Upgrading from an AMD 1600xp to an AMD 2600xp. When I reboot the initial BIOS display says that the CPU is an AMD 2000xp. Sandra and a utility from the CPUID site both say that it is a 2000xp. The clock rate matches the setting for a 2000xp also. My Front Side Bus is at 133mhz (max for board - ECS K7S5A)I corresponded with the retailer where I ourchased the CPU (2600xp) and they insist that I must have a 166mhz bus to run the CPU at rated speed.So the question is - do the utilities and the the BIOS at boot time show the true "name" of the CPU or do they simply look at the clock speed and match it to a name table closest to that clock speed? Also, is the reatiler telling me the truth when he says I need to get a board with 166mhz FSB speed?Dick Boley @KLBE

I would be suspect about the ECS K7S5A running that chip. My Soyo Dragon+ can't run that chip. Visit www.amd.com , support and downloads menu item and use their motherboard program to see if you mobo will work with that chip. See this http://www2.amd.com/us-en/recmobo/DetailHa...ml?queryID=2003 W. Sieffert

Looks like you are correct. My greatest worry was that I had received a bogus chip. I have ordered a new motherboard that runs up to 400mhx FSB so I should be ok for another 2 years! Too bad that the socalled utility programs do not actually know the real "name" of the chip but rely on the clock speed. Very misleading.Dick Boley @KLBE

"Too bad that the socalled utility programs do not actually know the real "name" of the chip but rely on the clock speed."Actually the "name", or the rating (like 2600+ etc.) of the CPU is not stored anywhere. It's calculated, probably by the chipset, from the multiplier and/or CPU clock frequency (I'm not sure which, actually).For example when I overclocked my 2400+ from 2.0 GHz stock to 2.20 GHz (FSB 183 x 12) it was reported as a 2600+ in BIOS and in Sisoft Sandra. In reality, at 2.2 GHz it sits somewhere between a 2700+ and a 2800+ performance-wise, and probably closer to a stock 2800+ considering the 183 MHz FSB speed. In fact, the true clock speed of the 2600+ is only 2.13 GHz so I have no idea why BIOS reported mine at 2.2 as a 2600+...

What mainboard are you getting btw.For the creme de la creme though not the most newbie friendly I would get a DFI Lanparty Nforce 2 ULTRA B.Otherwise the Abit NF7 rev 2.00 is a good mainboard too. It

My position is to stay about a year behind the curve. Saves money. There will always be someone ahead of me but the nice thing about Flight Simulation is that competition is not a significant factor so I can easily live with older "stuff". So the older AMD 2600XP and an ECS KT600 ($45 w/shipping) will give me a boost over my present older setup, Not leading edge but who cares. I worked on the Univac-I for several years and THAT WAS LEADING EDGE!! (then)Board specs at NewEgg.com: ECS "KT600-A" KT600 Chipset Motherboard for AMD Socket A CPU -RETAILModel# KT600-AItem # N82E16813135143Specifications:Supported CPU: Socket A AMD Athlon XP/Athlon/Duron ProcessorsChipset: VIA KT600 + VT8237FSB: 400/333/266/200 MHzRAM: 3x DIMM for DDR333/266 Max 3GB, DDR400 Max 2GBIDE: 2x UltraDMA 133 up to 4 DevicesSlots: 4x PCI, 1x AGP 8X, 1x CNRPorts: 2xPS2,2xCOM,1xLPT,1xLAN,8xUSB2.0(Rear 4),Audio PortsOnboard Audio: Realtek ALC655 6-Channel Audio CODECOnboard LAN: VIA VT6103 10/100Mbps Fast EthernetOnboard SATA/RAID: 2x Serial ATA devices, RAID 0/1Form Factor: ATDick Boley @KLBE

Yeah but that is why you overclock as well ;). You buy a 2500+ and overclock it past 3200+ speeds you save a lot of money that way :)So it would be nice to have a mainboard that do let you play with it a little.