best microATX

[Tim-E T]

Well i want to try something different and do a microatx machine for a change. The problem is that i want to try and make it relatively silent as well. Which in meens that a board with vcore adjustments would be ideal. But all of the nforce2 microatx boards i have looked at dont have that adjustment. is there one?
If there isnt what is the best microatx board i can get?

(yes i want onboard vid)

[Balrog]

The only one I know of is the Biostar M7NCG Ver 4.0, if you want quiet then a decent HSF combo and some sound-proofing when you build will get you there, its not necessary to under-volt/clock. I built a micro-LAN rig using a Retail Barton 2500+ and Shuttles MN31N nForce2 mATX board. This has IGP & MCP-T chipset, its fast, stable and very, very quiet. I pair it with 2 X 256mb Crucial PC2700 and OC'd the IGP using Riva. The graphics and audio are very good for this price range, the LAN and USB2 work great, I haven't tried the Firewire but its there if required. The audio is "Soundstorm" type, has all the controls but can't be certified as it shares the rear audio connections. The Biostar is suppose to be a nice board. Chaintech, Albatron make them with TV-Out support. Just use some sound proofing and rubber mounts/grommits on all your drives, the biggest, slowest fans you can find, get a Zalman fan controller and you should be off and running (quietly) Oh and check out the Fortron/Sparkle PN series PSUs, 300/350watt & 120mm fan, I have one of each, strong and silent. Good Luck!
Regards, Balrog

[Tim-E T]

thx for the sugestions i look into doin that

[zachj]

Note that there are a few different versions of the M7NCG. The original version didn't have ANY options. Revision 1.4 has them all. Anything newer than that will also have them. I have some concerns about the "reliability" of this board. It seems like it isn't exactly "stable" sometimes, and others, it seems perfectly reliable. It's really odd. It'll work fine at default, and it works fine for me at 166. I've not tried any higher. Sometimes my machine just doesn't boot, though. Go over to NForcershq.com and look at the forum. It's full of mATX NForce2 boards and people who've got them.

I wouldn't not recomend it, but I have "issues" with it.

Z

[Balrog]

Version 1.4, yup thats the one, I almost bought one back in May but couldn't find anyone reputable that would guarantee I'd get the 1.4 model so I bought my Shuttle. Sorry to hear you're having problems ZachJ, looks like your not alone though, have you tried different BIOSs to see if that added anymore stability or performance?
Regards, Balrog

[zachj]

I think the BIOS/Driver updates from Biostar might be the biggest reason to avoid them entirely. The only BIOS update released for this board that was acutally useful was the one that helped the BIOS keep a modified VCore after the power plug was removed. I had that problem, and my computer wouldn't boot for two days until I tried the fail-safe jumper. That was the last BIOS they released. Look at the date of the newest drivers . . .

I guess it's okay, so long as you just leave well enough alone . . .

I don't mind it, but I think others might . .

Z

[Balrog]

Hey ZachJ, exactly what issues are you having as far as stability goes? What OS are you running and what brand and wattage PSU are you using?
Regards, Balrog

[zachj]

XP Home, 520W Vantec Stealth PSU. There's nothing "wrong" with any of the components, I'm sure.

The stability issues are just random refusal to boot, and the problems with VCore adjustments I mentioned before. I think both of them have been ironed out. At 166MHz FSB, I haven't had any problems at all (except when I put a dead Radeon8500 in there . . . then it wouldn't boot). I think I make it sound worse than it is. But I've about had it with AMD. I've had bad luck with parts in the last two systems, and every one of the 6 K6-2s in my house were terrible. I doubt Intel's going to be any better in that regard, since I won't be buying Intel boards, but I think I'm gonna' switch sides for the time being. Either a dual Xeon or a dual Opteron. I'd go Opteron, but I can't justify the high price for low performance.

Z

[Balrog]

Have you ever tried putting an nVidia graphics card in? I can't even count how many people I've talked to that had problems with ATI cards installed in nForce2 boards of all different makes and models.
Regards, Balrog

[zachj]

I regard that sort of thing as an assumption not really founded on any solid evidence. I've not seen anything I believe regarding NForce2 boards. I DO believe that it's not very friendly with MP boards, though . . . I'm curious to see some links about the subject, though.

I have a TNT2 card, but I won't use that . . . I've got in in case of emergencies . . .

Z

[Balrog]

Sounds like you got it all figured out there ZachJ, hope you get your problems worked out.
Regards, Balrog

[wannaoc]

What about Chaintech boards? Are they any good?