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Comments on BIOSTAR M7NCD PRO

R

robcy

Senior member
I am thinking of getting one of these, and was wondering if any one had suggestions on it. I am not a big overclocker, by do plan on tinkering a little. I can get it for $57 after a $15 Rebate. I have never used a Biostar before, and have read very little about them.
 
Okay, it sounds like a good board from what I've heard, but I would go with the Shuttle AN35N Ultra instead. It's only a few bucks more, and you don't have to worry about a rebate. Plus, the following (thanks to fredb13 from amdforums.com):

Greetings all!

I did a little study, comparing the features of both the M7NCDP and the AN35N Ultra (I own the Biostar and I looked at the manual for the Shuttle).

Obviously, these are both minimal nForce2 boards, lacking the more expensive features such as SATA, Firewire, nVidia APU, etc. But as one who didn't really need those features, I opted for the M7NCDP.

However, I've since reconsidered after checking the AN35N manual. It has the following features not found on the Biostar board:

1. System temperature sensor (and possibly a third sensor). The Biostar has only CPU temperature.

2. P4 12V connector.

3. SPDIF In/Out header.

4. Rear speakers header (so you don't have to switch the line-in jack on the rear panel).

5. Center/Sub speakers header (ditto).

6. Audio Aux In header (an extra line-input for another device).

7. Two CD-In connectors (for the two different size plugs on CD-ROM drive analog cables).

8. Three 3-pin fan connectors (M7NCDP has two and one 2-pin).

9. AGP Proof LED (lights if your AGP card is not 1.5v).

10. CPU Overheat LED (lights if CPU temp is >85C (presumably from on-chip sensor, but not sure).

11. Much better documentation (Biostar has almost none), and from what I hear, better support -- they actually answer e-mail!

These are all "small" features, but I find them important. For example, I may want to connect to my HT receiver via SPDIF some day. And I like to have a temperature reading inside the case -- helps to know when to install more fans, etc.

The bottom line? I'm exchanging my M7NCDP for an AN35N Ultra (on order, should arrive early next week). I hope it's as good or better otherwise (the Biostar has performed well -- can't complain in that area).
Click to expand...

I agree with his sentiments exactly, and I will be purchasing the Shuttle over the Biostar. You might also want to consider the Shuttle AN35L: http://www.amdforums.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=243711

Good luck!
 
For the reasons of better documentation and not having to worry about the rebate I bought an AN35 too. However I can only find BIOS downloads on Shuttle support website .
 
I got the Biosar. For the rebate. Manual is skimpy, but not for me - it was perfect - but only "if" you are very experienced. I had a good sound card anyway, so SPDIF was not an issue. Most people buy these board already having, or ordering a better sound solution. I had an Audigy2. Unless you run 98, or older, you don't need CD in for audio on your motherboard, in XP, the signal is decoded through the PCI bus. I always have great case cooling - never marginal, so CPU temp only was ok, perfect for me. 12v connecor would have been nice 🙂 I agree with that one, especially for overclocking. I run all fans off of a really good PSU, which is the way it should really be done, so mobo connectors are empty for me. The Biostar is every bit as fast, actually marginally faster. It beat out the Asus deluxe, and Abit Nf7-S in "stock speeds. It beat out the shuttle AN35 by a fair magin also. We all know that the Abit, and DFI lan party are the fastest when overclocking though 😉

So, the lack og 12v is noted, but for "me" not needed. I get 2.3 Ghz just fine. But I think snow has some really good points, "if" you actually are going to use the onboard sound, and the SPDIF, then get the shuttle. Also, if you are a newer builder, and need a better manual, get the shuttle. But for pure raw speed, right next to the Abit, get the Biostar, if you are more advanced and don't need a great manual, and raid (although I have rocket raid card). Both are fantastic boards for the money.
 
FYI.

I was just poking around the Application CD that came with my M7NCD Pro board and noticed that the Norton Ghost IS NOT the 2003 version as was advertised and is shown on the CD face. The file date of 10/29/2001 was what got me curious. I really didn't think Ghost 2003 would have a file date in the year 2001.

I copied the file to a bootable floppy and rebooted. At the DOS prompt I ran Ghost and low and behold it tells me that it is:

Symantic Ghost 7.0 Enterprise

Now I knew that we were getting an OEM version, which is what the Enterprise version is, but 7.0 is the old pre-2003 version that DOES NOT support XP's NTFS!

What a rip-off.

BTW, other than this Ghost problem, I really like the board.
 
I purchased one from newegg as a refurb for $41.00 and I also purchased a Slk-900a from svc.com for $25.00 shipped for the 2500 barton I used in the board and it pretty good. While it doesnt have soundstorm, firewire and sata it was a good deal.

Specs:
2500 Barton AQXEA 0331 RPMW 210X11 3200+ stock timings,1.7 vcore,2.8 vmem
512 MB OCZ PC-3200 DDR Performance Series Rev. 2
Biostar M7NCD Pro Rev1.1 Bios 1007
Thermalright Slk-900A W/coolermaster80mm variable speed fan
Nothbridge Chipset h/s/f
PNY Ti-4400 128MB AGP
Channel Well,CWT-420ATX-12V 420w p/s
Artec WR-4848 CD/RW
Sansung DVD-612 DVD-ROM
Maxtor 31024H1 10GB 5400rpm HDD (os)
Samsung SV-2044D 20GB 5400rpm HDD (data)
Well modded generic case
Floppy disk drive
Nec 17" Multisync Monitor
Microsoft Optical Cordless mouse
Logitec Optical Mouse (Gameing)
4 Case fans Antec-blue led
Okidata Okipage 4W LaserPrinter
LexMark Z32 Inkjet printer
Altec ASC-95 speakers
Cambridge Soundworks Subbie
Windows XP Professional SP1
Woods High performance Series Surge Suppressor
Apc Back-ups 280B UPs
Adelphia Cable 3Mbit d/l, 256 u/l
 
I built a system based on the Biostar M7NCD PRO for my father and had good luck w/ it, I'm running a tbred-b 1700+ @ 1.7ghz w/ a 200mhz fsb, and an SVC GC68 I built the whole system on the cheap, it's using an Antec Sonata and a Gig of Corsair PC3200 Value Select DDR, it's been running fine and silent for around 8 months. I was supprised at how good the overclocking features of the Biostar board were given how cheap it was.
 
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