What VIA266A Mobo to go with?

[NorcoO1]

Ok guys, I know you get this time and time again, but I'd really appreciate some recommendations. This will be my first AMD built computer, so I want to pick things out right. There's so many motherboards out there that I'm just overwhealmed with choices and need some guidance. I've read a lot of horror stories on this board and many people confused as well.

Here's a list of my must have's:

The VIA 266A chipset
2 ATA/100 Controllers + Additional 2 ATA/100 Controllers (I dont care if they are raid controllers, as long as I can use them for ATA/100 also)
5-6 PCI Slots
STABILITY! NO PROBLEMS!

I've looked at the Soyo Dragon plus, but its a lot of money and I don't really care at all for the onboard lan/sound. Plus its just got other features that are worthless. I don't overclock whatsoever, so basic overclocking bios features would be fine by me. I just want something that will give me no problems, very stable, and just a few basic features. I'm looking for a motherboard under $140. I'll be buying a XP 1900+ and 512 PC2100 crucial or Kingston ram. So if you guys could help me out, I would really appreciate it! Thanks!

 

[billyjak]

EPOX EP-8KHA+ VIA Apollo KT266A (VT8366A) 200/266 MHz Motherboard $98 at Newegg and a PROMISE ULTRA100TX2 CONTROLLER CARD $23 at newegg
Total$121.00

 

[NorcoO1]

Thanks for the recommendation, but I haven't read a lot of good experiences with that mobo and people. The EpoX 8KHA+ was the first to have the VIA266A chipset and first isn't always best. Plus isn't Epox releasing a new mobo soon with 2 extra raid controllers? I would preferibly like the 2 raid controllers onboard, as having a expansion card is just one more extra thing to deal with.

 

[Wind]

<< Thanks for the recommendation, but I haven't read a lot of good experiences with that mobo and people. The EpoX 8KHA+ was the first to have the VIA266A chipset and first isn't always best. Plus isn't Epox releasing a new mobo soon with 2 extra raid controllers? I would preferibly like the 2 raid controllers onboard, as having a expansion card is just one more extra thing to deal with. >>


Nope. Epox 8KHA+ is fast & stable for me. Tht extra expansion card is better than the onboard controller.

 

[BILLYBOY999]

The soyo dragon + has the best feature set of any other mobo and it super fast and stabile.

I would jump on it if I were you. (wait I did =-)

 

[Mem]

<< Thanks for the recommendation, but I haven't read a lot of good experiences with that mobo and people. The EpoX 8KHA+ was the first to have the VIA266A chipset and first isn't always best. >>



I brought the Epox because of great reviews and I wanted stability first above everything else, and I can tell you it rocks!!!! never had any problems with it and I also game alot online etc it`s one very stable board most threads you have seen are user error in setup or wrong PSU ,the Epox 8KHA+ likes a very good 300w or above,ask anyone that knows how to build PCs they will tell you the same.

 

[NorcoO1]

does anyone know when the new epox board with the two extra onboard raid controllers is going to be released? I'll be purchasing my new computer parts the beginning of february, so I still have a month away before purchase. I heard Shuttle is releasing a new board soon.....anybody have good experiences with shuttle? Thanks~

 

[Paladin]

Go with the ASUS A7V266E, you won't regret it. Quality, reliability, stability, and great performance. You'll pay a little extra $$, but worth it IMO.

 

[Vegito]

do you guy still trust via chipsets ? I mean a lot of the problem is the chipset and not mobo.. and sis and ali isn't as mature in making newer athlon chipset... how do you pick ? it's driving me crrrazy

 

[Mem]

NorcoO1 ,the Soyo Dragon + is a good board if you want RAID ,you said it was little expensive so MSI K7T266 Pro2-RU might be worth a look.

Anyway whatever you decide welcome to AT(Anandtech).

 

[OverDose]

Shuttle AK35GTR

KT266a, tried and true like the AK31 r3.1

Onboard U133 raid controller + the regular U100 non-raid VIA based controller

 

[Crackabot]

The one lowly board that you very seldom see talked about here (becouse it works) the shuttle ak31 rev3.1, yup you'ld need one of the promise controller cards, but really I never see people on this board with problems with it running a 1.4 gig t-bird, it has worked flawlessly for me and benches above bothe my brothers systems

it beats my bro's

MSI k7t 266 pro2 w/ an xp1700

the gigabyte 266a board w/ xp1800

using the sandra benches, and passmark, I beat them both, just by a little, but a beating is beating


as you can tell I love the board, zero problems, great performance

 

[FIFO]

I have just set up an 8KHA+ and I can say that there is nothing wrong with that board. As stated before, most of the problems that you have heard of are user related/created.

OC Workbench gave it a 1st place award for best Socket A board for overclocking and 2nd place for best value.

Beyond this, I have not seen one bad review of this board. Hence the decision to buy it. I spent some 3 months reasearching and it is the board that is in the perfect sweet spot. Faster than the Soyo, slower than the ASUS, but WAY less expensive than either.

Also, ALWAYS go for an add-on hard drive controller for additional ports. They can be much better than the integrated products. ALL of the RAID controllers that are included on low end motherboards actually eat up CPU time to do their job.

Either way, have fun!!!

 

[KnightBURN]

You don't hear much about a Shuttle Motherboard no matter what make/model or chipset because most people are smart enough not to buy a SpaceWalker Shuttle.. they are the cheapest most unreliable boards that exist (next to Retail System Integrated boards, like HP or Compaq) Believe me I work in an office that was full of Shuttle's when I started, and we are probably down to as few as 5-6 because the rest of them have broken...

 

[DragCity]

I went with the 8KHA+ for my first build as well. Did plenty of reading up beforehand and have not had any problems. Very easy to set up, and certainly well worth it.

 

[NorcoO1]

Thanks for all the feedback. I think as a result I might go with the EpoX 8KHA+. I can order it from MWave for about $100, they have a good RMA policy, and I know the board is one of the fastest VIA266A chipset mobo's out there. I'll just grab a promise controller sometime then. A lot of times onboard stuff is really junk, so it might be safe just getting a expansion card later down the road if i want the extra raids/ata-100 controllers. Thanks for all the feedback, as I know this is a really tough decision. I'll be sure to keep everyone updated later after I build my comp. Thanks again~