ABIT KT7A V1.3

[gazberg]

Hello,

i was wondering if anyone knew for sure what CPU's my motherboard supported. I have been told it takes upto a XP2100+ (Palamino) but some people have told me it will support upto a XP2000+ (Thoroughbred) whilst someone told me it won't support thoroughbreds at all..

Can someone please confirm for me which is true?

Thanks a lot
Gaz

 

[Nights_L]

No one can really tell if they didn't try it
if you are planning between XP2100+ palomino and XP2000+ Bhourougbred, and if you are not planning to Overclock, then just get the XP2100+ Palomino, which you knows it's supported and which is faster/better than XP2000+ T-bred
(btw..under no OC condition of course~)

 

[gazberg]

Thing is,i know somewhere that sells overclocked CPU's guaranteed to be stable at a certain speed. I can get an 1800XP+ CPU (T-bred)stabalised at 2600XP+(T-bred) for less than a normal 2100XP+ Palamino CPU.
So if i know for sure whether i can support T-bred or not that will help what cpu i buy next.

 

[phsstpok]

The problem is with a Tbred 1800+ and a KT133A mobo is you are limited to multipliers of 5x-12.5x unless you modify the chip or the mobo.

Most KT133A mobos can't do much better than about 160 Mhz FSB (with really good memory). This would limit you to 12.5 x 160 or 2000 Mhz (~XP2400+) and that's if you are lucky. Less if you aren't.

If you don't have high performance PC150 memory and only PC133 memory then you are limited to 133 Mhz, maybe 140 Mhz or so. That would be 12.5 * 140 = 1750 Mhz. Hardly worth paying a premium?

Now if you have an XP2100+ (Tbred B only) you should be able to take advantage of the multiplier remappings (something you can't do with an unmod'd XP1800+). With multiplier remappings you can use 15x, 16x, 16.5x, 17x and more.

Trouble is this might also require mods as some people can't get the KT7A/Tbred XP2100+ combo to work stock.

<b>99% is great, unless you are talking about system stability</b><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by phsstpok on 04/12/03 06:05 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[gazberg]

Right,you will have to excuse my ignorance because i know nothing about motherboards, i'm not very hardware wise, i just use my pc for the net and playing games so the extent of my knowledge is pretty much just upgrading graphics cards etc.

BUT when i bought my motherboard i was sure it said it was a 266mhz FSB, something on my motherboard runs at 266mhz anyway,i know that much for sure.

Heres what it says on the ABIT Bios page for my mobo.

"Support AMD Athlon XP CPU, 0.18 micron process Palomino up to 2100+ and 0.13 micron process Thoroughbred up to 2000+."

So i'm guessing this means i will be able to buy the XP1800 Thorughbred CPU that has been clocked to XP2600.Sorry if i come across clueless,but when it comes to motherboards, i am

 

[gazberg]

Doh, just re-read your post again ,think i understand you now.

This is what i (think) i understood...

I use PC133 SDRAM and the 133 chipset is what counts,not the FSB which is 266mhz. So my motherboard would support the cpu but wouldn't run at the 2600 it could run at, it would run somewhere between 2100/2200 XP+ speeds instead?

 

[phsstpok]

Got ya.

I blame AMD for all this 200/266 FSB confusion. The fact is the default Athlon buses run at 100 Mhz, 133 Mhz, and now 166 Mhz. The buses are DDR (double data rate) meaning they transfer data twice per clock cycle but this is just technology. The bus clocks are still 100/133/166 not 200/266/333.

As for CPU upgrades since you are a self-proclaimed newbie then you probably want to stay away from CPU and board mods. I'd suggest upgrading to a Tbred B XP1700+ or XP1800+. They're cheap and easy to overclock even for a newbie, no mod'ing necessary, and they are no trouble at all in a KT7A. They also run much cooler than a Palomino XP2000+ and you wouldn't really notice the speed difference.

If you want XP2000+ performance the Tbred B's are easy to overclock to XP2000+ levels. Overclocking is personal choice so I won't recommend doing it but if you do then I recommend an aftermarket HSF.

<b>99% is great, unless you are talking about system stability</b>

 

[gazberg]

So would i be right in thinking even if i got a standard 2100XP palomino cpu i wouldn't be ale to overclock it at all due to the multiplier stuck at 12.5x my RAM speed?

 

[phsstpok]

Actually, KT7A's troubles started with Palomino XP2200+. Didn't work at all for some people. For others they wouldn't work upon a cold start but if Reset was press it would then work. Still others had no problems at all.

It's the same for Palomino XP2100+.

Overclocking is also problem because 1) Palomino is locked. 2) It won't overclock very high. 3) no multipliers over 12.5x.

If you unlock a Palomino XP2100+ then it likely won't POST on KT7A since the highest multiplier is 12.5. 13x is a special case which is why it needs to stay locked.

You can still overclock by increasing bus speed but you are limited by your memory.

For more details check out the Abit KT7/KT7A FAQ at <A HREF="http://www.sudhian.com" target="_new">www.sudhian.com</A>.

I still say stick with Tbred B XP1800+. You won't have any problems.

<b>99% is great, unless you are talking about system stability</b>