You can pick ATX Intel brand board based on 430HX or 430TX chipset. They are relatively easy to find and use and fast performers. Also might come with integrated DOS friendly video and/or sound chipset.

Ok so the Intel boards are good.. nice to know.

This is an example of one I have been eyeing. Ram and CPU already on there: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Intel-Socket … FQAAOSwC5NfDcgU

Seems to be an OK deal but I havent shopped around enough to be honest. There are others closer to $75 with less RAM. Sort of varies

Hmm looks OK. There are many Pentium Board+cpu+ram combo's on the market that could be great. One thing, before you buy one: make sure you can identify the exact make/model of the board or else you could troubles down the road.

Horun wrote on 2020-08-30, 00:56:

Hmm looks OK. There are many Pentium Board+cpu+ram combo's on the market that could be great. One thing, before you buy one: make sure you can identify the exact make/model of the board or else you could troubles down the road.

Yea Ive been seeing some with no board info.. just generic 'INTEL'. I am looking at some of the really close up photos, and I am not able to identify anything. Do most of these not have clear markings on the board itself with model #s? In the case of the above, is that marking 'PCISet SB823...' on the chip the actual chipset and model of the board?

solidus wrote on 2020-08-30, 01:13:

Yea Ive been seeing some with no board info.. just generic 'INTEL'. I am looking at some of the really close up photos, and I am not able to identify anything. Do most of these not have clear markings on the board itself with model #s? In the case of the above, is that marking 'PCISet SB823...' on the chip the actual chipset and model of the board?

It should indicate the chipset but doesn't tell you who made the board.

Board makers didn't prominently mark their boards back then like they do now (I can see where you're coming from as the heatsink on those chips would often have the brand name on today's boards).

I think "Houston Tech" like on the RTC chips is a knock off of Dallas (get it?). I think that is one of many of PC Chips' brands. PC Chips is hit or miss and the company had a lot of dishonest practices but there a few well-loved boards like their M919 486 board. I do see a V1.3 marking in the corner but that doesn't tell me anything.

jakethompson1 wrote on 2020-08-30, 01:29:

It should indicate the chipset but doesn't tell you who made the board. […]
Show full quote

solidus wrote on 2020-08-30, 01:13:

Yea Ive been seeing some with no board info.. just generic 'INTEL'. I am looking at some of the really close up photos, and I am not able to identify anything. Do most of these not have clear markings on the board itself with model #s? In the case of the above, is that marking 'PCISet SB823...' on the chip the actual chipset and model of the board?

It should indicate the chipset but doesn't tell you who made the board.

Board makers didn't prominently mark their boards back then like they do now (I can see where you're coming from as the heatsink on those chips would often have the brand name on today's boards).

I think "Houston Tech" like on the RTC chips is a knock off of Dallas (get it?). I think that is one of many of PC Chips' brands. PC Chips is hit or miss and the company had a lot of dishonest practices but there a few well-loved boards like their M919 486 board. I do see a V1.3 marking in the corner but that doesn't tell me anything.

Yea I am used to modern boards with branding slapped all over them 😀 Ok so Ill have to do a bit of research to make sure I dont get a board that is notoriously a problem. Thats honestly my main concern

Eh, no. Price is horrible for AT board. Not mention that it's infamous PCChips brand with pesky RTC battery and less desirable 430VX chipset. You can get Intel ATX board for less with everything integrated - https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Gateway-Inte … 675.c101224.m-1. Or even 430TX - https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Pentium-166- … 675.c101224.m-1

The Serpent Rider wrote on 2020-08-30, 01:48:

Eh, no. Price is horrible for AT board. Not mention that it's infamous PCChips brand with pesky RTC battery and less desirable 430VX chipset. You can get Intel ATX board for less with everything integrated - https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Gateway-Inte … 675.c101224.m-1. Or even 430TX - https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Pentium-166- … 675.c101224.m-1

See this is what my concern was 😀 Plus one of those has the MMX which is what I originally was looking for.. but every search I did for boards for the MMX chips, the prices seemed insanely high. Thanks for the info and links!

As already said, i430HX or TX is your best choice in hassle free chipsets, ATX boards are often OEM based on Intel's reference design, as ATX was new at the time. I have an Intel OEM TC430HX with integrated sound (100% DOS compatible) and it's a stable performer although I prefer my Asus TX97-XE for an MMX Dos build due to more elaborate options in the BIOS.
Keep you RAM count to max 64 MB unless you have an HX which can cache more (not all HX boards have the necessary tag rams on board). 64 will be plenty for Dos & Win95.

solidus wrote on 2020-08-30, 01:13:

Horun wrote on 2020-08-30, 00:56:

Hmm looks OK. There are many Pentium Board+cpu+ram combo's on the market that could be great. One thing, before you buy one: make sure you can identify the exact make/model of the board or else you could troubles down the road.

Yea Ive been seeing some with no board info.. just generic 'INTEL'. I am looking at some of the really close up photos, and I am not able to identify anything. Do most of these not have clear markings on the board itself with model #s? In the case of the above, is that marking 'PCISet SB823...' on the chip the actual chipset and model of the board?

Intel makes CPUs, chipsets and motherboards. Other people also make motherboards with Intel chipsets.

So no, no info on the chipset is going to tell you which board it is. Good boards tend to have clear brand+model names on the board. Bad ones (like this...) tend not to... The recommendation was for Intel-made boards, not boards with Intel chipsets. They're not the best out there, but they are relatively easy to find, relatively affordable and have rock-solid stability and good components, which makes them a good choice for beginners. Note that ATX was also recommended so you can use a modern case and PSU and this is an AT board. The difference is the external connectors. AT only has a single DIN port for AT-style keyboard, ATX has multiple connectors for keyboard, mouse, serial, parallel, USB and more. The keyboard connector is also PS/2, which is electrically identical to the old AT DIN, but means you are less likely to need adaptor cables. So go with ATX form factor to keep life simple - an advice I'd wholeheartedly concur with.

The chipset determines basic functionality and performance, but it doesn't tell you anything about build quality or options. That's what you need the board name for.

As for price, eBay prices are overinflated at best. I'd recommend looking on whatever local Craigslist-like sites there are, you're more likely to find good deals there.

MMX support is a combination of factors. Most important is that MMX CPUs require a lower core voltage (2.8V instead of 3.3V) so boards that support it have voltage regulators on-board to generate that lower voltage. If you know what a MOSFET is, a board with a couple of big ones will almost certainly support lower voltages. But best method remains getting positive ID on the board and looking it up, particularly if you're not experienced at 'reading' the components on a board. This board does have voltage regulators - those two big orange heatsinks around the CPU socket with two large MOSFETs connected to each. This is an old-style inefficient linear voltage regulator, which essentially dumps excess voltage as heat, hence the heatsinks. The i430VX chipset also supports MMX, but again, this is a bad board.

A couple of good Intel boards to look for:
- AN430TX
- ML430HX
- TC430HX

Other good choices:
- Asus XP55T2P4
- Asus TX97-X(E)
- Asus TXP4-X
- Gigabyte GA-586ATX
- MSI MS-5148

There are many more, but these are known good quality, good support and even today fairly readily available.

dionb wrote on 2020-08-30, 09:50:

Intel makes CPUs, chipsets and motherboards. Other people also make motherboards with Intel chipsets. […]
Show full quote

solidus wrote on 2020-08-30, 01:13:

Horun wrote on 2020-08-30, 00:56:

Hmm looks OK. There are many Pentium Board+cpu+ram combo's on the market that could be great. One thing, before you buy one: make sure you can identify the exact make/model of the board or else you could troubles down the road.

Yea Ive been seeing some with no board info.. just generic 'INTEL'. I am looking at some of the really close up photos, and I am not able to identify anything. Do most of these not have clear markings on the board itself with model #s? In the case of the above, is that marking 'PCISet SB823...' on the chip the actual chipset and model of the board?

Intel makes CPUs, chipsets and motherboards. Other people also make motherboards with Intel chipsets.

So no, no info on the chipset is going to tell you which board it is. Good boards tend to have clear brand+model names on the board. Bad ones (like this...) tend not to... The recommendation was for Intel-made boards, not boards with Intel chipsets. They're not the best out there, but they are relatively easy to find, relatively affordable and have rock-solid stability and good components, which makes them a good choice for beginners. Note that ATX was also recommended so you can use a modern case and PSU and this is an AT board. The difference is the external connectors. AT only has a single DIN port for AT-style keyboard, ATX has multiple connectors for keyboard, mouse, serial, parallel, USB and more. The keyboard connector is also PS/2, which is electrically identical to the old AT DIN, but means you are less likely to need adaptor cables. So go with ATX form factor to keep life simple - an advice I'd wholeheartedly concur with.

The chipset determines basic functionality and performance, but it doesn't tell you anything about build quality or options. That's what you need the board name for.

As for price, eBay prices are overinflated at best. I'd recommend looking on whatever local Craigslist-like sites there are, you're more likely to find good deals there.

MMX support is a combination of factors. Most important is that MMX CPUs require a lower core voltage (2.8V instead of 3.3V) so boards that support it have voltage regulators on-board to generate that lower voltage. If you know what a MOSFET is, a board with a couple of big ones will almost certainly support lower voltages. But best method remains getting positive ID on the board and looking it up, particularly if you're not experienced at 'reading' the components on a board. This board does have voltage regulators - those two big orange heatsinks around the CPU socket with two large MOSFETs connected to each. This is an old-style inefficient linear voltage regulator, which essentially dumps excess voltage as heat, hence the heatsinks. The i430VX chipset also supports MMX, but again, this is a bad board.

A couple of good Intel boards to look for:
- AN430TX
- ML430HX
- TC430HX

Other good choices:
- Asus XP55T2P4
- Asus TX97-X(E)
- Asus TXP4-X
- Gigabyte GA-586ATX
- MSI MS-5148

There are many more, but these are known good quality, good support and even today fairly readily available.

Thanks so much.. really appreciate it. So I need to be careful if I intend to use MMX, and make sure the board supports it.. got it.

I definitely want to get an ATX board especially since I already have a PSU to match to it. Im going to start searching with those models instead of just ebay searching 'Pentium 166 motherboard' which is what I have been doing.

solidus wrote on 2020-08-30, 16:48:

[...]

Thanks so much.. really appreciate it. So I need to be careful if I intend to use MMX, and make sure the board supports it.. got it.

I definitely want to get an ATX board especially since I already have a PSU to match to it. Im going to start searching with those models instead of just ebay searching 'Pentium 166 motherboard' which is what I have been doing.

Again, eBay is not a good place to get this sort of stuff. Look in your local Craigslist-like sites (if you say where you are from we might be able to make more specific suggestions). Also places like amibay.com regularly have this sort of stuff for far more realistic prices. By buying overpriced eBay stuff you're not just overpaying yourself but also encouraging others to sell for such high prices, which hurts all of us...

Here's a good selection of Socket 7 ATX motherboards 😀
http://www.win3x.org/uh19/motherboard/result/ … latformTypeId=9

dionb wrote on 2020-08-30, 21:07:

solidus wrote on 2020-08-30, 16:48:

[...]

Thanks so much.. really appreciate it. So I need to be careful if I intend to use MMX, and make sure the board supports it.. got it.

I definitely want to get an ATX board especially since I already have a PSU to match to it. Im going to start searching with those models instead of just ebay searching 'Pentium 166 motherboard' which is what I have been doing.

Again, eBay is not a good place to get this sort of stuff. Look in your local Craigslist-like sites (if you say where you are from we might be able to make more specific suggestions). Also places like amibay.com regularly have this sort of stuff for far more realistic prices. By buying overpriced eBay stuff you're not just overpaying yourself but also encouraging others to sell for such high prices, which hurts all of us...

I am in the US, specifically New York. I would love to buy locally but honestly I just dont see this stuff ever pop up in locals sales, thrift stores, etc. I find mostly modern or early 2000s stuff at the very oldest. I am open to any suggestions for good marketplaces. Maybe some computing for sale forums?

Deksor wrote on 2020-08-30, 21:12:

Here's a good selection of Socket 7 ATX motherboards 😀
http://www.win3x.org/uh19/motherboard/result/ … latformTypeId=9

Good list ! but anything by Asus, Giga, QDI, etc will be way overpriced in the USA no matter which online sales you check (per my recent post in "Rants"). However did find a Abit PX5 on the list on fleabay but is the AT version for $55 (w/shipping) with a MMX 200 out of Nebraska. added: Needs ram and HS but could be the best in that price range for a good board. Seller is near 99% good....

solidus wrote on 2020-08-31, 00:10:

[...]

I am in the US, specifically New York. I would love to buy locally but honestly I just dont see this stuff ever pop up in locals sales, thrift stores, etc. I find mostly modern or early 2000s stuff at the very oldest. I am open to any suggestions for good marketplaces. Maybe some computing for sale forums?

Then definitely Craigslist. Things get snapped up fairly quickly, so you need patience and dilligence, but there's enough being offered there, it just doesn't stay long. The best listings are "found this old system I know nothing about in uncle's attic/garage come pick it up no questions asked"

In the US vcfed.org marketplace is also an option, and occasionally people offer motherboards as well as CPUs at cpu-world.com

With socket 7 you can't do that much wrong - if you ain't aiming for maximum performance than nearly any board, besides some duds, will do.
Boards with intel TX chipsets are the obvious choice albeit I would go for an HX because it "feels more high end". On the other hand a board like the AOpen AP59S with a SiS5591 chipset is a fast board especially at 83mhz(if you're lucky you may catch a revision that goes up to 100mhz fsb).
The FIC PA2005(ViaApollo chipset) is a beauty and also runs well, albeit only up to 75mhz fsb if I remember correctly.

Given you're a Doom guy a fsb above 66 won't matter much unless you're aiming to make a hefty entry in the Doom Benchmark Results page. Your choice of the classic Pentium200 is nice - always preferred that in the older boards where overclocking is not a goal.

Btw, the board you posted that goes for 100$ and costs 40$ to ship is a scam.
Maximum price should be 75$ or 50$ for a less exotic option.

Any ATX Socket 7 board with an Intel 430TX chipset will suit you fine, get whatever is cheapest.

I found someone willing to sell me a AN430TX with a P200MMX socketed and 64mb ram for $75 + shipping.. not international. Seems like a good deal to me. All of it was new old stock and unused. Much better than ebay 'deals'