ASRock Core2 Duo/Extreme (Conroe) Compatible Boards

[bluetooth]

For those of you who intends to purchase a conroe processor to run on the board, ASRock has recently released many new boards which we will be reviewing in line with Intel announcement of Conroe in 2 weeks time.

Below is a list of boards you will be seeing and they can be classified under various chipsets.

FSB1066/800/533 supported

ConRoeXFire-eSATA2 is based on intel 945P chipset and it supports the LGA775 processors 533/800/1066 MHz processor, EMT64T and HT. ATi CrossFire supported. It has 1 PCie x16, 1 pcie x1, addtional AGI Express slot to adopt 2nd pcie x16 card and other pcie x 4x2/x1 cards. It comes with 4x Dual Channel DDRII-667, 1 PCIe x16, 2 PCIe x1, 4 SATAII 3.0Gb/s, 2 eSATAII ports, GbE, 2 IEEE 1394, HDMI_SPDIF header, 7.1ch HDA audio.

775dual-VSTA supportis both AGP and PCIe graphics interface standards, it also support up to 2 slots of DDR2-667 or 2 slots of DDR400 memory. The chipset used supports all series of Intel LGA775 CPUs including the highest end Intel Core2 Duo Extreme (Conroe), the X6800 that runs clks 2.93GHz (1066FSB).

This new version also is VISTA Ready and comes with HDA 8ch audio using ALC888 codec. The board also comes with a HDMI_SPDIF connector which allows audio to be output through a HDMI graphics card. Using 8237A south bridge, it supports SerialATA 1.5Gb/s, RAID 0,1, JBOD, SATA HDD Hotplug, plus 2 ports of ATA 133. There is also 10/100 PCI Ethernet LAN on board.


The boards below supports 800/533 FSB processors

775i945GZ is based on Intel 945GZ chipset and it supports the LGA775 processors 533/800 MHz processor, EMT 64T CPU and HT. It comes with dual DDRII-533 slots and has Intel GMA950, PS2.0, DX9 and a max shared memory of 192MB. It also has 1 AGI Express slot for external PCI card. It has 4 SATA II, 7.1 ch HDA audio.


ConRoe945PL-GLAN is based on intel 945PL chipset and it supports the LGA775 processors 533/800 MHz processor, EMT64T and HT. It comes with 2xDual Channel DDRII-533, 1 PCIe x16, 2 PCIe x1, 4 SATAII 3.0Gb/s, GbE, HDMI_SPDIF header, 7.1ch HDA audio.

775XFire-eSATA2+ is based on intel 945PL chipset and it supports the LGA775 processors 533/800 MHz processor, EMT64T and HT. ATi CrossFire supported. It has 1 PCie x16, 1 pcie x1, addtional AGI Express slot to adopt 2nd pcie x16 card and other pcie x 4x2/x1 cards. It comes with 4x Dual Channel DDRII-533, 1 PCIe x16, 2 PCIe x1, 4 SATAII 3.0Gb/s, 2 eSATA II, HDMI_SPDIF header, 7.1ch HDA audio.

775XFire-VSTA is based on intel 925X chipset and it supports the LGA775 processors 533/800 MHz processor, EMT64T and HT. ATi CrossFire supported. It has 1 PCie x16, 1 pcie x1, addtional AGI Express slot to adopt 2nd pcie x16 card and other pcie x 4x2/x1 cards. It comes with 4x Dual Channel DDRII-533, 1 PCIe x16, 2 PCIe x1, 4 SATAII 1.5Gb/s, HDMI_SPDIF header, 7.1ch HDA audio.

[roman modic]

Hello!

There will be another Conroe board with Windows 98SE support ;)
775i65G: http://www.asrock.com/product/775i65G.htm *
* Only PCB version (revision) R2.00 or higher
http://www.beareyes.com.cn/2/lib/200...0060426310.htm


BTW, you can get the list with ;)
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&l....com%2Fproduct

Cheers, Roman

[roman modic]

Hello!

Originally Posted by Tyras

But I dont think it is needed to emphasize a board supporting Win98 because it is ancient (8 years old). I thought however of labeling them Vista-ready but even that was not important enough for me to add it (anyone agrees/disagrees?).

My point exactly - it's not a big deal to run Vista (Duron 1300 with 512 MB and NVidia FX5200 on my old ABIT board can do it). OTOH, there are at least 50M (or even more than 70M) Windows 95/98/ME/98SE users. Some of them will still try and wish to buy and run Windows 9x systems (in multi-boot configurations, for example)...

http://www.mdgx.com/files/98ALIVE.TXT

Windows 98 + ME *still* alive campaign
Spread the word


Actually, Windows 98 (FE = First Edition), 98 SE (Second Edition) + ME (Millennium Edition) are *still* alive and well.
Please keep in mind that Windows 9x [95/98/ME] based OSes are installed on over 70 million computers, out of which 50 million are running Windows 98, 98 SE or ME.

Most small companies, charities, schools and a lot of individuals cannot afford to upgrade to Windows XP or any other OS, even Linux, because they don't have the necessary resources and/or knowledge.
True, Linux distros are free, but someone needs to install, service, repair and maintain [in many cases] a large number of [eventually networked] computers, no matter what OS they may run, and those IT technicians must get paid.
Sure, the KDE/Gnome interface may look familiar to most Windows users, but there will be a learning curve to make use of it.
Do you think people are willing to go through such pain just to upgrade their good-working 98/ME computers? Ask them yourself.
Besides, those good ol' 9x based OSes are fairly easy and cheap to maintain and troubleshoot, even if Microsoft won't help anymore. ;)

The point is that...
Enthusiast power users, programmers and IT specialists provide *free* support in their spare time at various web sites, forums, blogs etc.
...
This way Windows 98/98 SE/ME OSes can be safely used even on modern, fast computers for every conceivable purpose, including playing hardware demanding games [if you have the necessary hardware that is ;)], desktop publishing, 3D graphics rendering, high-end A/V editing, CD/DVD burning, programming, internet browsing etc.

Cheers, Roman

[bluetooth]

Anyone read the reviews of the two boards?

[roman modic]

Hello!

Here is one user review of ASRock 775i65G Socket T (LGA 775) (2006-JUL-07)

"Great transition board"
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Custra...82E16813157091

Pros:
-Supports all socket 775 netburst chips (Celeron D, Pentium 4, Pentium D, Pentium 4 extreme, even Pentium 965 XE, 90nm and 65nm models). Revision 2.0 and later of this board supports Conroe (Core2 Duo)!
-A very mature chipset that will give no problems when installing Windows; very stable operation.
-CPU speed adjustment features 95-300 MHz fsb speed selection (in 1 MHz increments) and agp/pci locks.
-Can turn computer on using keyboard or mouse.
-Supports DDR266-DDR400 ram and has a decent amount of ram adjustment settings in the bios.
-Onboard graphics for the non-gamer. Can choose between 1MB, 4MB, 8MB, 32MB, and 64MB shared memory settings.
-Onboard sound is VERY good. No static, hissing or popping.
-Overall one of the best "transitional" motherboards out there. Allows you to re-use your existing AGP card and DDR ram while getting a very new cpu.

Cons:
-I received rev. 1.03 of this mobo last week, so I did not get one that supports Conroe :(
-No vcore adjustments possible through bios.
-No power savings features in the bios (in standby mode the cpu fan will still run).
-Onboard graphics are weak and outdated when it comes to 3D applications (games), but this is a given.
-No RAID
-No PCI express (but that's not the point of this board).
-No fan control, no custom overheat shutdown settings.
-Printed manual failed to mention some of the bios options. One has to look at the PDF version either on the installation CD or download it from the manufacturer's website to get all the information.
-No nice software or utilities included, but at this price it's not expected.

Other Thoughts: I would have given this board 5 stars if it had some power saving features and some vcore adjustment. The Cons list might look like a lot, but they are really very minor issues. In conclusion, there is no other board in its price range that can compete with its quality and stability. If you're looking for a nice transitional board, this is it. Getting a Conroe-compatible version would have just been icing on the cake.

Reviewed By: joefriday, 7/7/2006 8:53:31 AM

Cheers, Roman