MSI P6N SLI Platinum NF650i SLI Motherboard Review

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Motherboards are pretty much the main component in any computer system, most people either build their system around it or the CPU, and we’ve got so many choices it can get confusing at times. One of the things I do is PC-Based CCTV Security Systems, and some have been installed for a few years, so there comes a time to upgrade them as parts fail, running 24/7 is hard on components. I’ve noticed a trend though with newer motherboards, they seem to be eliminating IDE connections on them and it’s getting harder to find basic motherboards that can support four IDE devices, so I have to settle on getting more higher end ones to have the support I need. When upgrading this system I had to find one that was compatible with my current hardware, especially the three 400 gig hard drives and one DVD/RW. I searched and searched and finally settled on one that I thought would work fine for my needs. Since, when I build these systems, I test them throughly with standard benchmarks etc, I figure why let all of that testing go to waste, why not make a review out of it…

Today for review I’ve got an MSI P6N SLI Platinum Motherboard, it’s packed with tons of features that you’ll see on most higher end motherboards, including eSATA, 8-Channel Audio, 1333FSB Support and SLI support as well. My only complaints about this board would have to be that SLI only runs at 8X, and you have to use a card to switch between SLI and NON-SLI configurations, this can be a real pain. So continue on as I put the MSI P6N NF650i motherboard up against the competition…

 

MSI P6N SLI Platinum NF650i SLI Motherboard Review

MSI P6N SLI Platinum NF650i SLI Motherboard

Author: Kristofer Brozio

Sponsor: Nobody!

Tech Specs,Features or the Basic Info:

MSI P6N SLI Platinum NF650i SLI Motherboard

Special Features:

  • -11.96 in. (L) x 9.61 in. (W); ATX
  • -4 DIMMs w/ DDR2 800+ up to 8GB
  • -2PCI-E 16X (operate at dual 8X when SLI enabled); 1 PCI-E X1; 3 PCI; 8 USB
  • -HD 7.1 CH Onboard Audio
  • -Gb LAN; IEEE 1394, RAID (0, 1, 0+1 & 5); SATAII; ATA133; eSATA RAID
  • -Live Update; Dual Corecell; MSI Dual CoreCenter; DOT

MSI Part No: MS-7350-020

MSI Reminds you :

  • – Because of the limitations of chipset, this MB does not support Win98/ME.
  • – SLI Technology only supports 32-bit and 64-bit Windows XP
  • – For the best performance and commitment of convenience, please visit MSI approved memory module vendor list (MSI AVL), which provides the easiest, up-to-date memory configurations

CPU

  • -Supports Socket 775 for Intel Core2 Quad, Core2 Extreme, Core2 Duo, Pentium 4 (Prescott, P4EE), Pentium D, Pentium XE/Celeron D processors in LGA 775 package
  • -Supports FSB 533/800/1066/1333* MHz (FSB 1333 requires FSB 1333 CPU and manual FSB adjustment in the BIOS)
  • -Supports Intel 05B/05A and 04B/04A processors
  • -Supports EIST technology
  • -Supports Intel Hyper-Threading (HT) Technology
  • -Supports Intel Dual Core Technology to 1066MHz and up

Chipset

NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI (C55) Chipset

  • -Supports FSB 533MHz, 800MHz, 1066MHz & 1333MHz* (FSB 1333 requires FSB 1333 CPU and manual FSB adjustment in the BIOS)
  • -Support Dual channel DDR2 533/667/800 memory interface up to 8GB
  • -Support Dual PCI Express 16X interface with either 1×16 or 2×8 operation.

NVIDIA nForce 430i (MCP55) Chipset

  • -Integrated Hi-Speed USB 2.0 controller, 480Mb/sec, 8 ports
  • -4 Serial ATAII ports w/ transfer rate up to 3Gb/s and support RAID (0,1, 0+1 & 5)
  • -2 channel Ultra ATA 133 bus Master IDE controller up to 4 IDE drives
  • -PCI Master v 2.3, I/O ACPI 2.0 Compliant

FSB

-Support FSB 533 MHz, 800MHz, 1066MHz & 1333MHz* (FSB 1333 requires FSB 1333 CPU and manual FSB adjustment in the BIOS)

Main Memory

  • -Supports dual channel DDR2 533/667/800, using four 240-pin DDR2 DIMMs
  • -Supports the memory size up to 8GB
  • -Supports 1.8v DDR2 SDRAM DIMM

Due to the High Performance Memory design, motherboards or system configurations may or may not operate smoothly at the JEDEC (Joint Electron Device Engineering Council) standard settings (BIOS Default on the motherboard) such as DDR2 voltage, memory speeds and memory timing. Please confirm and adjust your memory setting in the BIOS accordingly for better system stability.

Example: Kingston HyperX DDR2-800 PC6400 operates at 2.0V, 4-4-4-12.

For more information about specification of high performance memory modules, please check with your Memory Manufactures for more details.

For the best performance and commitment of convenience, please visit MSI approved memory module vendor list (MSI AVL), which provides the easiest, up-to-date memory configurations

Slots

  • -Two PCI Express X16 slots (supports PCI Express BUs specification v1.0a compliant) (The 2nd PCI Express X16 slot will operate at X8 mode when SLI Technology has been enabled)
  • -One PCI Express X1 slot
  • -Three 32-bit Master PCI Bus slots
  • -Support 3.3V/5V PCI bus interface

On-Board IDE / SATA

  • -Two IDE controllers on the NVIDIA nForce 430i chipset provides IDE HDD/CD-ROM with PIO, Bus Master and Ultra DMA133/100/66 operation modes
  • –Can connect up to 4 IDE devices
  • -NV RAID supports 4 SATA II ports (SATA1-4). Transfer rate is up to 300MB/s
  • -NV RAID
  • –Supports up to 4 SATA
  • –RAID 0 or 1, 0+1, 5, JBOD is supported
  • –RAID function work w/ SATAII H/D

External eSATA RAID

  • -1 SATAII port by Sil3531 (back panel)
  • -Supports RAID 0

Audio

Realtek ALC888 HD Audio

-Flexible 8-channel audio with jack sensing

-Compliant with Azalia 1.0 spec.

LAN

-Supports 10/100/1000 Fast Ethernet by Realtek® RTL8211BL

IEEE 1394

VIA 6308P chipset

-Supports up to 2 x 1394 ports

-Transfer rate is up to 400Mbps

BIOS

  • -The mainboard BIOS provides “Plug & Play” BIOS which detects the peripheral devices and expansion cards of the board automatically.
  • -The mainboard provides a Desktop Management Interface(DMI) function which records your mainboard specifications.
  • -Supports boot from LAN, USB Device 1.1 & 2.0 and SATA HDD

On-Board Peripherals

  • -1 floppy port supports 1 FDD with 360K, 720K, 1.2M, 1.44M and 2.88Mbytes
  • -1 Serial port (COM 1, supported by pin-out)
  • -1 parallel port supports SPP/EPP/ECP mode
  • -1 audio jack (5-in-1), coaxial/optical SPDIF out
  • -8 USB 2.0 ports (Rear x 4 / Front x 4)
  • -1 RJ45 LAN jack
  • -1 D-Bracket 2 pinheader
  • -2 IEEE 1394a connectors (Rear x 1 / Front x 1)
  • -1 CD-in pinheader
  • -1 eSATA port

Dimensions

-11.96 in. (L) x 9.61 in. (W) ATX Form Factor

Mounting

-9 mounting holes

Price: Approximately $129 at time of review, depending where you look online.