ECS P6BXT-A+ Motherboard
Introduction
In many ways the Motherboard of the computer apart from the actual CPU itself is the most important component of the Computer. This is because the performance of all the hardware and peripheral items connected to it is essentially dependent on the Motherboard and the IO controllers installed in the Motherboard. Thus one has to be very fussy in choosing a Motherboard and what controller chipsets it uses.
Probably the best SDRam based controller chipset ever made is the Intel BX series of chipsets. Though it is now about 2 years since it was first introduced, which is a very very long time in computer terms, this chipset just refuses to die, and still manufacturers are turning out excellent boards based on this chipset, which continues to be the choice of Hard core overclockers and business users alike. Thus Elite computers is certainly not alone in its quest to produce the best Motherboard based on this all time favorite chipset
The P6BXT-A+ based on the Intel BX chipset by Elite Computer Systems is a very innovative solution since unlike most Motherboards it supports two architectures of CPU’s in the same board. It supports the Slot 1 architecture as well as the PPGA architecture which most new Pentium III’s as well as Celeron support. This gives the user more flexibility in whatever choice he/she makes for a CPU and comes in very handy when the user eventually has to upgrade to a newer processor. It also has sound built on to the motherboard which suggests P6BXT-A+ is essentially intended for the OEM market. But that doesn’t mean that this Board is low in performance. Don’t believe me? Well there’s only one-way to find out isn’t it? So hop in and we’ll see what this baby can really do.
WHY BX?
Before I go to the actual specs of the Motherboard I thought it is important to talk about the BX chipset upon which this Motherboard is based upon, for essentially the capabilities of this Motherboard is based on this chipset.
The BX controller chipset has been the flagship of Intel in the performance controller chipset market. Though Intel has essentially replaced the BX now with the newer i815 series, and has also introduced the i820 supporting the new RD Ram. Thus one is fair in asking why people are still interested in buying Motherboards based on the BX chipset.
The BX range was first introduced to run Slot 1 processors at 100 MHz bus speed. But it was still backward compatible with older Slot1 CPU’s running at 66MHz bus speed.
It also supported both PC 66 SDRam as well as PC 100 SDRam. It’s cousin the 815 however cannot support the older PC 66 standard of SDRam, which still can be used with new Celerons running at 66MHz Bus peed, which certainly is discouraging for upgraders.
Though essentially not intended to Run at 133 MHz the BX has proved that it can run at 133 MHz bus speed and yield excellent stability as well as performance at that speed. The North Bridge doesn’t even get significantly hotter at this speed. The PCI bus can still run at the normal 33MHz bus speed since the BX provides the facility to divide the FSB clock by 4 (133 / 4 = 33MHz) thus the south Bridge during IO operations stays within specs even when running at 133MHz FSB, which is beyond the BX’s original specs. The Problem arises with the North Bridge that controls IO operation in relation to the AGP graphics card. The AGP bus is supposed to run at 66MHz that the North Bridge achieves by dividing 100 by 1.5 when running at 100MHz FSB. But Intel decided against the inclusion of a 2 divider with the BX that would have insured compliance to specs even at 133MHz FSB.
Thus the BX is doomed to operating the AGP at (133 / 1.5) 88.8 MHz that is beyond specs. Certain graphics cards fail at this speed but most have proved themselves capable of handling the 89 MHz bus speed imposed on them when running at 133 MHz, which is a slight hitch that the BX imposes. But as it has been proved many Motherboard makers have come up with solution for processors running at 133MHz FSB and thus the BX is a viable PC 133 solution. (The famous BX2000+ is a fine example of this!)
To add to this the BX supports upto 1GB of Ram, the 815 only supports half of that amount.
Performance wise the BX is simply one of the best ever as the Benchmarks will prove. Though it does no support the new ATA 100 standard for hard drives and AGP 4X mode many users won’t notice the lag in performance
Thus the conclusion is it’s not fair to write off the BX yet as an oldie, thus when you’re buying a Motherboard the BX is still a very viable option.
Specifications
| PROCESSORS |
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| CHIPSET |
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| MEMORY |
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| SYSTEM BIOS |
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| I/O INTERFACE |
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| RTC & BATTERY |
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| FORM FACTOR |
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