175mhz FSB or so at least.

Good call,I'll give it a try.

Toro