Socket 7 Builds - Revision history

RacoonRider at 18:26, 4 April 2013

2013-04-04T18:26:02Z

RacoonRider at 18:24, 4 April 2013

2013-04-04T18:24:05Z

RacoonRider at 18:14, 4 April 2013

2013-04-04T18:14:36Z

RacoonRider: /* Choosing RAM */

2013-04-04T18:11:28Z

‎Choosing RAM

RacoonRider: /* Other chipsets */

2013-04-04T05:54:57Z

‎Other chipsets

RacoonRider: /* Other chipsets */

2013-04-04T05:53:45Z

‎Other chipsets

RacoonRider: /* Other chipsets */

2013-04-03T16:49:27Z

‎Other chipsets

RacoonRider: /* Choosing a chip set */

2013-04-03T16:45:52Z

‎Choosing a chip set

RacoonRider at 07:04, 21 February 2013

2013-02-21T07:04:40Z

Enigma at 17:28, 20 February 2013

2013-02-20T17:28:31Z

@@ Line 112: / Line 112: @@
 == Choosing RAM ==
 [[File:SDRAM.jpg|200px|thumb|Different SDRAM modules]]
-[[File:SIMM.jpg|200px|thumb|left|72-pin EDO and FPM modules; 30-pin SIMM modules]]
+[[File:SIMM72.jpg|200px|thumb|left|72-pin EDO and FPM modules]]
 Depending on the chipset, Socket 7 motherboards support either 72-pin SIMM or SDRAM, or both.

@@ Line 106: / Line 106: @@
 === Other chipsets ===
 Although the vast majority of chipsets of the era were made by intel, other manufacturers, like VIA, ALI, OPTi, SiS and PCchips, etc. also made chipsets for Socket 7 motherboards. Still, intel chipsets are the best choice for a novice enthusiast, since they cause least trouble and offer high performance. There is also much more info about them on the web.
-Note that TXPro chipset is not 430TX, but a relabeled SIS5591, while VXPro+ chipset is a relabeled  Apollo VPX. TXPro and VXPro+ motherboards were made by the unfamous PCChips manufacturer and are known to have a rather high defect rate.
+Note that TXPro chipset is not 430TX, but a relabeled SIS5591, while VXPro+ chipset is a relabeled  Apollo VPX. TXPro and VXPro+ motherboards were made by the unfamous PCChips manufacturer and are known to have a rather high defect rate. However, if the motherboard you own is stable after all these years, it's probably not defective.
 == Choosing RAM ==
@@ Line 144: / Line 143: @@
 ==Things yet to cover:==
-AMD K6, K6-2, K6- III CPUS + image: File:AMD_K6-200.jpg|200px|thumb||AMD K6-200
+*AMD K6, K6-2, K6- III CPUS + image: File:AMD_K6-200.jpg|200px|thumb||AMD K6-200
-Choosing a motherboard +image: File:Asus P55T2P4.JPG|200px|thumb||ASUS P55T2P4(430HX)
+*Choosing a motherboard +image: File:Asus P55T2P4.JPG|200px|thumb||ASUS P55T2P4(430HX)
-Choosing 2D and 3D graphics cards
+*Choosing 2D and 3D graphics cards
-Choosing a monitor
+*Choosing a monitor
-Choosing sound devices
+*Choosing sound devices
-Choosing storage devices
+*Choosing storage devices
-Choosing PSU and case
+*Choosing PSU and case
-What to play on a Socket 7 Build?
+*What to play on a Socket 7 Build?

@@ Line 82: / Line 82: @@
 The K5 is a very compatible alternative to Pentium CPUs for low to mid-range socket 7 systems. On a clock to clock basis it has the best integer performance of any socket 7 CPU.
 == Choosing a chip set ==
@@ Line 114: / Line 110: @@
 Note that TXPro chipset is not 430TX, but a relabeled SIS5591, while VXPro+ chipset is a relabeled  Apollo VPX. TXPro and VXPro+ motherboards were made by the unfamous PCChips manufacturer and are known to have a rather high defect rate.
 == Choosing RAM ==
@@ Line 133: / Line 126: @@
 *Newer SDRAM modules may not be fully supported by older motherboards. See [http://redhill.net.au/b/b-98.html redhill guide], "Single-sided and double-sided RAM" paragraph.
 *It's a bad idea exceed cachable RAM limit (64MB for 430FX, 430VX, 430FX; 512MB for 430HX with TAG RAM upgrade)
 == Choosing a network card ==
@@ Line 158: / Line 143: @@
 Today NICs are very cheap and fairly easy to find. There are other products, which may work fine, but the ones on the list proved to be fast and compatible.
-== Choosing PSU and case ==
+==Things yet to cover:==
+AMD K6, K6-2, K6- III CPUS + image: File:AMD_K6-200.jpg|200px|thumb||AMD K6-200
-== What to play on a Socket 7 Build? ==
+Choosing a motherboard +image: File:Asus P55T2P4.JPG|200px|thumb||ASUS P55T2P4(430HX)

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:11, 4 April 2013
Line 119:		Line 119:

	== Choosing RAM ==		== Choosing RAM ==
		+	[[File:SDRAM.jpg\|200px\|thumb\|Different SDRAM modules]]
		+	[[File:SIMM.jpg\|200px\|thumb\|left\|72-pin EDO and FPM modules; 30-pin SIMM modules]]
		+	Depending on the chipset, Socket 7 motherboards support either 72-pin SIMM or SDRAM, or both.
		+
		+	72-pin SIMM is compatible with most Socket 7 chipsets. There are two major types of 72-pin SIMM: FPM (Fast Page Memory) and EDO (Extended Data Out). FPM memory comes from the era of 486 and is older than EDO. EDO RAM is known to work no more than 5% faster than FPM. Larger EDO modules are also more common than FPM modules of the same size.
		+
		+	SDRAM(Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory) has a whole new architecture comparing to EDO. It can be used by 430VX, 430TX, VIA VP3, ALi Aladdin IV, OPTi Viper chipsets. SDRAM gives a slight performance advantage over EDO, but it's main strength is in working with higher bus speeds.
		+
		+	Things to take into consideration when choosing RAM:
		+	*If your board can accept both EDO and SDRAM, use only one type of memory, don't try to mix them. Only few motherboards are capable of working with both EDO and SDRAM simultaneously.
		+	*EDO RAM works at 5V, SDRAM works at 3.3V. There's usually a jumper near memory slots that configures RAM voltage. It's not a good idea to run SDRAM at 5V, it will make the chips run much hotter than expected.
		+	*Last one or two digits on EDO chips indicate RAM speed in nanoseconds, the lesser the better. For example, -60 or -6 is 60ns RAM, -70 or -7 is 70ns RAM. However, one should not try and compare EDO and SDRAM speeds that way.
		+	*Newer SDRAM modules may not be fully supported by older motherboards. See [http://redhill.net.au/b/b-98.html redhill guide], "Single-sided and double-sided RAM" paragraph.
		+	*It's a bad idea exceed cachable RAM limit (64MB for 430FX, 430VX, 430FX; 512MB for 430HX with TAG RAM upgrade)

	== Choosing 2D and 3D graphics cards ==		== Choosing 2D and 3D graphics cards ==

@@ Line 110: / Line 110: @@
 === Other chipsets ===
-[[File:B-vxpro.jpg|200px|thumb|The unfamous VXPro]]
+[[File:B-vxpro.jpg|200px|thumb|VXPro chipset]]
 Although the vast majority of chipsets of the era were made by intel, other manufacturers, like VIA, ALI, OPTi, SiS and PCchips, etc. also made chipsets for Socket 7 motherboards. Still, intel chipsets are the best choice for a novice enthusiast, since they cause least trouble and offer high performance. There is also much more info about them on the web.

@@ Line 113: / Line 113: @@
 Although the vast majority of chipsets of the era were made by intel, other manufacturers, like VIA, ALI, OPTi, SiS and PCchips, etc. also made chipsets for Socket 7 motherboards. Still, intel chipsets are the best choice for a novice enthusiast, since they cause least trouble and offer high performance. There is also much more info about them on the web.
-''Note that '''TXPro''' and '''VXPro''' chipsets have nothing to do with 430TX or 430VX. They were made by PCchips, not intel and should be avoided. The motherboards featuring TXPro and VXPro were designed to be very cheap, so they might have performance issues, fake cache, cheapest capacitors etc. If you see TXPro or VXPro label, run. Run for your life!''
+''Note that '''TXPro''' and '''VXPro''' chipsets have nothing to do with 430TX or 430VX. They were made by PCchips, not intel and should be avoided. The motherboards featuring TXPro and VXPro were designed to be very cheap, so they might have performance issues, fake cache, cheapest capacitors etc. For more info, see [http://redhill.net.au/b/b-bad.html redhill hardware guide]. If you see TXPro or VXPro label, run. Run for your life!''
 == Choosing a motherboard ==

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:45, 3 April 2013
Line 108:		Line 108:

	''It's a common mistake to load up 430FX, 430VX and 430TX chip sets with maximum amount of memory supported by the chipset. With these chip sets, the use of more than 64MB of RAM results in a significant performance drop, as memory bandwidth over 64MB is considerably reduced resulting in about 40% system performance compared to working with L2-cached RAM. To avoid this, either remove extra RAM, or change motherboard for a 430HX based one. If specific applications require more RAM, it could be worthwhile to cover the RAM above 64 MB when using DOS by loading a RAM drive to the remaining top memory area. Some chip sets from other manufacturers are also known to cache more than 64 MB RAM.''		''It's a common mistake to load up 430FX, 430VX and 430TX chip sets with maximum amount of memory supported by the chipset. With these chip sets, the use of more than 64MB of RAM results in a significant performance drop, as memory bandwidth over 64MB is considerably reduced resulting in about 40% system performance compared to working with L2-cached RAM. To avoid this, either remove extra RAM, or change motherboard for a 430HX based one. If specific applications require more RAM, it could be worthwhile to cover the RAM above 64 MB when using DOS by loading a RAM drive to the remaining top memory area. Some chip sets from other manufacturers are also known to cache more than 64 MB RAM.''
		+
		+	=== Other chipsets ===
		+	[[File:B-vxpro.jpg\|200px\|thumb\|The unfamous VXPro]]
		+	Although the vast majority of chipsets of the era were made by intel, other manufacturers, like VIA, ALI, OPTi, SiS and PCchips, etc. also made chipsets for Socket 7 motherboards. Still, intel chipsets are the best choice for a novice enthusiast, since they cause least trouble and offer high performance. There is also much more info about them on the web.
		+
		+	''Note that '''TXPro''' and '''VXPro''' chipsets have nothing to do with 430TX or 430VX. They were made by PCchips, not intel and should be avoided. The motherboards featuring TXPro and VXPro were designed to be very cheap, so they might have performance issues, fake cache, cheapest capacitors etc. If you see TXPro or VXPro label, run. Run for your life!''

	== Choosing a motherboard ==		== Choosing a motherboard ==

@@ Line 17: / Line 17: @@
 Classic Socket 7 Pentium CPUs have a wide variety of speeds, ranging from 75 to 200 MHz. They are supported by literally any Socket 7 chipset and proved to be fine performers. Pentium Classic is a good choice for Socket 7 Build, especially for beginners. They are easy to find and cost next to nothing.
-''Benchmark information will follow shortly.''
+''See [[Socket 7 benchmark results]] for detailed benchmark information''
 === Pentium MMX ===
@@ Line 57: / Line 57: @@
 |}
-''Benchmark information will follow shortly.''
+''See [[Socket 7 benchmark results]] for detailed benchmark information''
 === Cyrix 6x86 ===

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:28, 20 February 2013
Line 62:		Line 62:

	=== AMD K5 ===		=== AMD K5 ===
		+
		+	The AMD K5 series for socket 7 reached the market late and was eventually introduced in 1996. The CPU design is a further development of AMD Am29000 RISC CPUs and was AMDs first attempt of an own CPU design in the x86 market. The K5s architecture is much more advanced compared to the Pentium and more related to the 6th generation x86 CPUs like Pentium Pro. These features result in a higher per MHz performance for Integer operations than a Pentium. Therefore AMD used a Pentium rating for K5 CPUs. The FPU is about 25% slower than a Pentium CPU clocked at the K5s P-Rating and does not support MMX. The early K5 series CPUs were produced in 500 nm, had an SSA/5 core and were labelled 5K86.
		+	PR120 to PR166 K5s were produced in a 350 nm process, had a 5k86 core and were labelled K5. All K5s use a core voltage of 3.52 V. As the K5s architecture did not scale well with higher clock rates the fastest K5 officially released was the K5 PR166 running at 66x 1.75 = 116 MHz.
		+	There are AMD K5 CPUs for 50, 60 and 66 MHz FSB and they use a multiplier translation:
		+	{\| border="1" class="wikitable"
		+	\|+ Multiplier translation
		+	! Board
		+	! CPU
		+	\|-
		+	\| 1.5x \|\| 1.5x
		+	\|-
		+	\| 2.0x \|\| 1.5x
		+	\|-
		+	\| 2.5x \|\| 1.75x
		+	\|-
		+	\| 3.0x \|\| 2.0x
		+	\|}
		+	The 2.0x CPU multiplier was planned for the K5 PR200 running at 133 MHz that was not released because of new K6 series that arrived at the market at this time.
		+
		+	The K5 is a very compatible alternative to Pentium CPUs for low to mid-range socket 7 systems. On a clock to clock basis it has the best integer performance of any socket 7 CPU.

	=== AMD K6 ===		=== AMD K6 ===