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Suggestions for good hardware for 486 build

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First post, by cjreha

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Hi guys, first post here. Hope I didn't break any rules accidentally.

I'm planning a rainy day build, a 486, and I'd like some help on picking the best hardware for a pretty decent DOS box.

For a CPU, I'd like a DX4 100 of some kind. I'm aware the DX2 66 is much more common and works very well with most games, and I'm aware there are higher speed chips like AMD's DX4 120 but I'd like to stick with the good old 100 MHz CPU. I had one in my first 486 and it ran very well. Also, from my experience the CPUs above 100 are hard to find and when you DO find them they are pretty costly. My question is: Did Intel, Cyrix, or AMD's DX4 chip perform best? My first 486 had an AMD in it, but I never had experience with Intel's model, or Cyrix's.

I'd like to experiment with VLB so I'd want a motherboard with VLB slots, and preferably a 2032 battery in it, so it's easy to change.

For video cards, I've heard the Diamond Speedstar Pro VLB is quite good for both VGA and VLB games.

For sound cards, I've heard the Sound Blaster AWE32 is excellent for DOS gaming and is highly suggested. I'm considering going this route, but I've also heard the Pro 2 is quite nice for older games. Give me suggestions!

That's pretty much all I'd like recommendation on, and I'd love to hear your opinions.

Thanks!

Reply 1 of 5, by clueless1

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Welcome! There are a few other 486 threads going on right now, so check them out.
AMD DX2 vs Intel DX2 66mhz
New 486 Build
Wading slowly into the 486 waters

At 100Mhz, AMD and Intel 486s performed very similarly. The Cx5x86 is a bit faster.

Here's some threads on VLB graphic cards:
Benchmarks for high-end VLB graphic cards - ET4000W32P/ARK1000VL/Trio64/S3 Vision968/Mach64
Fastest DOS VLB Graphics card ever?
In short, a VLB card with ET4000 chipset is always a great choice. One of the fastest and most compatible. Lots of other good choices, including Cirrus Logic GD5428.

SB Pro 2 and SB16 are both good choices and are both period correct. AWE32 came out towards the end of the 486/VLB platform life, but definitely still period correct. Are you interested in Roland MT-32? 😀

The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know.
OPL3 FM vs. Roland MT-32 vs. General MIDI DOS Game Comparison
Let's benchmark our systems with cache disabled
DOS PCI Graphics Card Benchmarks

Reply 2 of 5, by cjreha

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clueless1 wrote:
Welcome! There are a few other 486 threads going on right now, so check them out. AMD DX2 vs Intel DX2 66mhz New 486 Build Wa […]
Show full quote

Welcome! There are a few other 486 threads going on right now, so check them out.
AMD DX2 vs Intel DX2 66mhz
New 486 Build
Wading slowly into the 486 waters

At 100Mhz, AMD and Intel 486s performed very similarly. The Cx5x86 is a bit faster.

Here's some threads on VLB graphic cards:
Benchmarks for high-end VLB graphic cards - ET4000W32P/ARK1000VL/Trio64/S3 Vision968/Mach64
Fastest DOS VLB Graphics card ever?
In short, a VLB card with ET4000 chipset is always a great choice. One of the fastest and most compatible. Lots of other good choices, including Cirrus Logic GD5428.

SB Pro 2 and SB16 are both good choices and are both period correct. AWE32 came out towards the end of the 486/VLB platform life, but definitely still period correct. Are you interested in Roland MT-32? 😀

Thanks for the reply! 😁

I found a motherboard with a 5x86 100 in it and a 2032 battery in it. Unfortunately it's a newer board and has half ISA and half PCI slots, and no VLB capability. As a last resort, I'll use this board but the search goes on.

Reply 3 of 5, by badmojo

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cjreha wrote:

I found a motherboard with a 5x86 100 in it and a 2032 battery in it. Unfortunately it's a newer board and has half ISA and half PCI slots, and no VLB capability. As a last resort, I'll use this board but the search goes on.

Welcome! Wrong forum for this I think but it'll get moved by one of our helpful mods I'm sure.

A PCI 486 board will be much easier to work with - probs has an integrated IO controller, large HDD support, and a good PCI VGA card is heaps easier / cheaper to come across. In saying that, my 486 is VLB, because I like a challenge 😈

Life? Don't talk to me about life.

Reply 5 of 5, by chinny22

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Finding the ideal 486 motherboard is almost impossible, finding ANY isn't easy anymore either so if your one is a good price I would get it!
Things most people look for:
1) Doesn't have barrel or Dallas battery
2) PS2 mouse support
3) Supports 5v and 3.3v (3.3 is important for you as you want a DX4)
4) Cache size
5) HDD Limit

Points 1 and 2 will usually require a compromise. 3,4,5 simply limit you choices further

VLB is nice but very expensive as it attracts a premium.
Personally I prefer PCI as its more practical and flexible, onboard I/O controller, PCI counterpart of a VLB video card can be had dirt cheap, PCI almost guarantees 3.3v support.
In saying that my VLB 486 gets loads more use, but big part of that is it's my very 1st PC so has more sentimental value.
There is another option, although may think its a dirty word... OEM
The big guys like Compaq, Dell, Acer, etc, were pretty good and were a lot quicker to use PS2 mice connectors plus their higher selling price included high end hardware, namely VLB. The catch is usually the VLB stuff was onboard, although this did mean everything played nice together, something VLB was not very good at, and usually there was at least 1 spare slot if you wanted to use a different video card or another VLB device

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