ADVICE ON BUYING A MOTHERBOARD
DO YOUR HOMEWORK
Last updated: 12/20/99
READ THE REVIEWS. I
frequently read many reviews before selecting a motherboard. They are useful,
but I take them with a grain of thought. A review is only as good as the
reviewer.
COMPARE FEATURES. Take
the time verify and compare motherboard features. What kinds of memory
will it take. How much cache' does it have. How expandable is
memory and how much it will the chache' and chipset and cache.' What
processors will it support? How many and what kinds of expansion board
slots are there? What front side bus (FSB) speeds are there? What
modes of UDMA are supported? Does it have switching power supplies
for CPU voltages (most do now)? Does it have a motherboard monitoring
function (see USDM and Motherboard
Monitor Lite)? I won't buy a motherboard without at least temperature
monitoring function. And the list goes on...
LOOK. Pictures
of motherboards can be deceiving. If you have the opportunity, take
a look at an actual motherboard before buying it. I can look at a motherboard
with an experienced eye and very quickly make an initial judgment of quality
and I can usually
spot junk in a heartbeat. How many capacitors does it have? What kinds? What
are the electrolytic temperature ratings? Are there places where the silk
screening indicates capacitors and there are none? Are traces well laid-out? No
right angles? Do you see any "engineering changes": wires
or components soldered onto the motherboard to fix problem? Don't buy
it if you do. What kind battery does it have? I prefer the CR2032. Etc. The
list is long and may be less meaningful to the layman. That's where
a good reviewer can be helpful.
WILL IT FIT? Will the
board fit in your computer case? Will the CPU with fan clear the
drive bays? Do the I/O connectors match one of the I/O panels that
came with your case?
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