CPU/Mobo DFI nF4 Discussion
- Thread starter JediMaster
- Start date
Also i ordered and paid for my main rig somewhere in december but due to unfortunate delays it came in march... I waited for the rig for four months... It was originally scheduled to arrive in Jan but it landed up in late march... It takes a lot of patience... You all should be ready for anything to wrong...
TheMask said:@
@ JediMaster..
read what i said, bugger.. READ..
Yup Masky ! It was exactly your keyword "enthusiast" that I higlighted
. And I agreed with you 100% just in case it didn't come thru' as such in my post !Another problem with the DFIs is the RAM - the support techies completely discourage any use of ValueRam !
So far so good..
Pros:
1. Lukz zexy
2. Vdimm upto 4V, an overclockers dream
3. quite cheap (in US)
4. solid build
Cons:
1. suffers from SDS (Sudden death syndrome)
2. Needs High quality / high speed RAM
3. Needs a PSU with 24-pin power connector
4. no local support
Pros:
1. Lukz zexy
2. Vdimm upto 4V, an overclockers dream
3. quite cheap (in US)
4. solid build
Cons:
1. suffers from SDS (Sudden death syndrome)
2. Needs High quality / high speed RAM
3. Needs a PSU with 24-pin power connector
4. no local support
The DFI nf4 is good mostly for ram overclocks(thats whats makes it stand out from the ASUS/MSI/GBT boards).So it probably isn't worth it unless u have a gig of BH-5 or VX to use the >3.3v vdimm the board has to offer.As for the hynix d43 overclocks,tests have shown it doesnt like vdimm >3v.
I have started to worry a bit now , even if my parents have given me permission to get the stuff i am now having a bit of hesitation.
It seems i have to settle for a ASUS A8N Sli.
Guys i still need some more time to decide on if i should get the DFI.
I need some more time i feel i am am dropping the idea of DFI.
Will settle for A8N Sli.
It seems i have to settle for a ASUS A8N Sli.
Guys i still need some more time to decide on if i should get the DFI.
I need some more time i feel i am am dropping the idea of DFI.
Will settle for A8N Sli.
Somebody mail this link to DFI, and encourage them to set up shop in India soon!
Lookin at the number of replies here, i'm sure they'd have enough business!
Deejay's absolutely right, but i'm sure most of you are seasoned overclockers who already know that and are prepared to spend the extra in good quality PSUs, RAM etc
But lets be positive and not expect the stuff to be DOA so soon Masky and others are merely trying to imply caution.
Yes I do recall that time hehe. I still think despite your anxiety, things were pretty much in control for you, considering you are running on almost the same components even now!
If JediMaster doesnt mind me telling his story.. in his case, it was an issue of Socket 939 boards needing a BIOS update in order for the newer 90nm procs to be detected. There were two means that i knew of to flash the BIOS at that time -
1. Borrow a standard 130nm Socket 939 proc to use on the board temporarily, boot and then update the BIOS. Unfortunately Socket 939 hadn't yet invaded Indian markets as yet, so temporarily getting one was not possible.
2. Try getting your BIOS chip to an embedded institute or some such place where their occupation revolves around flash and other EEPROM devices, as they would have the tools to interface with the BIOS chip and would update it. Was a bit familiar with this, as couple of years back I had a motherboard diagnosed with a faulty BIOS chip and got a new BIOS chip installed + latest BIOS installed through one such place. We were exploring this option however a couple of days later JM managed to find a friend who could get his board back to the states, officially updated and back again and hence he chose this fail-safe route.
I still think if at all, he could have merely put the system together, checked if the motherboard was having trouble identifying the proc/dint have the latest BIOS and then updated his BIOS through option #2 and things would've been fine
Oh well, perhaps for future endeavours
P.S: 100th post!! (masky style hehe)
Lookin at the number of replies here, i'm sure they'd have enough business!
Deejay's absolutely right, but i'm sure most of you are seasoned overclockers who already know that and are prepared to spend the extra in good quality PSUs, RAM etc
But lets be positive and not expect the stuff to be DOA so soon
Masky and others are merely trying to imply caution.JediMaster said:
Yes I do recall that time hehe. I still think despite your anxiety, things were pretty much in control for you, considering you are running on almost the same components even now!
If JediMaster doesnt mind me telling his story.. in his case, it was an issue of Socket 939 boards needing a BIOS update in order for the newer 90nm procs to be detected. There were two means that i knew of to flash the BIOS at that time -
1. Borrow a standard 130nm Socket 939 proc to use on the board temporarily, boot and then update the BIOS. Unfortunately Socket 939 hadn't yet invaded Indian markets as yet, so temporarily getting one was not possible.
2. Try getting your BIOS chip to an embedded institute or some such place where their occupation revolves around flash and other EEPROM devices, as they would have the tools to interface with the BIOS chip and would update it. Was a bit familiar with this, as couple of years back I had a motherboard diagnosed with a faulty BIOS chip and got a new BIOS chip installed + latest BIOS installed through one such place. We were exploring this option however a couple of days later JM managed to find a friend who could get his board back to the states, officially updated and back again and hence he chose this fail-safe route.
I still think if at all, he could have merely put the system together, checked if the motherboard was having trouble identifying the proc/dint have the latest BIOS and then updated his BIOS through option #2 and things would've been fine
Oh well, perhaps for future endeavours
P.S: 100th post!! (masky style hehe)
@Quad_Master: Undertaker is absolutely right, unless you're going in for some hefty 1:1 RAM overclocking with VX RAM which thrives on voltage in excess of 3v (more than what most boards can provide) should you go for the DFI. Also the DFI board provides a dizzying array of mem tweaking parameters that can drive you nuts!
On all other counts any other decent board can achieve similar clocks. Also an OCZ DDR Booster could help you notch up your vdimm voltage in any other board should you choose voltage hungry RAM.
If it is going to be a major investment, and something you would not like to screw up(aka, your parents would kill you if you tell them - ma , pa my board is dead! :bleh: ), then yes i'd be a bit hesitant like you. Else you can chill and look positively at your purchase
One thing i'd like to point out, knowing the DFI boards are designed for the enthusiast, wouldnt their boards be designed using components that have much more tolerance for stressful operation? I do know they stress their use of quality japanese capacitors on their boards.
On all other counts any other decent board can achieve similar clocks. Also an OCZ DDR Booster could help you notch up your vdimm voltage in any other board should you choose voltage hungry RAM.
If it is going to be a major investment, and something you would not like to screw up(aka, your parents would kill you if you tell them - ma , pa my board is dead! :bleh: ), then yes i'd be a bit hesitant like you. Else you can chill and look positively at your purchase
One thing i'd like to point out, knowing the DFI boards are designed for the enthusiast, wouldnt their boards be designed using components that have much more tolerance for stressful operation? I do know they stress their use of quality japanese capacitors on their boards.
Crazy_Eddy said:We were exploring this option however a couple of days later JM managed to find a friend who could get his board back to the states, officially updated and back again and hence he chose this fail-safe route.
I still think if at all, he could have merely put the system together, checked if the motherboard was having trouble identifying the proc/dint have the latest BIOS and then updated his BIOS through option #2 and things would've been fine
Man ! you remember ! Actually, I had official word from ABIT based on my mobo number that I was screwed w/o a new bios chip. I got my chip from ABIT and pried mine out with a needle, but my friend was lot less adventurous. HeHe !
You're right about the build quality of DFI - seems to be very good and DFI advertise about their caps being Japanese. And the extra juice for RAM is optional - you need to change jumper settings for that. And I've heard one of my friends mention that SDS may have happened bcoz ppl pumped in more juice with a 20 pin psu !
further to my post above.
(This is not for seasoned overclockers or hardware geeks)
incase somebody decides to go for a dfi m/b. and if he /she is not gonna use sli ever , then DFI is soon going to introduce this model nf4 -DAGF. it is based on the nf4 ultra chipset and a fine overclocker too.This board is going to be priced tentatively around $ 100 usd thats about Rs.4.5K. the o/c and normal performance of this board is nearly equal to the higher end boards from DFI.
This board also supports officially vDimm upto 3.2V (much more unofficially). infact it can be considered an economic version of the award winning DFI nf4 ultra-D. the economic part being no UV reactive cables and only 1 pci-e 16 slot instead of 2 pci-e 16 (non-sli) slots on the ultra version.
it is much more V.F.M than all the DFI m/b's imho. (Relatively speaking off course !! )
FYI: to check out the board see here DFI
(This is not for seasoned overclockers or hardware geeks)
incase somebody decides to go for a dfi m/b. and if he /she is not gonna use sli ever , then DFI is soon going to introduce this model nf4 -DAGF. it is based on the nf4 ultra chipset and a fine overclocker too.This board is going to be priced tentatively around $ 100 usd thats about Rs.4.5K. the o/c and normal performance of this board is nearly equal to the higher end boards from DFI.
This board also supports officially vDimm upto 3.2V (much more unofficially). infact it can be considered an economic version of the award winning DFI nf4 ultra-D. the economic part being no UV reactive cables and only 1 pci-e 16 slot instead of 2 pci-e 16 (non-sli) slots on the ultra version.
it is much more V.F.M than all the DFI m/b's imho. (Relatively speaking off course !!
)FYI: to check out the board see here DFI
Currently i am in a dual state of mind and not able to decide.
Well it has it huge share of positives no doubt about the quality.
But what if something goes wrong i will be completely in such a state i dont know.
Well i will let you know later how much i intend to overclock then you do help
me decide.
I have written it on a peice of paper currently in a hurry will post later.
Well it has it huge share of positives no doubt about the quality.
But what if something goes wrong i will be completely in such a state i dont know.
Well i will let you know later how much i intend to overclock then you do help
me decide.
I have written it on a peice of paper currently in a hurry will post later.
i did not want to discourage any potential buyers but i just wanted to state that just buying the m/b is not enough for a pleasnt o/c expirience. the supporting components should be on par with the m/b.
and seriously and optimistically , incase the m/b bought from abroad gets spoilt then be rest assured that it will be replaced by the respective co's.. the only thing is that it would take time. since you will have to ship the m/b to the place of purchase or to the co. directly (in case you get RMA number)and then find another way of getting it back to india.
i have been buying regularly from newegg for the past 3 ~4 years. i must have bought 5~6 m/b's , 4 graphic cards , 3 or 4 sets (dual) of hi-Quality rams, 2 lcd monitors and numerous other small items. till date only 1 of the ocz ram module has conked out. sent the "pair" back to OCZ (usa) and got it replaced with a better quality one within 2 weeks (to mumbai). actually they shipped (free) to my friends place in US (houston) within 24 hrs and it reached there within 48 hrs.so coming back to the main point if you have a source to get it here then your replacement will be quicker than what you normally get here locally in India. ( 6 to 8 weeks)
and seriously and optimistically , incase the m/b bought from abroad gets spoilt then be rest assured that it will be replaced by the respective co's.. the only thing is that it would take time. since you will have to ship the m/b to the place of purchase or to the co. directly (in case you get RMA number)and then find another way of getting it back to india.
i have been buying regularly from newegg for the past 3 ~4 years. i must have bought 5~6 m/b's , 4 graphic cards , 3 or 4 sets (dual) of hi-Quality rams, 2 lcd monitors and numerous other small items. till date only 1 of the ocz ram module has conked out. sent the "pair" back to OCZ (usa) and got it replaced with a better quality one within 2 weeks (to mumbai). actually they shipped (free) to my friends place in US (houston) within 24 hrs and it reached there within 48 hrs.so coming back to the main point if you have a source to get it here then your replacement will be quicker than what you normally get here locally in India. ( 6 to 8 weeks)
Instead of the SLI-DR why not the Nforce4 Ultra-D? They are build on the same board, same bios, overclock almost the same. Its about 80 bucks less. IF you are not looking for SLI I think this is great option.
You can mod it to an SLI version
You can mod it to an SLI version
DFI has deliberately stopped sales of the SLI bridge that is an important component in the mod to SLI
If you can get a hold of the bridge, its a great way to go! But then again, not many are utilising the SLI aspect, even Darky wasnt too keen on the SLI setup but more on the overclocking.
If you can get a hold of the bridge, its a great way to go! But then again, not many are utilising the SLI aspect, even Darky wasnt too keen on the SLI setup but more on the overclocking.
not only that but in the newer models they have changed the locaton of that "resistor" (acts as a jumper for sli) to below the nf4 chip. previously it was on the top, on the m/b surface i guess. but where there is a will there is a way ....Crazy_Eddy said:DFI has deliberately stopped sales of the SLI bridge that is an important component in the mod to SLI
If you can get a hold of the bridge, its a great way to go! But then again, not many are utilising the SLI aspect, even Darky wasnt too keen on the SLI setup but more on the overclocking.
I have posted a detailed thread on how much i need to overclock here.
Sub:- Can i reach this on A8NSLiDelux & 3500 Venice/SanDeigo
http://www.techenclave.com/forums/showthread.php?p=18099#post18099
Do let me know please.
Got this Info from AnandTech
For all those getting the DFI Board you can discuss straight with DFI ppl and
other members over here - http://www.dfi-street.com/forum/index.php
The mods at DFI street forums are DFI employees.
Buy it from Monarch computer with a processor because they test it for you and make sure it works before shipping. Additionally if you go the Monarch route you could e-mail them explaining your situation and ask them to take a little extra care in testing your setup.
Sub:- Can i reach this on A8NSLiDelux & 3500 Venice/SanDeigo
http://www.techenclave.com/forums/showthread.php?p=18099#post18099
Do let me know please.
Got this Info from AnandTech
For all those getting the DFI Board you can discuss straight with DFI ppl and
other members over here - http://www.dfi-street.com/forum/index.php
The mods at DFI street forums are DFI employees.
Buy it from Monarch computer with a processor because they test it for you and make sure it works before shipping. Additionally if you go the Monarch route you could e-mail them explaining your situation and ask them to take a little extra care in testing your setup.