ABIT KN9 SLI AM2 opinion ASAP

[djd_201]

Hey everyone...

give me the low down and your opinion on this board ASAP...

I have the opportunity to purchase one and although maybe overkill...
I wondered about the features and reliability of the board.

http://www.uabit.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=32&Itemid=48&page=1&model=315

Below are the components I thought to buy in order
to set up a half way decent game computer for home use. This has the SLI feature I would probably never use (I am unfamiliar with it), and of course it will be you all that help walk me through setup, so let me know what you think...

Thanks in advance

MOBO
Support for all Socket AM2 AMD Athlon 64/FX/X2 and Sempron processors with Cool 'n' Quiet technology;
Four DDR2 memory slots supporting up to 8GB of DDR2-800 memory;
NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP;
Dual Gigabit LAN provided by Marvell 88E1116-NNC1;
Two PCI-Express x16 slots with SLI support (x16 & x1 or x8 by x8), two PCI-Express x1 slots and two PCI expansion slots;
7.1 channel Realtek ALC883 High Definition audio with jack sensing and optical & digital RCA S/PDIF Out;
Six SATA 3Gbps ports, supporting RAID 0, 1, 0+1, 5 and JBOD;
Support for ten USB 2.0 ports (four on back I/O panel and six via on-board pins/expansion brackets);
Two IEEE1394a Firewire ports with internal headers;
One ATA133 connector;
One floppy connector.

processor
Processor: X2 4200+ / 2.20GHz
Processor Interface: Socket AM2
Processor Class: Athlon 64 X2
Cache Size: 1Mb
Bus Speed: 1000MHz (2000 MT/s)
Additional Technologies: HyperTransport
Architecture: 90 nm
Stepping: F2
Wattage: 89W

Video card
GEFORCE 8400 GS 256MB DDR2 PCI EXPRESS Video Card
Chipset GeForce™ 8400 GS
Core Clock (MHz) 450
Shader Clock (MHz) 900
Memory Clock (MHz) 800
Memory Amount 256MB
Memory Interface 64-bit
Memory Bandwidth (GB/sec) 6.4
Texture Fill Rate (billion/sec) 3.6
Memory Type DDR2

Memory
G.SKILL 2GB Dual Channel Kit DDR2 800 PC2 6400
(5-5-5-15, 1.8-2.0V) Memory Kit.

[Lgbpop]

I like your choices of components, but then again I'm kinda biased, check my sig. :D

If you can get the base KN9 or the KN9S (which I have in another build with an X2 3800), and pair it up to an 8600 or 8800 vidcard you wouldn't need to bother with SLI. Then again, having SLI will allow you to max out the video capabilities someday. Your choice; either way it's a GREAT board. Stable operation, nice layout and easy-to-configure BIOS. It's a good, easy-to-set-up OC'ing board too.

[djd_201]

I'm glad you sent your post...I know little about such things and will need help to understand dual video cards and such, and this board...I won it anyway if you wish to look...was it a good buy?

Item number: 330161397009

Ebay

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=330161397009&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT&ih=014

I'll be setting it up simple at first on XP home

and growing it from there

thanks for the input

[fizur2002]

if your going to be playing video games at all, then dont get the 8400GS, either get the 8600GT or better yet, a 7900GS, you will have better gaming experience without much more buck to spend.

[fizur2002]

Both of these will still be in your price range for video cards and give you more bang for your buck.

SAPPHIRE 194L Radeon X1650 256MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102035

Leadtek PX8600GT TDH GDDR2 GeForce 8600GT 256MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814122034

[Lgbpop]

If that board is truly new, especially still in the box with the cables, backplate, CD, etc., you stole it. That's a $125 mobo.

As far as the vidcard goes, if you never plan to install Vista then a high-end 7-Series nVidia card is the way to go to get the most bang for your buck; if you do plan on Vista, go with the 8600GT at least. You need the 8-Series card for DirectX10 capability but only Vista supports it. The difference between DX9 and DX10 is amazing, and I'm not much of a gamer but I saw the difference right away.

The ATI cards have a much bigger footprint than the nVidia cards from my experience, and the nVidia cards also just seem to work better with an nVidia chipset - even though I have no proof to back that up. :D

[djd_201]

Can you all clear something up for me. In this auction that I purchased the AMD X2 processor at,

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=220144166666&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT&ih=012

the guy is throwing in for free, an ECS motherboard that he said he had boot problems with

http://www.ecs.com.tw/ECSWebSite/Products/ProductsDetail.aspx?detailid=528&DetailName=Specification&MenuID=1&LanID=9

RX480-A (V1.0)
Supports 939 AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 Dual-Core, Athlon™ 64 FX, AMD Athlon™ 64 processors
ATI Radeon XPRESS 200P Chipset
PCI Express Architecture
Supports SATA 1.5Gb/s and RAID 0,1 function
Supports 8-CH Audio and IEEE1394 connection

Now here I noticed that the ECS board he said may be bad, is a socket 939....but this processor is socket AM2. Is there a difference?

I purchased the Abit board because it was a much better board by far
than anything ECS couldpretend to put out...

but does an AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ Processor
2.20GHz, 1MB Cache, 1000MHz (2000 MT/s) FSB, Windsor,
Dual-Core, Retail, Socket AM2, ADA4200CUBOX even fit a 939 socket?

Thanks in advance

[Lgbpop]

Never tried, but I doubt it. Not without a hammer, anyway.

I bet he's housecleaning. If he's throwing an ECS mobo in for nothing he's overcharging you. Not that I have a bad opinion of ECS - the sheer number of potential problems associated with their mobos make them very entertaining, never a dull moment - but they're the bottom of the barrel. (Jetway and PCChips are the dirt the barrel sits on.)

[fizur2002]

a socket am2 will not fit in a socket 939.