July Value Gaming PC Buyer's Guide - Page 3

Motherboards

When selecting a motherboard for our Value Gaming System, it is important to find the best overall value, while ensuring you get the most future-proof and high-performance hardware possible. Naturally, these goals are often at odds with each other, and the sticker price is usually the main stumbling block. To find that right combination, the motherboard needs to be affordable, but also have a nice mix of performance, overclocking, and onboard features. Whether you're buying a low-cost gaming system or an ultra high-end powerhouse, the motherboard is still one of the most important components, as it provides the backbone for your entire computer and determines your future upgrade path.

Athlon 64 Motherboard: MSI K8N NEO3-F (nForce4)

Current Cost: $75+ $4 for 24-pin Cable
Months on list: New
Price Change: N/A

The Athlon 64 3400+ did not require a change to our platform, but last month we upgraded to an nForce3 250 motherboard, and this month we're looking at the nForce4. This really has little to do with overall performance, but is related to the PCI Express interface. Buying into PCIe graphics now provides a much smoother upgrade path in the future, where your new motherboard will likely be PCI Express, and certainly not AGP. Right now, the nForce4 is really the only bet for PCIe graphics using a 754-pin Athlon 64, and the available models are still quite limited. Thankfully, we found a little gem from MSI called the K8N NEO3-F that should easily foot the bill.

The MSI K8N NEO3-F features the powerful nForce4 chipset, and provides Socket 939-level features and performance for Socket 754 systems. Naturally, its prime benefit is the PCI Express graphics interface, but the motherboard also features the options like a full 16-bit, 800 MHz HyperTransport up/down connection, and performance on-par with the nForce3 250. MSI also provides its usual robust System BIOS, including dynamic and manual overclocking, and adjustment of virtually all components speeds and voltages.

The MSI K8N NEO3-F is similar to an entry-level nForce4 motherboard, only it is designed for Socket 754 AMD processors, and features single-channel DDR333/400 memory support (2x1-GB max) through the Athlon 64's integrated memory controller. Otherwise, its onboard features stack up quite well, and include PCIe x16 graphics, 1 x PCIe x1, 3 x PCI, 2 x PATA, 4 x SATA with NVRAID, 1 x Floppy, 10 x USB 2.0, 6-channel audio, and integrated Gigabit LAN. The board also features an Advanced Graphic Riser slot that allows *some* AGP cards to function (at reduced performance), but since PCIe is the reason for going with this board, we're personally not going to touch that one.

The only other thing of note with the MSI K8N NEO3-F is its size, and it does not have the width of a standard ATX motherboard. We view this as an advantage, especially in smaller value cases, as the board does not need as much real estate and can leave extra room for cables and wires. Installation is also a breeze, and this includes the CPU, heatsink-fan and video card.

Pentium 4 Motherboard: ASUS P5GPL (i915PL)

Current Cost: $92 + $4 for 24-pin Cable
Months on list: 2
Price Change: $0

With the move to LGA 775 platform, we not only upgraded the processor, but needed to find a new motherboard as well. The Intel 915-based chipset line is the best option for our system, especially as the 925X/XE boards are very expensive and rely on higher-priced DDR2 memory. Many i915-based motherboards can be found with either DDR or DDR2 memory support, and the i915/DDR combination is actually quite affordable, especially when taking into consideration the lower prices of the LGA775 Pentium 4 processors. LGA 775 value remains a key element in our overall strategy for the Intel system, as the motherboard is slightly more expensive than an equivalent i865PE model, but the LGA775 and PCI Express format allows us to save money on the processor and video card components.

The ASUS P5GPL motherboard is based on the new i915PL chipset, which is essentially a 915P with some limitations. One of them is the absence of HD audio, which is a non-issue, as this is an option you won't find on low-cost motherboards anyway. There is also a limit of one DDR module per channel, which means than we can really only use one set of dual-channel DDR400 modules. For the purposes of a value system, the i915PL is really no different than the i915P, and we're able to get a quality ASUS motherboard into the bargain. The ASUS P5GPL is based on the 915PL/ICH6 chipset, which supports Intel LGA775 processors (533/800 MHz), and features 4 DDR sockets with dual-channel DDR333/400 support (2GB max). To counter the inherent limits of the 915PL chipset, ASUS includes their Hyper Path2 feature, which shortens the latency time between the CPU and memory and improves memory performance.

The ASUS P5GPL has a 1x PCI-Ex16, 3x PCI-Ex1, 3x PCI layout, without any sort of AGP video option at all. As with the newer Intel-based products, the ASUS P5GPL is a Serial ATA board, with four SATA ports and only a single PATA connector. The remaining onboard options are also high-end, with 8 x USB 2.0, Realtek ALC850 8-channel audio and Marvell 88E8001 Gigabit LAN (with ASUS AI Net 2).

ASUS is the name in system overclocking and the P5GPL has a very robust System BIOS, complete with a range of processor frequency selections (AI Overclocking, CPU Lock Free, full FSB selections) and a variety of voltage controls (CPU, DDR & PCIe). This is supplemented with some nice features such as adjustable FSB/DDR ratios and fixed/lockable PCI/PCI-E frequencies.

* Note - The new LGA 775 and nForce4 motherboards utilize a 24-pin power connector, and although these can be run safely with a standard 20-pin unit, we recommend purchasing a basic 20-pin to 24-pin adapter cable ($4) for the PSU. We have used these in system testing with no problems whatsoever, and many 24-pin compatible PSU units ship with them.