Shuttle AV32 Motherboard Review

Author : Wayne Date : 19th April 2001

3DVelocity would like to thank Shuttle Computer group and especially Jeurgen Bloch of their German branch office for their help and courtesy in providing this motherboard for review.

Introduction :

To say the computer market place is fickle is probably a massive understatement. One slip in your execution and you're back at the bottom of the pile, that's if you have the resources to ride out the lean times that are sure to follow, and as if to prove the point, even the mighty Intel have fallen from grace under the barrage of performance and price incentives that AMD has introduced in the shape of their Duron and Athlon range of processors. I gotta say I can't think of a single valid reason for suggesting somebody should go out and buy a Celeron at this moment in time, but there are still a huge number of existing Celeron users, and Intel patriots who want to stand by the still competitive P3 range, and it's really for these people that the AV32 was created.

The AV32 is built around the VIA Apollo Pro 266 chipset, a relatively new arrival that boasts a number of interesting features, not least of which is support for DDR SDRAM. What makes this board so tempting for those looking to futureproof their current socket370 investment is the ability to use either SDR or DDR SDRAM, though not both at the same time. Before we get too deeply into the benefits of this, and the AV32's other features, let's have a quick look at the specs.

Model AV32

VIA KT266 DDR/SDRAM

Supports Intel PPGA-370 processors

Chipset
VIA VT8633, North Bridge
Integrated high performance DDR DRAM controller
VIA VT8233, South Bridge

Form Factor
ATX
Size: 305mm x 245mm

Processor
Socket 370
Intel PPGA Celeron 300 ~ 500+/66 MHz FSB
Pentium III FC-PGA 500 ~ 933+/100/133 MHz FSB

Expansion Slot
1 x AGP (4x AGP)
5 x PCI
1 x CNR Supports Audio and Communication riser

Memory
184-pin DIMM x 2 and 168-pin DIMM x 2
Supports DDR or SDRAM module
Support PC133 SDRAM

On board IDE Controller
Support PIO Mode 4 and DMA Mode 2
Supoort Ultra 33/66/100 Synchronous DMA mode
Transfer rate up to 100 MBytes/sec

Winbond 83697HF Super I/O Controller
1 x Floppy port
2 x Serial port (16550 fast UART compatible)
1 x Parallel port (SPP, EPP, ECP port)
4 x USB port
1 x Game port
Li/Lo/Mic
IrDA Header

Flash EEPROM
Award PCI BIOS with PnP, Green and DMI Features

Other features
Wake-On-Ring & Alarm
KB/Mouse wake up
Support 4X AGP
Support PC133 SDRAM

 

 

page2 (A look at the VIA Apollo Pro 266 chipset)>>>

 

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