Making tough decision.... help me pick. (NFORCE2)

[CraigRT]

I wanted the 8RDA+. Not going to happen.

my choices are between the NF7-S --> $220
and the A7N8X deluxe --> $240

which would you get?
I am leaning a bit towards the Abit surprisinly just because I want to stick to other brands than Asus. but if its really that good. I can get it. they are stocked at a local store. Abit will take a day or 2 to order to the store.

whats your thoughts? they both look good to me.

plan on using onboard sound, a single LAN port, other features not so important.
looking for an enthusiast mobo.. O/C champ, fast, stable.

thanks alot everyone.

 

[mechBgon]

What happened to your 8RDA+ order?

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: mechBgon
What happened to your 8RDA+ order?

I just found out today, Jan 2nd, after placing the order on the 23rd of December, that they are on backorder. isn't that nice..

so i said screw this... that's too long.. and i paid for express shipping..
the guy at Vibe said THEY might get them by the 6th of January which means what, another 10 days for me.. too much.
plus, i can get these other 2 locally and save close to $20 or 30 in shipping.

heh. sorry MechBgon, i wanted the 8RDA+ too. but it's becoming a huge hassle.. so it's NF7-S or A7N8X deluxe.

 

[ChampionAtTufshop]

i would get a7n8x
i always liked asus boards
its also pretty good too

 

[mechBgon]

Bummer, Yield!

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: mechBgon
Bummer, Yield!

what's more of a bummer is you've still given me no insight MechBgon... lol!!

just kidding dude.. but do you have any say here? (between my 2 choices.)

 

[mechBgon]

Is this a bad time to mention that we got our A7N8X-Deluxe in today? Runs pretty snappy. Now if I could only have talked them into bumping it up to Ultra160 SCSI, we'd be cookin' with gas...

My traditional bias against Abit is due to their reputation for poor customer service, charging $25 for RMA's when the customer can't provide a receipt, etc. Seeing the treatment Evan got (meaning, no reply) when he emailed Asus tech-support department, maybe Asus is just as bad. I never heard back from Asus on my fairly major bug report regarding the A7V333-RAID, either. Still, the Asus boards at work seem to be holding up well, so what do you do...

In that regard, I'd almost say "wait for the EPoX to be in stock again!" They seem to take their customers pretty seriously, from what I hear (they answer their email anyway).

 

[CraigRT]

Good advice. and I agree about EACH company having poor service when it comes to RMA.
so I can't base on that. I will be going through a store anyways, they will deal with the front end, not me.

I'd like to try the NF7 because more people have the freakin Asus..

I want something a bit different, I like to try a different brand each time I build up my own computer at home.


thanks alot.

 

[bgeh]

i'd go with the abit NF7-S

 

[nick1985]

my asus a7n83 was 125, i have no idea where your shopping, but i would suggest newegg.com

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: nick1985
my asus a7n83 was 125, i have no idea where your shopping, but i would suggest newegg.com

I am in Canada.
I can't order from newegg.

 

[RideFree]

Yield,

I am in Canada.

Other than that, why can't you order from Newegg? I thought there was free trade?
What about other dealers listed in Pricewatch

We seem to like all the GM cars you build.

Besides, we went from Niagara Falls (the long way) up around the Great Lakes this last summer and came back in through Sault Saint Marie. (Did I spell that right?)
You are blessed to live in such a magnificent place as Canada.

PS Like you, I am waiting for the definitive answer on the current crop of nForce2 boards.

 

[chizow]

I was 2 clicks away with going with the NF7-S. Its about $10-15 US cheaper than the Asus with most of the same features (no dual LAN, not as many USB headers, backplate outputs aren't as all-inclusive). Also included 1 Serillel SATA to IDE adapter.

The ONLY thing that stopped me was the reports that not all of the NF7-S had the 4 mounting brackets for heatsinks like my 8045 and Swiftech MC462's. Supposedly future revisions have the mounting holes, but I needed to have my rig up and running by X-mas so I could swap out my board and give it to my bro.

Chiz

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: RideFree
Yield,

I am in Canada.

Other than that, why can't you order from Newegg? I thought there was free trade?
What about other dealers listed in Pricewatch

We seem to like all the GM cars you build.

Besides, we went from Niagara Falls (the long way) up around the Great Lakes this last summer and came back in through Sault Saint Marie. (Did I spell that right?)
You are blessed to live in such a magnificent place as Canada.

PS Like you, I am waiting for the definitive answer on the current crop of nForce2 boards.

They won't accept a Canadian credit card.
I really have NO OPTION of ordering from them, besides that, the brokerage is absolutely astronomical.
last thing I will ever order from the states cost me $77 in brokerage alone, and another $20 in shipping.
$100 to get a 4lb package from the US to Southern Ontario.

KISS MY ARSE.

and yes, you did still Sault right.. strange spelling!
I love Canada, glad to hear you do too!

 

[CraigRT]

chiz, mounting holes are not too big of a deal, as I refuse to let go of my CoolerMaster HHC-001

but good consideration!
I'm still undecided.

 

[NicColt]

>the brokerage is absolutely astronomical

When buying from the U.S. always use UPS Worldwide Expedited it's a door-to-door and customs-cleared service available to major trading countries like Canada and you get your package in 3 to 5 business days, they don't hold it up in customs.

For example a 2x2x2 5 Lb box is $57 USD and that includes shipping and Brokerage fees. Once you pay that, that's it you get your package and nothing to pay.

Never let US Mail deliver packages to Canada for goodness sakes.

 

[bigpig]

I have a friend with the NF7-S and is having nothing but problems with it. Another friend has the Epox and likes it but mine still stomps them both and we all have the same hardware except the mobo.

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: NicColt
>the brokerage is absolutely astronomical

When buying from the U.S. always use UPS Worldwide Expedited it's a door-to-door and customs-cleared service available to major trading countries like Canada and you get your package in 3 to 5 business days, they don't hold it up in customs.

For example a 2x2x2 5 Lb box is $57 USD and that includes shipping and Brokerage fees. Once you pay that, that's it you get your package and nothing to pay.

Never let US Mail deliver packages to Canada for goodness sakes.

I have used UPS, and $57 USD sounds about right.
that's awful man.
some people spend that on a CPU alone. and I gotta spend it on shipping... just NOT worth it.

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: bigpig
I have a friend with the NF7-S and is having nothing but problems with it. Another friend has the Epox and likes it but mine still stomps them both and we all have the same hardware except the mobo.

and what is it that you have?

 

[neovan]

I was planning to get the Epox 8RDA+ but TCWO was on backordered and never left me any kind of email to tell me so I had to call them to find out that they would be in stock until mid to late January. I could not wait so I cancelled the order and went to Newegg and ordered myself a A7N8X (non-deluxe). I've always had great results with Asus so I know that they can be counted on. But then again I've also had success with Abit. I'm sure either way you go, both will be winners.

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: neovan
I was planning to get the Epox 8RDA+ but TCWO was on backordered and never left me any kind of email to tell me so I had to call them to find out that they would be in stock until mid to late January. I could not wait so I cancelled the order and went to Newegg and ordered myself a A7N8X (non-deluxe). I've always had great results with Asus so I know that they can be counted on. But then again I've also had success with Abit. I'm sure either way you go, both will be winners.

Very nice. At this point I am considering waiting for a bit, because my HyperZ Kingston memory will be in, in a few weeks. I might just upgrade then, because I only have a single 512MB DIMM right now, and I wanna run dual channel right outta the box..

I'm gonna wait and see if for some reason we see more NForce2 boards in the next little while.
looking at offerings from Gigabyte and Soltek if possible.

 

[Vermonter]

I was going to get the Chaintech originally, partly because of all the extra junk they include in the package and also because I liked the black PCB. But the Chaintech doesn't have the SoundStorm feature (from what I've read) and only has one LAN port. The Asus Deluxe is the only one I've been able to find that provides two LAN ports, so that's the one I ended up ordering. Plus, the Asus seems to do well in all the benchmarks in a lot of the reviews I've read. I read the HardOCP review of the Abit board, and they weren't entirely impressed with it, so I stuck with Asus. We'll see if it was worth it ... it should arrive here on Monday.

 

[NicColt]

>some people spend that on a CPU alone. and I gotta spend it on shipping... just NOT worth it

I understand but try finding Enermax adjustable fans in Canada for example. Then again with the gouging that computer stores make in canada it comes up to nearly the same. I don't do it often but when I want something specific I'll do it.