Micro Star K7T Turbo-R Limited (MS-6330 rev:3)
Monday, November 19, 2001
Introduction
Today, we'll be taking a little trip through the 'Way Back' Machine, as we present to you our review of the MSI K7T Turbo Raid - a revision of the famous K7T Turbo MS-6330 motherboard that we reviewed in June. This new incarnation includes both a number of corrections and refinements, and is also being made available in a 'Limited Edition' format that is printed on a snazzy red fiberglass board. The K7T Turbo Raid is based on the VIA KT133A chipset, and, as its name suggests, includes an integrated Promise Technologies PDC20265R RAID controller.
So, if your appetites are sufficiently whetted, let's skip the the entré, and head-in to the main-course.
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Characteristics of the MSI K7T Turbo R Limited (MS-6330 rev:3)
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CPU
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AMD Athlon Duron & T-Bird Socket A 200/266MHz DDR
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Chipset
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VIA KT133A VT8363A + VT82C686B
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Form factor
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ATX - 30.4cm X 23cm
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Expansion
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6 PCI - 0 ISA -1 CNR - 1 AGP - 4 USB
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Memory
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3X 168-pins DIMM SDRAM 1.5GB PC133
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FSB
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100MHz to 166MHz in steps of 1Mhz
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Vcore adj.
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1.550 to 1.850 in .025v increments
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Vio adj.
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3.3v et 3.45.
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Audio chipset
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embeded into the chipset
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To make things perfectly clear, the Limited edition of the MSI K7T Turbo-R is in fact practically identical to its predecessor, save for the incorporation of PC-to-PC networking, its red fiberglass, and a number of minor updates and refinements. As a result, its description will often read nearly identical to that of its 4 month-old predecessor.
Configuration
Configuration of the MSI K7T Turbo-R Limited is primarily accomplished from within the BIOS; there's only a single on-board jumper that relates to the CPU. That jumper - labeled JP17 - can be used to force the FSB to 100MHz, or 133MHz. All other notable adjustments are performed from within the "Frequency/Voltage Control" BIOS menu.
From within that menu, its possible for users to set the FSB to any of a range of frequencies, from 100MHz to 166MHz in 1MHz increments.
The clock multiplier can also be set to a value ranging from 5X to 15X.
Also, the Vcore and Vio voltages are adjustable, and can be set as indicated by the table above.
Finally, under the "Chipset Features Setup" menu, users are presented with the option to set the memory bus to 100MHz or 133MHz, and to tweak a number of memory timing values. Please note however, that no options are provided for the adjustment of Bank Interleaving. As a result, if the system is not set to "Serial Presence Detect" SPD, the system will tend to experience a mild performance hit.
Next: Technical details.
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