On December 30, 2002 12:37 pm, Joe Braddock wrote:
> ECS sold a K7SEM combo board with attached CPU that stated it was a 1200,
> but as you point out really wasn't. This board is still available at very
> low price but is not even fully compatible with the true K7SEM board (bios
> issues). You can easily tell this board because it doesn't have an PCI
> slots and the color of the board is red! I was not aware of PC Chips
> selling such a creature.
It's been superseded by the ECS K7SEMv3. I don't remember if it's still red.
It has two PCI slots, an AGP slot, 2 SDRAM slots (max 1GB) but the same crap
still seems to be going on. Still bundled as a Duron 1200 +/Pro (performance
rating) in some markets by some less than reputable retailers.
>
> The MB and CPU I ordered from EconPC were ordered together, but weren't a
> combo. The CPU is an actual boxed set Duron 1200, so unless AMD has
> started to ship and label them otherwise, I'm pretty sure it is a true 1200
> (note, there was a design change in Durons greater than 1Ghz that vastly
> improves performance). The MB takes Duron through XP CPUs, so I don't
> think it's overclocking a slower chip to make up the speed difference.
It seems you got what you specified. That's a "Good Thing �." :-)
>
> My understanding of the ECS board was that it was a custom configuration
> for a low end OEM. What is now available through the supply chain is over
> stock (these are the very, very low price ECS/Duron 1200 combos on
> PriceWatch). Again, the easiest way to tell is to ask if there are PCI
> slots and if the board is red (or can the CPU be replaced). If the answers
> are no, yes and no, then it is the suspect board.
Yes to the PCI slots question, no to the red color question, yes to CPU
replacement. It's still a Duron 850 over-clocked and called a "Duron 1200
Pro." The dealer refused to accept return without the customer paying a 10%
restocking charge even after ECS sent him a copy of the message I pasted. The
local BBB and Corporate and Consumer Affairs can deal with the scum dog.
>
> I always buy from a reputable dealer and make sure I know what I'm getting
> (and it's returnable) before ordering.
As do I; but some of my friends seem to think there's an animal called "Truth
in advertising" and don't do enough research before they jump. Some "don't
want to bother anyone" for advice. Not they would heed it usually anyway.
Then want someone else to perform a magic trick for them to fix things.
>
> Thanks for the info, though.
You're welcome. I'm not usually an alarmist but I thought the information
might help prevent someone else on the list from getting "hooped."
> Joeb
>
I'm glad that you got what you paid for. My neighbor (friend) didn't.
I still wouldn't buy or use a PC Chips or ECS board for anything that I have
any say in unless forced though. {I mean anything I have to work on. :-)} I
even 'made' my 17 year old son pay the 'little extra' to get a better board
when he started to put together his new system a couple months back.
An MSI K7T266 if I recall correctly. He could only afford a Duron 1300 though
since he wanted and bought 512 MB of DDR memory at the same time. The poor
kid. <g>
It's red. He 'likes the color' he says. :-)
Regards;
--
Charlie
Edmonton,AB,Canada
Registered user 244963 at http://counter.li.org
It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees.
Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft?
Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
