Upon boot Windows98 was quick to see the changes (try to replace your PCI cards in the same order of PCI Slots as they were in the previous system, saves driver re-installs) and configured all the new hardware without us even touching the keyboard, well ok, we pressed enter a few times.

Essentially that's it, a quick download of the updated VIA drivers from their website is also well advised, helps make use of the new AGP speeds etc. The whole process from installation to Set-up was ultra quick and clearly designed to be user friendly. The only area it faltered on was that the manual lacked detail; just lucky it's an easy system to install. However there were no barely any BIOS details or detailed instructions on the motherboard settings, there should have been more.

Verdict

At a cost of around £100/$160, the Soltek board is simple and very easy to install for those familiar with motherboards. It lacked a more detailed manual, advanced Overclocking features, badly placed ATX Power Connector, confusing manual instructions and support for the newer 900-1Ghz Athlons.

On the plus side, despite the lack of detailed documentation you should still have no problems installing it. Windows98 thinks it's a gem and updated drivers from VIA are commonplace, so you should never have a problem keeping up. It's easy to use, well priced and made by a top board manufacturer; we'd especially recommend it to owners of GeForce cards!

This is an excellent board, one whose class outstands the rest but does miss out on just a few areas that could have so easily been changed and weren't. We suspect that a BIOS update will arrive to support the new CPU's, so at least all is not lost. A good board, Speedy3D Recommended!

by Mark 'KILLZAT' Jackson

Price - 9 Performance- 8.5 Overall - 8.5 (85%)

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