Computer technology never stands still, but motherboard technology

has undergone exceptionally dramatic change in recent years. Because

the motherboard is the single-most important component inside your

PC, having a firm understanding of its workings is vitally important

whether you’re buying a new rig, upgrading your existing box, or

building from scratch.

Unless you’ve carefully archived the last three years’ issues of

Maximum PC , it’s likely a number of new motherboard developments

have escaped your attention: PCI Express, SATA 3Gb, SLI, and plenty

more. But all this new technology doesn’t necessarily mean moth-

erboards have become more complex and/or difficult to deal with.

Indeed, if you’re looking to replace your musty old mobo with a brand-

new one, you’ll find it’s easier than ever. The hard part is deciding what

features are most important to you, and determining what other PC

parts you’ll need to fulfill a motherboard’s potential: Will you need a

different type of RAM, a stronger power supply, a SATA hard drive?

The motherboard photo on the

facing page identifies the most important

components on this, the most important

component inside your PC. Throughout

this story, we’ll delve deep into mobo

technology and show you how to pick

the board that’s right for you.

Everything you need to

know about the most

important component

inside your PC BY GORDON MAH UNG

Motherboard Technologies ...... 36

Buying the Right Board ........... 37

Picking a CPU .......................... 38

Core Logic Chipsets ................ 38

Picking the Right Chipset ........ 39

Reviews ................................... 40

Installation Tips ........................ 46

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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MOTHERBOARDS:

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SATA PORTS: Serial ATA (SATA) ports are used

to connect hard drives to your PC. Although they’re

rapidly eclipsing the older parallel ATA (PATA) port,

you’ll continue to see both types on mobos for the

foreseeable future.

Serial ATA (SATA) ports are used

3 MA XIMUMPC MAY 2005

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