Difference between revisions of "Athlon Motherboards"

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Athlon consists of a wide range of processors, starting with the original Athlon for Slot A. It later evolved into Athlon XP, Athlon64 and Athlon II.
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Athlon is a potent CPU. The earliest models are slightly faster than Pentium III Coppermine on a per clock basis. Note that these processors consume considerably more power than Pentium II and III. Make sure your PSU has at least 20A on 5v for Slot A and early Socket A boards.
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All Athlons were made by AMD
+
−
 
+
  
 
== Slot A ==
 
== Slot A ==
−
Slot A is the oldest platform for the Athlon. It came in cassette form very similar to Intel's Slot 1 CPU's and is the successor to AMD's Super 7 offerings. It offers much better performance compared to it's Super 7 predecessor, but also consumes more power. It ranges from 500MHz to around 1000MHz. Basically 2 different cores were made: The original Athlon which had cache mounted onto the cassette similar to Intel's Pentium 2 and Intel's Katmai, and the Athlon Thunderbird which had it's cache on the die similar to Intel's Coppermine and AMD's own K6-III.
+
Slot A is the oldest platform for the Athlon. The CPU is in a cartridge very similar to Intel's Slot 1 processors. It ranges from 500MHz to around 1000MHz. Slot A was superseded by the popular Socket A platform.
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Slot A was superseded by the popular Socket A platform.
+
  
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Slot A was typically made in ATX formfactor and usually sported PCI, ISA and an AGP slot.
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These boards are equipped witb ISA, PCI and AGP.  
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To my knowledge, no AT formfactor Athlons were ever made though they might exist.
+
  
 +
===Chipsets===
 +
====AMD 750====
 +
*100 MHz FSB + PC100 RAM
 +
*AGP 2x
 +
AGP quirks with 2x mode and so AGP can be unstable. Use a Voodoo3-5 or a PCI video card.  Generally fast and stable, especially later revisions with superbypass support. Sometimes uses VIA 686A southbridge instead of AMD 756 chip.
 +
 +
====VIA KX133====
 +
*100 MHz FSB + PC133 RAM
 +
*AGP 2x/4x
 +
AGP 4x problems. Uses 686A southbridge.
 +
====VIA KT133====
 +
*100 MHz FSB + PC133 RAM
 +
*AGP 2x/4x
 +
Uses either 686A or B southbridge. 686B soutbridge has PCI errata that can be triggered by some PCI cards such as sound cards. It can cause HDD data loss because the IDE controller is on PCI.
  
 
== Socket A ==
 
== Socket A ==
−
Socket A was a very popular CPU socket which was produced from 2000 to around 2003 and ranges from 600MHz all the way to 2333MHz (or 2.333GHz), though higher clock speeds were achievable with overclocking. There were basically 4 different CPU's made for Socket A, ranging from the original Thunderbird (which was also made in Slot A configuration), the Palomino (which was the first Athlon XP), the Thoroughbred (which was made on a smaller manufacturing process) and the Barton (which was basically a thoroughbred with double the amount of L2 cache).
+
[[File:Socket_A.JPG|200px|thumb||Socket A for Athlon and Athlon XP processors]]
 +
Socket A (also known as Socket 462) was a very popular CPU socket which was produced from 2000 to around 2003 and ranges from 600MHz all the way to 2333MHz (or 2.333GHz), though higher clock speeds were achievable with overclocking. There were basically 4 different CPU's made for Socket A, ranging from the original Thunderbird (which was also made in Slot A configuration), the Palomino (which was the first Athlon XP), the Thoroughbred (which was made on a smaller manufacturing process) and the Barton (which was basically a thoroughbred with double the amount of L2 cache).
  
 
A budget version of Athlon was also made, appearing at first as the Duron (which ran from 600MHz to 1800MHz, all of them Socket A) and later as a Sempron (which was basically a renamed Athlon XP at first). While Duron was marketed with it's original clock speed, Athlon XP was the first Athlon to use a PR rating (identified by a "+"-sign right next to the speed rating), ranging from 1600+ (which is a 1400MHz CPU) to the 3200+ (which is either a 2200MHz CPU on a 400MHz FSB or a 2333 MHz part on a 333MHz FSB (the latter one being more uncommon)).
 
A budget version of Athlon was also made, appearing at first as the Duron (which ran from 600MHz to 1800MHz, all of them Socket A) and later as a Sempron (which was basically a renamed Athlon XP at first). While Duron was marketed with it's original clock speed, Athlon XP was the first Athlon to use a PR rating (identified by a "+"-sign right next to the speed rating), ranging from 1600+ (which is a 1400MHz CPU) to the 3200+ (which is either a 2200MHz CPU on a 400MHz FSB or a 2333 MHz part on a 333MHz FSB (the latter one being more uncommon)).
  
−
Athlon and Athlon XP use substantially more power compared to the Pentium 3 and maxes out at around 75W (without overclocking) while the hottest Pentium 3's max out at around 35W and while usually Athlon and Athlon XP draws power from the 5V lines, Pentium 4 draws it's power from the 12V line. This is important as modern PSU's typically don't support large power draws from the 5V line anymore. Whats also important is that all Socket A Athlons were manufactured without an IHS, meaning the bare die could be damaged when improperly installing a CPU cooler, possibly resulting in cracks in the die, possibly killing the CPU in the process. So being careful while installing a CPU cooler is important. Make sure you don't install the CPU cooler the wrong way around.
+
Athlon and Athlon XP use substantially more power compared to the Pentium 3 and maxes out at around 75W (without overclocking) while the hottest Pentium 3's max out at around 35W and while usually Athlon and Athlon XP draws power from the 5V lines, Pentium 4 draws it's power from the 12V line. This is important as modern PSU's typically don't support large power draws from the 5V line anymore. Whats also important is that all Socket A Athlons were manufactured without an [[IHS]], meaning the bare die could be damaged when improperly installing a CPU cooler, possibly resulting in cracks in the die, possibly killing the CPU in the process. So being careful while installing a CPU cooler is important. Make sure you don't install the CPU cooler the wrong way around.
 
Even though Athlon XP CPU coolers were designed to deal with the high heat output of Athlon and Athlon XP, as Socket A has the same dimensions as Socket 370, Athlon XP coolers can typically be installed on Socket 370 (and sometimes even Socket 7, provided no motherboard components are in the way).
 
Even though Athlon XP CPU coolers were designed to deal with the high heat output of Athlon and Athlon XP, as Socket A has the same dimensions as Socket 370, Athlon XP coolers can typically be installed on Socket 370 (and sometimes even Socket 7, provided no motherboard components are in the way).
  
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All Socket A boards come with PCI slots. Only some of the oldest boards come with ISA slots. Almost all Socket A boards come with either AGP 4x or AGP 8x (some Socket A motherboards without an AGP slot were made though).
 
All Socket A boards come with PCI slots. Only some of the oldest boards come with ISA slots. Almost all Socket A boards come with either AGP 4x or AGP 8x (some Socket A motherboards without an AGP slot were made though).
 
Socket A was made in the middle of the capacitor plague, which resulted in many Socket A boards having bulged capacitors. Bulged capacitors have to be replaced or it will cause system instability and possibly the death of hardware components.
 
Socket A was made in the middle of the capacitor plague, which resulted in many Socket A boards having bulged capacitors. Bulged capacitors have to be replaced or it will cause system instability and possibly the death of hardware components.
 +
 +
 +
=== Chipsets ===
 +
 +
==== NVIDIA ====
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 85%;"
 +
|-
 +
! Model
 +
! Release Date
 +
! FSB
 +
! Memory
 +
! Max. memory
 +
! AGP
 +
! USB
 +
! SATA
 +
! Sound
 +
! Features
 +
! Notes
 +
|-
 +
| nForce 220
 +
| 2001
 +
| 100-133 MHz
 +
| 100-166 MHz DDR
 +
| 1.5GB
 +
| 4X
 +
| 2.0
 +
| -
 +
| AC'97<br />NVAPU&nbsp;(MCP-D)
 +
| opt GF2MX IGP
 +
|
 +
|-
 +
| nForce 415
 +
| 2002
 +
| 100-133 MHz
 +
| 100-166 MHz DDR<br />2x64-bit
 +
| 1.5GB
 +
| 4X
 +
| 2.0
 +
| -
 +
| AC'97<br />NVAPU&nbsp;(MCP-D)
 +
|
 +
|
 +
|-
 +
| nForce 420
 +
| 2001
 +
| 100-133 MHz
 +
| 100-166 MHz DDR<br />2x64-bit
 +
| 1.5GB
 +
| 4X
 +
| 2.0
 +
| -
 +
| AC'97<br />NVAPU&nbsp;(MCP-D)
 +
| opt GF2MX IGP
 +
|
 +
|-
 +
| nForce2
 +
| 2002
 +
| 100-166 MHz
 +
| 100-166 MHz DDR<br />1x / 2x64-bit
 +
| 3GB
 +
| 4/8X
 +
| 2.0
 +
| -
 +
| AC'97<br />NVAPU&nbsp;(MCP-T)
 +
| opt GF4MX IGP
 +
|
 +
|-
 +
| nForce2 400
 +
| 2003
 +
| 100-200 MHz
 +
| 100-200 MHz DDR
 +
| 3GB
 +
| 4/8X
 +
| 2.0
 +
| 2x 1.5Gbit/s<br/>(MCP-S, MCP-Gb)
 +
| AC'97<br />NVAPU&nbsp;(MCP-T)
 +
| RAID (MCP-RAID, MCP-Gb)<br/>gigabit LAN (MCP-Gb)
 +
|
 +
|-
 +
| nForce2 Ultra 400
 +
| 2003
 +
| 100-200 MHz
 +
| 100-200 MHz DDR<br />2x64-bit
 +
| 3GB
 +
| 4/8X
 +
| 2.0
 +
| 2x 1.5Gbit/s<br/>(MCP-S, MCP-Gb)
 +
| AC'97<br />NVAPU&nbsp;(MCP-T)
 +
| RAID (MCP-RAID, MCP-Gb)<br/>gigabit LAN (MCP-Gb)
 +
|
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
 +
==== VIA ====
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 85%;"
 +
!Chipset || South Bridge || Release Date || FSB || Memory || Max. memory ||  V-Link || USB || AGP || Audio || Notes
 +
|-
 +
|KT133|| VT82C686A/B || 2000 || 100&nbsp;MHz || 100–133&nbsp;MHz SDR || 1.5 GB  || - || 1.1 || 2/4× || AC'97 || 686B southbridge has PCI errata
 +
|-
 +
|KLE133 || VT82C686B || 2001  || 100–133&nbsp;MHz || 66–133&nbsp;MHz SDR  || 1.0 GB ||  - || 1.1 || - || AC'97 || Trident IGP. 686B southbridge has PCI errata
 +
|-
 +
|KT133A || VT82C686B || 2001  || 100–133&nbsp;MHz || 100–133&nbsp;MHz SDR || 1.5 GB ||  - || 1.1 || 2/4× || AC'97 || 686B southbridge has PCI errata
 +
|-
 +
|KT266 || VT8233 || Jan 2001|| 100–133&nbsp;MHz || 100–133&nbsp;MHz DDR || 4.0 GB  || 266 MB/s || 1.1 || 2/4× || AC'97 ||
 +
|-
 +
|KT266A || VT8233 || Sept 2001 || 100–133&nbsp;MHz || 100–133&nbsp;MHz DDR || 4.0 GB  || 266 MB/s || 1.1 || 2/4× || AC'97 || Radeon 8500 problems (look for BIOS update)
 +
|-
 +
|KT333 || VT8233, VT8235 || Feb 2002 || 100–166&nbsp;MHz || 100–166&nbsp;MHz DDR || 4.0 GB  || 266 MB/s || 2.0 || 2/4× || AC'97 || Radeon 8500 problems (look for BIOS update). Some boards marked KT333CF are actually KT400 and lack AGP 2x support. VT8235 = USB 2.0
 +
|-
 +
|KT400 || VT8235, VT8237 || Aug 2002  || 100–166&nbsp;MHz || 100–166&nbsp;MHz DDR || 4.0 GB  || 533 MB/s || 2.0 ||  4/8× || AC'97<br />HDA||
 +
|-
 +
|KT400A || VT8237, VT8251 || Mar 2003  || 100–166&nbsp;MHz || 100–200&nbsp;MHz DDR || 4.0 GB  || 533 MB/s || 2.0 || 4/8× || AC'97<br />HDA||
 +
|-
 +
|KT600 || VT8237, VT8251 || May 2003 || 100–200&nbsp;MHz || 100–200&nbsp;MHz DDR || 8.0 GB  || 533 MB/s || 2.0 || 4/8× || AC'97<br />HDA||
 +
|-
 +
|KT880 || VT8237, VT8251 || Feb 2004  || 100–200&nbsp;MHz || 100–200&nbsp;MHz DDR 2x64-bit || 8.0 GB || 533 MB/s || 2.0 || 4/8× || AC'97<br />HDA||
 +
|}
 +
 +
*''ProSavage KM133, KM133A, KM266, KM400, KM400A'' - Similar to the above, but with integrated graphics. After KM133, DDR is supported. The KM133 has integrated S3 Savage4 3D + Savage 2000 2D. KM266's ProSavage8 IGP has an additional 3D pipeline. The KM400(A) use the VIA UniChrome IGP.
 +
*KT133E (= VT8363E + VT82C686B) appears on Gigabyte 7IXEH but is not listed on the VIA site.  Based on the specifications of that motherboard, KT133E appears to be equivalent to (or a cost-reduced rehash of) KT133, supporting 133&nbsp;MHz for memory but only 100&nbsp;MHz for the CPU.
 +
*VT8237 SATA does not work with SATA II hard drives. Must jumper drive to SATA I mode if possible.

Latest revision as of 13:18, 21 February 2013

Athlon is a potent CPU. The earliest models are slightly faster than Pentium III Coppermine on a per clock basis. Note that these processors consume considerably more power than Pentium II and III. Make sure your PSU has at least 20A on 5v for Slot A and early Socket A boards.

Slot A

Slot A is the oldest platform for the Athlon. The CPU is in a cartridge very similar to Intel's Slot 1 processors. It ranges from 500MHz to around 1000MHz. Slot A was superseded by the popular Socket A platform.

These boards are equipped witb ISA, PCI and AGP.

Chipsets

AMD 750

  • 100 MHz FSB + PC100 RAM
  • AGP 2x

AGP quirks with 2x mode and so AGP can be unstable. Use a Voodoo3-5 or a PCI video card. Generally fast and stable, especially later revisions with superbypass support. Sometimes uses VIA 686A southbridge instead of AMD 756 chip.

VIA KX133

  • 100 MHz FSB + PC133 RAM
  • AGP 2x/4x

AGP 4x problems. Uses 686A southbridge.

VIA KT133

  • 100 MHz FSB + PC133 RAM
  • AGP 2x/4x

Uses either 686A or B southbridge. 686B soutbridge has PCI errata that can be triggered by some PCI cards such as sound cards. It can cause HDD data loss because the IDE controller is on PCI.

Socket A

Socket A for Athlon and Athlon XP processors

Socket A (also known as Socket 462) was a very popular CPU socket which was produced from 2000 to around 2003 and ranges from 600MHz all the way to 2333MHz (or 2.333GHz), though higher clock speeds were achievable with overclocking. There were basically 4 different CPU's made for Socket A, ranging from the original Thunderbird (which was also made in Slot A configuration), the Palomino (which was the first Athlon XP), the Thoroughbred (which was made on a smaller manufacturing process) and the Barton (which was basically a thoroughbred with double the amount of L2 cache).

A budget version of Athlon was also made, appearing at first as the Duron (which ran from 600MHz to 1800MHz, all of them Socket A) and later as a Sempron (which was basically a renamed Athlon XP at first). While Duron was marketed with it's original clock speed, Athlon XP was the first Athlon to use a PR rating (identified by a "+"-sign right next to the speed rating), ranging from 1600+ (which is a 1400MHz CPU) to the 3200+ (which is either a 2200MHz CPU on a 400MHz FSB or a 2333 MHz part on a 333MHz FSB (the latter one being more uncommon)).

Athlon and Athlon XP use substantially more power compared to the Pentium 3 and maxes out at around 75W (without overclocking) while the hottest Pentium 3's max out at around 35W and while usually Athlon and Athlon XP draws power from the 5V lines, Pentium 4 draws it's power from the 12V line. This is important as modern PSU's typically don't support large power draws from the 5V line anymore. Whats also important is that all Socket A Athlons were manufactured without an IHS, meaning the bare die could be damaged when improperly installing a CPU cooler, possibly resulting in cracks in the die, possibly killing the CPU in the process. So being careful while installing a CPU cooler is important. Make sure you don't install the CPU cooler the wrong way around. Even though Athlon XP CPU coolers were designed to deal with the high heat output of Athlon and Athlon XP, as Socket A has the same dimensions as Socket 370, Athlon XP coolers can typically be installed on Socket 370 (and sometimes even Socket 7, provided no motherboard components are in the way).


The first Athlons use SDRAM while the later ones use DDR-SDRAM. No DDR2 Athlon XP motherboards were ever made. No PCI-E Athlon XP motherboards were ever made. Only the very latest Athlon XP boards have SATA connectors. Athlon and Athlon XP motherboards typically draw power from the 5V line, resulting in possible incompatibility with modern PSU's which often don't provide enough power on the 5V lines anymore. All Socket A boards come with PCI slots. Only some of the oldest boards come with ISA slots. Almost all Socket A boards come with either AGP 4x or AGP 8x (some Socket A motherboards without an AGP slot were made though). Socket A was made in the middle of the capacitor plague, which resulted in many Socket A boards having bulged capacitors. Bulged capacitors have to be replaced or it will cause system instability and possibly the death of hardware components.


Chipsets

NVIDIA

Model Release Date FSB Memory Max. memory AGP USB SATA Sound Features Notes
nForce 220 2001 100-133 MHz 100-166 MHz DDR 1.5GB 4X 2.0 - AC'97
NVAPU (MCP-D) 		opt GF2MX IGP
nForce 415 2002 100-133 MHz 100-166 MHz DDR
2x64-bit 		1.5GB 4X 2.0 - AC'97
NVAPU (MCP-D)
nForce 420 2001 100-133 MHz 100-166 MHz DDR
2x64-bit 		1.5GB 4X 2.0 - AC'97
NVAPU (MCP-D) 		opt GF2MX IGP
nForce2 2002 100-166 MHz 100-166 MHz DDR
1x / 2x64-bit 		3GB 4/8X 2.0 - AC'97
NVAPU (MCP-T) 		opt GF4MX IGP
nForce2 400 2003 100-200 MHz 100-200 MHz DDR 3GB 4/8X 2.0 2x 1.5Gbit/s
(MCP-S, MCP-Gb) 		AC'97
NVAPU (MCP-T) 		RAID (MCP-RAID, MCP-Gb)
gigabit LAN (MCP-Gb)
nForce2 Ultra 400 2003 100-200 MHz 100-200 MHz DDR
2x64-bit 		3GB 4/8X 2.0 2x 1.5Gbit/s
(MCP-S, MCP-Gb) 		AC'97
NVAPU (MCP-T) 		RAID (MCP-RAID, MCP-Gb)
gigabit LAN (MCP-Gb)

VIA

Chipset South Bridge Release Date FSB Memory Max. memory V-Link USB AGP Audio Notes
KT133 VT82C686A/B 2000 100 MHz 100–133 MHz SDR 1.5 GB - 1.1 2/4× AC'97 686B southbridge has PCI errata
KLE133 VT82C686B 2001 100–133 MHz 66–133 MHz SDR 1.0 GB - 1.1 - AC'97 Trident IGP. 686B southbridge has PCI errata
KT133A VT82C686B 2001 100–133 MHz 100–133 MHz SDR 1.5 GB - 1.1 2/4× AC'97 686B southbridge has PCI errata
KT266 VT8233 Jan 2001 100–133 MHz 100–133 MHz DDR 4.0 GB 266 MB/s 1.1 2/4× AC'97
KT266A VT8233 Sept 2001 100–133 MHz 100–133 MHz DDR 4.0 GB 266 MB/s 1.1 2/4× AC'97 Radeon 8500 problems (look for BIOS update)
KT333 VT8233, VT8235 Feb 2002 100–166 MHz 100–166 MHz DDR 4.0 GB 266 MB/s 2.0 2/4× AC'97 Radeon 8500 problems (look for BIOS update). Some boards marked KT333CF are actually KT400 and lack AGP 2x support. VT8235 = USB 2.0
KT400 VT8235, VT8237 Aug 2002 100–166 MHz 100–166 MHz DDR 4.0 GB 533 MB/s 2.0 4/8× AC'97
HDA
KT400A VT8237, VT8251 Mar 2003 100–166 MHz 100–200 MHz DDR 4.0 GB 533 MB/s 2.0 4/8× AC'97
HDA
KT600 VT8237, VT8251 May 2003 100–200 MHz 100–200 MHz DDR 8.0 GB 533 MB/s 2.0 4/8× AC'97
HDA
KT880 VT8237, VT8251 Feb 2004 100–200 MHz 100–200 MHz DDR 2x64-bit 8.0 GB 533 MB/s 2.0 4/8× AC'97
HDA
  • ProSavage KM133, KM133A, KM266, KM400, KM400A - Similar to the above, but with integrated graphics. After KM133, DDR is supported. The KM133 has integrated S3 Savage4 3D + Savage 2000 2D. KM266's ProSavage8 IGP has an additional 3D pipeline. The KM400(A) use the VIA UniChrome IGP.
  • KT133E (= VT8363E + VT82C686B) appears on Gigabyte 7IXEH but is not listed on the VIA site. Based on the specifications of that motherboard, KT133E appears to be equivalent to (or a cost-reduced rehash of) KT133, supporting 133 MHz for memory but only 100 MHz for the CPU.
  • VT8237 SATA does not work with SATA II hard drives. Must jumper drive to SATA I mode if possible.
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