Epox 8K5a3+ or wait for nforce2?

[Ray78]

I am finally settling on what kind of system I want. Currently I am set on a 1600+ with a Thermalright AX7 and 512MB of Samsung PC2700. However, I can't seem to decide on a motherboard. Both have onboard LAN, decent onboard sound, and usb 2.0. AGP 8x doesn't seem to be that great of a feature to me. I can't forsee needing raid, and this computer won't ever have more than 1 hard drive installed, as I will eventually be setting up a separate linux file server for that.

Basically I am looking for the best system for games. Is the nforce2 still worth waiting for or should I just go with the Epox?

Also, are the Epox prices due to fall or is $130 a normal price for the 8k5a3? tia.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

I would go with the 8K5A3+ for 112$ from Mwave.com as the Nforce2 is being delayed again and is reported to have performance and stability issues that have resulted in several board makers submissions based on the chipset being rejected by AMD.

 

[RU482]

oh no, I was hoping nF2 boards would be out sooner

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: redly1
oh no, I was hoping nF2 boards would be out sooner

Same here! I actually hoped to be able to buy one weeks ago and that it would be way stable and overclockable plus offer a all-in-one I could use for customer builds that could still handle most games well.

 

[Ray78]

Nforce2 is being delayed again

Really? That sucks then. Do you mind me asking where you read this? Your the second person now I've seen mention this and I can't find this information anywhere.

Is everybody that was waiting for the nforce2 starting to give up hope like me?

 

[Insane3D]

The Epox 8K5A2+ is a excellent board for an excellent price, and I doubt the Nforce 2 will be much faster with the current Athlon core. It may have more theoretical bandwidth with the dual channel design, but the Athlon's FSB is not bandwidth starved, so throwing a ton of memory bandwidth at it results in diminishing gains. Just read a few reviews of the new KT400 boards....they are barely faster.

A 8K5A2+, 1600+ AGOIA/AROIA XP, and 512mb of PC2700 will cost under $300, and you can run the 1600+ @ 1.75ghz (2100+) and 166mhz FSB/Memory for a nice boost in performance with no effort at all. I just set up two systems built around the 8K5A2+, and one of my $50 1600+ chips is running 1.75ghz/166mhz FSB @ default vcore, and the other 1600+ is running 1.8ghz/172mhz FSB @ 1.80v. A $50 2100+/2200+ is a hard deal to beat!

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: Ray78

Nforce2 is being delayed again

Really? That sucks then. Do you mind me asking where you read this? Your the second person now I've seen mention this and I can't find this information anywhere.

Is everybody that was waiting for the nforce2 starting to give up hope like me?

The info was posted right here on the front page of Anandtech in the news section

 

[DevilsAdvocate]

Why go 8K5A over 8K3A? Is there that much of a difference?

 

[Ray78]

Originally posted by: DAPUNISHER
[
[The info was posted right here on the front page of Anandtech in the news section

Geez, all this time reading the front page and I didn't notice there was a news section.

 

[Ray78]

Originally posted by: DevilsAdvocate
Why go 8K5A over 8K3A? Is there that much of a difference?

The only thing obvious to me is the 8k5a has usb 2.0 support. Doesn't it also have the kt400 south bridge as well?

Edited for spelling and grammar

 

[DevilsAdvocate]

Yep... that is why there is USB 2 support. Are there any other competting reasons?

 

[sihostk]

I am in exact same situation. I have already ordered xp 1600, ax-7 and corsair xms because i saw prices slowly going up again. However, I can't use them all without a mobo.
I really like the 8k5a2+, from reviews seem like it's even more stable than 8k3a. However, what I'm really interested in is the 1/6 pci divider in nForce2 that everyone is talking about.
Let's see how long I can wait with all my other parts sitting here doing nothing...

 

[Blain]

Will the nForce2 boards allow users to adjust multiplier settings?

"I can't forsee needing raid, and this computer won't ever have more than 1 hard drive installed, as I will eventually be setting up a separate linux file server for that."
Sure, sure... that's the kind of thing we've all said at one time or another. NOW LOOK AT US!

Get the 8K5A3+ It will be like meeting a very hot athletic girl at a party, who's really attracted to you. You just KNOW what's going to happen later!
The above statement is only intended as an example, to express a sentiment. It does not accurately reflect your attractiveness to "very hot athletic girls"

 

[TimisoaraKill]

Originally posted by: Ray78
I am finally settling on what kind of system I want. Currently I am set on a 1600+ with a Thermalright AX7 and 512MB of Samsung PC2700. However, I can't seem to decide on a motherboard. Both have onboard LAN, decent onboard sound, and usb 2.0. AGP 8x doesn't seem to be that great of a feature to me. I can't forsee needing raid, and this computer won't ever have more than 1 hard drive installed, as I will eventually be setting up a separate linux file server for that.

Basically I am looking for the best system for games. Is the nforce2 still worth waiting for or should I just go with the Epox?

Also, are the Epox prices due to fall or is $130 a normal price for the 8k5a3? tia.

I am in the same position like you but look like this mobo is again delayed ,...i might join the dark side , after all for the games intel is better .

 

[RideFree]

we all know who the first win in Texans history was against

Hopefully, you meant Dallas! Yes! Go Texans!

Go to the Darkside

Sends a shiver of excitement up my back - what? you thought it was going somewhere else?

Yes, lots of the newer promised stuff looks great in the PR office but the KT400 looks rushed to market and the nForce2 could be too good to be true. Sigh.