Mobo with slower fsb than cpu... compatible?

[Slade]

err, if a mobo only supports up to 333fsb, and the cpu is 400fsb... are they compatible?

[Catweazle]

No

What's the mobo and CPU in question?

[Slade]

The cpu is an amd athlon xp 3200... the board I can't actually find info on it, I was looking up the wrong review so I still don't know if it's 400fsb or not.

It's Albatron KX18D Pro, know anything about it?

[Slade]

...just found something

FSB

200/266/333 /400+(by overclocking) MHz

Does that mean it has an fsb of 400? Or does it mean you can obtain an fsb of 400 by overclocking.

[Catweazle]

Yep, that's an nForce2 Ultra chipset motherboard, and will handle a 400MHz fsb, Athlon XP3200+ no worries!

Make sure you're using PC3200 DDR RAM with it, so you can run your fsb and memory 'in sync' and get the best performance from it ;)

[Slade]

Yeah I am :)

I just can't wait to get my system. Do you think 512mb of ram is a standard yet? What is the ideal amount of Ram do you think...? I have 512, I have my whole system, I'm just waiting on the cpu, mobo and monitor to get here so I can finally use my system! It's mainly going to be used for programming and minor 3d design.

[Catweazle]

512Mb if you run it as a dedicated games machine or for everyday applications use.

1Gb if you have heavy usage, or wish to swap in and out between games and applications, without exiting programs. I use 1Gb myself, for my Games and household system, and 512Mb for this work system I'm on now.

I consider Windows XP to run like a dog on 256Mb or less, and would suggest that 384Mb should be the minimum amount used for that OS.

[Slade]

Thanks, I think I might just grab another 512 stick in a month or two

[Catweazle]

Try to ensure it's the same make/model as what you already have. Running different brands or models can create stability issues that weren't there before.