Overclockers dream!!! new AMD mobo from chaintech

[t3ch_d0g]

The socket A Chaintech 7VJL "Apogee" features:

Fixed AGP/PCI Clock
FSB up to 250mz in 1mhz increments
USB 2.0
6 channel ac97
onboard NIC
**rounded cables**
front mounted everything
even ships with a version of Linux!!

all for $255+gst:eek:.

Check it out here (www.pcgear.co.nz/code/products.asp?partno=MB7VJL-A)
I've never had a chaintech before, are they any good?

[Deviant]

That looks like a bloody good deal. I might looks for some reviews.

[Deviant]

It's only got AC97 sound, but it has got ATA133.

[I.R]

Has N E 1 bothered with ATA133 ?????

[MrThc]

Originally posted by I.R
Has N E 1 bothered with ATA133 ?????

yup, I have 2x Maxtor D740X 60Gb ATA133 drives occupying a ATA133 RAID channel each (not actually in RAID tho). they replaced 2x 40Gb ATA100 7k hd's setup the same way. ATA133 isnt much faster in most things, but is a lot faster in others. the ATA133 drives seem to be just a tad quicker in windows and benchmarks.. but 1 thing that is waayyy faster is the amount of time it takes to backup my 5Gb windows partition using Nortons Ghost 2001.. ATA100 = approx 4 mins, ATA133 = 2 mins or less :D.. its even better now since I made a Bootable CD with Ghost on it.. can reboot windows, boot cd into ghost, backup C:\ and be back in windows in under 4 mins :cool:

[Glycerine]

Originally posted by I.R
Has N E 1 bothered with ATA133 ?????

yep ive got a 40gb maxtor, love it...
athou i think i should have got a 60gb or bigger

im running out of space (40gb mator and a 30gb ibm)
might have to get a controller card so i can add more drives

[Deviant]

How come these mobos don't exist, not even on the Chainteck website?

[thabass]

There is a small write up about this new product range on THG.

http://www4.tomshardware.com/business/02q2/020607/computex4-04.html

[Ragnor]

If only they left out the onboard sound and nic, and oh... if it wasn't made by chaintech :rolleyes:

[CmdrChris]

I have 2x 40gigs running ata133 (maxtors) in a strip config, and its fast very fast, I used to run one of these drives off an ata100 controller and that was way slow compared to this, I surpose the strip makes it bit faster, but still.

Its noticable...


I Agree with ya MrThc, on two things.. the speed of ata133 and how great ghost is. I use it as I have a copule of configs that I use. Servers/workstations etc, which is great not having to dual boot. (as when you want 4 configs it gets wayyyyy out of hand).

[fraz]

I've never had a chaintech before, are they any good? [/B]

Chaintech = ****

(my experience):D

[t3ch_d0g]

Originally posted by fraz


Chaintech = ****

(my experience):D

ok, would you care to elaborate?

[theYANK]

Originally posted by t3ch_d0g
The socket A Chaintech 7VJL "Apogee" features:

Fixed AGP/PCI Clock
FSB up to 250mz in 1mhz increments
USB 2.0
6 channel ac97
onboard NIC
**rounded cables**
front mounted everything
even ships with a version of Linux!!

all for $255+gst:eek:.

Check it out here (www.pcgear.co.nz/code/products.asp?partno=MB7VJL-A)
I've never had a chaintech before, are they any good?

Sounds fantastic! Good features but not overdone. However, I wanna see some results from making that b!tch sweat.
*P.S. - I don't like onboard NIC's they chew up CPU cycles!
*EDIT - good lookin' boards, too!

[Binky Stunt Cat]

have you guys tried the ATA133 controler ith ATA100 drives??
or are you using ATA133 drives???
coz the new controler is probably whats giving the boost...

[Maverick]

Originally posted by Binky Stunt Cat
have you guys tried the ATA133 controler ith ATA100 drives??
or are you using ATA133 drives???
coz the new controler is probably whats giving the boost...

AFAIK ATA100 or ATA66 or ATA33 drives will only run *up to* that spec if the controller supports it.
That is, if you have an ATA133 controller but only ATA100 drive -it will only run at ATA100.


Striping two ATA66's will be faster than one drive at ATA133, -ATA133 rating doesnt gaurantee that that is the transfer rate (it is merely opening one of the bottlenecks larger, the greater bottleneck is the mechanical drive speed).

my 2c

Mav

[KingJackal]

I think Binky may be trying to say that:

An ATA-100 drive on the ATA-133 controller ( @ ATA-100 ) will outperform an ATA-100 drive on an ATA-100 controller.

In other words, how much better are the drives, and how much better ( than the generic VIA northbridges we all use for ATA-100 ) is the shiny RAID capable ATA-133 chip ;).

[Ragnor]

Well clarified KJ ...

Interesting..

Question for those who have boards with the ATA133 southbridge and with the highpoint RAID controller... Is one faster then the other for plain old 1 HDD ATA133..?

[MrThc]

Originally posted by Ragnor
Well clarified KJ ...

Interesting..

Question for those who have boards with the ATA133 southbridge and with the highpoint RAID controller... Is one faster then the other for plain old 1 HDD ATA133..?

I havent had the oppurtunity to try that yet, my standard IDE channels are only ATA100, the onboard RAID channels are ATA133.. however, on previous ATA100 RAID boards I have owned with ATA100 drives, the RAID channels have always been much faster. I find nortons ghost is an excellent benchmark for drive speed, and this is roughly how it worked out for me.

ATA100 drive, ATA100 IDE channel = approx 6 mins
ATA100 drive, ATA100 RAID channel = approx 4 mins
ATA133 drive, ATA100 IDE channel = approx 5 mins
ATA133 drive, ATA133 RAID channel = approx 2 mins

all were with a 5Gb C:\ partition, with approx 1.5Gb free

[Binky Stunt Cat]

ok, seems like i shall need to run some tests on my current setup before heading over to my new board.
What testing progs should i use for HDDs?

[MrThc]

Disk Speed 32 (http://www.geocities.com/vgrinenko/DiskSpeed32/ds32setup.zip) is pretty good, the HDD test in PCMark2002 isnt too bad either, but depends on your file system also.. and there is always sisoft sandra :D

[Volodkovich]

hmm, looks like a nice board...i'll wait til theres a few reviews up about them before i buy tho - this could replace my planned Epox 8k3a - it has more features and is cheaper which is wat i want.

[dairyboy]

okay you ppl are making me DROOL.........

*stands in the queue to get RAID rig*:o

[fraz]

Originally posted by t3ch_d0g


ok, would you care to elaborate?

I had a chaintech mobo and it was rather crap.
It was based on the mvp3 chipset and i was running a celeron 566 on it. It took a pretty decent beating (spilt water/noobie mistakes) but it was un tweakable and when i blew it up i couldnt get any help at all from their website/helpline

That was last week tho :)
My parents just got a pc company comp on the weekend (my olds have seen my computer and dont trust me to make them one)
Its a xp1800
noname kt333 mobo (ecs i think)
sis 64meg (similar to a gf2mx400 i think)
256 ram
40gig
32x cdrw

It was resonably cheap (they got all the bundled stuff (printer scanner camera 5yr warranty...)
but when i first turned it on it got halfway through loading xp home and it froze
I couldnt be bothered mucking with it so i took it back to the shop and that replaced the graphics card and did a reinstall
The best part is that the card they stuck in is a chaintech gf4 mx440 and it hauls ass
With hardly and drivers installed and no tweaking i got 5500 on 3dmark2k1.

Back to the story...
I dont dislike chaintech anymore :)

[dustyslapper]

I've had a chiantech mobo for a couple of years. Not a bad board - stability was as good as anything else I've seen (and a lot better then most). Tweakable settings in bios were a bit lite - pretty much choose CAS settings and that was it. Jumperless to 152mhz, by 1mhz increments was pretty flash for a board in 1999 though.

Use Via Apollo Pro chipset - so of course it handled ram like a dog till I WCPRedit/set the mutha. Even then it came to just under BX performance - but thats VIA not chaintech.

I think this board looks real good - if that Chaintech performs well, and the board is stable it'd be a good buy. I mean - unless its a donkey it should be awesome. Fixed pci/agp - thats 90% of the hassle and pain going right there.

Noone has seen a review have they?

[SySteM]

Originally posted by t3ch_d0g
The socket A Chaintech 7VJL "Apogee" features:

Fixed AGP/PCI Clock
FSB up to 250mz in 1mhz increments
USB 2.0
6 channel ac97
onboard NIC
**rounded cables**
front mounted everything
even ships with a version of Linux!!

all for $255+gst:eek:.

Check it out here (www.pcgear.co.nz/code/products.asp?partno=MB7VJL-A)
I've never had a chaintech before, are they any good?

don't forgot to said
Chipset : VIA KT333A (CE)
t3ch_d0g this VIA KT333 version better than CD version which i got it :( (soltek 75DRV5)

[t3ch_d0g]

Originally posted by SySteM

don't forgot to said
Chipset : VIA KT333A (CE)
Doh! my name t3ch_d0g:o...

t3ch_d0g this VIA KT333 version better than CD version which i got it :( (soltek 75DRV5)

Thats true SySteM, but your rigs still 1337 so be happy:).

This board "seems" good and if successful could give Chaintech a better reputation than they've got right now.

L8r.

[Binky Stunt Cat]

yup, the new HDD controller helps a bit..... not much, but a bit, increased about 50-80 points in PCMark

[Grrr!!]

For $216 (uptech) I think it is an incredibly good deal. http://www.apolyton.net/forums/images/icons/icon14.gif

[Volodkovich]

i still cant find n e reviews of it :(

[t3ch_d0g]

Originally posted by Volodkovich
i still cant find n e reviews of it :(

Its not for sale in nz yet, dunno about the states. Pcgear nz are getting it on the 1st week of july. Dont worry bro, wont be long now;).

This can tide you over...

[Volodkovich]

well me thinks it looks damn nice, mmm yellow and black...im pretty sure i want this for my cheapish system...now all i need is a review, to see if it actually performs.

[SilverPriest]

And the placement of the IDE headers SUCK which is a pain in the arse for anyone like me with a big case and hard drives up the top.
Stupid crappy mobos, cant put IDE headers in decent places.....
KT7A RAID.
Now THAT, is a mobo layout.

[SilverPriest]

I cannot stand poorly laid out boards ;)
Behold, the wonderful layout of the Abit KT7A RAID

[Volodkovich]

those caps look pretty close the cpu socket.....

[SilverPriest]

Yes well, it fits an Alpha PAL8045.
So no worries there about any heatsinks fitting ;)
And @ least it pays attention to the no mount zone around the socket, unlike many other companies mobos :rolleyes:

[Volodkovich]

well, i spose they cant be that close if a alpha fits on....:)

[Deviant]

From memory the capacitors that are really close to the socket, are quite short, and so heatsinks fit over them. Most HSF are large or long in this direction only, so not a prob.

[Septic_12]

Originally posted by t3ch_d0g

... Pcgear nz are getting it on the 1st week of july ...



D00d, why the plugs for PCgear ???? :(

Styles (and Uptech, I see) have it cheaper ...

[+ their claim about PC2100 DDR ram is crap ! Quote (without permission :rolleyes: ) from their site -

Low Low Corsair ram Special!
We've decided to drop our Corsair PC2100 DDR Ram to $114 each!!!! You will not find this price on quality ram anywhere else@!

Styles is cheaper !!! (He includes GST unlike some ....) ]

[Grrr!!]

I agree in all entirety not to like PCGear. They always seem to come up with those :rolleyes: arrogant deals "you'll never see better" In short they are expensive all round.

[DiscoStu]

PCGear are the distributors........so you wouldn't really expect them to undercut their retailers.

Sort of like complainin that OCNZ is more expensive than JB.........


Now back on topic :p

[KingJackal]

Originally posted by Grrr!!
I agree in all entirety not to like PCGear. They always seem to come up with those :rolleyes: arrogant deals "you'll never see better" In short they are expensive all round.

Well - they're not completely crap.... I'll bet I could find 4 or 5 stores that didn't drop their Corsair prices AT ALL.... ;). Having said that, I've never actually bought anything off them, but meh! I haven't really bought anything from any store outside ChCh ( note: store - most of my gear winds up being second-hand :D ).

[dustyslapper]

I got some Corsair SDR off them last year, when they had it priced cheaper then all my locals stocked generic. Its a case of getting the good prices anywhere you can find them.

Not a completely awful store, but nor are they Gods gift to cash strapped students.

[t3ch_d0g]

I've got nothing against styles or pcgear, or uptech for that matter. The reason I was quoting stuff from PCGEAR;) is cause PCGEAR;) is where I saw it when it started this thread. Styles didnt start advertising theirs till a few days later.
I'd also like to remind you septic_12 that while uptech have got it advertised for $216 incl gst, they dont state it's the "apogee" version (the one with all the good stuff).

Looking forward to hearing opinions of this board...

So who's gonna be the guniea pig???;););)

[Grrr!!]

I just followed this ad from Anandtech (http://www.anandtech.com):

http://images.anandtech.com/banners/chaintech/APOGEE.gif

Thinking that it would give me product info.

:rolleyes: Only the Chaintech (http://www.anandtech.com/track/track.cfm?BannerID=446&PathInfo=/mb/showdoc.html&catid=80) website, with no information on the apogee :rolleyes:.

[Humantuckshop]

Originally posted by KingJackal


Well - they're not completely crap.... I'll bet I could find 4 or 5 stores that didn't drop their Corsair prices AT ALL.... ;). Having said that, I've never actually bought anything off them, but meh! I haven't really bought anything from any store outside ChCh ( note: store - most of my gear winds up being second-hand :D ).



I bought me a YCC (GlobalWin) Aluminium case for $177 incl GST from PCGear. Not too bad..... I also got my old ****house XP333 from them, but teh XP333 being a dodgy mofobo isn't their fault. Although it must be said that Styles and E-One and others are usually cheaper.

FYI:
DragonPC buy hardware from PCGear - when I was in PCGear in February I saw a big box with ' Iwill XP333 XX pcs' on it and it was addressed to DragonPC in Chch. PCGear are direct importers of quite a few brands. It sucks that they don't match the prices of the resellers tho........ Especially for Aucklanders. :mad:

[Captain Canuck]

Well, the first week of July has come and gone and still no Apogee 7VJL at my doorstep...

I don't know how much longer I can wait!!

I can't wait to get rid of my ASUS K7V - SLOT A - KT133 mobo with Athlon 750 and install this beauty with my brand spankin new XP1800+ and DDR ram

I can almost smell those 100+ framerates now... *drooling*

but seriously - it'll be interesting to see how the new Via southbridge compares to the current ones...

[Hans]

We've done a review on the Apogee. Expect it real soon.

PS: I really don't understand what's the hype with this MB.

[Gh0s7 L3mUr]

Originally posted by Hans
We've done a review on the Apogee. Expect it real soon.

Can you give us a hint to the results?? :D

[Captain Canuck]

Originally posted by Hans
We've done a review on the Apogee. Expect it real soon.

PS: I really don't understand what's the hype with this MB.


well, I supposed it IS overhyped if the reviewer isn't impressed with it after the review - LOL

[Hans]

It ain't fast, slower than DRV5, and stupid jumpers all over the place. But it's stable.

[Volodkovich]

damn...i was expecting 200mhz+ fsb's with this board....i spose i was expecting to much...just that lockable pci/agp got me going.

[Captain Canuck]

I enjoyed your review, Hans - cheers!

so 175Mhz FSB is a good overclock for this board right? when compared to DRV5, A7V etc... ??

don't all KT333 northbridges have the 1/5 divider kicking in at 166Mhz automaticaly? or on other more prominent overclocking boards, do you select this divider in the Bios or with jumpers?

if it wouldn't POST with the jumper in 166 mode what would you guess the reason is? the default multiplier on the CPU too high at that speed?? (I read the AnandTech article you linked)

thanks for anymore input, Hans.

I realise you probably aren't too keen spending much more time with this board... ;)

[mird-OC]

it could be a number of reasons, but since Hans did the review it's pretty much a certainty that it's not the CPU limiting the OC.

most likely causes are things such as power delivery, circuitry layout, cooling - i.e. the board just isn't designed for big FSB numbers.

[Volodkovich]

where is the review?

[Captain Canuck]

fair enough,

but if Hans could get it up to 175Mhz on the 133Mhz jumper, why not at least 166Mhz on the 166Mhz jumper?

[Volodkovich]

D/W. just found it

[KingJackal]

Originally posted by Captain Canuck
fair enough,

but if Hans could get it up to 175Mhz on the 133Mhz jumper, why not at least 166Mhz on the 166Mhz jumper?

Is that relevant? My Abit KR7A-RAID goes way past 175Mhz - without the extra multiplier.

In fact, I can hit 180 with my PC2100 RAM - and most KR7A's hit 200 without too many problems. So for a much newer board to not even hit 175, is a pretty poor effort.

Also, the dividers don't matter much. They only affect AGP and PCI. But for reviews ( and especially the overclocking sections of reviews ), reviewers don't use any PCI cards. Furthermore, most AGP cards are happy at really high AGP speeds, so if it was crapping out - it'll be the board.

Plus, knowing Hans, he will have tried it on the 166MHz jumper. Notice that he mentioned that it didn't seem to work for him? Maybe he said that because it gave him NO more speed at all.

$0.02

[Hans]

Captain Canuck: Please see my answer in this thread.

http://forums.overclockers.co.nz/showthread.php?s=&postid=13511#post13511

[Monza]

Originally posted by theYANK

*P.S. - I don't like onboard NIC's they chew up CPU cycles!


can someone elaborate on this?

will turning it off in BIOS and using a PCI NIC stop the problem?


anyone bought this mobo yet?