MSI MEGA 651
MSI FX5900-VTD
RocketRAID 1520
RocketRAID 404
FIC AU13 nF2
LanParty KT400A
AS Ceramiqué
TV Wonder VE
AR Wireless HP

Conclusion

   So what can we conclude about this motherboard.  Does the nForce 2 chipset improve performance compared to other Athlon chipsets?  How does the integrated video compare to a standalone GeForce 4MX or a Matrox Parhelia?  How doest the integrated NIC work, is it a better performing NIC than other cards?

    Let us first consider the layout.  For a µATX motherboard, it manages to pack a fair amount of feature in a small space.  It has integrated audio, and integrated GeForce 4MX class video card with video out functions, a integrated 10/100 network card and still has room for all the standard card slots, though there is only 3 PCI slots for use.  Gladly there is a separate AGP 8X slot, so that you can use an external video card instead of the integrated video.

    Next is the BIOS, and while there are quite a few options that you can set to change the memory settings there isn't much more.  You can change almost every setting related to memory including changing the speed of the memory compared to the FSB.  There is no option to change the multiplier for those with unlocked processors, or even any options to raise the voltage of any of the onboard devices.  This makes for a disappointing overclocking result, that is limited by the processors ability to increase in speed without a voltage increase.

    The quality of the output is much like that of the MX, in the areas that I was able to test before the current motherboard died on me.  This puts the 2D quality above that of the MSI Ti4600 8X that I tested previously, and makes it pretty comfortable to use at resolutions up to 1600*1200, and should have pretty decent TV-Out quality.

    The performance of the motherboard, in comparison to another motherboard and also other video cards.  The nForce 2 only shows a noticeable improvements in performance with Jedi Knight II at 1024*768 and also when rendering video into DivX format.  With the IGP the performance was lower than that of a GeForce 4 MX in both games we tested, but was still playable using dual channel mode, using a resolution of 1024*768.  With the IGP enabled there was a noticeable difference between single channel mode and dual channel mode in games with no real difference coming from having dual channel mode enabled without the IGP being enabled.

    The price of this motherboard is only about , as seen from Pricegrabber.com.  I would like to thank Chaintech USA for providing the review sample for us to test.  I would like to note that the problem I had with my motherboard was not a motherboard problem, rather it was a silly mistake on my part.

Pros

• Dencent Speed from integrated graphics

• µATX motherboard

• Faster than other chipsets

• Good speed from NIC

• Wide range of memory settings

• 4 socket mount holes

Cons

• No major improvements due to dual channel memory mode

• No MCP-T

• Lack of Multiplier adjustments

• Lack of Voltage Control

• No Thermal Paste on chipset fan

• Sparse bundle

Bottom Line

    If you don't plan on overclocking this system and need an all-in-one motherboard, this motherboard has what you need in the way of performance.  But the lack of overclocking options removes it from the overclockers options.  It is ideal if you want to build an small multimedia PC.

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