if its just a processor upgrade then the board you have indicated will
take up to a AthlonXP 2600+ thoroughbred with a bios update

http://global.msi.com.tw/index.php?func=prodcpusupport&prod_no=285&maincat_no=1&
cat2_no=&cat3_no=#menu

that would be your best option this should give you 2100mhz before over
clocking which gives you twice the processing power that you have now
how ever finding an old xp2600+ with FSB of 266mhz processor will be hard

Well, this page, off the link at the top of my reply, lists more than
the one in the original product page. This is CPUSupport for K7T Turbo2.

http://global.msi.com.tw/index.php?func=prodcpusupport&prod_no=285&maincat_no=1&
cat2_no=&cat3_no=#menu

AthlonXP 2600+   133   Auto   OK

That particular processor is hard to find. If you search for 2600+,
you're more likely to find the 166 (FSB333) one instead. But your
motherboard is FSB266, which is why the 2600+/FSB266 is the fastest
one listed.

http://web.archive.org/web/20031018050306/http://www.qdi.nl/support/CPUQDISocketA.htm

Another alternative, would be to use an AthlonXP-M (mobile) processor.
I have one of those in my A7N8X-E Deluxe motherboard, and you can set
the multiplier on those in the BIOS. (I run mine like it is a 3200+.)
Whether that works, really depends on whether the BIOS has the necessary
control over the multiplier or not. Fiddling with the multiplier can be
an involved mod, and it doesn't always go smoothly. In my case, the
motherboard is what made it easy. (The only thing my motherboard is
missing, is it only controls 4 of 5 FID signals, so I cannot get the
high multiplier values if I need them. With your FSB266 limitation,
I suspect you'd want the high multiplier values, like more than
12.5 x 133.)

The 2600+ FSB266 processor would be a more straightforward purchase
and installation (no fooling around necessary), but the thing is,
are there any for sale out there ? They were hard to find, even when
they were being manufactured.

In terms of evaluating how things are going, you can do ctrl-alt-delete
and bring up the Task Manager. Run your Quicktime decoded video and see
if the CPU is pegged. The chart created might give you some idea whether
you need only a small improvement, or a really big improvement.

OK, you've spent 70 on memory, but how much would you spend on
a video upgrade, and in the end, would the newer AGP video card
be reusable in your next motherboard upgrade ? At some point,
you have to decide whether the old platform is worth building
around. Again, I wouldn't recommend investing in an expensive AGP
video card, for the reason I stated in the previous post - you're
going to be clutching that thing, and refusing to part with it :-)

BTW - these days, the ATI 1950Pro AGP is probably the fastest
easy to get card you can find. The Nvidia ones may be harder to
find now, at least new at retail. Your board is AGP 4x, and that
leaves more possibilities. For some background on AGP, I find
this page handy:

http://www.playtool.com/pages/agpcompat/agp.html

X1950 Pro is pretty far up the charts:

http://www23.tomshardware.com/graphics_2007.html?modelx=33&model1=725&model2=716
&chart=275

The X1950 Pro is also available in PCI Express, if you have
a change of heart and go for an AM2 socket processor :-)

There are all sorts of intermediate upgrades. For example,
you could look for newer motherboards that still use the
RAM you bought. The RAM you bought is probably DDR, so you
could look for a S754 or S939 AGP motherboard. The S754
go up to 3700+, and there are no dual cores, so that is
still a bit limiting - but people who had S754 were
happy when gaming with it. In that sense, the S939
wasn't essential, and S754 could do the job.

Where the S939 helps, is you can get dual core processors
for it, and that gives a smoother desktop experience. But
finding all the ingredients, at the right prices, is a lot
harder than just moving to AM2 and shopping for new
stuff. I wonder what that RAM you bought would fetch if you
sold it :-)

   Paul

Well, now that we know it's a Socket A MB, and not a slot A, your options
improve considerably.

I haven't found a socket A board yet that wouldn't run any Socket A cpu I
put in it. You jave the KT133A chipset. my old board has the older KT133
chipset and I've run it at speeds from 600MHz to 2400+MHz with some of the
newer XP cpu's that of course the website says won't work.:-) If you
search the web you can find what others have run in the same board you
have. My brother had one just like it or maybe an older model That I put
my 2100+ Tbred core cpu and he used it for about a year before I gave him
an Athlon 64. IIRC, his was also an older KT133 chipset without multiplier
control and only a 100MHz FSB. many have used 2400+ XP's in your board.
Search google groups for k7t turbo2 2400 and you'll see.

See AMD cpu in sigline for lots of info on running cpu's in boards that
supposedly won't run them.:-)

Or just download all of this group and search. Been discussed hundreds of
times.

Per my reply in another group, I was thinking you had a Slot-A board.
Please disregard.

According to AMD: http://www2.amd.com/us-
en/recmobo/DetailHandler/1,,30_182_869_4348%5E7923,00.html?queryID=
2017

http://tinyurl.com/23o2ex

So: http://www.memorytek.com/index.php?cPath=38_93

has some options for you.  I'd try the fastest chip you can get your
motherboard to run. Not being very familiar with your board I couldn't
say for sure, but

http://www.memorytek.com/product_info.php?cPath=38_93&products_id=503

might work and

http://www.memorytek.com/product_info.php?cPath=38_93&products_id=460

http://www.memorytek.com/product_info.php?cPath=38_93&products_id=501

might also, depending on your bios limitations.

Of those I'd go with the XP 1800+, but there are others to consider.
See above.

I'd see what retailers have on hand before I'd resort to E-bay. Less
problems if you have to return the processor for any reasons.

As I said in my other post, you may want to consider a used system.
There should be a bunch of them available after Christmas when people
get rid of their old systems that got replaced by Christmas gifts.

<snip>

        Bill