What is the best (fastest?) PIII 1GHz/133 Motherboard?

[streakeagle]

I don't have the money to start with a fresh board/Athlon cpu/DDR RAM I am just looking to upgrade an existing computer.

Presently I have two PIII 1GHz/133 computers. My primary has a CUV4X with VIA 694X chipset and has been pretty good. The secondary uses an off brand micro ATX board based on the SiS chipset (PCchips M758LMR+) that has problems. It cuts frame rates for games in half compared to the CUV4X despite both having the same memory and Voodoo 5500 cards. The sound driver is also a little glitchy. So I would like to upgrade the micro ATX to a board at least equal to the CUV4X and am considering both micro ATX boards and full-size ones.

I would like two questions answered:
1) Regardless of price, what is the absolute best board?
2) What is the best price/performance option?

Pricewise, it is hard to beat the Biostar micro ATX board with VIA 694X chipset. I am willing to bet it will equal the CUV4X and at $30, the price is right. But if a board is significantly better than the CUV4X, it might be worth the money.

I understand PIIIs run fastest with intel chipsets, but that those chipsets have limits, such as no support for ATA 66/133 FSB. I need at least that level, if not ATA100. Or is the performance with those chipsets so much better that it would be worth sacrificing hard drive support and FSB speed?

[bloom25]

I'd check out the Asus TUSL2.  I think it is limited to only 512 MB of ram, but should be very fast.  I don't know if it supports ATA100, but you can find out at asus website.  The reason I'd pick this board is that you can use the new (very hard to find though) P3s at up to 1266 Mhz.  (Or the Celerons at 1300 Mhz so far, but the P3 1266Mhz would be MUCH faster than the Celeron.) At least it wouldn't be totally un-upgradable.  A 1266 P3 would be about equal to a 1200 Mhz Athlon and around a P4 1600 Mhz, all else configured the same.

[streakeagle]

Found a review on CUSL2 and read specs on TUSL2... TUSL2 seems like a winner. I already like my ASUS CUV4X and my brothers micro atx uses the 815e chipset which seems to work really well with his 600 Celeron and Voodoo 4500. Is it significantly faster than the VIA chipset I have in my CUV4X though? Once they got the 4in1 drivers right, the VIA seems like a great chipset. Is there a benchmark comparison between Apollo Pro and 815e somewhere on the net?

[bloom25]

I've never had significant problems with the VIA chipsets on Athlons, but to be honest I've never used one with a P3.  The reason I pointed the TUSL2 out is because it supports the "Tualitin" core CPUs.  (That is the .13 micron P3s from 1.13 to 1.26 Ghz and the 1.1 - 1.3 Ghz Celerons.)  I believe VIA also has a Tualitin supporting chipset.  Since these should not cost much more than the older "Coppermine" only chipsets, they provide some upgradibility potential.  I think VIA makes a chipset supporting P3s (Tualitin) and DDR ram, in that case they would certainly outperform the Intel i815e.

The P3 at 1266 Mhz is actually a superb performer.  It's not just a clockspeed boost over your 1 Ghz P3.  It added extra cache memory and runs cooler.  (There are even some P3 "s" processors out with even more cache ram that perform extremely well, but are extemely rare and expensive.)  With the improvements the "Tualitin" P3s can match an Athlon at the same clockspeed.  Like the Athlon, they also easily outperform the P4 at the same speed.  A 1266 Mhz P3 should perform equal to about a 1.6 or even 1.7 Ghz P4.

[streakeagle]

But if I am going to get a new chip and ddr ram, might as well go AthlonXP and get a board with the KT266 chipset I am simply looking for the best options for my existing hardware at the moment.