NF7-S Ques from an AMD Noob

[ParatoOptimal]

I'm looking to buy an AMD Mobile Athlon to OC.

Is the NF7-S preferable to the NF7-M?

Will I get better sound than I'm used to with my Creative Labs Live! Platinum?
Will I get better video than I'm used to with my PNY 64MB TNT (maybe TNT2) PCI card?

What memory should I get?

What should my cooling solution be?

Newegg just went up a dollar on the 2400+.
They're out of the 2600+.

Will I be able to get the 2.5GHz I've found fellow AT-ers getting with Newegg's current versions of the Athlon Mobiles?

Thanks

 

[myocardia]

No, you don't want to get an NF7-M, if you're wanting to overclock, you want the NF7-S. Newegg has plenty of really good deals on video cards, though. They have a 128MB MSI GF5200 for ~$69, which is about 5x as fast as a PCI TNT2, if not faster. And you probably won't get 2.5ghz with anything but an XP-M 2600, though you've got a decent shot at it if you get the XP-M 2500, though it may require quite a bit more voltage. Overclocking is never guaranteed, but the mobile Bartons are the closest you're going to come to a guaranteed OC. If you get at least a 2500, you will definitely hit at least 2.4ghz, which is still fast as hell, I assure you. For cooling a chip that's running that fast, this is the heatsink that I would recommend, it's not the cheapest, but it's an awesome heatsink, and it comes with an awesome fan: link. Good luck.

edit: I forgot the ram. This is the ram that I just bought for my system: link. It's got Winbond CH-6 chips on it, that are supposed to run at 2-3-3-11 timings up to ~220fsb, or higher with more voltage.

 

[Zebo]

Get the shuttle MN31N for $80 if you want onboard video... Pretty decent if you ask me and much faster than tnt2. Also comes with all the OC options you need and soundstorm audio.

 

[ParatoOptimal]

Thanks for the great info myocardia and zebo.

I want to grab a 2600+ at Newegg as soon as they get more.

I've read that there are only 2 mobo's that allow over 12.5.
The NF7-S is one and I think the other is an Asus.
I read one post that claimed that the latest NF7-S doesn't OC as well or as easily as those available a month or more ago.
I've heard good things about DFI and others swear by Shuttle.

I don't really understand memory timings yet.
I understand that I should run the RAM synchronously with the prossy FSB.

I'd like to get the mobo, procy and RAM all at once.
So, I can test it out before any return/exchange dates pass.
I can only aford 512 RAM at most up front.

I've read others saying that you have to get certain memory to OC.
They usually come with heatsinks.

Thanks

 

[Gamingphreek]

Heres what you do..
Take that TNT 2 and throw it out the window.. (Try to sell it lol) Then buy a decent video card. I would recommend a Geforce 4 ti 4200 AGP 8x over the 5200. 5200 is crap cant run anything. But never the less anything is better than what you have.

Next i would choose between the Asus A7N8X-E deluxe and the NF7-S. The Asus is probably a bit better... but i think the NF7-S is a little better at Ocing. However at these speeds what is 1 or 2 FPS.

Get a mobile 2500+ barton... probably the best OCing chip out there unless you want to venture into INtel territory. 2500+ Mobile will do more than enough dont pay the extra money for the 2600+ its not worth it.

Stock HSF will do fine just make sure you have a decent case airflow. 2 Case fans 4 if your case supports it.

Dont buy the creative card unless its an Audigy 2. The Nvidia Soundstorm is better than the Live and Audigy 1 (my opinion tho). Also Creative and Nvidia have some major issues espescially in IRQ sharing so i would stay away from anythign except and Audigy 2 there.

For memory get some low latency DDR 400 memory. Try to stick with either Corsair, OCZ, Mushkin, and Geil. If none of those then the last choice is Kingston hyper X. (dont get me wrong all of these are fast memroy chips but Kingston doesn't really do the best in OCing or speed.

As for that HSF that is good if you dont mind noise cause it sounds like a jet engine taking off when it speeds up (no joke). Id stick with a HS from Thermalright and buy a seperate fan. But stock should do OK... Just make sure you have really good case cooling

Good Luck
-Kevin

 

[myocardia]

Xplaya, he's not wanting to run his mobile Barton at 2.2ghz like you are (btw, 11x200 with any Barton is the equivalent of an XP3200, not an XP3000). He's wanting to run at 2.4ghz or more, and AMD has never made a stock heatsink that will keep a Barton cool at 2.4-2.5ghz. That Thermaltake Volcano 12 is a good enough heatsink that he should be able to keep a 2.4-2.5ghz Barton cool enough, without running the fan full speed. The better the heatsink, the less fan needed (within reason, of course). The Thermalrights are the best heatsinks made, but at over $50 for one of the cheaper ones, including the cost of a decent fan for it, they aren't required. A TT Volcano 12 would do just fine, and save him at least $15. When you're aircooling a chip that's running that fast, you aren't going to be able to have a silent system, period. I agree with you that Corsair XMS or Mushkin Level I are the two best memories available, but OCZ doesn't overclock very far, and almost everyone who has bought Geil for an NF7(including the S) have had problems getting it over 185fsb, though it runs fine on either an Asus A7N8X-Del. or an Epox 8RDA3+. One last thing, yes, the newest NF7-S's are having trouble getting very far past 200fsb, but so are the newest A7N8X's. Oh, and don't forget that you'll never run any Barton at 2.4-2.5ghz without having a power supply with a very strong 5V rail, preferably the Antec TruePower 430, the best deal in psu's right now.

 

[magratton]

Yes, I admit, that I am finding that more than 210 fsb is unstable on my NF7-s. Thinking about FS/FT and getting a DFI Ultra Infinity instead.

 

[Gamingphreek]

Still I wouldn't get a thermaltake. IT is incredibly noisy. like what 55db at full speed... THats is LOUD. I would buy a HS seperate from a fan... tharemal right witha a panaflo fan. But i think stock CPU cooler should do OK with proper case ventilation. Im already at 2.2...ok... and mine is at a HOT 60C (were not using A/C) another 200 mhz will increase it to a max of what 70. 85C is max. It would probably be a good idea to get a better one but you can run it safely.
Also im not using a mobile so it should run cooler because of the lower voltages.
Good Luck
-Kevin

 

[magratton]

Problem is Mobile's dont have a "Stock" heatsink. Only the retail Desktops do. Thermalright is the Cadillac solution. Others will do a fine job for less money. No matter what on a hot day (assuming no AC) you will HAVE to slow your system down. My Thermalright SLKK947U with a Vantec Tornado 92mm running on a full 12v could not keep my system cool when the temps were up just recently. Ever run a Volkswagon Beetle (sold school one!) with air cooling on a hot day and you know what I mean. If you dont mind spending some money, get the Thermalright and keep your system coolest (for air). If you want to save some cash, get the Thermaltake Extreme Volcano as myocarida recommended.

 

[ParatoOptimal]

Thanks to all for the great info.

Since it's the 21'st already, I'm going to wait until the end of the month to see if there's a CPU price drop at the end of the month.

I'm still a little confused if I should get the
NF7-S or
the DFI LANParty NFII Ultra B (rev B) or
the A7N8X-Deluxe

Myocardia, what does the A7N8X-Deluxe do for me that the NF7-S wont do?

Someone mentioned going with Intel. Would that be cheaper/better?

I started out looking to upgrade the P3-500 on my Asus CUSL2 mobo.
I was advised to buy a $20 adapter and buy a $20 tualatin FCPGA2 1.13GHz.
Then I was advised to go the XP-M route.

I'm looking for the best bang/buck to get me up to date.
I've yet to know the wonders of the GHz realm.

I wanted a $40-$100 solution.
Then I thought I could strip down my case and start over with XP-M for $200.
That seems to be more like $300-$350 if not more now for
NF7-S or other
XP-M
512MB RAM
HS & Fan

I'll need a new video card if not onboard and another 512MB RAM in the future when money isn't so tight.

I thought 2.5 was the preferred push on these XP-M's.
If something less than that is preferable, safe, and FAST, that's ok.
I just don't want to spend my last bucks on something that is out-classed again in 2-months or find myself kicking myself because I could have built twice the machine for the same price in a month or two. I know new products come out every 6-months. I used to be in the high-tech biz. I was layed off. I just want to make a good decision.

I'll probably keep my P3-500 and mobo as a back-up until a new XP-M sys proves itself stable and then give the old P2 to my brother.

I'll probably be doing complete new installs on my current HD's of all OS's.
I run several on various partitions for testing and apps/games that may not work on XPu.

I appreciate all your help.

 

[Gamingphreek]

Aight the heres the info:

The asus and abit generally have the same features... I believe the Asus is a bit fast and they both OC about the same. It really comes down to personal preference and price. One thing the asus has (dunno if youll use) is a WIfi LAN slot. Also the Asus has a dual LAN and one of those is a Gigabit LAN.

Right now the 2500XP-M is the best CPU it seems for you. I would keep it around 3200+ speeds as that is plenty fast for most of todays stuff. My advice is dont OC the processor to 2.5GHZ unless it is ABSOLUTELY necessary.

For a fan use the stock fan unless your going for some agressive OCing.

For the RAM try to stay away from value RAM. Also a lot of Nfiorce boards dont agree with KingstonHyper X but any other high performance RAM should be fine.

Estimated Price=
Asus A7n8X-E Deluxe $106

Mobile Athlon XP 2500+ $75

Memory ~$90

HSF (If upgrade needed)>$10


Cases are generally around $70... $85 shipped. So get a good coolermaster or Chieftec ro Antec etc... For video card just wait as the new line is comin'

Good Luck
-Kevin

 

[ParatoOptimal]

Thanks Xplaya.

I'm going to wait until the end of the month to buy.
I'll check Pricewatch.

Right now I'm leaning towards newegg or mwave.

What I've found so far is
$ 93 => NF7-S
$126 => A7N8X-E Deluxe
$ 78 => XP-M 2400+
$ 92 => XP-M 2500+
$ 98 => XP-M 2600+
@$150 => 512MB RAM
$8 - $53 for HS and/or Fan

I hope to slide by with my current cheap CUSA case & PS.

I don't know if I should put some HS on the MOBO chipset.

I want to play Halo, BF 1942, BF: Vietnam and get WC3, G&C & Zero Hour.

I hope to stumble across a sweet video card someday.
I hoped the MOBO would have nVidea onboard that wouldn't require a video card.
It seems that the sound on the MOBO is better than my current CL Live! platinum with IR 5.25 breakout bay.

 

[magratton]

I would narrow the mobo down to:
Abit NF7-S
DFI NFII Ultra Infinity

General wisdom has been saying that Asus is not as "good" of an overclocker (though of course you can overclock with it, just perhaps not as high).

For the RAM, dont get a 2x256 pack of ram. Get 1 x 512. This way you will be better set for future upgrading. Price is about the same and even sometimes cheaper.

Eventually you will want to upgrade the psu and case. If you do not plan overclocking far, then they are possibly okay. As for the video, you can always troll the for sale forum here and by yourself a Geforce TI 4200 128mb 8xAGP. That will suffice for some time to come. Additionally, $66 at newegg for a Radeon 9200 will also suffice for a little bit.

 

[Gamingphreek]

Asus OC's fine mine is doing awesome right now...
All three are excellent boards and all three will be good choices
Good Luck
-Kevin

 

[Renob]

I would go with the NF7-S it overclocks great, I got a mobil 2600 and turned it up to 12x200 at 1.52 volts

The Nvidia onboard sound Rocks. I say is sounds way better then my Audigy gamer.

I also have a 550wat enermax
Corsair Platinum DDR 433 PC3500 cas 2
ATI 9600pro