  We show that a class of type IIA vacua recently found within the N=4
effective approach corresponds to compactification on Ads_4 \times S^3 \times
S^3/Z_2^3. The results obtained using the effective method completely match the
general ten-dimensional analysis for the existence of N=1 warped
compactifications on Ads_4 \times M_6. In particular, we verify that the
internal metric is nearly-Kahler and that for specific values of the parameters
the Bianchi identity of the RR 2-form is fulfilled without sources. For another
range of parameters, including the massless case, the Bianchi identity is
satisfied when D6-branes are introduced. Solving the tadpole cancellation
conditions in D=4 we are able to find examples of appropriate sets of branes.
In the second part of this paper we describe how an example with internal space
CP^3 but with non nearly-Kahler metric fits into the general analysis of flux
vacua.
