Aopen AK79G-1394

[GLMontyWV]

Any experience or reviews on this board? Other than seeing it on Aopen's page and newegg, I can't seem to find anything on it.

Thanks, Monty

 

[GLMontyWV]

Looks like newegg had it labeled wrong. Here are the board names of Aopen's site, all 6 are nforce2 IGP boards.

Model Name FSB Memory
AK79G Max 333MHz DDR400* [PC3200*]
AK79G-1394 333MHz DDR400* [PC3200*]
AK79G-V 333MHz DDR400* [PC3200*]
AK79G-VN 333MHz DDR400* [PC3200*]
MK79G-1394 333MHz DDR400* [PC3200*]
MK79G-N

 

[WalMart1564]

no experience but i did lots and lots of research *i liked the aopen AK77-333 board*

and in the end of all my research i went with the epox 8rda+ based on scores of reviews and price

in my mind as far as nforce 2 goes there are only 2 boards the epox and the asus

 

[GetInMyFatBelly]

With onboard (IGP) video, there are a couple more to consider. On my list
Leadtek WinFast K7NCR18G-Pro (rev. 2) for those on a budget or the MSI K7N2G-ILSR for those that aren't (here in Europe the MSI board is closer to $200). For mATX, the upcoming Aopen MK79G-1394.

 

[GLMontyWV]

The MSI K7N2G-ILSR was at the top of my list, then I saw the Aopen and started to wonder, ended up ordering an ASUS A7N266-VM, maybe I'll go nForce2 with the next board.

Monty

 

[hotstuff2000]

Why is no one considering this board? It looks awesome to me. I am down to either the

AOpen AK79G Max $140 shipped
MSI K7N2G-ILSR $136 shipped

Both seem to have great features. I have always gone ASUS, but ASUS doesn't even have an IGP board yet for some reason!!?!? Whatever, they are too expen$$ive anyway! What's really odd is that there are no reviews (or even really any mention of) the AOpen boards, yet they are available now (newegg). The MSI sounds great to me, although the only feature it has over the AOpen is TV Out (Svideo *AND* RCA) which is very nice! Although in reality probably would only be used occasionally. I'm guessing that the microATX version of the AOpen board will have all the features of the full size (just less slots) ? If so it should be cheaper which may make it the winner in the end. Also (dont laugh) the onboard fan turns me off from the MSI b/c I have a silent pc, and dont want to introduce any more noise The board is going to replace my 400mhz K6-2 with:
1700 or more Athlon XP
512MB PC3200
80 GB Barracuda V

Anyway, anyone care to tip the scale one way or the other before I order? I need advice.. there is just not much info out there it seems to me!

 

[First]

We'll have a review of both these boards (AOpen AK79G Max and MSI K7N2G-ILSR) in a few days.

 

[hotstuff2000]

If I am only getting an Athlon XP 1700+ (at the most 2000+) and don't plan on overclocking, do I NEED PC2700 DDR or is PC2100 sufficient? I've seen both answers.
Also how important is getting two sticks of RAM? I will be using the onboard nforce2 video.

I'm buying the rest of my system from NewEgg==they have some good memory deals *BUT* they charge shipping per stick, which sucks if like me you want two sticks for your nforce2.
[*]Dane-Elec 512MB PC2100 are $52 each but an extra $5 EACH for shipping.
[*]Dane-Elec 256MB PC2700 are $29.50 each but extra $5 EACH for shipping...

I dont know what to do--the 512MB is CAS *2* BUT only PC2100 and $57/512 or $114/1GB.
The 2700 comes to $70 for a total 512MB but Crucial / Kingston / Samsung can be had for that.

My thinking right now is to get just one 512 PC2100 , but then I'm stuck with single chip AND PC2100! But I am on a budget...

 

[mjsadaway]

I'm also considering the AK79G MAX and the K7NG2-ILSR (also, curiously enough, to replace a K6-2 system).

I also favor the AK79G's chipset heatsink vs. the K7N2G-ILSR's fan, plus the AK79Gs have fan-speed controller(s). With the K7N2G-ILSR, you could theoretically replace the chipset fan with a heatsink and use CPU and case fan(s) with integrated speed controllers.

While both the AK79G MAX and the K7NG2-ILSR have serial ATA controllers, only the K7NG2-ILSR's appears to support RAID configurations (with either 2 SATA drives or 1 ATA and 1 SATA drive).

If you're not interested in SATA, the AK79G-1394 might be a good choice. However, the 1394 seems to come with only a 2-port IEEE 1394 cable/bracket, while the MAX comes with a 2-port IEEE 1394 cable/bracket, a 2-port USB 2.0 cable/bracket, and a S/PDIF cable/bracket. Although both AK79Gs claim to have TV out headers, neither seems to come with a TV out cable/bracket, and Aopen's Accessories page doesn't list one.

OTOH, the MSI board seems to come with plenty of brackets: TV out, 2-port IEEE 1394, 2-port USB 2.0 (D bracket), and S/PDIF (S bracket).

Finally, I haven't been able to find an AK79G MAX actually for sale anywhere, while sources for the AK79G-1394 and the K7NG2-ILSR abound. Newegg doesn't currently list the AK79G MAX (only the 1394), and various searches have turned up nothing.

Mike

 

[hotstuff2000]

Sounds good.. I'm going to order the MSI K7NG2-ILSR on Sunday unless AT posts that review they promised a week and a half ago first Another thing about the MSI chipset fan--I'm happy with the onboard video for NOW, but what about a year or two when I want to replace it with an AGP gfx card? I won't be using the onboard video and therefore won't need the chipset fan. Hope there's an easy way to disable it. I have no need for SATA, which makes the AK79G MAX a viable alternative but oh well it's AOpens fault if they can't get them to market fast enough, and the brackets should definately be included. Guess the ILSR wins my vote.

 

[McCarthy]

Got interested in the AK79D-1394 when I saw it at Newegg, especially with that $20 rebate....

...so how's the review coming, Evan?

Can't see anything not to like. Ok, can't adjust multiplier in bios, but I'm not a big time overclocker. On the other hand, seems to have independently adjustable FSB/PCI/AGP, which is something almost all the nForce boards confuse me on. Whether they have so called PCI lock or not.

 

[hotstuff2000]

Wow, very nice, a $20 rebate on several of the Abit nforce 2 motherboards. I was about to go for the AK79G-1394 from newegg (they don't offer the AK79G Max or MK79G-1394). Then I noticed that it does not include an interface for digital audio. In fact you must order the part separately and newegg doesnt even carry it. Otherwise, basically you dont have digital audio out!!!
http://english.aopen.com.tw/products/mb/spdif.htm

From newegg:
Dear Valued Customer,

Sorry, this item does not include the SPDIF . Please look at the picture of the item on our website before purchasing. You may return the item for a full refund if you'd like. We do not sell this particular part individually.

Well that basically rules out the Aopens for me I'm not going to order the audio hardware separately from another vendor. I guess that just leaves the MSI... Anandtech review, where are you?

 

[FunkyOne]

Just called Newegg.com.
They told me that they will have AK79D-Max tomorrow...

 

[hotstuff2000]

Eh... thats great but.. why no AK79G-Max? They are only carring the "max" version that has everything *BUT* the onboard gfx? Seems odd to me. Oh well, I still dont have an IGP nforce2 board available that fits my needs What else is new

And anandtechs "review" was apparently vaporware...(see above)

 

[YJ]

Newegg is having AK79GMax on 4/1
I pre-ordered mine.
Looks great on the review...
Will update once I set them up