What Motherboard to use?

[stangcrazy342]

I need some advice on a motherboard to pick out for my sister. She is only going to use the computer for e-mail, ebay, and a little surfing. I was hoping to find one in the $40-$50 dollar range. I wanted audio on the board, but nothing to fancy. I just want a reliable one that is going to last and not be junk. I have built several amd systems now, but they are all boards that have had reviews I found and are more geared toward gaming. Any advice or experience with a certain board or manufacturer is much welcomed. Thank you.

[pentachris]

For a decent budget board, I'd recommend the ECS K7S5A Pro, available for $48 here (http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproduct.asp?DEPA=1&submit=Go&description=ecs%2Ck7s5a). I use it, and it's served me well. I think a few other folks on the forums will back me up on this choice.

[saphalline]

Newegg has a few options here.

$48 - ECS K7S5A Pro
$47 - MSI KT2 Combo-L (plus $5 shipping)

The ECS mobo uses the SiS 735 chipset. I've never been a fan of SiS chipsets (not the best drivers) but a lot of people here on the forums have used the K7S5A series mobo's without a problem. It's specifically geared towards a cheapie PC, so it has both DDR and SDRAM slots, but you can't use both at once.

The MSI mobo uses the KT266A chipset, which was geared towards the high-end so it's an awesome performer. Strangely, this mobo also supports both DDR and SDRAM, tho it supports more total RAM than the ECS (3GB vs 1GB).

Both mobo's come with onboard sound, onboard LAN, AGP 4x slot, USB 2.0 ports, and up to a 266MHz FSB (PC2100 max DDR speed). This also means the AthlonXP 2400+ is probably the fastest CPU you can put in them, but even that is overkill for a basic PC. :p

EDIT - On a whim, I also looked up AMD-based mobo's with onboard video in case you wanted that, KM400 chipset. Epox has the cheapest, but I like the MSI myself (4 RAM slots instead of 2 and I think better video).

$62 - Epox 8KMM3I
$64.50 - MSI KM4M-L

The KM400 chipset supports up to a 333MHz FSB, which means PC2700 DDR RAM and lower-speed Bartons! :D It also has 6-channel onboard sound, onboard LAN, and AGP 8x. Considering the upgrades and onboard video, I think you should spend the extra $15.

[Jhorner1]

Newegg also has
Biostar M7VIG-pro-D $52.00 shipping included
Biostar M7VIQ $52.00 shipping included

Both boards include Video, Sound, and LAN.
Real close to your target range, and with Video will save you more money later. Just don't expect great performance if you decide to play graphice intensive games. Will be fine for anything else.

[stangcrazy342]

I really appreciate all the advice. Thank you to everyone. I will probably go with one of the boards with video on the board also, then there is no video card needed and it should be enough for my sister. Thanks again.