I know there are quite a few options, but what is the best board for a relatively cheap price? I'm looking to get the 2800+, 3000+, or 3200+ and I want to insure stability and some raid and sata options.
Originally posted by: Bar81
Are you going to overclock more than 100-200mhz? If not, the best board, bar none is:
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-157-025&depa=0
A few inaccuracies in that post. The board has nothing to do with dual channel, the memory controller is on-die. skt754 A64s have a single memory controller. Dual memory does have a performance advantage over single on A64 but it requires a program/app that's very heavily reliant on bandwidth to make it worthwhile. For gaming it hasn't been a factor so far. Some skt754 boards have the Via Envy 24PT 7.1 hardware audio solution, better in most areas than the old standard Audigy from what I've read, so there are a small number of skt754 boards with excellent audio included. HTHOriginally posted by: Bar81
Yes, you can overclock the A64s. You can generally get around 2.3Ghz. If you want to do that then get one of the new nForce3 250 motherboards as they have an AGP/PCI lock. The K8S8X only has a PCI lock and no voltage options so you'll only be able to get about 2.2Ghz out of it with an nVidia video card.
No current motherboard can run dual channel RAM. It doesn't matter. Dual channel RAM on the A64 provides no noticeable benefit over single channel.
Integrated sound sucks on every motherboard for the A64. Do yourself a favor and spend $30 and pick up a SB Audigy.
Now you are being obtuse and taking unecessary umbrage as if you are being attacked and insecure about it to boot :roll: Please link to a review that shows the Audigy has lower CPU usage or superior audio capabilities to the 24PT because it sounds like FUD.Originally posted by: Bar81
Actually my post remains accurate. No motherboards can run dual channel RAM because there are no dual channel supporting A64s available. All you did was further clarify, not correct. Second the VIA Envy chip sucks ass. Quality is okay but the cycles it sucks up are not, thus I stick by my statement that integrated sound sucks.
Originally posted by: Bar81
Find it yourself, it's not my job. Learn to read a review or two before you blindly recommend a product.
There is almost always going to be a difference in performance between sound and no sound tests, but the Athlon64 board from Albatron faced our sound tests with less than 10% degradation when sound was enabled. This is a good showing for any sound subsystem and puts the Albatron implemented Envy 24PT in our top five. These results united with the 8-channel audio will satisfy most users.
The Albatron board made use of the VIA Envy 24PT 8-Channel chip that offered extremely low CPU utilization. Gigabyte on the other hand, used a Realtek codec that generated six times the CPU utilization on the Envy 24PT. This had a significant impact on performance when audio was enabled. The Abit KV8-MAX3 features the Realtek ALC658, 6-channel codec; I am unsure how good this solution is, however we will know by the end of this review.
Albatron excel here. Using the VIA Envy PT chip, they have given themselves a huge advantage over the competition. Abit coupled the KV8-MAX3 with the Realtek ALC658, which is the same solution that Gigabyte used. Both Abit and Gigabyte saw similar performance hits when running DirectSound3D. However when it came to just DirectSound, Abit did much better than Gigabyte. Nevertheless, Albatron saw an extremely low performance hit when running both DirectSound3D and DirectSound.
Aside from some very small bugs I must admit, it's not Audigy2 quality we are talking about here, but it's good .. very good. No fancy stuff in here though
On the audio front, the K8X800 Pro II taps VIA's Envy24PT audio controller, which feeds 7.1 output channels with a little help from VIA's VT1616 codec and Wolfson's WM8720 DAC. Though both the Envy24PT and WM8720 support 24-bit audio at sampling rates of at least 96kHz, VIA's VT1616 can only sample 18-bit audio at up to 48kHz. The VT1616's lack of 24-bit audio support wouldn't be a big deal if the Envy24PT's front output channels were routed through the Wolfson DAC, which would at least let users enjoy 24-bit audio through a set of stereo speakers or headphones. However the K8X800 Pro II runs the Envy24PT's front output channels through the VT1616 instead; the only way to get at the Envy24PT's 24-bit audio is to bypass the VT1616 and use the board's digital S/PDIF ports.
To be fair, the VT1616's sampling rate and resolution limitations really aren't Albatron's fault; VIA's Envy24PT reference design specifies which outputs are run through which codec, and I've yet to see an Envy24PT implementation deviate from this design. Since the K8X800 Pro II has both coaxial and Tos-Link S/PDIF input and output ports, Albatron has given users plenty of ways to skirt the VT1616 and tap directly into the Envy24PT's 24-bit capabilities.
Though it's in the middle of the middle of the pack in RightMark's dynamic range test, the K8X800 Pro II's Envy24PT audio offers the best frequency response of the boards tested
Craig my Soltek lovin' friend, if you look at my last post, you'll see the audio subsytem of a board can significantly impact system performance. If you use a add in pci soundcard then there are indeed no worries on that account I should probably add that none of the on-board solutions cripple a system since modern CPUs are so fast they can take the hit and still get the job done. So even if it is a worry beyond audio quality, it's a small one.Originally posted by: CraigRT
lmao... good flaming going on in here!
I say who cares about the sound chip overall.. it's the least of my worries
LMAO! Nice thread jack eh? On the shelf at the moment there are offerings based on the nF3 150 from AOpen and Shuttle that are excellent, and the new Chaintech nF3 250 I haven't seen enough overclocking results from to be able to comment. I do know my AN50R runs my 3000+@2.4ghz without negatively impacting either my 9800pro's performance, and no SATA&PATA corruption. There are also physical mods for this board that make it the weapon of choice for hardcore phase change overclockers like Shimmishim. He sold it off and is playing with a mobile like yourself now Zebo, but 2.6ghz on a A64 ain't too shaby eh?Originally posted by: Zebo
Best overclcokers mobo for Athlon 64's?
Originally posted by: DAPUNISHER
Originally posted by: Bar81
Find it yourself, it's not my job. Learn to read a review or two before you blindly recommend a product.
I've helped many members here in my time, and seldom recommend something that isn't well regarded in the community. The Via Envy24PT is no exception. You are behaving like an immature little punk, and have little idea what you are talking about. You flame and spread FUD with no data to support your claims. That is something that will quickly get you labeled troll around here Here is evidence that the Envy24PT is one of the best audio solutions bundled with a board, not just A64. HardOCP reviewThere is almost always going to be a difference in performance between sound and no sound tests, but the Athlon64 board from Albatron faced our sound tests with less than 10% degradation when sound was enabled. This is a good showing for any sound subsystem and puts the Albatron implemented Envy 24PT in our top five. These results united with the 8-channel audio will satisfy most users.
LegionHardwareThe Albatron board made use of the VIA Envy 24PT 8-Channel chip that offered extremely low CPU utilization. Gigabyte on the other hand, used a Realtek codec that generated six times the CPU utilization on the Envy 24PT. This had a significant impact on performance when audio was enabled. The Abit KV8-MAX3 features the Realtek ALC658, 6-channel codec; I am unsure how good this solution is, however we will know by the end of this review.
Albatron excel here. Using the VIA Envy PT chip, they have given themselves a huge advantage over the competition. Abit coupled the KV8-MAX3 with the Realtek ALC658, which is the same solution that Gigabyte used. Both Abit and Gigabyte saw similar performance hits when running DirectSound3D. However when it came to just DirectSound, Abit did much better than Gigabyte. Nevertheless, Albatron saw an extremely low performance hit when running both DirectSound3D and DirectSound.
.guru3d
Aside from some very small bugs I must admit, it's not Audigy2 quality we are talking about here, but it's good .. very good. No fancy stuff in here though
techreport
On the audio front, the K8X800 Pro II taps VIA's Envy24PT audio controller, which feeds 7.1 output channels with a little help from VIA's VT1616 codec and Wolfson's WM8720 DAC. Though both the Envy24PT and WM8720 support 24-bit audio at sampling rates of at least 96kHz, VIA's VT1616 can only sample 18-bit audio at up to 48kHz. The VT1616's lack of 24-bit audio support wouldn't be a big deal if the Envy24PT's front output channels were routed through the Wolfson DAC, which would at least let users enjoy 24-bit audio through a set of stereo speakers or headphones. However the K8X800 Pro II runs the Envy24PT's front output channels through the VT1616 instead; the only way to get at the Envy24PT's 24-bit audio is to bypass the VT1616 and use the board's digital S/PDIF ports.
To be fair, the VT1616's sampling rate and resolution limitations really aren't Albatron's fault; VIA's Envy24PT reference design specifies which outputs are run through which codec, and I've yet to see an Envy24PT implementation deviate from this design. Since the K8X800 Pro II has both coaxial and Tos-Link S/PDIF input and output ports, Albatron has given users plenty of ways to skirt the VT1616 and tap directly into the Envy24PT's 24-bit capabilities.
Though it's in the middle of the middle of the pack in RightMark's dynamic range test, the K8X800 Pro II's Envy24PT audio offers the best frequency response of the boards tested
Low CPU utilization ***precisely the opposite of your FUD claim*** and excellent sound despite being coupled with the VT1616 which can be bypassed just as the Realtek crap used with Soundstorm can be by using S/PDIF.
Instead of behaving like a petulant child, you might have tried engaging me in a constructive discussion from which not only you and I, but anyone who reads the thread that isn't familiar with the subject matter can learn something from
Which clearly shows the true 24bit 96khz capabilties of the PT24 are superior to the Audigy's bullsh*t marketing specsWhen the Audigy first came out, Creative touted the card's supposed support for 24-bit audio at 96kHz. The Audigy's DACs support 24-bit audio at 96kHz, so there's some truth to Creative's marketing spin. However the DACs are the only components on the Audigy that support 24-bit/96kHz audio. The card's audio chip and ADCs are both limited to 16-bit audio at 48kHz. No matter how good that 24-bit/96kHz DAC is, it's still getting a signal from the audio chip that's been digitally processed at 16 bits/48kHz. It's sort of like feeding a set of audiophile-quality speakers with an audio signal from a dusty old tape deck; the speakers aren't going to make the source audio sound any better.
At best Creative's claimed support for 24-bit/96kHz playback a case of, erm, creative marketing. Since we have the luxury of testing Terratec's DMX 6fire 24/96, which is a true 24-bit/96kHz audio card, we'll be able to contrast the Audigy's pseudo 24/96 support against a real 24/96 contender.
You kill me, the revolution is the Envy24HT not PT. And the Revolution has even less relevance than the ALC650 because it's a add-in card while the ALC650 is integrated. You have contended that the Audigy has lower CPU usage than the 24PT but even the ALC650 shows lower usage than Audigy :laugh: There's a moron here but it ain't me :laugh:Originally posted by: Bar81
Moron, the Revolution is based upon the Envy24PT chip and my link shows a comparison that is actually useful as opposed to your enlightening links showing that the Envy is better than the realtek solutions (glad it took you no less than three links to figure that out)
Again, stop going off topic, we're not talking about the ALC650, we're comparing the Envy24PT to the Audigy. Do yourself a favor and STFU you clueless dolt.