nForce2 Ultra 400 Gb

[tunda]

I am looking for a new motherboard and found an article written on May 25, 2004 that reviews for the nForce2 Ultra 400 Gb chipset. It compared nVidia's Reference Motherboard to the ASUS A7N8X Deluxe Rev. 2.0, but I can't seem to find any motherboards that use this newer chipset. Does anyone know if they can be purchased yet? If so where?

 

[Crashman]

I don't know about the Gb (what features does it stand for?), but all the major makers switched from the nForce SPP to the nForces 400 and 400 Ultra on their current boards. For example, one of the better nForce2 boards, the Abit NF7-S, has been in Rev. 2 status (means it uses the 400 Ultra) for over a year now. Few places have updated their documentation to reflect this.

NF7-S offers lots of nice features, including the nForce APU, which is a powerfull DSP for the sound system.

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<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>

 

[tunda]

<A HREF="http://www6.tomshardware.com/motherboard/20040525/index.html" target="_new">
NVIDIA's nForce2 Ultra Boosts AthlonXP's Chipset Power Base
</A>
The article listed above is where I first learned about this information, and from what I understand the new improved Southbridge, MCP-Gb, includes the new Gigabit Ethernet controller as well as SATA ports and RAID. Apparently this southbridge gives the Gigabit Ethernet controller its own port no longer treating it like any other pci networking device according to a second more detailed article which I found at the following location.
<A HREF="http://pcper.com/article.php?aid=42&type=expert" target="_new">
New NVIDIA Platform Technology for Athlon 64 / XP
</A>
This greatly increases the throughput while in Gigabit mode since the pci bus is no longer a bottleneck.
As for the SATA and RAID, it allows RAID 0, 1, 0+1 as well as JBOD again built into the southbridge.
Those 2 features would be nice to have, and I would prefer to get the most bang for my buck. If performance is enhanced by placing them directly on the southbridge, then I would like to find a motherboard with this chipset. If it does not exist at this time then an alternate option will be found.

 

[Crashman]

I prefer the MCP-T southbridge for its powerfull digital sound processor. Check out the features on the NF7-S.

<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>

 

[tunda]

I have been looking at the NF7-S2G found on Abit's website and it looks like a very viable option since it appears that a motherboard with the nForce2 Ultra 400 Gb chipset is not available at this time. I have been an Asus fan ever since my P3B-F purchase which I am embarassed to say is in my current computer thus the reason for the upgrade. I was leaning toward the ASUS A7N8X-E Deluxe due to the built in firewire port and of course my bias toward Asus. What IYHO would make the Abit board a better choice?

 

[Crashman]

I like the "old" Abit NF7-S because it's inexpensive, a remarkably good overclocker, and has the nForce APU, as stated previously. This is a feature MISSING from most nForce2 boards.

I realize of course that the older NF7-S doesn't have the Gigabit Lan of the S2G, but it has other features missing from the S2G, including Firewire and the nForce APU (I think I've mentioned that, no?

Of course you might say "I can add a sound card" to which I would reply "If you needed it, you could add a Gigabit LAN card". And then you might add "Gigabit LAN on it's own bus has full-duplex bandwidth approaching 2 gigabits", to which I'd replay "Yes, but your hard drive is only half that fast".


<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>

 

[markgun]

I'd avoid the NF7-S2 and NF7-S2G. Abit cheapened them up. There are hardly any overclocking options (no multiplier adjustments, very limited voltage options - this means no mobiles without pin/wire mods), and no SoundStorm as Crashman stated. The integrated SATA/RAID features are nice, as well as the fanless northbridge. However, overall, the NF7-S is a far better and also proven board (with firewire!).

I don't know how the SATA in their Southbridge compares to the Silicon Image 3112A on the NF7-S. I doubt it's significant to most people

 

[schuy1]

I used to use a Nforce2 c/s from asus a7n8x deluxe rev.2, and I loved it great onboard audio, dual channel, 400,hz fsb. It oced well and ran great.