Which Motherboard

[DJ]

I am about to build a new system for video editing and would like some feedback as to the performance and stability of the Asus P3B and the Abit BE6 motherboards. Thanks.

DJ

[RoGuE]

I have a BE6 and it is very good. However, if I were buying now I would probably get the P3B-F, for the extra PCI slot.

If you are considering the BE6, it may be worth waiting for the BE6 2.0 (improved bios, and a LOT more bus speeds).

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aka Chris H

[DrMordrid]

I'm using a P3B-F right now and so far so good. The only thing is that if you're switching form a SS7 system I'd reinstall the display drivers and video tools.

Dr. Mordrid

[Brian Ellis]

Please read the thread entitled:

1394 on new Asus P3B motherboard

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Brian (the terrible)

[stevenscott]

I like my Abit BE6 with all the features used in Win98. I like the extra PCI slot and the board with the ATA66 feature of SCSI, also seems to make it great card so far. I also have an Abit BX6 which convinced me to get my 2nd Abit board. So far I only have a Matrox Mystique G200 but am anxiously awaiting the release of the Marvel G400. I really like my PIII 450 processor on my BE6 and my Celeron on my BX6 is a nice processor too. I do not know how it all would work with Win2000 but with Win98 it is all working very nice.

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Home:
Server:
I run a Matrox Mystique G200 AGP with an:
Abit BE6
Win98
Adaptec CD Creator 4
Pentium III 450
128 MB Ram
SB Live
Maxtor 13 GIG HD
2 3com Nic cards
Wingate 3.05
1 Symbios SCSI for my HP Photo Scanner
Boca 56K Int. Modem
Mitsumi 4801-TE CD-R
MS Precision Pro Joystick
Surfboard SB1200 cable modem
Shamrock 17" Monitor
HP OfficeJet Pro 1175Cse 4/1 printer/Scanner/Fax/copier
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Client1:
AbitBX6 MB
Win98
Celeron 300a
Maxtor 6.4 GIG HD
128 MB Ram
Netsurf NIC
SB Live sound card
Teac CDRom
Hercules Thriller AGP Video Card
Boca 56K Int. Modem
MS Precision Pro Joystick
Shamrock 15" monitor
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[This message has been edited by stevenscott (edited 10-02-1999).]

[DJ]

Thanks for all the replies. I have just about decided to go with the P3B. Doc. Mordrid could you please keep me up to date with how this motherboard is working for you? and I am not upgrading from SS7. Thanks.

DJ

[vpwhiteboy]

hi

my brother is currently using a p3b-f as well and it works great. he has all his slots filled, overclocked, and stable. i have almost the same setup using a p2b and works like a charm. my other brother uses the p2b-f without problems either. i will always go with asus b/c they never given us any problems. i've had too many problems using abit boards. so i recommend you going with the p3b-f.

frankie

[Brian Ellis]

Frankie,

You praise Asus to the skies. Others, myself included, have had nothing but problems with them. You have had problems with Abit (which I have not used) yet others praise them to the skies. Other boards again give similar responses. What conclusion can be drawn? None, really, other than find the board that suits you and your set-up and your software, but be prepared for insoluble problems requiring a change of mother board and a hundred bucks down the drain.

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Brian (the terrible)

[DrMordrid]

This is true. Put the wrong combination of devices into almost any board and Hell will ensue....

Of course some devices are more prone to be involved in these foulups than others, SBLive! for one ;-)

Dr. Mordrid

[DrMordrid]

I did run into one problem with the P3B-F but it's minor, easily fixed and applies only to Celerons.

By default it sets the Celerons vcore voltage to 2.0 volts. The Celeron requires 2.2 volts.

This doesn't sound like much but this can cause instabilities like sudden reboots and lockups if the voltage fluctuates down too far. You can easily fix this in the BIOS setup program.

This is NOT a reason to avoid this board, but if you use a Celeron you do have to address it until they fix the BIOS defaults.

This is the ONLY problem I've encountered. It even overclocks nicely. I've had this C466 up to 525mhz with ease.

Dr. Mordrid


[This message has been edited by DrMordrid (edited 10-05-1999).]

[vpwhiteboy]

hi

dj said he was going to go with the asus board so i was telling him my experiences with asus boards, which have alawys been good.

frankie

[NZF]

I highly recomend going for the asus p3b-1394, it costs only $50 more than the regular p3b-f and you can get DV editing right out of the box.

The only drawback is that's a micro atx board, so you have only four pci slots.

Nicolas.

[This_Idiot]

With 4 HDs plus a CD-ROM you'll be hard pushed fitting it all into a standard midi, especially if you want a bit of airspaces between them. You might like to consider putting a drivebay fan unit in to help keep the temperature down.

In which case, a 300w supply would be worthwhile.

[DJ]

I am pretty much sold on the Asus however what I still need advice on is the case and
power supply. Do I need to go with a full tower or can an 18 inch high midtower do the
trick. How about a 235 watt power supply vs 300 watts. I want to run a PII 500 with
four hard drives.

DJ