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ok - REALLY have to pick a motherboard about now, lol

T

TheNewGuy8

Senior member
So if you've seen any of my recent threads, I've got my system basically figured out - its just the mobo that is giving me problems.

here's what I'll be getting:

Opty 165
2gb G.Skill DDR500 (or similar DDR500 ram)
X1900XT
P180
Scythe Ninja (i think) with nexus or akasa fan?

So I'll have damn good airflow assuming it all works. And assuming I don't get a dud Opty165, I'd like to get a good OC out of it.

Now - I obviously won't be using SLI since I'm getting an ATI card, so I'm hesitant to get an SLI board since you pay alot more for them.

I also would prefer to have a passively cooled board (or the ability to put a passive HS on it like this). But, of course, the chipset still needs to be cool enough that it won't hinder my overclock, or obstruct the board.

by far, the 2 most popular boards around here seem to be the DFI Ultra-D and the Asus A8N32-SLI Deluxe. the DFI gets great OC reviews, but has a very noisy chipset fan, and I've read lots of finicky reports about it. either people praise this board or they curse it...so im not sure what to believe. The Asus board is by far the better in terms of features, it's the most future proof, is passively cooled, and has very good OC results. BUT it is SLI and is very expensive (between $200 and $220 depending on where you look).

Now I would say I want the board that will be most future compatibile...but since AM2 will be out by the end of this year, that seems a bit silly. However, I will probably be using this system for at least 2 years unless something dies, so that needs to be kept in mind.

I also know R580 is around the corner...but no one seems to know how FAR that corner is. My processor is already on the way, and I would like to order the rest of the parts as soon as I can so I can start building and then GAMING as soon as possible. But if the R580 is just going to be the best of the best then I'll wait. however I don't really see myself using Xfire, since it has been proven to not be economical in terms of future upgrade viability, so if the Asus A8N32SLI-Deluxe has a robust enough feature set that it won't pale in comparison to the R580 boards...then I might as well just get that, right?


So what do you all think? Thanks.
 
Originally posted by: TheNewGuy8
Mmmmk - maybe I should make one more clarificationi - please no "DFI RULEZ GO FOR IT MAN!" posts.

🙂 🙂 🙂
Click to expand...

Well... How much do you plan to overclock?
 
Originally posted by: TheNewGuy8
Mmmmk - maybe I should make one more clarificationi - please no "DFI RULEZ GO FOR IT MAN!" posts.

🙂 🙂 🙂
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's why I added that I'm picking it over the ASUS, coming from someone who's owned both.
 
Atybimf - what were your experiences with both? what causes your preference?

As for OC - I mean, as high as I can get it on reasononable air (i still like a quiet system, so i dont want to raise voltage TOO much). I'd be ecstatic with 2.6-2.7
 
EPOX is a great alternative to DFI, very popular at least in britain, most retailers were out of stock when i went to order mine.

Get the EPOX 9NPA+, it also comes in SLI flavour.
 
Originally posted by: TheNewGuy8
Atybimf - what were your experiences with both? what causes your preference?

As for OC - I mean, as high as I can get it on reasononable air (i still like a quiet system, so i dont want to raise voltage TOO much). I'd be ecstatic with 2.6-2.7
Click to expand...
With the ASUS, I had problems with fluctuations in voltage. It was a feature rich board, but I didn't get they same sorta OC'ing results I get with the DFI. I just thoguht the DFI was much easier to work with.

 
Go With Asus, I had Corrupted files, failing to boot, voltage fluctuations, and tons of other problems with my DFI board. Go with the ASUS. Wait a minute, didn't I already tell you this? 😉
 
Although, I will be honest, DFI isn't for noobs. But sh!t, I'm 13 and I did alright! (see sig 😉)
 
Lol Crescent, yes you did 🙂

But see here's an example of the problem - atybimf saying voltage problems on Asus go DFI, Crescent saying voltage problem on DFI go Asus!! What is a boy to do?

I don't suppose we could set up a cage match, have you two duke it out and then I'll pick based on the winner?
 
epox 9NPA+, Asus A8N32 Sli-Deluxe, DFI Lanparty Ultra-D..

I don't suppose anyone knows of any benchmarks that pit these against each other, do you?
 
Originally posted by: TheNewGuy8
epox 9NPA+, Asus A8N32 Sli-Deluxe, DFI Lanparty Ultra-D..

I don't suppose anyone knows of any benchmarks that pit these against each other, do you?
Click to expand...

It is pointless to pit those boards against each other in benchmarks since they essentially uses the same chipset...Any performance difference will be so slight that it is considered negligible.
 
Originally posted by: TheNewGuy8
epox 9NPA+, Asus A8N32 Sli-Deluxe, DFI Lanparty Ultra-D..

I don't suppose anyone knows of any benchmarks that pit these against each other, do you?
Click to expand...

Anandtech gave the DFI Lanparty their gold choice award or something. I'll be honest with you, this is your rig, and I don't give a hoot if you choose the ASUS over the DFI (I'd choose ASUS second behind DFI myself) but I think you will be happier in the long run with the DFI. I bought the ASUS because I thought I'd like it, but came to found out it was a waste of money compared to the Lanparty. Hope that helps, I'm done.
 
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