ABIT IT7

[Guest]

Wow, this MB has about everything you could ask for seems like. It uses the Intel 845E chip set however, and I'm a little confused on the deal with DDR333. On Abit's website for this MB, the test report shows that it has been tested with PC-2700 DDR333 RAM, but on two different reviews I've seen for this chipset both say how it can't use it, and that is this MB's biggest setback.

1. Does anybody have this or other 845E chipset and have actually used DDR333? What's the real story?

2. Is it just me, or is the IT7 about the coolest MB on the market now?!

Gotta love the lack of legacy support, now if they would just get rid of the floppy...

Up to 10 USB 2.0 Connectors, 3 Firewire connectors, on board sound, integrated NIC, 3 DIMM slots and a 4-channel HPT374.. lots of potential, and the layout actually looks decent without being cluttered.

 

[AMD_Man]

1. Does anybody have this or other 845E chipset and have actually used DDR333? What's the real story?

Yes, I've seen reviews with the IT7 running DDR333, but officially.

2. Is it just me, or is the IT7 about the coolest MB on the market now?!

It is! However, you'll have to throw out all your old, non-USB, non-Firewire perpherials.


Your best bet is to get a P4 1.6A, and overclock it to 2.4GHz. Get some DDR400, and you'll have one of the fastest DDR boards available. Don't worry too much about overclocking. The IT7 locks the PCI/AGP bus so even at 2.4GHz it will be extremely stable provided you have decent DDR400 RAM. Check out the review at HardOCP.

<b><i>"A penny saved is a penny earned!"</i></b>

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the heads up on the HardOCP review.. Everything I've read on this MB (including the review you pointed out) glows with excellence. This new computer will be a game machine and nothing else, so the lack of legacy support means nothing to me I'm lucky enough to have another Server that will provide all the legacy support I need for scanners/printers/etc..

With the recent announced Intel price drops over the weekend, I think I'm going to go ahead with a 2.2 CPU now that they are reasonably priced. Between the price cuts, and this MB, this is a great time to be building a new computer.. heheh

 

[AMD_Man]

Get some high-quality RAM. Get some PC3200 if you can find it. In my opinion, it would be a shame to get a Pentium 4 system and not overclock it. I'd aim for 2.66GHz with a 2GHz P4. The P4s run very cool by default and the included fan is very good at getting rid of heat and the IT7 is an outstanding overclocker.

HardOCP was able to easily get the P4 2.4GHz CPU to 2.9GHz with that board. 2GHz to 2.66GHz is not unreasonable. Even if you don't reach 2.66GHz, you'll still have a killer overclocked system.

<b><i>"A penny saved is a penny earned!"</i></b>