About boards and BOARDS
Micro-Star, as any other large manufacturer, tries
to offer as wide range of products as possible so that they may
suit both OEM companies, smaller PC assemblers and those users who
prefer to build their own unique machines. In the latter case a
board must be unusual and extraordinary both inwardly and outwardly.
MSI produces boards which has an almost optimal
balance between a beautiful appearance, an internal substance and
good hardware and software sets. Today some manufacturers just paint
their boards to make them exclusive and sell at a very high price.
MSI isn't keen on such things. That is why we introduce you our
today's hero with great pleasure: MSI K7Turbo-R Limited Edition
mainboard.
Specification
- AMD Athlon (266/200 MHz FSB) & AMD Duron support, SocketA,
462 pins
- Chipset
- VIA Apollo KT-133A (VT8363A north bridge and VT82C686B south
bridge)
- FSB 266/200 MHz
- Memory
- 3 x 168-pin 3.3v DIMMs
- From 8 MBytes tp 1.5 GBytes PC100/133 SDRAM support
- Integrated IDE controller
- 2 x PCI Bus Master UATA 33/66/100 IDE connectors (up to 4
ATAPI devices)
- PIO Mode 3, 4, UATA 33/66/100 IDE & ATAPI CD-ROM support
- External IDE RAID controller
- Promise PDC20265R chip
- 2 x PCI Bus Master UATA 33/66/100 IDE connectors (up to 4
ATAPI devices)
- PIO Mode 3, 4, UATA 33/66/100 IDE & ATAPI CD-ROM support
- RAID 0 and 1 mode support
- Integrated I/O controller
- 1 FDD connector
- 2 connectors of serial ports
- 1 parallel port with EPP/ECP/SPP modes
- PS/2 connectors for mouse and keyboard
- 4 x USB ports, 2 integrated and 2 on a bracket
- Sound
- Integrated AC'97 codec
- VIA VT1611A chip
- Expansion slots
- 1 AGP slot with 4X mode support
- 6 X 32-bit PCI Bus Master slot, PCI 2.2 support
- 1 CNR slot
- BIOS
- AWARD Plug-and-Play BIOS
- APM 1.2
- ACPI 1.0
- Form-factor
Impressions
The vinous motherboard has a wealth of various
functions, the most notable being the IDE RAID, which with more
than one HDD with IDE interface helps to increase considerably the
speed of operation of the disc subsystem (Stripe mode) or to reduce
a probability of data losses (Mirror mode).
Besides, this board is equipped with a series of
proprietary technologies such as D-LED, Fuzzy Logic III, Live BIOS,
and PC-2-PC. The former allows backtracing the process of passing
by the system of the POST procedure (Power On Self Test) when a
bracket with one USB connector and 4 LEDS is connected to the rear
panel of the computer, and allows diagnosing an out-of-order element
when loading problems occur.
The Fuzzy Logic III helps you to change the CPU
frequency from the Windows. This program can implement these instructions
both in auto and in manual modes. But with the BIOS you will achieve
more impressing results than those obtained with this utility. The
auto mode from FuzzyLogic helps, however, to set a well serviceable
mode without a user's interference. That is why an overclocking
becomes available for a wider range of users.
The Live BIOS allows making update of the BIOS
by just connecting the Internet with the help of the Explorer 4.01
and higher. The program will automatically check a new version and
will update the chip if necessary. If the operating system hangs,
the contents of the BIOS chip can be damaged.
The "Limited Edition" board differs from a basic
model in a wider set of functions. The main distinguishing feature
is the design of the board, box and documentation.
On the box you can see an impressing hologram.
Two booklets make the User Manual. The first one describes the board
and answers all questions on installation in English. In the second
one you will find the information about the jumpers in 9 languages.
Now let's talk about the PC-2-PC connection with
a USB cable. The board is supplied with a cable and a bracket with
two connectors on the rear panel of the computer. One of the connectors
is standard. The other is a so called "Type B" one. It must be connected
with a cable which has "Type A" connector on its end. When this
cable is connected to another computer, the network will work at
12 Mbit. This way in the definite conditions you can create at home
practically a free network.
A separate booklet contains the detailed description
of the IDE RAID controller. A CD, supplied with the board, contains
drivers for boards, video cards etc. from MSI. Besides, there are
short descriptions of all motherboards in the PDF format. The CD
also contains utilities of AMI and Award for operation with the
Suspend-To-Disk function and WinFlash of Award for updating BIOS
from Windows. Besides, there are LiveBIOS, Fuzzy Logic 3 and PC
Alert programs (the latter is the utility of monitoring of temperatures
and fan speeds). It should be noted that you can't run at the same
time Fuzzy Logic and PC Alert.
The CD also offers MediaRing Talk program for online
communication on the Internet, VNC-client and a sever for a computer
remote control (for details go to http://www.orl.co.uk/vnc),
and the Xteq X-Setup - an unquestionable leader among the programs
for adjusting the majority of the Windows parameters.
The board is also supplied with a usual bracket
with 2 USB ports, a PC-2-PC bracket, 40- and 80-conductor IDE cables
and an FDD cable.
Now let me turn to the board. The engineers have
done their best - the board won't make the computer assemblage difficult.
The only drawback is the fact that IDE RAID connectors will be difficult
to access in case of installation of full-size PCI cards in the
last two slots. The board has four 4700 uF and two 3900 uF capacitors
which make the board's operation very stable. The AGP slot is equipped
with a bracket to prevent an accidental falling out of a video card
from the slot. Besides, there are several jumpers, two of which
control switching on/off of the IDE RAID and make a choice of its
mode - RAID or UATA/100. There is also a jumper for cleaning the
CMOS contents, and a jumper for setting the base processor's frequency
- 100 or 133 MHz. The other settings are adjusted with the help
of the BIOS Setup.
The BIOS is based on the 6.00 from Award. You can
change a CPU frequency up to 199 MHz in 1 MHz increments and change
voltages of the core, chipset and memory. In the first case - within
the range of 1.3 - 1.85 V in 0.025 V steps, in the second case -
you can choose either 3.3 V or 3.45 V.
In closing I want to say that the board has left
very pleasant impressions as far as its design and possibilities
are concerned.
Tests
Test system:
- MSI K7-TurboR Limited Edition motherboard
- Epox 8KTA3+ motherboard
- AMD Athlon 1.33 GHz processor, 266 MHz FSB
- ActRAM Tonicom 256 MBytes PC166 memory
- Seagate Barracuda ATA III ST340824A hard disc, 40 GBytes
- Leadtek GeForce3 video card
- CDD-ROM Asustek 50x
Performance
Comments:
The MSI loses nearly everywhere to the EPoX 8KTA3+,
regardless of the test software. But the gap is not big. This picture
makes me think that it is just a reassurance of the MSI developers.
It is well know that the number of settings in the BIOS depends
on their desire.
Conclusion
The MSI K7Turbo-R Limited Edition board has a
very good design, a lot of functions, it is convenient to use and
stable. The overclocking possibilities are perfect - not so many
manufacturers allow lifting not only Vcore but also VIO and Vmem.
Good capacitors and a bracket on the AGP slot, as well as the IDE
RAID controller from Promise and not from HighPoint prove that the
developers didn't try to save on this board.
The software set is excellent. Apart from the standard
LiveBIOS and FuzzyLogic III, you can find there VNC-client and Xteq
X-Setup as well as the PC-2-PC, which allow you to create a home
network quickly and painlessly, and where you can play Quake III
as much as possible.
Highs:
- Very pleasant design
- UATA/100 IDE RAID, D-LED, PC-2-PC
- Vcore/VIO/Vmem adjustment, possibility to change FSB frequency
in 1 MHz steps
- LiveBIOS, FuzzyLogic III, PC Alert
Lows:
- The minimal performance loss, which you won't feel anyway
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