
Get the newsletter ChannelProSMB.com SystemBuilderPro.com Motherboards.org

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-7VAXP Review :: Introduction

10-18-2002 · Category: Motherboards

By Niso Levitas

The KT400 chipset has begun to emerge on top class motherboards. We waited to write about it because the chipset was still in beta progress. As I write these lines, there are rumors going around that the chipset is not as fast as expected and that there will be new revisions of the chipset.

Features	KT400	KT333
North Bridge	VT8377	VT8367
AGP Support	AGP 8X	AGP 4X
South Bridge	VT8235	VT8233, VT8233C, VT8233A or VT8235
North/South Bridge Link	VIA V-Link@ 533MB/s	VIA V-Link@ 266MB/s
Integrated Network Controller	VIA 10/100 Ethernet MAC	3Com® (VT8233C) or VIA (VT8233 or 8233A) 10/100 Ethernet MAC
USB USB 2.0	6 Ports, 3 Controllers	VT8233 series USB 1.1 6 Ports, 2 Controllers VT8235 USB 2.0 6 Ports, 3 Controllers

There are three differences between the KT333 and the KT400: AGP 8x with the new north bridge, VIA's own network PHY, and USB 2.0 integrated into South Bridge. As you can see on the chart, VIA may easily replace the South Bridge for the KT333 chipset to add USB 2.0 capability.

I noticed that the chipset photos which chipset manufacturers publish online are different than the actual chipsets. I don't think chipsets need make up before photo shooting so I prefer to uncover those heatsinks and take my own photos.