NF7 vs A7N8X-X

1398342003 · Post by **1398342003** » Fri May 21, 2004 6:46 pm

Which is better in performance, quality, thermal monitoring, undervolting via bios or jumper, heatsink compatibility (or incompaitbility), and features (onboard lan, sound, ect)?

I need a good MB for a budget computer, and these are about $100. At the start it will be paired up with an old Duron 800 (952MHz), but I will be upgrading it at a later date.

Any personal bad experiences will be welcome.

/EDIT

Which of these HSFs would be best in a moderate noise environment, where a 12V M1A is under the ambient noise level.

NEXUS AXP-3200 "Skivetek"
Scythe Kamakaze
Vantec Aeroflow
Arctic Cooling "Copper Silent 2L"

Nodif · Post by **Nodif** » Fri May 21, 2004 8:00 pm

I'd go for the Abit NF7-S rev 2.0 mobo, it has better OC/Voltage options compared to the Asus board, a mate of mine has his 2600+ XP-M running 1.8GHz @ 1.21V Prime 95 stable.

Edward Ng · Post by **Edward Ng** » Fri May 21, 2004 8:41 pm

ABIT AN7 with a Thermalright SLK-900A will do more than fine with an M1A, probably can pull off L1A if you use an SP-97.

The main thing is that you may want to consider changing out the stock northbridge sink for a passive one, but that's only if you can hear it over the rest of your system (we don't know what else you're running, so we can't make any assumptions, but you did mention an M1A being below ambient, so it must not be the most quiet ambient environment, anyway).

-Ed

Post by **Rusty075** » Fri May 21, 2004 8:53 pm

The A7N8X, like most Asus boards, has no undervolting abilites at all.

The NF7 does. The current revision of the NF7 will also have the four mounting holes. I've got one, and I've yet to find a HSF that doesn't fit.

One other nice thing is that with the NF7 you can use the 8rdavcore app to adjust Vcore and FSB on the fly

Edward Ng · Post by **Edward Ng** » Fri May 21, 2004 9:01 pm

AN7 is merely an updated version of NF7-S, with the added function of ABIT's proprietary uGuru technology, a secondary functions chip that handles such features as direct voltage control and fan/themal monitoring; it allows on-the-fly changes in multiplier, FSB and voltage right in the CMOS and also on-the-fly changes in voltages and FSB right in Windows. It has the four mounting holes in the board (in fact, as I said, Thermalright SP-97 fits perfectly fine), and I am confident it offers the entire voltage range of NF7-S and (possibly) then some.

uGuru also offers thermal speed control for attached CPU and northbridge fans, for which you can manually set the temperatures that the fan raises to mid speed and high speed and also how many volts go to the fans at those speeds (for example I have my M1B set to 8.0volts at 50C and up and 12 volts at 60C and up).

-Ed

1398342003 · Post by **1398342003** » Sat May 22, 2004 6:45 pm

Thanks for the advice guys. I was leaning towards an Abit board myself. It seems like the better option. I can't afford the AN7 or the NF7-S for the machine this board is going into, so I'll get the NF7 without the "S".

For HSF I decided to get the Zalman 7000AlCu, even though it's $20 more than I want to spend. The Thermalright/Swiftech/Alpha coolers are $25 more than the 7000AlCu, so they aren't an option.

1911user · Post by **1911user** » Sat May 22, 2004 9:34 pm

Doesn't the A7N8X use 5 volts for cpu power vs. 12 volts for the NF7? Depending on the PSU choice and loading from other system components, that might make a difference. Or I could just be over-analyzing the situation

hatr · Post by **hatr** » Sat May 22, 2004 11:22 pm

1398342003 wrote: For HSF I decided to get the Zalman 7000AlCu, even though it's $20 more than I want to spend. The Thermalright/Swiftech/Alpha coolers are $25 more than the 7000AlCu, so they aren't an option.

According to the Zalman USA web site, the 7000AlCu is "incompatible" with Abit NF7, NF7-S or AN7.

1398342003 · Post by **1398342003** » Sun May 23, 2004 12:09 am

WHAT?!?!?!?!??! ... *Searches Zalman site ... *Sees incompatibilty... *Cries ... Oh, you're right...

I'll just cut off the parts that don't fit properly I guess,

cause I have no $$ to spend on a fitting HSF.

andrew-on-spcr · Post by **andrew-on-spcr** » Tue May 25, 2004 1:52 am

i fitted it on my abit an7 fine

you just have to slice part of the clip off. if you have some power tools you'll be right

1398342003 · Post by **1398342003** » Tue May 25, 2004 6:58 am

Oh good.

I have lots of power tools, the axle grinder should be fine for that.

andrew-on-spcr · Post by **andrew-on-spcr** » Tue May 25, 2004 7:10 am

i think the physical constraints of the board aren't the reason they don't list the 7000a-alcu as compatible - i think it is because the uguru chip on the board (software/hardware monitoring) doesn't let you put a fan on that spins at less than 2000rpm by default. don't worry, you can get around it easily.

Post by **Rusty075** » Tue May 25, 2004 7:22 am

The uguru thing won't be an issue on the NF7 (since it doesn't support it), but the BIOS does default to "freak-out for slow fans" mode.

That's always one of the first things I disable when setting one up, it can save frustration later on. Nothing's worse than a machine that suddenly refuses to post, and fan speed is rarely the first thing I think of.

andrew-on-spcr · Post by **andrew-on-spcr** » Tue May 25, 2004 7:29 am

Right, sorry forgot we were talking about the NF7-s, not MY board.

1398342003 · Post by **1398342003** » Tue May 25, 2004 11:00 am

andrew-on-spcr wrote:Right, sorry forgot we were talking about the NF7-s, not MY board.

You cruel, cruel little man.

Edward Ng · Post by **Edward Ng** » Tue May 25, 2004 12:10 pm

Hey, he said it, not me! *does the innocent look... points down at AN7 in signature...*