Microstar K7T Master Socket-A KT133 ATX

The Bad

We have only a few minor complaints about the K7T Master.  The placement of the ATX power supply connector may be a bit of a hindrance to airflow as you would have to extend your power cables over the Socket-A interface. Speaking of which, the 462-pin CPU interface is too close to the right edge of the motherboard, making it hard to remove a heatsink/fan assembly while the motherboard is installed in a case.

Overclocking is very important to AnandTech readers, but the K7T Master does not provide enough FSB settings between the 100MHz and 110MHz FSB range, which is what truly matters on today's KT133 boards.  It would also be nice if Microstar had included multiplier adjustment functionality on the K7T Master, this is something that ABIT and ASUS have both done and is something that is much more useful when overclocking Socket-A CPU’s.

Like most motherboard manufacturers, Microstar did not include the necessary cables to take advantage of the 2 extra USB ports provided by the VIA 686A South Bridge. Just because other manufacturers fail to include these cables doesn't mean that MSI should follow suit. USB peripherals are quickly becoming even more commonplace, so having more ports available without resorting to external hubs is definitely appreciated.

As we've mentioned in the past, MSI's D-LED is a very good feature however, it would be even better if the LEDs could be viewed from outside of the case, perhaps through the I/O shield.

Microstar's K7T Master manual could use some improvement in the area of having instructions for first time system builders and those that aren't entirely familiar/comfortable with the setup of the board.

USB Compatibility

·         Number of Front Universal Serial Bus Root Ports: 2

·         Number of Rear Universal Serial Bus Root Ports: 2

·         USB IRQ Enable/Disable in BIOS: Yes

·         USB Keyboard Support in BIOS: Yes

Recommended SDRAM

Recommended SDRAM: 1 x 128MB Corsair PC133 SDRAM; 1 x 128MB Mushkin PC133 SDRAM

SDRAM Tested: 1 x 128MB Mushkin PC133 SDRAM

Manufacturer: Corsair
Purchase Website: http://www.corsairmicro.com

Manufacturer: Mushkin
Purchase Website: http://www.mushkin.com