🚀 go-pugleaf

John Naismith <John@naismith.demon.co.uk> writes:
> stuart@garage.demon.co.uk (Stuart Booth) writes:
> > Has anybody around here taken the plunge and Upgraded their system to
> > a Pentium Pro CPU?
> > Where did you go for your bits [CPU, motherboard, RAM, case]? I'd be
> > very interested to learn this, as well as how much they all cost you.
> 
> Don't do it just yet Stuart. The only chipsets available so far for PPro 
> are Intel Orion chipsets. They *all* (up until last month) had a bug on 
> the PCI bus which could make it run slower than molasses under certain 
> circumstances (22 motherboard clock cycles to *start* a data transfer). 
> Give it a couple of months until the buggy m/b's already in the 
> distribution channel are exhausted. Either that or insist on a bug-fixed
> motherboard - although you'll be *very* lucky to get one as people like 
> Dell will have priority from Intel.

Real pain isn't it.

Various places (Simply & others) have been advertising 2-CPU Orion units.
Others the Aurora (below), AMI Goliath (4-CPU) and Asustek (below).

Notes
o Case Sizes:
  - Intel units are ATX size, ie, you need a new case as well (unknown $).
  - Asustek unit is Baby-AT sized apparently, ie, old cases are ok.
  - Ami goliath is ~ certainly ATX sized.

o Serious Bugs, although allegedly (ha!) card code-aroundable:
  - Orion chipset have/had real problems, people in the US who've bought 
    the m/bs with the problem have been refused replacements (Asustek).

There's a new Aurora m/b out from Intel, 1-P6 CPU.
- Not had time to check on it's bug-status ;) It's ATX footprint.
  Increasingly being advertised with "new" 82450 chipset which I'm sure
  is still the Orion one, but it might be the fixed one. Might, ie, risk.

  It's ATX sized. Most places are doing a P6-180 + Aurora for 1150ukp ex,
  however Solidisk advertised one @ 737ukp ex. This is /oddly/ cheap.

If someone is thinking of a P5-166 & NT, then a P6-180 @ 737ukp IF available
AND working ok, MAY be worth investigating. W95 + P6-180 is ~ P5-150/166.

There are other notes re verifying your simms fit, case availability etc.

Avoid Orion unless you have a guarantee in writing. Prices will fall.
If the Aurora is different, then "do you feel lucky ?" ;) There's a bit 
on comp.sys.intel, but I've not had time to reach that window yet! :(
-- 
Julian AF Bradbury          http://webzone1.co.uk/www/3b