Supermicro 370SBA i440BX Socket-370 ATX

Just like most other Supermicro boards, the 370SBA uses AMI's WinBIOS setup utility that is designed to look like Windows and allow you to use your mouse to set things up. If you're used to the WinBIOS, that's fine, but for users of the more common Award BIOS, it feels kind of strange. Which one is better is completely a matter of personal preference. However, a number of AMI BIOS functions are fairly cryptically labeled, which can make things difficult. If in doubt, use the defaults. Most of these settings do not need to be changed, but offer an additional level of control not found in the Award BIOS. Something that's still fairly rare in the world of Award BIOS's, but common for AMI, is the ability to load a set of optimal settings as well as fail safe defaults. Each PCI slot can also be assigned a specific IRQ, which can be extremely helpful in certain situations.

Power management consists of pretty much the standard stuff these days. Wake on LAN and wake on modem ring headers are available to allow the system to power on in the presence of network activity or incoming call. The BIOS can be set to turn on the system at a specific time. The CPU fan can be shut off when the system suspends to quiet things down a bit. Supermicro claims ACPI support, and it appears to be in the BIOS, but Windows 98 SE refused to detect it.

Thanks to Supermicro's server roots, an often forgotten feature, the ability to configure what the system will do when AC power is restored after a power outage, has been included on the 370SBA. The system can either remain off, turn on, or resume last power state when power is restored. This is a feature often overlooked since ATX and soft power became available, but is critical for anyone using their system where it must be on 24/7 or as close as possible. It also allows for users to shut the system on and off from a surge protector.

The Bad

As mentioned above, the AMI BIOS used on the 370SBA can be somewhat cryptic. Most of these particular settings won't need to be changed, so it's not a major issue. The biggest problem with the settings is the cryptic FSB settings, as described earlier. The claimed, but non functional ACPI support is a somewhat larger issue that should be taken care of with a BIOS update.

As usual, there's still no sign of voltage tweaking options from most manufacturers, Supermicro included. Of course, Supermicro has never been a manufacturer that focused on overclocking, and the 370SBA is no exception with its virtually hidden overclocked FSB speeds.

As mentioned earlier, the manual is a bit weak in the installation section. Anyone that has never installed a motherboard before will not feel comfortable with the complete lack of information given in the Supermicro manual on this topic.

USB Compatibility

• Number of Front Universal Serial Bus Root Ports: 0

• Number of Rear Universal Serial Bus Root Ports: 2

• USB IRQ Enable/Disable in BIOS: No

• USB Keyboard Support in BIOS: Yes

Recommended SDRAM

Recommended SDRAM: Mushkin SEC -GH PC100 SDRAM; Memory Man SEC -GH PC100 SDRAM
SDRAM Tested: 1 x 64MB PC100 SDRAM

Manufacturer: The Memory Man
Purchase Web-Site: http://www.memory-man.com

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