ATIs AMD platform does deliveer - Anandtech's preview

Sheldog23 said:
I don't know if this means anything or not. But part of my deal with Sapphire for building the Blizzard demo PC was getting one of the Grouper boards when it went to retail.

I recieved mine friday by Fedex.
http://www.austinpcmods.com/images/pics/Unamed/Puremobo.jpg

http://www.austinpcmods.com/images/pics/Unamed/Puremobo2.jpg


I don't know if that means anything or not but...there it is. Hopefully that means it will be out soon.
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Ever since I first that mobo (in your mod no less) I've wanted one. :) Hows your impression of it? What all does it come with? Details man! :)
 
phoderpants said:
hmmm, that's too bad. what about when the 7800gtx came out? were there ETAs or did it come as sort of a surprise? maybe ATI is using the same tactic.
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They new exactly what cards they would have and when.
 
CrimandEvil said:
Hows your impression of it? What all does it come with? Details man! :)
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Amen to that! Give us some detail, buddy, you cannot just post these pics and then let us hang out to dry here :)
 
wizzackr said:
Amen to that! Give us some detail, buddy, you cannot just post these pics and then let us hang out to dry here :)
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I so want to get one, put it in a plexi case and water cool it. :D
 
Hey guy's , Will this board perform better in game's than the Asus in my sig ? It looks realy cool but my GTX is green" Oh well" gotta get a R520 to match. :D
 
lee63 said:
Hey guy's , Will this board perform better in game's than the Asus in my sig ? It looks realy cool but my GTX is green" Oh well" gotta get a R520 to match. :D
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I suggest you check out Anand's review concerning the performance, but IMHO I wouldn't bother swapping baords if I was you. Also, as Kyle stated above, you might want to wait for the final product before you decide, as the reviewed board is just a reference one.

cheers,
j
 
wizzackr said:
I suggest you check out Anand's review concerning the performance, but IMHO I wouldn't bother swapping baords if I was you. Also, as Kyle stated above, you might want to wait for the final product before you decide, as the reviewed board is just a reference one.

cheers,
j
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Thanx :D
 
wizzackr said:
I suggest you check out Anand's review concerning the performance, but IMHO I wouldn't bother swapping baords if I was you. Also, as Kyle stated above, you might want to wait for the final product before you decide, as the reviewed board is just a reference one.

cheers,
j
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Wow ! seem's way better than the board that I have
:eek:
 
wizzackr said:
Amen to that! Give us some detail, buddy, you cannot just post these pics and then let us hang out to dry here :)
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I have to gather up the hardware to get it going. So I couldn't really tell you anymore than what the manual says right now. Which is it's loaded with features. I was thinking of doing a little write up on it when I do. But I am no MB expert by any means. I guess I will see how it goes.
 
If MSRP is $169, this board is gonna be hot off the line. I would bet around $155-159 level street. Which is still a good chunk of change less than the Abit SLI I was gonna buy now that the X2-3800's are starting to leak out in reviews and should hit shelves within 2-3 weeks.
 
I must say I never associate ATi with AMD..
In my mind its AMD+Nvidia and Intel + ATi.. and no, thats not biased.
 
nobrainer said:
I must say I never associate ATi with AMD..
In my mind its AMD+Nvidia and Intel + ATi.. and no, thats not biased.
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why?

is it because AMD is dominating intel right now, and youd like nvidia to be with them instead of ATI? How does ATI+Intel even apply?
 
Big Fat Duck said:
why?

is it because AMD is dominating intel right now, and youd like nvidia to be with them instead of ATI? How does ATI+Intel even apply?
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AMD and nVidia do more clock for clock, and Intel and ATI are faster clock for clock.
 
And now you are seeing the results of the open economy we all live in. ATI wants a share of that market because it feels that the AMD crowd has had its nose bent outta shape by ATI, and they want to try and take some of that large % of share away from Nvidia and also Via at the same time. Its the culmination of Nvidia becoming so successful on the chipset platform for AMD, that ATI had to do something, and this chipset is the answer finally to that gapped margin.

Thats my opinion, you can pay 2 cents to care if you want.

The previous attempts were not aimed at enthusiasts and/or the upper segment of sales (did you read the figures Kyle / Steve had posted about what % of use is gaming, 20%, sure thats not all FPS, but gaming is still a HUGE sector, if not the largest, in terms of PC sales.) Gaming drives hardware to strive to be better. Its one of one 2-3 market segments that continue to see a consistent scale on both software and hardware in a 1:1 kind of ratio). I can run MS Office with an older PC and while it might be slower, it'll suffice. I can't run the newest games with an older PC and truly get all the benefits and eyecandy the game has to offer me, so gaming drives the market for upgrades, we all pretty much can agree on that.

In the end, it all boils down to the $, and for my money, if the retail unit can come within reason on launch, and with some chipset updates, match and / or eclipse the figures and previews I've read on this board. Its going to be in my next PC w/o a doubt. Its just that good looking of a product. If the retail release is a POS, then its gonna sour the ATI to AMD platform for enthusiasts for awhile, as they say, you can only make a first impression once, and if you screw it up, its gonna damage you.
 
Quote from ANANDTECH:
We've waited a long time for a real competitor to NVIDIA that would keep prices in line as only real competition can. ATI announced aggressive pricing strategies with their new Crossfire chipsets and nF4 SLI prices are already slated to drop. With Crossfire and SLI both performing well, the buyer is the winner. It means that you will get the best performance possible at the best price possible from either ATI or NVIDIA. If you are also an enthusiast, you also have a new and unexpected board to add to your short shopping list for a top Athlon 64 board. The Sapphire PI-A9RX480 deserves your consideration as a top enthusiast board. ATI and Sapphire deserve praise for having the guts to bring this board to market.
____________________________________________________________________-__-_-__

I cant see where the Nvidia boards are priced that high,prices seems pretty good to me.
It's not really Nividia that prices the motherboards too high but the Motherboard manufactures and retailers, The ASUS SLI motherboards were a PRIME example of that at almost $250 at realease. I expect to see the new ATI motherboards at the same price level or higher than the Nvidia boards when they are finally released.It would not surprize me one bit if people paid $250 to $275 for the new ATI boards,if people pay $500 for a video card $300 for a motherboard is squat.
 
Big Fat Duck said:
why?

is it because AMD is dominating intel right now, and youd like nvidia to be with them instead of ATI? How does ATI+Intel even apply?
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You mean AMD is selling more processors than INTEL....
 
"We've waited a long time for a real competitor to NVIDIA that would keep prices in line as only real competition can. "

I think they are going to wait a bit longer. Just my 2 cents.
 
alldat said:
looks like this motherboard is available, according to ati, but still dont see it on newegg, here is the link http://www.hexus.net/content/news/news.php?dXJsX3Jldmlld19JRD0xNDMx
but check out the link at ati http://www.ati.com/buy/promotions/radeonxpressmobo/amd939disc.html
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Newegg is listed as their North American etailer and Newegg had no ETA as of Friday.

Also, I consider "available" to actually mean it is available for purchase and delivery...not just purchase.
 
I was looking at that AOpen board and remembered just how fucking sexy slockets were.... Nothing quite like insertion, eh?
 
do you think kyle that the ati board is not going to make it to the masess? or is it not going to perform as good or better than the nvidia?
 
Well Kyle, if you don't mind a little suck-up-ness:

Thank you.

I nabbed an MSI 875 Neo based on a "pre-review", and it just didn't live up to its billing. It was still an OK board, but not nearly what I was expecting. When I read Morry's review, it was significantly more thorough and in line with my own experiences. Since then, I've waited to see what you guys have to say before getting into anything I plan to invest a lot in.

I for one would love to see ATI come out with a product to help keep everyone else innovating. I want to see what happens if/when some of the bigger manufacturers start implementing them.

 
hey kyle i know i am a newbie to the forum but i am a vet to the site. It sound like to me you really dont have that much faith in this product. i trust and like your reviews, so if you were upgrading your pc what would you do. 1) wait and go with ati and sapphire?
2) EPoX EP-9NPA+Ultra Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra
3) BFG nForce 4 Ultra Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra
4) ASUS A8N-E Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra
5) ABIT AN8-ULTRA Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra
 
[BB] Rick James said:
AMD and nVidia do more clock for clock, and Intel and ATI are faster clock for clock.
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Nice contradiction there.


I really like the looks of that BIOS. If this thing does well, I'll look into an ATi solution (motherboard, and video if they decide to compete with nVidia's G80, heh) for my next build. I think DFI has been slipping lately, QC-wise. A lot of newer boards from DFI have been rather.. bad, heh. Don't even get me started on the nF3 Ultra-D :mad:
 
alldat said:
do you think kyle that the ati board is not going to make it to the masess? or is it not going to perform as good or better than the nvidia?
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I really don't know. There penetration with the big 5 mobo builders has been squat. That said, NVIDIA had the same issues and overcame them, but it also took them nearly four generations of product.
 
alldat said:
hey kyle i know i am a newbie to the forum but i am a vet to the site. It sound like to me you really dont have that much faith in this product. i trust and like your reviews, so if you were upgrading your pc what would you do. 1) wait and go with ati and sapphire?
2) EPoX EP-9NPA+Ultra Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra
3) BFG nForce 4 Ultra Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra
4) ASUS A8N-E Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra
5) ABIT AN8-ULTRA Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra
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I think you need to ask yourself, "What is the ATI product going to give me that is worth waiting for?"

As for your choices, find the one that has the best prices and features that you want. Other than that, they are all solid boards. Might look into warranty and RMA policies as well.
 
Oldie said:
I for one would love to see ATI come out with a product to help keep everyone else innovating. I want to see what happens if/when some of the bigger manufacturers start implementing them.
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QFT!

I just don't think that ATI's current generation of motherboard chipset is going to be the part that pushes forward.
 
It may not be the board that pushes things farther but it is going to be a competitor to the top motherbards out right now at a competitive price point. This board will make it to retail this month, thank you kyle for all of your great reviews but i do disagree with you not reviewing this board. I know the review will come when you think its time and its your choice to do so but why wait when the product is so close to retail? The negative aspects of you doing this review as Anandtech has done are slim to none so I guess i'll just have to trust their review even though i would like to read yours as well. You are waiting but are gaining nothing for the wait but a later review than others.
 
^^ I think the whole point can be summed up like this:

WYSINEWYG.

When most manufacturers send products to very popular review sites like this, they're not going to take a chance on a DOA or flakey board. They may even use higher quality caps and what not, just for the review samples. Until it can be purchased via a retail outlet, they wouldn't be reviewing a board you could buy yourself. I've seen multiple times where Hardocp reviewers have noted/hinted that they quite anonymously purchased the hardware they're reviewing. That is the best way to ensure a "real world" point of view.

Please note, I'm not accusing ATI of anything, it's just that it's not an unheard of practice. Although I have a few doubs, I for one, hope they kick ass.

 
A few points about grouper, i have had one for 2 months now.

Regarding its overclocking...its as fast as ANY NF4 board with BH5, CH5, Micron or any ram thats good low latency 1:1. Its nearly as fast as the DFI with TCCD and with luck will be just as good VERY shortly.It also has the fastest 2T performance of any board I have tested which should please all you 2gig or ram lovers over 4 dimms.

somethings about the DFI NF4 you might not know that make it overclock so well.

The board features a set of dram drive strength termination resistors that allow the board to set various levels of drive, these have been implemented on grouper also. The board has a VTT issue that effects ram at high voltage and high FSB's, this is not effecting grouper and looking at the leaked pic of the next generation of DFI NF4 they have copied groupers power regulation.

The only issues with SB450 are the USB and SATA2, the USB will be fixed completely they say in the next southbridge and they are adding SATA2 along side it, I can say the SATA1 is real fast as was shown on the AT review. HD audio is also there which is a first on an AMD board. The NB is issue free and can actually run some quite insane LDT frequencies.

Regarding it being a copy of a reference board, that is 100% correct, what you fail to state is that the reference board was designed from the ground up by overclockers for overclockers, why anyone would not want to copy the ATI reference is quite beyond me as its actually pretty damn slick ;)
 
Too bad another week has gone by that no one can purchase them.
 
Diablo2K said:
I would like to see Motherboard Manufacturers to stop sending out Boards to reviewers and instead send them a Rebate Certificate, Telling them to go out, buy the board anyway they want and that the Manufacturer will pay them back for there purchase. This is the only way I will ever be 100% satisfied that the review I am seeing is of a 100% retail quality product. How do I not now that the boards sent to reviewers haven't had "Extra" testing to insure stability or overclockability.
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Currently on our OEM system reviews we are setting up relationships with the system builders in order to purchase the systems ourselves, then RMA them later for refund. Hopefully this will give us a much more "real world" computer user experience. Certainly better than getting some engineering sample.
 
Oldie said:
When most manufacturers send products to very popular review sites like this, they're not going to take a chance on a DOA or flakey board. They may even use higher quality caps and what not, just for the review samples.
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Funny no one brought that up when the *whole world* was happily reviewing the gforce series, x800s or GTXs and they were NOT available anywhere... Really, can someone explain me the difference between THIS launch and for example nvidia's, please? What makes this one so unbelievable? Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate the stance towards possible paper-launches - but only if applied to ALL products and companies equally.

on a sidenote: could it be that ATI is holding back Sapphire in order to wait for crossfire enabled cards on their part or something like this?
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Oldie
When most manufacturers send products to very popular review sites like this, they're not going to take a chance on a DOA or flakey board. They may even use higher quality caps and what not, just for the review samples
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I would expect all of them to fully test the product to make sure it worked as it is suppose to,it would be pretty dam stupid not to. Even if it was a preproduction sample,most legtimate reviewers inform us of that and it should be taken in to account by the person reading the review.
 
DBNTheDon said:
thank you kyle for all of your great reviews but i do disagree with you not reviewing this board. I know the review will come when you think its time and its your choice to do so but why wait when the product is so close to retail?
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Hear me out on this. It is our experience that pre-retail product many times does NOT represent the product that ends up on the shelves. So what value is a review of a product that you can't buy. Hell, if that is what you want, go check out the ref board preview from months ago. We will buy one and review the real deal when it arrives.
 
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