Socket A Motherboard and Chip for an Athalon?

[moonpatrol 4 lyfe]

can anyone reccomend a kick butt motherboard / cpu combo for MAME with an AGP port (for Arcade VGA) for Socket A  (Asus mobos are good). 

[pointdablame]

Find a used Asus A7N8X motherboard, its the best SktA board I've used.

And you should really talk to a mod about putting all 3 of your threads into one.. there is no need to clog up the forum with 3 threads that essentially ask the same question.

[moonpatrol 4 lyfe]

how about these:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ASUS-A7N8X-E-Deluxe-MB-with-Athlon-XP-2500-Processor_W0QQitemZ6835304148QQcategoryZ99238QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/ASUS-A7N8X-E-AND-Athlon-XP-2800-Barton-333MHz_W0QQitemZ6835045418QQcategoryZ99238QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[pointdablame]

yeah, those are the ones.  I've used 2 A7N8X's and one A7N8X Deluxe personally, and loved them all.  THe A7N8X-E is, I believe, a newer version of the motherboard, but I'm not 100% sure about that.

They're great boards though.

[moonpatrol 4 lyfe]

Thanks again pointdablame.  How much would you say a used one is worth?  (with and without the processor?)  What kind of ram do I need to buy with these boards, and can I find it new, or do I need to buy it used?

[pointdablame]

Thanks again pointdablame.  How much would you say a used one is worth?  (with and without the processor?)  What kind of ram do I need to buy with these boards, and can I find it new, or do I need to buy it used?

I can only tell you used prices for the motherboard.  I've seen them sell on Anandtech and other computer sites for anywhere from $40-80 for the mobo.

It uses regular DDR ram... you can get it anywhere.

[Frosty]

Agreed with pointdablame...

I built my 'overkill' <grin> PC around an A7N8X mobo and Sempron 2800+.

[xonix_digital]

MSI KT400 Chipset Board.

sincerely,
- Athlon Fanboy


-=XD=-

[Bloinkxp]

I have a MSI KT400A based Mobo and I love it.  Very stable and it has been in use for about two years always on.
Biostar and ASUS make good NForce based mobo's but they can be a bit sensitive to heat (in my observations).

[moonpatrol 4 lyfe]

Hmm, It looks like theres no way I'm paying less than 50 bucks for either mobo you reccomended.  (checking ebay and newegg)

I can get a new ASUS A8V Socket 939 VIA K8T800 Pro ATX AMD Motherboard for 81 bucks.  Which is the better bet and bank for buck?

My only concern is that one user reported:

Cons: VIA chipset!!!! BUYER BEWARE! there exist many compatibility issues with regard to the VIA chipset. Primarily with 9800 vid cards. Many other compatibility issues exist. Read up on other forums before buying!

Maybe it'll give me trouble with the Arcade VGA?

The other 2 mobos are definately cheaper... but it seems like for 30 bucks more I can get a socket 939.  Maybe I should look fow a lower quality socket A?