First post, by gandhig
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So after the GT520 PCI + P3 fiasco(on hold temporarily), I decided to assemble a temporary PC (for gaming era 1998-2005)and was on an ON and OFF intermittent hunt for dirt cheap parts. My ground rules for this are based on my current mental block towards online buying and the fact that most of the used OEM/assembled systems were costing more. So for me, it is the unjustified method of 'real' buying(against normal trends) in parts and then assembling it for self-satisfaction. Logically I wanted to start with a motherboard(correct me if I'm wrong) and build it from there excluding the graphics card, IDE HDD, PSU & Monitor which I already have.
After many weeks of searching, today I came across the following motherboards(sorted by period and preference, with some mistakes probably) in a local flea market in another city.
- Asus P5KPL AM/PS - G31 Chipset with solid caps, FSB 1600(OC), DDR2 1066
- Asus P5GC-MX 1333 - 945GC, FSB 1333(OC), DDR2 667
- Asus P5N MX - Nvidia GeForce7050/610i Chipset, FSB 1066/1333, DDR2 667
- Mercury PNMCP73V - guess, same as above (thinking of skipping Mercury)
- Unbranded ZX-I945LM4(will skip this one)
- Gigabyte GA 8I865GME 775 - P4 with HT, FSB 800, DDR 400
- Foxconn 865G7MF-SH - guess, same as above
- Some SiS 661 FX based motherboard, guess, same as above
- Gigabyte 8I845GVM-RZ - P4 with HT, FSB 533, DDR 333
- Biostar U8668D - VIA P4M266A, FSB 533, DDR 266
They were dirt cheap(equivalent of 5 $ each probably), needless to say in poor condition(couldn't take any snaps) and roughly handled/displayed in the open under the very hot sun. Apart from the scrutiny of caps and obviously charred or such marks, are there any other tricks to identify the condition of the motherboard? Please give your feedback regarding the selection from the above lot. I might go with 2 or 3 of them depending on the condition and maybe even the variety to keep my options open for the remaining components. Presently I have PC133 SDRAM, 20 GB IDE HDD and 2 heatsinks for P3 which are no use for this, so I'm hoping to get Processor and RAM cheaply(will get it probably). Thinking of going for a SSD as I may reuse it for my hopefully soon upcoming permanent build.
Things to remember while scavenging from the flea market:
- If not familiar with the material, scrutinize it carefully in comparison with actual pics of the material, just in case if some parts are missing/cannibalized.
- Bad/bulging caps.
- Marks left by spilt fluids
- Medium/Heavy scratches resulting in damaged traces
- Leaked Batteries (mainly 'barrel' types in ancient motherboards)
- Under which condition it is kept/packed and the method of handling
- Try to find out the material's history & previous ownership, if possible(mine had a date written on the back).
- Seller's guarantee to take it back if it doesn't work(I know this is asking too much 🤣, but who knows!!!)