Top News
Calendar
Random News
Our Friends
|
|
| MSI NF980-G65 Mainboard/Motherboard |
Category: Motherboard |
| Added: 24 November 2009 |
Introduction:
While your computer may be used for several things, whether work related or for entertainment purposes; usually the components on the inside were aimed for both options. MSI’s new motherboard, the NF980-G65 pushes all other options aside and screams, I was meant for gaming! The NF890 is in every way, a motherboard meant for the gamer enthusiast. Supporting 3-way SLI, the latest AM3 based processors (Phenom II), allowing for an easy overclocking switch and MSI’s Active Phase Switching for those who sometimes may feel the need to go green when they are not fragging (or being fragged).
MSI’s Take:
“To fit the demand of ultimate gaming performance ,MSI, as a global renowned mainboard and graphic card manufacturer, launched NF980-G65 with NVIDIA nForce 980a chipset which supports not only AMD latest Phenom™ II AM3 processor as well as DDR3 memory, but also 3-way SLI processing by additional NF200 controlling chip in order to enhance the expanding capacity of mainboard. In addition, NF980-G65 is equipped with MSI exclusive design, such as APS(Active Phase Switching), Easy OC Switch and True Blue-ray audio, presently the best option to optimize your AMD gaming performance.”
From all appearances the NF980-G65 has the makings of a stellar performing board. Are the looks deceiving or does the NF980-G65 deliver a rocket fueled high octane performance? Read on to find out. |
| Testing SLI on the NF980-G65 |
Category: Motherboard |
| Added: 24 November 2009 |
We often see AMD Phenom II processors paired with ATI Radeon CrossfireX setups, since almost all AMD motherboards with two or more PCI-E x16 slots, support CrossfireX, for the simple reason that ATI has been part of AMD since 2006. But it is very rare to see NVIDIA SLI setups along an AMD processor, for many reasons. First, there are not many motherboard models supporting this technology. Also, on average, ATI graphics cards offer the top of the line performance since a good long while. The dual HD4870X2 was the highest performing setup until NVIDIA released the GTX295, which was in turn traded by many for four HD4980s. And now, the king is without any doubt the HD5870 in CrossfireX.
The other day, I examined the MSI NF980-G65 motherboard, equipped with the NVIDIA 980a chipset, along with the NForce 200 PCI-E bridge for 3-Way SLI capabilities. Obviously, I tested its capabilities in our standard test platform, equipped of a single GTX260. It's now time to toss in another two GTX260s to see what it can do. I will run the processor at its best overclock on that particular board, and the video cards will also be overclocked when in SLI configuration
|
| MSI NF980-G65 Motherboard Review |
Category: Motherboard |
| Added: 24 November 2009 |
Not so long ago, I heard about the MSI NF980-G65, sporting the same chipset. I was immediately interested in it, to see if it was better than ASUS' solution. In fact, the NF980-G65 and its little brother the NF750-G55 are the first AMD motherboards to sport DDR3 slots and to be officially SLI ready. I say officially, because today, it can be achieved on a big range of motherboards via some hack; I had previously talked about this matter when it made its apparition. However, a few days ago, I learned that this hack is now more documented and thoroughly explained. It can successfully be achieved on a wide range of motherboards and chipsets, including the AMD ones, as I had wished. Although I did not take the time yet to test it myself, this hack somewhat invalidates the excitation I had about the M4N82 running SLI along an AMD Phenom II, since it can now be done using the greatly performing 790FX boards.
So now that I am less enthusiastic toward a new AMD SLI board, the MSI NF980-G65 will need to fare much better than the ASUS M4N82 Deluxe at the time I reviewed it. Let's see if it can impress me!
Also, before taking an in-depth look at the board specifications, let's remind us what is the 980a platform. To do that, I recalled the 780a diagram from the ASUS M3N-HT Deluxe review. Just keep in mind that for the 980a, the processor now becomes a Phenom II or Athlon II.
|
| MSI NF980-G65 Motherboard Review Part. 2 |
Category: Motherboard |
| Added: 24 November 2009 |
Continue from MSI NF980-G65 Motherboard Review
Test Setup
I was previously talking of the ASUS M4N82, saying that I was a bit deceived it did not sport DDR3 slots. I will therefore put the NF980-G65 in direct comparison with it to see if it will really make a difference. I will also include our standard AMD test platform motherboard: the Gigabyte MA790FXT-UD5P.
- Processor : AMD Phenom II X4 965
- Motherboard : MSI NF980-G65
- Motherboard : ASUS M4N82 Deluxe
- Motherboard : Gigabyte MA790FXT-UD5P
- Memory : Mushkin HP3-12800 2x 2GB 9-9-9-24
- Memory: Mushkin XP2-8000 2x 2GB 5-5-5-12
- Video Card : nVidia GTX 260 Core 216
- Hard Drive : Seagate 7200.11 750GB
- Power Supply : Mushkin XP-800AP
- Operating System : Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate 64 bit
|
| MSI NF980-G65 Motherboard Review |
Category: Motherboard |
| Added: 6 November 2009 |
Not so long ago, I heard about the MSI NF980-G65, sporting the same chipset. I was immediately interested in it, to see if it was better than ASUS' solution. In fact, the NF980-G65 and its little brother the NF750-G55 are the first AMD motherboards to sport DDR3 slots and to be officially SLI ready. I say officially, because today, it can be achieved on a big range of motherboards via some hack; I had previously talked about this matter when it made its apparition. However, a few days ago, I learned that this hack is now more documented and thoroughly explained. It can successfully be achieved on a wide range of motherboards and chipsets, including the AMD ones, as I had wished. Although I did not take the time yet to test it myself, this hack somewhat invalidates the excitation I had about the M4N82 running SLI along an AMD Phenom II, since it can now be done using the greatly performing 790FX boards.
So now that I am less enthusiastic toward a new AMD SLI board, the MSI NF980-G65 will need to fare much better than the ASUS M4N82 Deluxe at the time I reviewed it. Let's see if it can impress me!
|
| Mini Test Report : MSI 785GM-E65 M-ATX unlocks and overclocks... |
Category: Motherboard |
| Added: 20 October 2009 |
I got this board on Friday but only managed to test it yesterday.
msi 785GM-E65 ...o0oh...140W cpu ready... hehe
This micro ATX board uses an AMD 785G w/SB710 chipset.
I remembered SB710s support ACC by default. 
Feeling hopeful...
The last AM3 board I had was the 790FX-GD70, and a stellar one by far.
Hope this little one performs close to its ATX sister.
|
| MSI 785GM-E65 Motherboard and AMD 785G Chipset Review |
Category: Motherboard |
| Added: 19 October 2009 |
AMD is back in the mainstream. Only a short while ago saw the launch of its completely redesigned Athlon II processor line, a value-oriented CPU, while its ATI 40nm Radeon HD 4770 videocard has tuned out to be one of the best value-for-money mainstream graphics cards. AMD's latest mainstream integrated graphics chipset is the AMD 785G and Radeon HD 4200 IGP. The AMD 785G and its Radeon HD 4200 are the first with DirectX 10.1 compliance for Microsoft Windows 7 operating system, and include enhanced features like ATI Stream application acceleration and improved Universal Video Decoding 2.
MSI 's 785GM-E65 motherboard is built around the AMD 785G and SB710 chipsets, and features 128MB integrated DDR3 SidePort memory. MSI has adapted the AMD 785G chipset into a micro-ATX form factor, an ideal size for small home and office computers, and best of all Home Theatre PCs.
The MSI 785GM-E65 is a socket AM3 motherboard, which means it's compatible with AMD's newest processors like the Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition and the Athlon II X2 250 . AMD will gradually transition all of its desktop processors to socket AM3 over the next few years, so investing now could save you a bit of hassle later on.
While upgrading to DDR3 has been a daunting prospect in the past, memory prices have dropped dramatically and modules are basically at parity with DDR2 RAM now. The 785GM-E65 will accommodate up to 16GB of DDR3-800/1066/1333MHz memory, however the real firepower comes with the Radeon HD 4200 integrated graphics processor. This IGP is the next evolution of the Radeon HD 3200, adding support for DirectX 10.1 and Shader Model 4.1 graphics.
The guts of the Radeon HD 4200 IGP are made up of 40 stream processors that run at a core clock of 500MHz, so while this is still an IGP (expect integrated graphics performance, not a miracle), AMD claims it can handle some "mainstream" gaming. To this end the MSI 785GM-E65 has also been equipped with 128MB of DDR3-1333 Sideport memory as a performance cache, and on top of that the GPU can be overclocked too. PCSTATS will be putting those claims to the test a little later on in this review.
|
| MSI 785GM-E65 Motherboard and AMD 785G Chipset Review PART 3 |
Category: Motherboard |
| Added: 19 October 2009 |
Motherboard IGP Benchmarks: 3DMark Vantage, FEAR
 Futuremark 3DMark Vantage 1.0.1 |
Source: FutureMark |
| |
3DMark06 is the worldwide standard in advanced 3D game performance benchmarking. A fundamental tool for every company in the PC industry as well as PC users and gamers, 3DMark06 uses advanced real-time 3D game workloads to measure PC performance using a suite of DirectX 9 3D graphics tests, CPU tests, and 3D feature tests. 3DMark06 tests include all new HDR/SM3.0 graphics tests, SM2.0 graphics tests, AI and physics driven single and multiple cores or processor CPU tests and a collection of comprehensive feature tests to reliably measure next generation gaming performance today.
 Futuremark 3DMark Vantage 1.0.1 |
| Performance Overall: (P) | Points | Ranking |
| Intel DG45ID (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3814 |
   |
| Intel DG45ID (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 Onboard G45 ) |
0 |
|
| Asus P5Q-EM (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3854 |
|
| Asus P5Q-EM (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 Onboard G45 ) |
0 |
|
| ASUS M4A78T-E (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3714 |
   |
| ASUS M4A78T-E (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 onboard HD 3300 video) |
0 |
|
| ASUS M3A78-T (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3730 |
|
| ASUS M3A78-T (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 onboard HD 3300 video) |
0 |
|
| Foxconn A7DA-S (AMD 790GX 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3847 |
|
| Foxconn A7DA-S (AMD 790GX 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ onboard HD 3300 video) |
0 |
|
 MSI 785GM-E65 (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE GTS 250) |
7308 |
   |
| MSI 785GM-E65 (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE IGP HD 4200) |
287 |
|
| ASUS M4A785TD-V Evo (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE GTS 250) |
7299 |
|
| ASUS M4A785TD-V Evo (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE IGP HD 4200) |
287 |
|
| ECS A780GM-A (AMD 780G 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3654 |
|
| ECS A780GM-A (AMD 780G 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ Onboard HD 3200 Video |
0 |
|
| Biostar Tpower N750 (NF 750a 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3335 |
|
| Biostar Tpower N750 (NF 750a 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ onboard nF 750a video) |
0 |
|
| Biostar TF8200 A2+ (GF 8200 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3702 |
|
| GPU score: | Points | Ranking |
| Intel DG45ID (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3598 |
|
| Intel DG45ID (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 Onboard G45 ) |
0 |
|
| Asus P5Q-EM (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3621 |
|
| Asus P5Q-EM (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 Onboard G45 ) |
0 |
|
| ASUS M4A78T-E (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3194 |
|
| ASUS M4A78T-E (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 onboard HD 3300 video) |
0 |
|
| ASUS M3A78-T (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3208 |
|
| ASUS M3A78-T (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 onboard HD 3300 video) |
0 |
|
| Foxconn A7DA-S (AMD 790GX 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3191 |
|
| Foxconn A7DA-S (AMD 790GX 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ onboard HD 3300 video) |
0 |
|
| MSI 785GM-E65 (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE GTS 250) |
5674 |
|
| MSI 785GM-E65 (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE IGP HD 4200) |
216 |
|
| ASUS M4A785TD-V Evo (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE GTS 250) |
6565 |
|
| ASUS M4A785TD-V Evo (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE IGP HD 4200) |
217 |
|
| ECS A780GM-A (AMD 780G 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3575 |
|
| ECS A780GM-A (AMD 780G 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ Onboard HD 3200 Video |
0 |
|
| Biostar Tpower N750 (NF 750a 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3172 |
|
| Biostar Tpower N750 (NF 750a 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ onboard nF 750a video) |
0 |
|
| Biostar TF8200 A2+ (GF 8200 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3580 |
|
| CPU score: | Points | Ranking |
| Intel DG45ID (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
4653 |
|
| Intel DG45ID (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 Onboard G45 ) |
0 |
|
| Asus P5Q-EM (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
4776 |
|
| Asus P5Q-EM (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 Onboard G45 ) |
0 |
|
| ASUS M4A78T-E (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
7257 |
|
| ASUS M4A78T-E (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 onboard HD 3300 video) |
0 |
|
| ASUS M3A78-T (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
7289 |
|
| ASUS M3A78-T (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 onboard HD 3300 video) |
0 |
|
| Foxconn A7DA-S (AMD 790GX 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3921 |
|
| Foxconn A7DA-S (AMD 790GX 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ onboard HD 3300 video) |
0 |
|
| MSI 785GM-E65 (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE GTS 250) |
10994 |
|
| MSI 785GM-E65 (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE IGP HD 4200) |
10942 |
|
| ASUS M4A785TD-V Evo (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE GTS 250) |
10982 |
|
| ASUS M4A785TD-V Evo (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE IGP HD 4200) |
10880 |
|
| ECS A780GM-A (AMD 780G 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3914 |
|
| ECS A780GM-A (AMD 780G 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ Onboard HD 3200 Video |
0 |
|
| Biostar Tpower N750 (NF 750a 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3938 |
|
| Biostar Tpower N750 (NF 750a 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ onboard nF 750a video) |
0 |
|
| Biostar TF8200 A2+ (GF 8200 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
3910 |
|
|
Thanks to proper DirectX 10.1 support, we finally have IGPs that won't fail 3DMark Vantage's benchmark. The MSI 785GM-E65 manages only 287 3DMarks on its own though, so it's still got some ways to go before you'll be able to play DX10 games on an integrated motherboard.
| Sierra FEAR 1.08 |
Source: Sierra
|
| |
FEAR is Sierra's latest first person shooter which relies heavily on DirectX 9 features. With its "Soft Shadows" feature enabled, even the fastest videocards run at a crawl, FEAR is definitely the new benchmark for future FPS games to follow.
| Sierra FEAR 1.08 |
| Maximum 1024x768: | Points | Ranking |
| Intel DG45ID (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
133 |
|
| Intel DG45ID (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 Onboard G45 ) |
9 |
|
| Asus P5Q-EM (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
133 |
|
| Asus P5Q-EM (Intel G45 200/800 C2D E6750 Onboard G45 ) |
11 |
|
| ASUS M4A78T-E (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
121 |
|
| ASUS M4A78T-E (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 onboard HD 3300 video) |
13 |
|
| ASUS M3A78-T (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
120 |
|
| ASUS M3A78-T (AMD 790GX 200/1066 AM3 Phenom II X3 720 onboard HD 3300 video) |
13 |
|
| Foxconn A7DA-S (AMD 790GX 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
118 |
|
| Foxconn A7DA-S (AMD 790GX 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ onboard HD 3300 video) |
12 |
|
| MSI 785GM-E65 (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE GTS 250) |
171 |
|
| MSI 785GM-E65 (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE IGP HD 4200) |
10 |
|
| ASUS M4A785TD-V Evo (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE GTS 250) |
172 |
|
| ASUS M4A785TD-V Evo (AMD 785G 200/1066 AM3 Phenom X4 955BE IGP HD 4200) |
10 |
|
| ECS A780GM-A (AMD 780G 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
156 |
|
| ECS A780GM-A (AMD 780G 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ Onboard HD 3200 Video |
8 |
|
| Foxconn A690GM2MA-RS2H (AMD 690G 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
163 |
|
| Foxconn A690GM2MA-RS2H (AMD 690G 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ Onboard Video) |
4 |
|
| Biostar Tpower N750 (NF 750a 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
121 |
|
| Biostar Tpower N750 (NF 750a 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ onboard nF 750a video) |
6 |
|
| Biostar TF8200 A2+ (GF 8200 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ GF 8800GTS 320MB) |
128 |
|
| Biostar TF8200 A2+ (GF 8200 200/800 AM2 X2 5000+ onboard GF 8200 video) |
19 |
|
|
The 500MHz Radeon HD 4200 that graces the MSI 785GM-E65 is a little faster than its predecessor, the 500MHz Radeon HD 3200 of the AMD 780G chipset. However the overclocked (700MHz) Radeon 3300 IGP found in the AMD 790GX chipset still trumps every other AMD chipset.
Of course, none of these integrate graphics processors are capable of playing FEAR on their own.
|
|
Site Info
Latest News
Referer
|
|
Views: 8364 
