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Gigabyte GA-K8NXP-9 nForce4 Ultra Motherboard Review
Gigabyte GA-K8NXP-9 nForce4 Ultra Motherboard Review - PCSTATS
The GA-K8NXP-9 is bound to be a favourite solution, for not only does it incorporate PCI Express x16 slot, but it also features a remarkable array of goodies.
 99% Rating:   
Filed under: Motherboards Published:  Author: 
External Mfg. Website: Gigabyte Nov 12 2004   C. Sun  
Home > Reviews > Motherboards > Gigabyte GA-K8NXP-9

Gigabit Ethernet built in

As it was with some versions of the nForce chipset, Gigabit Ethernet is built right into the nForce 4. Unlike the nForce 3 though, it will be available in all versions of the nForce 4. Good stuff.

Audio support

Nothing exciting to report here, as the nForce 4 will use exactly the same AC ’97 integrated audio configuration as the previous generation of nForce 3 boards. It looks like nVidia’s Soundstorm will never return, as manufacturers saw little motivation to implement it due to the fact consumers apparently couldn't care less about higher quality integrated audio.

New software: nTune application

nVidia's nTune software is the latest version of nVidia’s system utility software for its nForce motherboards. Forsaking the useful but marginal approach of the previous versions of this utility, nVidia has set out to make nTune a comprehensive control panel for nForce 4-based systems.

Like previous versions, nTune will serve as a full system overclocking utility, allowing users to accelerate their system and video cards (Geforce FX and later series cards only) on the fly. It will also allow many BIOS configuration options to be set from the operating system, monitor motherboard and CPU temperatures, and even voltage levels.

What’s new is the ability to create and set custom profiles for overclocking, and the various BIOS settings. These profiles can be made permanent or set to trigger at a preset event or system condition.

nVidia’s example of this is a ‘quiet’ mode where overclocking is disabled and system fans reduced in speed when a DVD is inserted, to make for a better viewing experience. The possibilities of this system are endless though. You could have a ‘safe’ option which disables overclocking when system temperatures reach a certain point, or even set different speed settings for different games. More innovation shown here by nVidia.

USB 2.0 support

All versions of the nForce 4 chipset will support 10 USB 2.0 ports. With USB devices growing like wild-fire, it is always nice to have a few extra ports to spare.

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Contents of Article: Gigabyte GA-K8NXP-9
 Pg 1.  Gigabyte GA-K8NXP-9 nForce4 Ultra Motherboard Review
 Pg 2.  Exploring the nForce 4 chipset
 Pg 3.  nForce 4 features and variants
 Pg 4.  Improved disk controller and RAID support
 Pg 5.  Advancing Storage Features
 Pg 6.  — Gigabit Ethernet built in
 Pg 7.  nForce 4 chipset variations
 Pg 8.  Feature comparisons
 Pg 9.  Overclocking and more
 Pg 10.  The BIOS
 Pg 11.  PCStats Test System and Sysmark 2004
 Pg 12.  Benchmarks: Winstone 2004, Winbench 99
 Pg 13.  Benchmarks: SiSoft Sandra 2004, Super Pi
 Pg 14.  Benchmarks: PCMark04, 3DMark2001
 Pg 15.  Benchmarks: 3DMark05, AquaMark3
 Pg 16.  Benchmarks: Comanche 4, X2: The Threat, UT2003
 Pg 17.  Benchmarks: UT2004, Doom 3
 Pg 18.  Maximum Motherboard Overclocks and Conclusion

 
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