Is the ASUS A7N8X-X a good motherboard for Windows 98? \ VOGONS

Is the ASUS A7N8X-X a good motherboard for Windows 98?

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First post, by johnyept

Posted on 2022-06-08, 07:45

johnyept Offline

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I currently have an ASUS P4S8X-X (Intel P4) in my RETRO-W98 machine because the ECS N2U400-A (Athlon XP) doesn't boot, probably due to board corrosion since the caps look OK but the board metal parts show oxidation due to bad storage.

I found an ASUS A7N8X-X for sale with CPU and 2x128MB. It's a recycling store for charity and it's selling it for 15€/$. It seems very similar to the ECS N2U400-A, but it doesn't have the 4pin connector, and the chipset is the nForce2-400 (single channel) instead of the nForce2-400 Ultra (dual channel). Should I go for this board instead of the Intel one? Phil did make a video about the ECS N2U400-A as one of the best boards for Windows 98, but he did mention that having a 4pin connector was one of the positive points, which the ASUS doesn't have.

RETRO-W98/2K: MSI MS-6309 v1.0, P3 1Ghz, 3x256MB, GF5600 128MB AGP, VD2 PCI, RTL8139D PCI, TB400-2541 PCI, ESS1868F ISA, 160GB IDE
RETRO-WXP/7: ASUS P5KPL-AM EPU, XEON E5450 3Ghz, 2x2GB, GTS 450 1GB PCI-E, 120GB SSD, 1TB sATA

Reply 1 of 6, by kolderman

Posted on 2022-06-08, 08:07

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Yes, if the caps aren't bust. Which they probably are.

Reply 2 of 6, by johnyept

Posted on 2022-06-08, 10:51

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kolderman wrote on 2022-06-08, 08:07:

Yes, if the caps aren't bust. Which they probably are.

I did noticed what seems to be a slightly bulged cap in the blurry pictures:

JP02282-scaled_1946x.jpg?v=1642721514
JP02284-scaled_1946x.jpg?v=1642721517

I don't mind replacing the caps later, I'm already making a list of a bunch of hardware to recap sometime down the line.

I'm just wondering if the Athlon + nVidia chipset is more compatible with Windows 98 games than the Pentium 4 + SiS 648/963 in the ASUS P4S8X-X, and if the fact of not having a 4pin connector could become an issue.

Reply 3 of 6, by Oetker

Posted on 2022-06-08, 11:09

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johnyept wrote on 2022-06-08, 10:51:
I did noticed what seems to be a slightly bulged cap in the blurry pictures: […]
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kolderman wrote on 2022-06-08, 08:07:

Yes, if the caps aren't bust. Which they probably are.

I did noticed what seems to be a slightly bulged cap in the blurry pictures:

I don't mind replacing the caps later, I'm already making a list of a bunch of hardware to recap sometime down the line.

I'm just wondering if the Athlon + nVidia chipset is more compatible with Windows 98 games than the Pentium 4 + SiS 648/963 in the ASUS P4S8X-X, and if the fact of not having a 4pin connector could become an issue.

Those pictures are a completely different motherboard.
The lack of a 4-pin connector means your PSU needs to be able to deliver enough current on the 5v lines, which isn't always the case with modern PSUs.
Win98 compability is mostly a matter of drivers being available, which shouldn't be difficult to find out.

Reply 4 of 6, by kolderman

Posted on 2022-06-08, 11:28

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Lol I wish asus made an a7n with 3xISA 🤣

Reply 5 of 6, by johnyept

Posted on 2022-06-08, 11:40

johnyept Offline

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Oetker wrote on 2022-06-08, 11:09:
Those pictures are a completely different motherboard. The lack of a 4-pin connector means your PSU needs to be able to deliver […]
Show full quote

johnyept wrote on 2022-06-08, 10:51:
I did noticed what seems to be a slightly bulged cap in the blurry pictures: […]
Show full quote

kolderman wrote on 2022-06-08, 08:07:

Yes, if the caps aren't bust. Which they probably are.

I did noticed what seems to be a slightly bulged cap in the blurry pictures:

I don't mind replacing the caps later, I'm already making a list of a bunch of hardware to recap sometime down the line.

I'm just wondering if the Athlon + nVidia chipset is more compatible with Windows 98 games than the Pentium 4 + SiS 648/963 in the ASUS P4S8X-X, and if the fact of not having a 4pin connector could become an issue.

Those pictures are a completely different motherboard.
The lack of a 4-pin connector means your PSU needs to be able to deliver enough current on the 5v lines, which isn't always the case with modern PSUs.
Win98 compability is mostly a matter of drivers being available, which shouldn't be difficult to find out.

🤣 I didn't even noticed, I copied/pasted without even looking! I called the shop and they explained that the person gave them that board inside the A7N8X-X box, so there is no ASUS board after all, and they were going to remove the ad. Oh well, no Athlon for me... for now.

Reply 6 of 6, by dormcat

Posted on 2022-06-08, 11:41

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johnyept wrote on 2022-06-08, 10:51:

I did noticed what seems to be a slightly bulged cap in the blurry pictures:

That's a DFI CA61 rev. B1

My very first WinXP system back in 2003 was based on an Asus A7N8X Deluxe so I could tell the photo was definitely not the same era or series.

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