Need some thoughts on AGP; PCIe

[Doramius]

I need to build another machine, but I'm wondering about the PCI Express slots. I haven't dealt with them too much and was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on them.

[Cobra]

They're just as easy to use as regular PCI slots. I wouldn't bother investing in an older board that still uses PCI/AGP slots - they're outdated now. However, new boards that use PCI-X also usually have two or three PCI slots for your old cards.

I'd get a PCI-X board to ensure you have more upgrade options available to you at a later date.

[redwudz]

Probably the only real drawback to a PCI-E or PCI-X machines is they don't have as many regular PCI slots. Usually 3 and a few 4. But onboard audio has improved and most all have on-board LAN connections, so you don't usually need as many slots.

The extra PCI-E slots on most motherboards (Excluding the video slots) don't seem to really be used for much so far.

But I would agree to switch over from AGP. The amount of available AGP cards is diminishing and most all manufactures have put their development into PCI-E or X.

If you are not into gaming, you probably don't need SLI. But most SLI motherboards will operate just fine with one video card. These newer motherboards also require bigger power supplies. A 250 or 300Watt PS is sometimes not enough, especially if you go with a SLI setup with dual video cards.

[ROF]

If money is no object I'd invest in a board that supports either SLI or Crossfire. I'd definitely not waste any money on buying an AGP based board today. Get a PCI-E board with at least 3 PCI slots for backwards compatibility. If you can't afford a PCI-E card today at least you could use your PCI graphics card. It should also be noted that PCI-E motherboards require a power supply that is 24pin. You can buy an adapter for $5 which will convert an old 20 pin to a 24pin board, but if you are not adding a PCI-E graphics card today you can just plug in your 20 pin to the 24 pin socket and your board will work just fine without any chance of power surges or disruption. The $5 investment in a adpater is a good idea because when you plug in the power cord(20pin) you will be leaving 4 pins naked to the world. Some people might be offended.

Just thought I'd point out that little known fact. NO PCI-E card, no need for 24 pin power supply.

If I were to purchase a board today:

On the cheap Side I'd buy the ECS RS480-M Socket 939 board. It includes 1 PCI-E x16 slot and 3 PCI slots, plus OnBoard Video (ATI x300) and onboard firewire support.

On the more expensive side I'd again go Socket 939 but this time with the ABIT AN8 32X which includes SLI support, 2 Each PCI-E x16, PCI-E x1, and PCI, 8GB RAM support, 6 SATAII slots, Gigabit LAN and more.

If you can't tell I am kinda biased towards AMD based boards because they are faster, easier to overclock, consume less power, and are easier to keep cool under stress.

[redwudz]

Thanks, ROF, I forgot about the 24pin ATX PS connector. My MB came with a plug for the unused pins, but an adapter is a good option. I figure if someone screwed up and plugged a 20 pin ATX PS cable into the unused 4 pin end of the connector, it would be bad. Most or many of the MBs also use the 4Pin P4 connector for the CPU power.

I like the AMD X64 CPUs also. It's nice to not have to put a massive cooler on the CPU, along with 3 case fans to keep things cool. The main heat I have is from my PCI-E video card and some from the Nbridge (Or Sbridge chip, I can never remember which is which.) The SATA drives seem to run a lot cooler than the PATA drives also.

[ROF]

Another common mistake people make is plugging that extra four pin into the extra pins in the same connector they just plugged their 20pin into. This begs to question what the four pin connector next to it is for?

[redwudz]

Probably by then, it's too late. The P4 connector on my MB is not really obvious at first glance as it's over by the external MB connectors in the upper corner. But I learned a long time ago to throughly read the manual and double check everything before applying power.

I went ahead and used a 20 to 24 adapter as it made it easier to route the ATX power connector out of the way. It's in a tower case, so the PS cable was a little short anyway.

Another nice thing about the PCI-E and somewhat X, is there are a lot of them on the market these days, so you have a lot of choices. I read all the reviews I can find before I purchase a new MB. Doesn't cost anything and it can save you a lot of grief later.

I ended up with a Gigabyte PCI-E MB for my 939 CPU because it was one of the first MBs out there with the features I wanted. No problems with it, though. Of course a Asus MB with the same features came out a few weeks later. Doesn't pay to be too eager at times. Some of the DFI MBs look interesting, too.

[ROF]

I like DFI boards too but if you want to talk heat coming from the north bridge buy a DFI board and watch it cook. They do a good job of cooling though. One of my first northbridge fans was on a DFI Lanparty board.

Another thing I like about DFI is they include plenty of accessories in that box and I don't think I've ever gotten one without a motherboard backplate. How many times has anyone put together a system in a case only to realize the backplate needs user modification or removal in order to support the board?

[Doramius]

Okay, here are some specs to help a little better. I do have problems finding hardware for my specs, but I mght still find something. I typically buy a video card with VIVO capabilities, but like the tuner as well. If I get a Mobo with backwards PCI connectivity I suppose I could get a plain Tuner card and a PCI Express VIVO card.

I work with some AMD boards, but I tend to get Intel, as I don't overclock too much. There are a bunch of other reasons, but that's not the important part. I also tend to be biased to ATI, Radeon, Saphire, etc. cards.

I Would be building this machine from scratch, and I tend to only purchase PSUs above a 400W rating. Hey, You never know. So I should easily be able to get a PSU that supports the MoBo properly. If not, I'll just get the adapter and be done with it.

As for cost, I don't want to go too much, but I'm not cheap either. I'm putting it in a Lian LI case. Personally I've only had to mod older style cases to allow a board, but most newer cases I've never had to.

Any suggestions on Intel MoBos with express slots. Also what is the major difference between PCIe & PCI X?


EDIT: If I decided to go AMD, I'd be looking at this style of board - EVGA 133-K8-NF41 nForce4 SSI