Hi,

I am considering getting a new motherboard for my KnoppMyth box and am seeking some sage KnoppMyth expert advice. Literally, all this motherboard is ever going to do is run KnoppMyth 24x7 for so its compatibility is of paramount concern. I really want this motherboard to be able to quiet itself with some advanced cooling techniques (QFAN, or equivalent).

I currently have a microATX emachines (Trigem, imperial) motherboard that is just OK but limited in expansion, has no AGP, no BIOS updates, rather primitive powersaving (no QFAN, etc) features, no xmbmon compatibility, etc. It has been running KnoppMyth for over a year and I love it but its just too noisy.

For economy I would like to reuse as much of what I have as possible:
1. 400MHz FSB 2.6GHz Celeron (socket 478, northwood core)
2. 2 pieces of 256MB 266MHz DDR RAM.
3. 4 parallel EIDE devices: 3 harddisks and a DVD-CD-RW drive.
4. Floppy, & wireless PS2 keyboard
5. NVidia MX440 PCI video card
6. 2 PVR-250s.
7. Zalman CU socket 478 CPU Heatsink

What I am looking for is at least 5 PCI slots, an 800MHz FSB to accept modern intel socket 478 processors, northwood, prescott, etc.

compatibility with the xmbmon program would be a plus.

I am not a fan of built in video unless it included TV-out and was a KnoppMyth compatible (read, NVidia chipset). That is truly rare so I expect to just use a NVidia video card w/TV-out.

The motherboard has to have good built in ethernet NIC (100/10) and USB. PS2 Keyboard, PS2 mouse, USB are nice to have to.

Not really motherboard related but support HDTV is not a concern. I am in the USA, so NTSC video is the rule.

I have searched on newegg.com and there are literally dozens of boards that would match these specs. What I am looking for a proven winner with KnoppMyth (Tier 1) that is common enough that the company will be around (ASUS, Intel, ABIT, etc) and supported.

Surely someone has gotten the ultimate socket 478 ATX motherboard for KnoppMyth! Please let me know your recommendations!

THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!

Andrew Lynch

PS, KnoppMyth rules!

well I only have experience with a few motherboards, and none of them meet all your demands, but my question is why does being in the US preclude the need for hdtv compatibility? hdtv works just great for me in the US and over the air with an indoor antenna at that.

_________________
Have a question search the forum and have a look at the KnoppMythWiki.

Xsecrets

Thanks for the reply. My intention was to give an idea of what the motherboard would be used for. I won't be going to HDTV in the foreseeable future (no display) and since that is an extremely CPU intensive application that may be a factor in motherboard selection. Since I live in the USA NTSC-M is the dominant video format.

I think I will edit the message and remove that part if its confusing. When people ask me for computer recommendations, its the first thing I ask is "what are you going to use it for". In this case, its what I described.

Thanks!

Andrew Lynch

Not a problem It is definitely relevant that you are not going to use it for hdtv playback. Just seemed odd to use being in the US as the reason for that. No display makes much more sense because hdtv's are still pretty expensive.

_________________
Have a question search the forum and have a look at the KnoppMythWiki.

Xsecrets

My current system is below. I intend to reuse as much as possible and just swap the mb for the new model. I have bought a new Antec Quiet Case so this is a good time to swap out parts as a rebuild is near.

Current configuration:

eMachines T2690
TriGem Imperial socket 478 mb
2.6GHz celeron CPU
512MB 2100 DDR
2 PVR-250's
GeForce4 440 MX PCI w/TV-out
80 GB hda, 200 GB hdb, 200 GB hdd w/LVM all parallel EIDE
DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive hdc
LAN, floppy, wireless keyboard, grey hauppauge remote, etc.



This is the mb I am looking at for an upgrade. Any comments or experiences with it?



http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDe ... 492&depa=0

ASUS "P4P800-E Deluxe" i865PE Chipset Motherboard for Intel Socket 478 CPU -RETAIL


Model# P4P800-E DELUXE
Item # N82E16813131492

Specifications:
Supported CPU: Intel Pentium 4/Celeron Processor (Prescott Ready)
Chipset: Intel 865PE + ICH5R
FSB: 800/533/400MHz
RAM: 4x DIMM for Dual Channel DDR400 Max 4GB
IDE: 2x UDMA 100 by ICH5R, 1x UDMA 133 by Promise 20378
Slots: 1x AGP 8X, 5x PCI, 1x ASUS Wi-Fi
Ports: 2xPS/2,2xCOM(Rear 1),1xLPT,1xLAN,8xUSB2.0(Rear 4),2xIEEE1394(Rear 1),1xGAME,Audio Ports
Onboard Audio: ALC850 8-CH
Onboard LAN: Marvell 88E8001 GbE
Onboard 1394: VT6307
Onboard SATA/RAID: 2x SATA RAID 0/1 by ICH5R, 2x SATA RAID 0/1/0+1 by Promise 20378
Form Factor: ATX



I am more worried about quality and stability and performance with KnoppMyth than price. I really don't want to sink $$$ and time into a loser and am willing to spend a few extra bucks to get some "design margin" and growth.

Comments?



Thanks!

Andrew Lynch

Hi, I've been shopping around some more on the motherboard search. Does anyone have any experience with the motherboard below? I'd really like to know if its Tier 1 or if you had problems with it.

What really concerns me is that there is no way (I know of) to check if the kernel that is with R4V5 will support the onboard IO chips like:

Onboard Audio: ADI AD1985 6-Channel Audio
Onboard LAN: Marvell 88E8001 Gigabit Ethernet
Onboard SATA/RAID: 2 x Serial ATA by ICH5R, RAID 0/1

for sure, I need OOTB support on the LAN and audio.

How can I find out and do my "homework"? (short of just buying it a plugging it in!)

Thanks!

Andrew Lynch





ASUS "P4P800 SE" i865PE Chipset Motherboard for Intel Socket 478 CPU -RETAIL


Model# P4P800SE
Item # N82E16813131484

Specifications:
Supported CPU: Intel Pentium® 4/Celeron Processors(HT, Prescott Ready)
Chipset: Intel 865PE + ICH5R
FSB: 800/533/400MHz
RAM: 4x DIMM for Dual-Channel DDR400/333/266 Max 4GB(Hyper-Path)
IDE: 2x ATA 100 up to 4 Devices
Slots: 1x AGP 8X/4X, 5x PCI, 1x ASUS Wi-Fi
Ports: 2xPS/2, 1xLPT, 1xCOM, RCA SPDIF Out, 8xUSB2.0(Rear 4), 1xLAN, Audio Ports
Onboard Audio: ADI AD1985 6-Channel Audio
Onboard LAN: Marvell 88E8001 Gigabit Ethernet
Onboard SATA/RAID: 2 x Serial ATA by ICH5R, RAID 0/1
Form Factor: ATX


http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDe ... 484&depa=0