How to fully expand the Legend QDI motherboard model P6I440EX EXCELLENT 1?

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black dobermann

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Hello everyone: as the title suggests I have an assembled desktop PC, with the Legend QDI motherboard model P6I440EX EXCELLENT 1, currently I have installed 256MB of RAM and a Pentium II CPU at 333Mhz (which was the most powerful CPU supported at that time): I updated the BIOS, and now, by selecting the "speedeasy cpu setup" option on the bios itself, under CPU speed, the system sees cpu up to 500Mhz: and already the first "oddity": the motherboard is for Pentium 2, but not I found Pentium 2 cpu at 500Mhz: only Pentium 3 at this frequency. Always under "CPU speed" you can select, instead of the predetermined frequency, the "Jumper Emulation" option, having the two items: "Multiplier", which reaches "X 8", and "BUS Clock" which reaches 83 Mhz; now, as an assembly novice, my first doubt comes: multiplying the speed in Mhz of the CPU to be assembled or is it the frequency of something else?
So in light of this:

1) the most powerful CPU I can mount on this motherboard is a 650Mhz Pentium 3 CPU overclocked at 664Mhz?
2) Should I add fans?
3) Is it possible that my Pentium 2 motherboard supports Pentium 3 processors (I read that the internal architecture is very similar)?
Oh I forgot: the motherboard uses "Slot 1" for the CPU; as the title suggests I would like to expand the motherboard itself to the maximum supported: which CPU should I mount?

Also I would also like to expand the RAM memory: on my motherboard manual it says that the card supports up to 512Mb (2x256Mb) of EDO DIMM 3.3V unbuffered, not mentioning if they have to be ECC or NON-ECC, so I assume the mainboard is NON- ECC, and, this type of ram is not even found crying in Chinese.
Instead I would have found 256MB 168 pin EDO ECC 3.3v Unbuffered DIMM Memory ram:
4) do you think they are compatible?
5) mount ECC ram on NON-ECC motherboard could slow down the system?
P.S .: I currently have 256Mb (2x128Mb) of SDRAM memories.

Thanks in advance.
Black Dobermann
 
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Ultimate Retro site is usually quite helpful with this. There is a supported CPU tab that I've found to be pretty accurate.
This appears to be your MB - I think the manual is available for DL as well.
QDI P6I440EX/ATX (ExcellenX I)
 
Yes, I've read It, but this is for the stock bios: updating the bios has unlocked new CPUs, and I'd like to know which is the best for that mobo
 
what bios did you flash to it and what does it say it supports. the board is only a 66fsb board i doubt it can push 100fsb slot 1 p3s....
the best officially supported chip is a p2 333.
 
the bios is v1.3SL: I see that there are 667Mhz celeron processors with 66Mhz fsb with socket 370 and adapters from socket 370 to slot 1: is a Pentium II 333Mhz or a Celeron 667Mhz faster / more performing?
Curiously entering the bios of the card in question, there is also the option for a CPU at 500Mhz with fsb at 66MhzX7.5 = 500 (approximately), but there is no trace of this cpu on the web: either it was a cpu that it had to go out and didn't go out, or maybe it was an overclocking option.
Thank you
 
where did you get this bios? no info with it?
yes, there are but doesnt mean it will doe what you hope it will. depends on what youre doing, iirc, its been a really really long time...
the chipset only supports p2 up to 333 and cel up to 433, so anything over is an oc. the most oc i remember is the cel 333@450, like everyone did.
you might need to go googling to see what you can dig up, as thats an old and not popular board(afaik, i never heard of it).
 
The bios (v1.3SL) is the lastest supported by my mobo, as you can also see from the Ultimate Retro site you sent me: https://www.ultimateretro.net/it/motherboards/4272#downloads : actually my motherboard exact model is "excellent 1", and not "ExcellenX I": but maybe it's the same. The upgraded bios supports 83 Mhz of FSB and X8 of multiplier = 664, the official website of my m/b doesn't exist anymore, so I took the bios searching It on the search engine, on other place.
I use that PC for retrogames and for downloading utilities/drivers for Itself from the internet (I did also shared a folder with my notebook).
You said the chipset only support p2 333 max and celeron 433 or 450mhz in overclock:
1) Is It faster/more performing a Pentium 2 333Mhz, or a celeron 433Mhz? What about a celeron 333Mhz overclocked (as you said) to 450Mhz?
2) If I install a 333Mhz celeron and I do overclock It to 450Mhz, I have to install further fans?
3) The mobo allows to select predefined frequencies for the cpu (speedasy selection mode): the maximum is 500Mhz (with fsb at 66MhzX7.5 = 500Mhz approximately): do you think that exist a Pentium 2 500Mhz cpu, or maybe is for a cpu that never came up, or maybe for overclocking?
Thank You very much indeed for the help
 
black dobermann said:
The bios (v1.3SL) is the lastest supported by my mobo, as you can also see from the Ultimate Retro site you sent me: https://www.ultimateretro.net/it/motherboards/4272#downloads : actually my motherboard exact model is "excellent 1", and not "ExcellenX I": but maybe it's the same. The upgraded bios supports 83 Mhz of FSB and X8 of multiplier = 664, the official website of my m/b doesn't exist anymore, so I took the bios searching It on the search engine, on other place.
I use that PC for retrogames and for downloading utilities/drivers for Itself from the internet (I did also shared a folder with my notebook).
You said the chipset only support p2 333 max and celeron 433 or 450mhz in overclock:
1) Is It faster/more performing a Pentium 2 333Mhz, or a celeron 433Mhz? What about a celeron 333Mhz overclocked (as you said) to 450Mhz?
2) If I install a 333Mhz celeron and I do overclock It to 450Mhz, I have to install further fans?
3) The mobo allows to select predefined frequencies for the cpu (speedasy selection mode): the maximum is 500Mhz (with fsb at 66MhzX7.5 = 500Mhz approximately): do you think that exist a Pentium 2 500Mhz cpu, or maybe is for a cpu that never came up, or maybe for overclocking?
Thank You very much indeed for the help
Click to expand...
i didnt send you anything...
1 - p2 will be faster
2 - no
3 - no, i already said there is no such thing as a p1 500.
 
black dobermann said:
The upgraded bios supports 83 Mhz of FSB and X8 of multiplier = 664
Click to expand...

"Supported" and actually working are two entirely different things. Your board has a 440EX chipset, which was a cut down 440BX. The 440EX has a FSB limited to 66 MHz. 75 and 83 MHz are overclocking it and everything else in the system. Depending on how the clocks are defined on the various buses, you could end up with the very bad problem where AGP is 1:1 with the FSB and the PCI bus is 1:2, which would give you 83 MHz AGP and 41.5 MHz PCI, which causes big problems. Most AGP cards are very intolerant of bus clocks much out of the defined 66 MHz. PCI has more leeway, depending on the cards used, but you still don't want to be running at 41.5 MHz.

I would advise you just put the maximum supported processor, which is probably a PII 333, or a Celeron 433 and call it good enough.

black dobermann said:
1) Is It faster/more performing a Pentium 2 333Mhz, or a celeron 433Mhz? What about a celeron 333Mhz overclocked (as you said) to 450Mhz?
2) If I install a 333Mhz celeron and I do overclock It to 450Mhz, I have to install further fans?
3) The mobo allows to select predefined frequencies for the cpu (speedasy selection mode): the maximum is 500Mhz (with fsb at 66MhzX7.5 = 500Mhz approximately): do you think that exist a Pentium 2 500Mhz cpu, or maybe is for a cpu that never came up, or maybe for overclocking?
Click to expand...

1) Entirely depends on workload. If you have an application that doesn't care much about cache, the 433 Celeron will be faster. If you have an application that likes lots of cache, the Pentium II may be faster. The Celeron only has a quarter of the cache of a Pentium II (128 vs 512k). I don't know if Intel did it in that generation of Celerons, but the later Coppermine and Tualatin Celerons had slightly increased latency to the cache as well.

2) As Pendragon said, no.

3) Again, as Pendragon said, no. There is no such thing as a Pentium II 500, they topped out at 450 MHz. There was the Pentium III 500, but that has a 100 MHz FSB and different microcode. The 440EX chipset on your motherboard doesn't officially support Pentium III CPUs.
 
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