which one is best?

[phill9700]

hi
i have just bought a epox 8RDA+ nforce 2 board, but was thinking i might buy a ABIT NF7-S Version 2.0 board, as it seems to be up there with the best as well..
what does anyone think? any particular preferences anyone might have?
which one is the best for overclocking? apparently the revision 2 of the abit board is meant to be a great board.. anyone got any ideas about getting one? i have always had one and from what i hear about the epox boards, it dont really make me feel to confident about using it with people saying its dieing!!!
anyway, any comments would be great..
thanks to all !
ps it will be using one of the nice and overclockable xp1700s that are on the throughbred b core.. its a year 3 and week 8 cpu.. im hoping it will go far and last for long..

[bigben2k]

Phil, you seem to sufer from a confidence issue, which we can all appreciate, but it would be nice if you could take some time to sort out the areas in which you have questions, and trying to combine it all in one post. (we're all here to help, no matter what way you go about it)

The Epox board (along with the Asus A7N8X) are so far, the best overclockers, but like all boards, each has its issues.

The NForce2 chipset is available in now three versions: A2, A3 and the latest: A1, aka C1.

The Asus is now available in revisions 1.04, 1.06 and 2.0. The latest has the C1 stepping NForce2 chipset. The latest Epox also uses the C1, in its latest rev, but I'm not clear if they are marked or identified in any way, so Epox just annouced the 8RDA3+, which officially supports the Barton core. That's the Barton core with a 200 FSB.

I believe that the Epox has been reported as being overclocked ever so slightly higher than the Asus A7N8X, on average. I know nothing about the ABIT board. The A2 and A3 chipsets have a reported average overclock in the range of (max) 185 FSB (but some people report being able to reach 200). The newest revisions can do 200 FSB, without any issues.

The Asus has limited voltage settings, but they are all within a very safe range, for overclocking. The Epox can overvolt a bit higher, but the latest ones will require a mod for one of the voltages, because the option has been summarily removed. Both boards have very flexible FSB settings.

The Epox and Asus boards come with radically different features. The Asus has the nice built-in sound, 2 net ports, etc... You really have to consider your usage here.

I think your CPU will do well. I'll probably pick one up too.

[Blackeagle]

As you already have a good solid performing board I'd say use it for a while and wait to buy a second one.

There is a further revisoin called the ultra of the chipset for the nForce 2 in the pipeline that will be out by June, I wouldn't spend any of my money if I were in your place until I'd seen what that offers.

In fact I'm waiting to see that same board along with the 400fsb Bartons before I buy.

BE

[KnightElite]

Abit > EPOS

[phill9700]

[quote]Originally posted by bigben2k
[b]Phil, you seem to sufer from a confidence issue, which we can all appreciate, but it would be nice if you could take some time to sort out the areas in which you have questions, and trying to combine it all in one post. (we're all here to help, no matter what way you go about it)

i know i have a confidence problem.. im blonde, blue eyed and sometimes, very stupid about what i do.. but sometimes, i just like a little reacurrance sometimes in what i do.. i prefer to hear other peoples ideas, thoughts on particular items as sometimes people come up with different ideas, rather than being the same as mine..
i am sorry, if i do repeat myself in anyway, but this is just me.. im like this away.. i like to make triply sure of what im doing, just so i feel safe and secure in what i will be doing..
its more for me or my gf.. i know i have the epox board, but im waiting to see what comes out of it and what happens with it when im overclocking this cpu i have still not yet tried out.. at the moment, i just cant aford it, its really very annoying.
like i have said, its more for, if the epox doesnt do well and then we'll see what the abit does sort of thing.. thats all its really for. i have just been reading that people are getting high scores and good speed from both boards, but also they are competiting with each other..
either way, also i would have a nforce 2 board either way i turn, makes life so much easier when handing down the stuff to my gf or my gf's son, like my 9700 pro for example..

sorry to waste anyones time, but thanks for the help

[airspirit]

The Abit is a hair better for overclocking, depending on what kind of settings you use. The difference, however, is negligable when compared to the EPoX. To upgrade from one to the other would be ... well ... not smart, to say the least, especially since they are practically the same board.

My beef with the Abit is that the socket is placed so high up that it makes it hard to attach heat sink fans. I had to cut the easy-release mechanism off of one today with a dremel to make it fit because the PSU is right above it. I like the layout of the EPoX much better.

[phill9700]

it will be a case of if i prefer one over the other then i will give the one im not madly keen on to my gf..
her and her son are like hand me down stuff for the new hardware i get, no matter what it is.. its like an upgrade program, but they dont know anything about it! plus its me who is paying for it so i dont think that they really care..
i have been a fan of abit ever since i first had my first decent pc.. (duron and geforce2 mx, was better than the k6 2 400 i had and the pentium 120 i had before that...) and with an epox i havent ever used one.. so it was something different to try.. i dont mind going out and getting the same thing from a different company, gives me opportunities to see what they offer and how the perform..
i guess you can say its all in the learning curve

[punish3r]

Since we're on the topic, I figured I'd mention the Chaintech 7NJS. I have had better luck (and an easier time) OC'ing this motherboard than anything else I have worked with as of late.
Then again, it does have one less PCI slot than the EP-8RDA+.
It is nice to see that after the incredibly lackluster performance of the original nForce chipset, the nForce 2 finally got it right. Anyway, my two cents...

[phill9700]

well i havent heard much about the chaintech board and i havent seen any or very many reviews on it either.. which is rather annoying as not all the boards avaiable are shown when reviewed..
as most things on the epox board are built on (network, sound) its PCI slots that may as well not be there!
but like you say, theres my two cents.. (or should that be pence as im english?) ah, whos being picky

[jtroutma]

Phil, stick with what you have. You have a great board and unless you are trying to do something that requires the ABIT (or any other board for that matter), the Epox will work wonders.

I would recommend that you pull that passive heatsink off the NorthBridge chipset and put an active HSF on there instead. With just that small modification, you will increase your FSB and overall stability with that board considerably.

If you really want to hit the 200+ FSB area, then you will probably need to do a small voltage mod but if you get to the 190+ FSB, you will be doing just fine.

I see it as a waste to go out and get the ABIT when you already have a kick a$$ motherboard already. As far as I see it, the only things the ABIT board has over the Epox is: 1) 12V connector, (wish the Epox had that) 2) SATA on-board, 3) Vcore adjustment (not a very good one though so this is more of a perk)

Enjoy!

[airspirit]

I'm now running my ORIGINAL revision 8RDA+ at 210 FSB 24/7 with nothing more than a Iceberq. They're good boards.

[Mark Larson]

I've been running my EP-8RDA+ "1.1" at 210FSB for ages with no modifications whatsoever. Samsung PC3200.

WCPUID says i have a C1 northbridge. I got this board this month. I was also able to do 205FSB (atleast) in my EP-8RDA, bought in March.

[phill9700]

well, all i was planning was if the epox wasnt my cup of tea, but was fast and good enough to keep, i would have kept the board, but given it to my gf so that she can use a newer board, with a better cpu..
with current prices, the xp line of cpus are quite cheap in comparision to what they where.. i was thinking of getting her a xp2600 throughbred or the xp2800 barton.. but i want to get my board up and running so it might be a little while..
i try to keep my gf's pc and her son's pc, fairly up to date with good hardware, this is why i posted this thread about the motherboard and a question about what graphics card comes in next, but i think im going to stick with a ATI card, as i have come to prefer them over the Nvidia's.
i cant wait to try and see what happens with this board, but it will be a while due to the money side of it.. i dont have a badly paid job, its just out of the £200 a week i earn, £40 of that goes on petrol!! i have thought about getting a cheaper car, but i couldnt give up what i have.. its just to special to me..
but anyway, thats off topic..
im looking forward to overclocking this xp1700 special cpu if you like too.. like i have said, im aiming for 2ghz at 200 fsb.. if i can get higher, i wont be moaning!!
thanks to all that have been helping! this epox board is definitely getting lots of praise !!