Help w/ motherboard choice

[rly125]

I know there are tons of posts like this, and I'm sorry for posting another one, but this is one of the most difficult and confusing choice when putting together a comp and I could really use some advice. I have a few things I'd like to see in my AMD motherboard:

1)onboard LAN (it beats spending an extra $10-20 on a seperate card...)
2)DDR333 up to 3BG (that's pretty standard)
3)thoroughbred-compatible (this is a biggy because if it supports the 2200+, then it'll be more upgradable as faster thoroughbreds are released)
4)fairly good layout and stability

I've read plenty of reviews of motherboards, but each reviewer seems to be biased towards one thing or another and none of them have my above preferences in mind. Can anyone provide some guidance?

[Martoch]

Welcome to TechIMO!!

Click this link: SOYO KT333 DRAGON ULTRA

I use it and LOVE it!

4th one down on THIS NEWEGG LINK

This is just one choice, I'm sure you'll get a few others as well...

Mike

[rly125]

Oh, I forgot to mention, I would also prefer to spend $130 or less on this mobo.

[Martoch]

DOH!

[krohnjw]

CHAINTECH 7VJL AMD Motherboard KT333 ATX RETAIL
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ry=1487&DEPA=1
Last one on the list. $112.00

Seems to have what you are looking for.

[implexant]

i'd say that you should get the Soyo KT333 Dragon Platinum. its a super board too. i just druel and druel when i see a picture of it. *dreams of days when i have the $$ to buy a new mobo* i hate it when money limits you. ugh. bah humbug!

-Chris

[eagle1]

What about the gigabyte GA-7VRXP?

Check this link:

http://www17.tomshardware.com/mainbo...509/index.html

And Welcome to TIMO.!

[rly125]

Wow, thanks for the warm greeting and the helpful feedback. I read several reviews on the GA-7VRXP and everyone seems to be raving about how incredibly feature-packed it is, but they do point out that it lacks any form of burn-protection. My question is, is this missing feature important enough to pass on a very quality board (that is actually pretty cheap, ~$100), or is the risk so miniscule that it can be overlooked?

[implexant]

Looks kinda like its a descision that you have to take the risk of. On one hand it has ATA133 and enough features to make you sick, on the other hand its got no burn protection. humm... and its a Gigabyte. i've never bought from em but hey sounds like a good deal.

-Chris

[weems]

i would HIGHLY recommend the Abit AT7! it uses the VIA 333 chipset, has onboard lan and sound, 3 pci slots, an AGP port, firewire ports, plenty of USB ports (2.0 and 1.1) AND onboard RAID. it also has an amazinging good BIOS, and is very stable and speedy, and yes, it supports thoroghbreds. it costs about 150 bucks but DONT DESPAIR

there is another version of this motherboard, the Abit AT7-E, it has all the features above except no RAID and firewire ports, and goes for about 120 bucks. thats a STEAL imo. the downside is that it has no PS/2 keyboard or mouse ports, but its pretty much time to get onto the USB bandwagon anyway.

=)

~weems