comments suggestings on the Gigabyte GA-K8NF-9 motherboard

[phoenixmatt]

just got this board with my new gaming rig, i probably wanna do alittle overclocking. just wanna make sure i made a good decision. i know the ultra version is coming out in acouple weeks or whatnot but is it a big deal performance wise?

 

[ChineseDemocracyGNR]

Performance is the same, you're only missing a few features that are irrelevant to most people.

 

[tmchow]

Originally posted by: ChineseDemocracyGNR
Performance is the same, you're only missing a few features that are irrelevant to most people.

Nforce4 Ultra gives you 3Gb/s SATA (vs. 1.5Gb/s) and the "Secure Networking Engine" which is basically a bunch of packet filtering and firewall capabilities on chip vs. a software-based approach -- this should save some CPU cycles, but it's arguable as to how much this matters.

 

[gobucks]

as for overclocking, i'm not sure it's the best platform to go with. Nvidia said that non-ultra boards wouldn't have any overclocking tools, so that might make things difficult unless gigabyte decided to change that. Also, the non-ultras use the older, problematic A1 and A2 silicons rather than the A3 that the ultras and SLIs use. This means they have problems running at 1GHz HTT, and likely don't handle overclocking well.

On the other hand, i just ordered a Chaintech VNF4/Ultra for $119 from newegg, cheaper than the gigabyte non-ultra, and with all the nice features of the NF4 chipset like SATA-II, activearmor firewall, overclocking tools, etc.

I do, however, really like gigabyte's high end boards, the K8NXP-9 and K8NXP-SLI, but they are scarce and very expensive at the moment, and it doesn't seem that it will change soon. The Ultra board is just as expensive as the Asus SLI board at $250. And since it's a 8-Sigma series, it'll likely be quite pricey for a while (the K8NXP-939 Nforce3 Ultra board has been out for a while, and it's still like $185).

 

[ChineseDemocracyGNR]

The nForce4 chipset has no problem at all with overclocking! The Gigabyte nForce4-4X has the same overclocking options as their other nForce4 boards - and user feedback here shows it overclocks just fine.

nVidia never said the chipset has no overclocking tools - on the contrary; their overclocking software supports the entire nForce4 family.

The 800MHz HTT doesn't hurt performance at all:
http://www.madshrimps.be/?acti...ge=975&articID=250
"the nForce3 chipset even runs a bit slower at 5x HTT."

 

[phoenixmatt]

word, thanks for the input guys. now i just wait like forever for this system to get here. until then ill be playing hl2 on my laptop :-/

 

[gobucks]

my point regarding the HTT was simply that if there is a defect preventing the A1 and A2 siliicon chipsets from running at 1GHz with 5X, then it might not be able to hit 1GHz with 4X (250FSB) either. I could totally be wrong, but i just can't see why such a major flaw in the revision would affect only the multiplier and not the FSB flexibility and/or total HTT speed.

As for overclocking tools, i know i read it somewhere that nvidia had made the vanilla NF4 overclocking locked. This could be untrue, or it could just be what nvidia recommends to mobo makers due to the problems it had with the A1 and A2 silicon, while the mobo makers themselves are free to allow whatever options they choose. The latter makes sense, so i'm guessing that's what happened. Either way, it's good to see that they aren't locked, i just don't wanna hold my breath on getting any sweet overclocks with a non-ultra.

 

[Dethfrumbelo]

The SLI version has shown up in retail. I found one place selling it for a modest $259 *cough*. And I though ASUS was overpriced...

I hate these bastards.

 

[ChineseDemocracyGNR]

Originally posted by: gobucks
my point regarding the HTT was simply that if there is a defect preventing the A1 and A2 siliicon chipsets from running at 1GHz with 5X, then it might not be able to hit 1GHz with 4X (250FSB) either. I could totally be wrong, but i just can't see why such a major flaw in the revision would affect only the multiplier and not the FSB flexibility and/or total HTT speed.

The maximum HTT supported by the chipset doesn't affect overclocking. The DFI LANPARTY UT nF3 250Gb also uses a chipset that tops out at 800MHz and people reach very "FSB" values on that board (300+). As long as you use the appropriate HTT multiplier to keep the HTT under 800MHz this chipset limitation doesn't hurt overclocking at all.

Originally posted by: gobucks
As for overclocking tools, i know i read it somewhere that nvidia had made the vanilla NF4 overclocking locked. This could be untrue, or it could just be what nvidia recommends to mobo makers due to the problems it had with the A1 and A2 silicon, while the mobo makers themselves are free to allow whatever options they choose. The latter makes sense, so i'm guessing that's what happened. Either way, it's good to see that they aren't locked, i just don't wanna hold my breath on getting any sweet overclocks with a non-ultra.

Well, the nForce4-4x boards are here and they're not locked, so whatever you read was incorrect. It is possible that the A02 revision is not nVidia's best work and may limit somewhat, but I wouldn't expect much from the A03 revision either. If you truly want very high overclocks you'll stick with a tried and approved board (like the DFI nF3) until better BIOSes/revisions of the nF4 come out. If you're someone who wants a mild overclock like 250MHz "FSB" then either version of the chipset (nForce4-4x and Ultra/SLI) will work.

It's not possible to tell if the Ultra/SLI are better overclockers right now because the boards are not in the hands of a considerable number of people yet. Everything is just speculation so far. What we know for a fact is that the nForce4-4X doesn't have an "overclock lock".

Cheers,
GNR.

 

[elevonic]

hi,can this board take a 'normal' atx power supply,ie an enermax eg365? i noticed it has a 24 pin socket, and another 4 pin power socket marked atx 12v. thanks

 

[rv8abuilder]

hi,can this board take a 'normal' atx power supply,ie an enermax eg365? i noticed it has a 24 pin socket, and another 4 pin power socket marked atx 12v. thanks

I have this board - there is a 4 pin "dummy" plug at one end of the 24pin socket so you can use a 20 pin connector and leave the plug there or remove the plug and use a 24 pin. I'm using it with a 20 pin PSU and it is working fine. I am currently running it with a 3000+ at 266FSB (2.4Ghz) but I had to put the HTT at 3X to keep it at 800Mhz otherwise it was not stable. My memory (Corsair Twinx PC3200C2PT) also did not seem to like to be overclocked much, even at looser timings, so I have it running at 133/200 but was able to tighten up the timings to 2-2-2-5. I have Vcore at 1.475, and Vdimm 2.8. With this configuration, it has been Prime95 stable for 24hrs.

 

[elevonic]

Thanks for the reply. Do you also use the seperate 4 pin socket marked ATX 12v? The info from Gigabyte seems to suggest this powers the cpu.

 

[rv8abuilder]

Thanks for the reply. Do you also use the seperate 4 pin socket marked ATX 12v? The info from Gigabyte seems to suggest this powers the cpu.

Yes. In addition to the 20/24 pin connector you need to use the square 4 Pin ATX_12V connector.

 

[anonhart]

Originally posted by: rv8abuilder

hi,can this board take a 'normal' atx power supply,ie an enermax eg365? i noticed it has a 24 pin socket, and another 4 pin power socket marked atx 12v. thanks

I have this board - there is a 4 pin "dummy" plug at one end of the 24pin socket so you can use a 20 pin connector and leave the plug there or remove the plug and use a 24 pin. I'm using it with a 20 pin PSU and it is working fine. I am currently running it with a 3000+ at 266FSB (2.4Ghz) but I had to put the HTT at 3X to keep it at 800Mhz otherwise it was not stable. My memory (Corsair Twinx PC3200C2PT) also did not seem to like to be overclocked much, even at looser timings, so I have it running at 133/200 but was able to tighten up the timings to 2-2-2-5. I have Vcore at 1.475, and Vdimm 2.8. With this configuration, it has been Prime95 stable for 24hrs.

rv8builder, which application are you using to OC, and get the HTT down to 3x? I have this board and cannot get easytune to load. I also have tried Ntune but my optons have been limited with it.

Thanks

 

[rv8abuilder]

I'm doing all my overclocking in the BIOS. After getting into the BIOS screen, press <CTRL><F1> to get the advanced options. Then you can change HTT mulitplier, memory divider setting, and RAM timings. I was not able to run easytune either. I ran Ntune's "auto-tune" and it didn't seem to change anything!?

 

[anonhart]

Originally posted by: rv8abuilder
I'm doing all my overclocking in the BIOS. After getting into the BIOS screen, press <CTRL><F1> to get the advanced options. Then you can change HTT mulitplier, memory divider setting, and RAM timings. I was not able to run easytune either. I ran Ntune's "auto-tune" and it didn't seem to change anything!?

Still a bit new to this, so I didn't know about the <CTRL> <F1>. But, I tried it and it worked like a charm... I'm going to start tweaking my system now. Thanks for the tip!

 

[jterrell]

Originally posted by: rv8abuilder

hi,can this board take a 'normal' atx power supply,ie an enermax eg365? i noticed it has a 24 pin socket, and another 4 pin power socket marked atx 12v. thanks

I have this board - there is a 4 pin "dummy" plug at one end of the 24pin socket so you can use a 20 pin connector and leave the plug there or remove the plug and use a 24 pin. I'm using it with a 20 pin PSU and it is working fine. I am currently running it with a 3000+ at 266FSB (2.4Ghz) but I had to put the HTT at 3X to keep it at 800Mhz otherwise it was not stable. My memory (Corsair Twinx PC3200C2PT) also did not seem to like to be overclocked much, even at looser timings, so I have it running at 133/200 but was able to tighten up the timings to 2-2-2-5. I have Vcore at 1.475, and Vdimm 2.8. With this configuration, it has been Prime95 stable for 24hrs.

Thanks for the info. Excellent post which will help users who have bought this board.

 

[FabioTTT]

Originally posted by: anonhart

Originally posted by: rv8abuilder
I'm doing all my overclocking in the BIOS. After getting into the BIOS screen, press <CTRL><F1> to get the advanced options. Then you can change HTT mulitplier, memory divider setting, and RAM timings. I was not able to run easytune either. I ran Ntune's "auto-tune" and it didn't seem to change anything!?

Still a bit new to this, so I didn't know about the <CTRL> <F1>. But, I tried it and it worked like a charm... I'm going to start tweaking my system now. Thanks for the tip!

I have this board too. I have tried to press CTRL F1 but within the bios, all that does for me is bring up the help menu since it says down below to hit F1 for general help. Could you guys please tell me what bios version youre running.. and what revision of this board you have. This is actually done int he bios settings screen correct? I cant get it to work for me.