![[H]ardOCP](/images/blank.gif){kind=small}
- Date:
- Monday , January 31, 2005
- Author:
- Steve Lynch
- Editor:
- Kyle Bennett
- Google +1
VIA PT Series Chipset PRE-View
Today we PRE-view the latest in chipset technology from VIA covering their new PT 880 Pro, PT 894 and PT 894 Pro chipsets for the Pentium 4. Certainly AGP and PCIE video on one motherboard will get the enthusiast’s attention.
Introduction
Today we are covering the launch of VIA’s three new core logic chipsets for the Intel Pentium 4 processor. The PT880 Pro, PT894 and PT894 Pro chipsets are what VIA calls its “Innovative PCI Express core-logic chipset solutions for the Intel Pentium 4 Processor Platform”. VIA believes that they have a “broad portfolio of solutions covering multiple market segments” and are set to prove it with the launch of these new PT series chipsets. VIA is proud of the fact that they have the first viable 3rd party alternative to Intel’s chipset family and believes they have not only a “viable alternative” but also bring innovative features that have been lacking from current Intel offerings.
Breaking down VIA’s PT series of chipsets, we have the following:
PT880 Pro: Perfect ‘stepping stone’ solution for System Integrators and Enthusiasts
PT894: High performance mainstream PCI Express solution
PT894 Pro: Ideal solution for workstation and power users.
VIA, citing hesitation in the Pentium4 market, slower than expected PCI Express and DDR2 transitions and the overall cost of Intel’s i925 and i915 chipsets, feels that the products currently on the market do not meet the market’s need for an affordable, future-proof platform. VIA believes the PT880Pro, PT894 and PT894Pro chipsets are the answer
to consumers' needs.
Main Specifications Overview:
Case Feature Set
Specifications - Intel® Pentium® 4 with Hyper Threading Support - 667/533/400MHz FSB - DDR400/333/266 Memory Support - DDR2 400/533/667 Memory Support - VIA DualGFX Express - VT8251 South Bridge - Ultra V-Link (1066 MB/sec) - 8 2.0 USB Ports - VIA VT6103L 10/100 Fast Ethernet - 2-Lane PCI-Express - SATA RAID (up to four devices) - Dual Channel Parallel ATA133 (up to 4 devices) - RAID 0, RAID 1, and RAID 0+11 & JBOD (SATA)
Features - Supports full range of Intel® Pentium® 4 processors - Supports Hyper-Threading Technology - 1066/533/400MHz FSB settings - Supports up to DDR400/333/266 SDRAM - Supports up to DDR2 400/533/667 - Ultra V-Link 1066 MB/sec high bandwidth North/South Bridge interconnect - Support for VIA Vinyl™ Multichannel Audio Suite - Serial ATA support for up to 4 devices - Integrated V-RAID with RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 0+11, & JBOD (SATA) support - Parallel ATA133/100/66 support for up to 4 devices - Support for up to 8 USB 2.0/USB 1.1 ports, UHCI compliant - Integrated MC’97 Modem - Integrated 10/100 Fast Ethernet
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VIA is touting design wins from companies such as ASUS, ABIT, Chaintech, Biostar, DFI, ECS, EPoX, Gigabyte, Jetway, Soltek and MSI. We can expect motherboards from the aforementioned companies to be announced in short order.
VIA Chipset vs. Current Intel Chipsets
The VIA PT chipset brings full support for the 1066 FSB, Ultra V-Link, Flex Express Architecture that includes DualGFX, High bandwidth peripherals and Universal Graphics Interface. VIA’s StepUp technology allows users to gradually migrate from DDR to DDR2 technology at their own pace by offering a high performance memory controller that supports DDR2 400/500/667 and DDR 266/333/400. Add in VIA’s Vinyl Audio with Qsound and VIA DriveStation that brings V-RAID, RAID 5, SATAII support and VIA’s port multiplier technology.
Looking at the slides from VIA’s presentation you can see that VIA is capitalizing on what they feel are shortcomings in the current i915 and i925 chipsets. VIA feels that hesitation to implement current standards as well as pricing of the i925 and i925 offering will make the PT880Pro, PT894 and PT894Pro a much more attractive alternative.
