Final Words

The A7V133 is yet another impressive KT133A motherboard.  It has some solid performance numbers, and its stability with the MSI K7T Turbo is outstanding.  The improvement from just a Promise Ultra ATA 100 controller to a controller with RAID 0 support will definitely attract more users.  Last of all, the inclusion of multiplier ratio settings in the BIOS, as well as 1MHz increments in FSB speeds settings helps ensure that the A7V133 is as user-friendly as the other KT133A candidates.

On the other hand, there are still things that ASUS could have done better.  Among them is the placement of the two IDE connectors by the Promise controller, which will block the placement of any long AGP or PCI devices.  Moreover, the implementation of RAID 0 (striping) but not RAID 1 (mirroring) for the Promise controller seems to be an odd choice as well, since the controller should be capable of both, as shown by its use on the MSI K7T Turbo. 

Being the fourth KT133A solutions we reviewed, we are really impressed by what manufacturers have done.  They have gone much further than just swapping in the VIA 8363A North Bridge for the older 8363 North Bridge, but they have improved stability and added features as well.  There are still several KT133A motherboards on the way, and we will continue to bring you coverage of as many boards as we can get a hold of.

 

How it Rates

AnandTech Motherboard Rating

 
Rating (x/10)

Performance

The A7V133 comes out to be the fastest KT133A solution so far, holding a 5% lead in Quake 3 Arena while staying close on the other tests. 

8.0

Price

Surprisingly, what used to be the weak point for ASUS, the price of the A7V133 is not particularly high.  At around $160 , the A7V133 is just slightly above average.  Considering the features and the quality of products you’re getting, it’s definitely worth it.

6.0

Stability

We used to run the stability tests for 24 hours, but last time we had to run for 48 hours before we finally gave up on the MSI K7T Turbo crashing.  This time around we also ran for 48 hours to prove that the A7V133 is just as stable as the K7T Turbo.  There is no doubt the A7V133 is an incredibly stable motherboard.

9.5

Quality

ASUS has a long history of product quality, and that’s still the case with the A7V133.  ASUS choose to put high quality components on the motherboard even though that increases the price a little bit. 

8.0

Features

The migration from dipswitches to a totally JumperFree setup makes overclocking a much more pleasant job, and the addition of RAID 0 on the Promise controller is nice.  However, the lack of RAID 1 support makes the controller seem half complete, even though RAID 0 is likely the more popular configuration. 

7.0

Layout

The layout of the board is a bit above average.  The design around the CPU socket is excellent, since there are no obstacles blocking the airflow around the socket.  The DIMM slots are far away enough from the AGP slot that the clips are not blocked by a graphics card.

However, the placement of the IDE connectors provided by the Promise controller might block the use of some longer AGP and PCI devices. 

5.5

Availability

ASUS products are probably one of the most commonly found product, both online and locally.  Most of them have competitive prices so you should be able to find one fairly quickly

7.0

Documentation & Software Bundle

Documentation is simply excellent.  You will be able to find every piece of information you need about the motherboard in the manual, and there is even a glossary at the back, making the manual more like a dictionary.  Of course, CD also includes all the software and drivers you need for the motherboard.

7.5
Overall Rating - not an average Click here to find out why
8.5
The Test
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