On 20 Jul 2004 16:55:17 -0700, in <alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.asus>,
(e-mail address removed) (Paul) wrote in message
What type of computer case do I need? Can I re-use the one I have for
my old 486DX2 case?
[snip]
You really ought to buy a proper ATX-type case & PSU combo. The board itself
is an ATX "form factor", which means that it would be a real jury-rig job to
fit it into an AT-type case, even if you retrofit an ATX PSU into it. (FYI:
The P5B was the functionally near-identical board, made in the "Baby AT" form
factor -- *that* would be a drop-in fit to your old '486c case/PSU.) This
being an older board, you *don't* need the "latest & greatest" seventeen
gigawatt PSU with every whistle and bell known to the marketing mavens; hence,
a suitable case/PSU combo of passable (if not wonderful) quality can be had
for perhaps US$50 or so (or even much less, if you're willing to scrape the
very low end of the market; but I don't suggest that).
I assume I can't re-use the power supply from my 486DX2 computer.
What is the basic difference -- voltage?
[snip]
It goes beyond that. The "ATX" spec defines almost the whole internal system
layout, which is very different than the older "AT"/"Baby AT" styles. The
board itself is a different shape/size; (most of) the I/O connectors depend on
a dedicated "sub-panel" in the back of the case; even the placement of the CPU
relative to the drive bays can come into play. WRT the PSU itself, not only
are the connectors different (and largely incompatible; tho' there are
adapters available to use an ATX supply with an AT mobo), there are whole new
functions and voltage rails, such as the "Standby 5V" rail that is used to
enable the "soft ON/OFF" function already mentioned. In short, AT and ATX are
apples and oranges -- don't attempt to mix them.
What color is the Arctic Ceramique? If it is white, how do I tell
what thermal grease I have? And what do you mean that the zinc grease
tends to "runs away"? And under what conditions will it "runs away"?
[snip]
Don't let Paul's comments spook you. While exotic thermal compounds are one
of the favorite tweaks of the obsessive/compuslive "I just can't leave well
enough alone" set; they aren't really *needed* in most cases. Run-of-the-mill
zinc-oxide based thermal compound (like you'll find at Radio Shack) will work
just fine for virtually all reasonable applications, as long as it is fresh
and properly applied. And once that's done, it should remain OK for at least
several years, as long as it is not disturbed. (Yes, it will dry out with age
and heat-cycling, but that's OK -- it's the zinc oxide powder that's actually
doing the job; the grease/oil part is just a "carrier" to enable smooth and
even application.) It's worth noting that standard-issue zinc-oxide compound
is what is used millions of times every day in production environments by
virtually every major electronics manufacturer extant; if it were unreliable,
they'd all have horrendous warranty issues with it -- which in general, they
don't.
I wipe away the grease and the markings on the CPU are as follows:
AMD - K2/500AFX
[snip]
Are you *sure* it doesn't say (probably on the third line):
AMD - K6-2/500AFX
???
Look again -- I strongly suspect that's what you'll find.
Under this link, I find K2/500; but no K2/500AFX.
[snip]
Same thing, at least for all intents and purposes.
[snip]
It's a "stepping" designation -- i.e., it denotes precisely which of the
various sub-versions of the K6-2 your particular CPU is. These sub-versions
(of which there are almost always many) are *usually* due to minor tweaks and
updates routinely carried out by the manufacturer during the production life
of a given CPU; also, in a few cases, they designate special variants (like
ultra low-power versions intended for laptop use). But in this case, "AFX"
simply denotes one of the late-production "standard" K6-2 chips. Don't sweat
it -- it's a good one.
[snip]
That's the factory rating, yes. It can actually be run at a wide variety of
core clocks and FSB clocks; but that depends on the mobo (among other things)
and how you set it up in that mobo.
And what is K6-2/500 equivalent to in Intel -- PII, PIII, Celeron,
etc.?
[snip]
It's not *directly* equivalent to any of them; but the closest match would be
to a P-II/P-III of approximately 10-20% higher core clock rate. Clock for
clock, the AMD chip will generally out-perform the Intel chip for "normal"
applications; but the Intel will have an edge on FPU-intensive stuff.
From the Manual: Level 2 Cache is 512KB/1MB pipelined-burst SRAM/L2
memory cache and integretated Tag Ram to make use of 100 MHz buss
speed possible.
How much is Level 1 Cache?
[snip]
Either 512KB or 1MB; it depends on how much SRAM is actually installed on that
particular board. The easiest way to determine which you have is to run
CACHECHK:
<
http://www.filelibrary.com:8080/cgi-bin/freedownload/DOS/h/54/cachchk7.zip>
on it after you've got the system assembled.
If you want to know about this *before* you assemble and boot up the system,
you'll need to check *your* board against the manual to determine which.
First, download the manual for your particular Rev. level:
<
http://www.asus.com.tw/pub/ASUS/mb/sock7/ali/p5a/p5a-106.pdf>
Look at either the photograph on Page 11 or the diagram on Page 12, and find
the chip labeled "512KB/1MB Pipelined Burst L2 Cache". Now find the
corresponding chip on *your* board, write down *all* the numbers
etched/sceended on it, then hit Google to find the appropriate spec-sheet or
data-book pages. The main thing you want to know is, is it a 4Mbit chip, or
an 8Mbit chip? If the former, you have 512K L2 cache; if the latter, you have
1MB L2 cache.
That said, even the minimum possibility (512K L2 cache, with a 512MB
"cacheable area") will be *more* than adequate for your stated purposes; so I
wouldn't worry about it.
I assume that k6-2/500AFX is NOT K6plus; and therefore that is of no
concern to me. If correct, you can ignore the balance of this post.
[snip]
Correct. The "Plus" versions of the K6 series CPUs were later models aimed
mostly at the laptop market (but also *very* usable in desktop systems, and a
favorite of overclockers due to its low power-consumption/heat-dissipation).
--
Jay T. Blocksom
--------------------------------
Appropriate Technology, Inc.
usenet01[at]appropriate-tech.net
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
-- Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Unsolicited advertising sent to this domain is expressly prohibited under
47 USC S227 and State Law. Violators are subject to prosecution.
