Elitegroup
K7S7AG (SiS746) Mainboard
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Elitegroup's attempt to make a cheap gaming all-in-one platform could be interesting
for many out there if the company didn't push away many gamers by depriving it
of the AGP slot. The integrated external (relative to the system logic) Xabre200
accelerator with its own memory looks pretty good in modern games, especially
together with a powerful processor, but it's getting obsolete faster and faster.
Accessories:
- Package of the new design;
- Documentation: user manual
in English;
- Cables: ATA66/100/133 and FDD;
- CD containing:
- drivers;
- Adobe Acrobat Reader;
- 3Deep;
-
True Internet Color;
- 3DNA Elite Castle (substitute for Windows
Explorer with 3D interface);
- MediaRing Talk;
-
MediaRing SuperVoice;
- PC-cillin 2002;
- PCDJ Silver
(virtual DJ);
- WinDVD Creator.
The layout is non-standard and has some shortcomings: audio-ins and FDD are
located near the board's back, power connectors are in the center next to the
CPU socket, and IDE slots are behind PCI. It's not difficult to reach the only
jumper when the board is already installed. Its functions are shown on the textolite.
The 2-channel switching voltage regulator incorporates 5 capacitors of 3300
uF and 4 of 1200 uF. Integrated controllers: - audio controller
based on the chipset and C-Media CMI9739A AC'97 codec; 5.1 audio system supported,
front audio inputs/outputs connector provided;
-
network controller based on the chipset; 10BaseT/100BaseTX supported;
-
FireWire controller based on the chipset, 2 ports supported;
- SiS
Xabre200 video adapter, 64 MB memory.
Non-unsoldered connectors:
none. The system monitoring is supported by ITE IT8712F-A chip. What
is controlled: - processor voltage, +2.5, +3.3, +5 and +12 V, +3.3
and +5 V Standby;
- speed of 3 fans;
- temperatures
of the processor (built-in sensor), video accelerator's chip and board (built-in
sensor).
There are 3 connectors for adjustable connection of fans.
Brief board's characteristics: memory slots - 2 DDR SDRAM; expansion
slots - 3 PCI/ CNR; I/O ports - 1 COM/ LPT/ 2 PS/2/ 6 USB 2.0 / 2 FireWire; dimensions
- 305x225 mm.
Settings:
| jumpers and switches |
Jumper to clear up the CMOS |
|
| BIOS based on AMI v1.21.12 |
Setup of memory timings |
+ |
CAS Latency, Timing Setting Mode |
| Setup of memory frequency |
+ |
FSB:DRAM = By SPD, 1:1, 1:2, 2:3, 2:5, 3:4, 3:5, 4:5, 5:6, 1:3,
2:1, 3:2, 5:2, 4:3, 5:3, 5:4, 6:5 |
| Setup of AGP bus |
- |
|
| Setup of PCI bus |
- |
|
| Changeable scaler of AGP and PCI buses |
- |
|
| Manual assignment of interrupts |
- |
|
| Changeable FSB frequency |
+ |
100-200 MHz in 1MHz steps |
| Changeable CPU multiplier |
+ |
x5-x22 |
| Changeable core voltage |
- |
|
| Changeable memory voltage |
- |
|
| Changeable chipset voltage |
- |
|
| Changeable AGP bus voltage |
- |
|
We used the BIOS of 02.12.02 as the latest available version.
The market this board targets in not clear: weak performance and 3D playability
limited by the integrated accelerator exclude demanding gamers, and one would
hardly consider using a board with an onboard gaming accelerator in an office.
If it were mATX, it could be a match for slim desktop PC case. K7S7AG, as it as,
can be used only as a good present and a game console of the low-middle rank with
advanced non-gaming features. Test results:
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