DFI LANPARTY UT nF4 ULTRA-D or EPoX EP-9NPA+ Ultra

jayneemac

Hi guys,

Just wondering if any fellow boarders have purchased either of these mainboards from Komplett recently?

If so, can you tell me what bios revision/versions they are out of the box?

Thanks in advance,
jayneemac

p.s. i asked a similar question on the Komplett forum but would like to get feedback from a user

f1refox

Bought mine in PC World 2 months ago. Bios "PHOENIX 6.00 PG"

masteroftherealm

DFI if your overclocking Epox if your not simple as that.
DFI are by far the BEST boards out there.

ShiverinEskimo

I got the Ultra-d and that was about 2 months ago. I had to flash the bios to get it to work with my dual core athlon. So you may need to flash it. To quote the guy who sold me the CPU regarding flashing said BIOS (note 623-3 is still the most up to date FINAL BIOS - there have been a few beta BIOS since):

WizZard wrote:

All the BIOS's and tools can be found here at techpowerup. The latest (I think) official BIOS is 623-3

You'll need a BIOS flash floppy (www.bootdisk.com) and awdflash from techpowerup (same page).

Then it should be grand
Use this syntax to flahs the BIOS
"awdflash biosfile.bin /cc /cd /cp /sn /py /e /qi"

You just wanna make the bootdisk - then put awdflash on it and the bios file then type the command he gave me with the filename of the update where biosfile.bin is when you boot the machine with the disk and get the command prompt. Then pray for no power cut.

jayneemac

ShiverinEskimo wrote:

I got the Ultra-d and that was about 2 months ago. I had to flash the bios to get it to work with my dual core athlon. So you may need to flash it. To quote the guy who sold me the CPU regarding flashing said BIOS (note 623-3 is still the most up to date FINAL BIOS - there have been a few beta BIOS since):


You just wanna make the bootdisk - then put awdflash on it and the bios file then type the command he gave me with the filename of the update where biosfile.bin is when you boot the machine with the disk and get the command prompt. Then pray for no power cut.

Thanks for the reply's guys!

ShiverinEskimo did you get your ultra-d from komplett? I also have an x2 (3800+), & what i need to know is will this cpu be recognized & will the system boot straight out of the box?
the reason i have to be 100% sure is that i have no way of updating the bios to 623-3 before i install the dual core...

thanks again,
jayneemac

jayneemac

masteroftherealm wrote:

DFI if your overclocking Epox if your not simple as that.
DFI are by far the BEST boards out there.

I've read some very favourable reviews for the Epox board. AnandTech.com even awarded it the editor's choice in a tie withe the DFI board...;)

ShiverinEskimo

I did get my Ultra-D from komplett yes - let me tell you it is a savage motherboard. Feature packed and from when you open the box you know you're dealing with professionals. Think about going the extra little bit for the SLi boards though - the Ultra-D is not SLi native so needs some tweaking so do it properly. With 7800's coming down in price (esp the GT) it might be worth keeping that avenue open. If you have no intention of SLi then go for the Ultra-D - I'd highly recommend it.

You can boot straight out of the box with the dual core in place (as I did) but you will only have the use of the one core (core 0) until you update your BIOS and download the XP dual core drivers from AMD's site. Its about 15 minutes work and you'll be in dual core heaven..

Irishpimpdude

Yeah im just bout to order one :-D

jayneemac

ShiverinEskimo wrote:

You can boot straight out of the box with the dual core in place (as I did) but you will only have the use of the one core (core 0) until you update your BIOS and download the XP dual core drivers from AMD's site. Its about 15 minutes work and you'll be in dual core heaven..

Thanks ShiverinEskimo, that's all I wanted to hear! I think it's off to Komplett now to place my order

Although I'm still temped by the Epox board, especially seeing as it's €40 cheaper than the DFI. But as I recall this was one of the first nforce4 boards so if komplett have an original batch it may not boot with the x2

Irishpimpdude

Im sure there are bios that flash it to run the X2

ShiverinEskimo

Go with the DFI. I'm glad I did. Its just such a quality board. Feature packed.

jayneemac

ShiverinEskimo wrote:

Go with the DFI. I'm glad I did. Its just such a quality board. Feature packed.

ShiverinEskimo, what PSU are using in your system? DFI Street are fairly adamant that you need at least a 480W. I was going with the following:

Tagan PSU ATX 430W Easycon, TG430-U15
http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=310014&cks=PRL

proposed system spec:
A64 x2 3800+
DFI Lanparty nForce4 Ultra-d
1GB Patriot pc3200 memory (2x512)
BFG Geforce 7800 OC
Samsung Spinpoint p120
NEC 3520A DVD-RW
(maybe a second ide drive)

ShiverinEskimo

I use this one : http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=305077&cks=PRL

Its a fantastic PSU. And you need only plug in the cables you need. So it keeps system clutter to a minimum - also comes with every cable you'll ever need. Very reliable PSU.

But it is considerably more expensive than the one you picked. You get what you pay for though.

Atlas_IRL

can anyone tell me would the psu in this power a good pc well? or would i need to get another psu

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=311799&cks=PRL

masteroftherealm

Their decent but not amazing depends on the rig in question

masteroftherealm

The 3rd Best Supply for SLI:
http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=315954&cks=PRL

The 2nd best supply:
http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=314759&cks=PRL

And the Amazingly Good Top of the line:
http://www.pcpowercooling.com/products/viewproduct.php?show=T51SLI

zuma

jayneemac wrote:

Thanks ShiverinEskimo, that's all I wanted to hear! I think it's off to Komplett now to place my order

Although I'm still temped by the Epox board, especially seeing as it's €40 cheaper than the DFI. But as I recall this was one of the first nforce4 boards so if komplett have an original batch it may not boot with the x2

I got the EPoX EP-9NPA+ Ultra in October and the BIOS was about a month old...end of story.

Overclocking?
Well I thought it was piss easy to overclock my 300+ from 1800MHz to 2250MHz using the stock cooler if thats what your talking about.

jayneemac

zuma wrote:

I got the EPoX EP-9NPA+ Ultra in October and the BIOS was about a month old...end of story.

Zuma weighs in with the knockout blow!

I think I'm gonna go with the Epox board just for ease of use & value for money.
I know the DFI is the oc'ers choice but having read many a forum it seems its very finicky and demanding when it comes to power & components!

plus i just discovered that Epox can send you out the latest bios chip if you're stuck (for a smallish fee mind)

thanks to everyone who replied, it's appreciated.

ShiverinEskimo

You win this round Zuma but the war ain't over. grr.

zuma

ShiverinEskimo wrote:

You win this round Zuma but the war ain't over. grr.

Hahahaha!!!!

jayneemac

oh wait a minute!

just got a great deal on an Antec Neopower 480W on ebay so I'm going with my original choice of the DFI Lanparty

big up ShiverinEskimo for the advice

ShiverinEskimo

In your face Zuma.

Just kiddin.

Enjoy your build Jayneemac - if ya have any questions about the dual core PM me...

DemonOfTheFall

The Epox board is sweet, very good overclocker, easily stable above 315mhz FSB. I'm sure the DFI would be too. Down to money really.

jayneemac

ShiverinEskimo wrote:

Enjoy your build Jayneemac - if ya have any questions about the dual core PM me...

cheers mate