Epox EP-9NPAJ SLi and EP-9NPA+ Ultra

batfink

batfink

batfink

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6 Jan 2006
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485
Did a quick search, but couldn't find what I was looking for.

I've settled on getting an Epox board for my first build, but what's the difference between these two (in simple terms for a n00b!)? I'm not bothered about SLi so would I be best off with the 9NPA+ Ultra ?

Cheers.
 
You can't really go wrong with either and if you buy the SLi one I suspect your second graphics slot will end up permanently empty like most (mine included) do!
 
I wouldn't recomend the epox. I just built my first ever rig a few days back and wasen't impressed by the boards design. It's very good if you wanna over-clock as the htt can go up to 300 and the vdim goes up to 3.2v but the design is a let down.

here are my gripes:

-The chipset cooler is very noisy. It's got a high pitched whirl that gets on my nerves
-If you install an xl or gt (or higher), one of the ata ports is completely covered (no floppy)
-The motherboard under-volts the cpu under load?!?!?
-The cmos jumper and battery are directly below the pci express slot so each time you want to reset the bios you have to remove your gfx card.

There. In retrospect I would have happily paid the extra for a dfi. In fact I might just sell this one off and buy a dfi.
 
What motherboard would you recommend for a similar price ?

I'm already stretching my budget on the rest of the system so don't want to spend any more. Planned system is:

Motherboard ??
Athlon 64 3200+
Arctic Freezer 64
Gigabyte 256Mb 6600GT Silentpipe
Geil 1Gb (2x512Mb) Ram
Samsung Spinpoint 200Gb
NEC 4551 DVD-RW
Tagan 380W PSU
Coolermaster Centurion 530
 
to be honest i don't know that much about mobo's. I just tried to give my opinion on the epox. maybe i was expect too much. i only bought it to overclock my opty and for that purpose i don't think i made the best choice. If you're on a budget then you have to compromise on somethings. It just depends, which features are most important to you?
 
I have the epox 9NPA ultra and

the fan is not noisey on mine.
Its stable as a rock
Great price
and superb build quality.

the dfi's are good but they are expensive.

the next best are the epox followed my asus imo.
 
After much deliberation, I went with the Epox. Decided I needed to get this system ordered or I would spend forever changing my mind over which components to get.

I'm not planning to do much in the way of overclocking and the system is going to be for general use with one or two games thrown in and probably a dual boot with Linux.

I wanted a reasonably quiet machine hence the choice of graphics card and the use of the arctic freezer (which I got today and it's HUGE).

I almost thought about going with the Abit AN8 Ultra board since it uses passive cooling, but I found far more positive reviews of the Epox than the Abit so bit the bullet and went with it (the 9NPA+ Ultra). The only drawback seems to be the location of the power connector which I'll have to work around.

I also went with the 420W Tagan PSU (rather than the 380) to provide a bit more freedom to upgrade in the future. Hopefully I've made good choices......no doubt I'll find out when I build it next week :)
 
Good choice batfink :). I have the same mobo and it is great. If you find the chipset cooler noisy it can always be replaced with a Zalman passive cooler ;)
 
Hi guys can you answer 2 questions about the epox board...first do the temp sensors give true readings as i have had enough of my neo2 giving faulse readings all the time as it is allways in the 50's but when i put the chip in an asrock it's in the 30's...and yes i've flashed it about 10 times with no difference....secondly will my zalman 9500 fit on the board.
 
vocch said:
Hi guys can you answer 2 questions about the epox board...first do the temp sensors give true readings as i have had enough of my neo2 giving faulse readings all the time as it is allways in the 50's but when i put the chip in an asrock it's in the 30's...and yes i've flashed it about 10 times with no difference....secondly will my zalman 9500 fit the board.
Click to expand...


Well my temps seem fine
The zalman 9500 will fit I have one.Bear in mind though the zalman is noisey on full setting.

However on silent setting the temps go up a couple of degrees so no problem there.Also its easy to fit another fan on the zalman too if you want.
 
Thanks for the reply easyrider....your right about the noisy fan as mine is on full constant and my temps are in 50's on my neo2 thats why i'm changing want a bit more of a quiet system.... Cheers
 
Quick question for users of the 9NPA+ Ultra......

Which slots do I use for dual-channel memory?

The manual clearly states: "For dual channel to operate, both channels must be populated with the same amount of memory, preferably of the same type

The four DIMM sockets are divided into two colours to help you identify the channel pairs. Each dual channel pair has the same colour, e.g. DIMM1 and DIMM3. To obtain best performance, simply mount DIMM sockets of the same colour."

Maybe I'm mis-reading it, but it's confused me. DIMM1 and DIMM3 are different colours. DIMM1 and DIMM2 are the same colour so which pair of slots are the correct ones to use :confused:

Cheers.
 
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