This mobo, to good to be true? Seems great?

Associate
Joined
20 Nov 2004
Posts
2,209
Location
Nock/Leicester
Hi all, i am in the market for a new mobo for my 939 chip. I want a good stable mobo which is sli and is packed full of features, sata2 raid, firewire, ect ect

I have been looking at the DFI EXPERt mobo which seems great but its expensive and doesnt come with firewire. I dont use firewire at the moment but i may in the future and as i want to add a sound card and a freeview card there may be a a lack of pci ports for a firewire card to.

I have just come across the Gigabyte K8NXP-SLi nForce4 SLi mobo. This seems to be amazing. Its cheaper than the DFI, has firewire and also has an extra 2 SATA2 ports making it 6!

So my question is, 1) why isnt this the number one mobo that everyone is buying as it seems to be better 2) why have ocuk got 2 in the bgrade section but dont sell them in the main mobo's section anymore as its a higher spec mobo than the gigabite ones that they do have in that section?
 
Associate
OP
Joined
20 Nov 2004
Posts
2,209
Location
Nock/Leicester
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=17579752

I was told that i didnt have firewire? THe b grade section is selling the gigabite board for £70 odd and the DFI is a lot more. I was thinking that i might be getting a new mobo when the new intel chip comes out so i should save the extra £50 now. But i do want to overclock, as i know that my 3200 64amd can do 2.6 no problem.

Do you think that the gigabite will give me the overclock i need or am i going to have to spend the extra and get the DFI? It is a big overclock but at the same time £50 is a lot of money.

Do you not think the gigabite will be any good? Good clocker?
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
6,669
Depends how aggressive you want to overclock.

If you just want a general overclock, get the Gigabyte. If you want to get to the point where you know the chip is limiting you (and not the mobo), get the DFI.

I've always been chip-limited on my DFI.
 
Soldato
Joined
12 Jul 2005
Posts
3,005
Location
Just over your shoulder
Well, I am one of the fabled K8NXP-SLI users :)

Solid board, with excellent features and layout - even handy DualBIOS for all those overclocking lockout woes.....;)....

Would haev to agree with the above comments, the DFI boards do have a truly magnificent reputation for overclocking......so, if that is your bag.... :)

That said, my Gigabyte happily took me up to 250 FSB, with no voltage boosts needed, to get my X2 3800+ to 2.5GHz. For me, that is a nice, solid and reliable overclock, admittedly not pushing too many boundaries, but great value for money :D I don't doubt I could continue tweaking (the board has some excellent options, although would be handy to have a 150/200 RAM divded :( ).....but I am keen for longevity on my system as well, and hence don't really fiddle with giving anything more juice.

On balance, you need to decide what you want from your system. I doubt anything will match the raw overclocking of the DFI, but if that is not your primary aim then why go for it if there is suitable comparitive for less money and so on.....
 
Caporegime
Joined
8 Jan 2004
Posts
31,994
Location
Rutland
Gigabyte ***shudder***, there is a reason they're cheap, they're poor clockers with buggy bioses and are generally best avoided if you're a serious overclocker. They're nice boards for a stock system, and for playing around with a fair overclock, but as soon as you start serious overclocking you'll find yourself wanting more than the board will give, and their bioses will drive you nuts.

I've had two gigabyte boards now, one S754 and one S939, and I've moved on from them both as quickly as possible.
 
Associate
Joined
19 May 2005
Posts
400
Location
shropshire
another one here with the gigabyte kn8 board great stable board not in dfi league for overclcoking but great for someone just starting out learning the ropes whos also wants a steady system
 
Soldato
Joined
6 Jun 2005
Posts
22,598
1394 is definitely firewire - but becareful some mobo's provide the header but not necessarily the pci "card" with a firewire connector ( thats available with the premium boards)
 
Associate
OP
Joined
20 Nov 2004
Posts
2,209
Location
Nock/Leicester
Im considering getting a new expert now. Im thinking that if i get an expert im confident that i can get 2600mhz out of my cpu if not more and later in the future i can get a dual core when they come down and clock that. I think it will be atleast a year till my cpu speeds will be limiting me in games ect, am i right?

Therefore i might as well spend the extra on the mobo now and clock like hell and then change to a new intel board and conroe in about a year when i feel that my cpu (or the dual core one i might have at that time) is becoming a bottleneck?

What'ya think kids?!
 
Associate
Joined
19 May 2005
Posts
712
Location
The Lake District
I've had 3 Gigabyte boards over the years. All around the Via KT400 chipset time. 2 were ok ish & the other ended up snapped over my knee & then burnt on the bonfire. :p

Your strategy sounds like a good one though. Its mainly Graphics cards that limit people at the moment. Although having said that, have you seen the FEAR benchmarks for conroe :eek:
 
Associate
OP
Joined
20 Nov 2004
Posts
2,209
Location
Nock/Leicester
Suppose i am going to have to get a DFI Expert then!


Last question, promise... There is one in the b grade section for £90. If i buy that i get 14 days warrenty from ocuk. But do i still get a one year manafacturers warrenty from dfi themselves? If so then its worth it! Save me about £30!
 
Associate
OP
Joined
20 Nov 2004
Posts
2,209
Location
Nock/Leicester
Yucca said:
Suppose i am going to have to get a DFI Expert then!


Last question, promise... There is one in the b grade section for £90. If i buy that i get 14 days warrenty from ocuk. But do i still get a one year manafacturers warrenty from dfi themselves? If so then its worth it! Save me about £30!

Anyone know the answer to the above question?
 
Back
Top Bottom