NForce2
|
|
- The title of this article is incorrect because of technical limitations. The correct title is nForce2.
NVIDIA_logo.jpg
NVIDIA Logo
The nForce2 Chipset was released by NVIDIA as a refresh to the original nForce product offering.
It features an asynchronous PCI/AGP clock, i.e. PCI and AGP frequencies will not change when changing the FSB. The nForce2 platform is known for its very good results in overclocking AMD processors. The nForce2 features two different Southbridges, the MCP-P and the MCP-T.
The latter is equipped with two 100 Mbit ethernet NICs, high-quality SoundStorm 5.1 audio and loads of other integrated features whereas the first features one 100 Mbit NIC and a Realtek 5.1 audio controller.
The nForce chipset was remarkable for several reasons. It introduced dual channel memory to the mainstream market, doubling theoretical throughput, offering excellent performance most especially in workstation class benchmarks. This was deemed necessary largely because NVIDIA expected with integrated GeForce 4 MX class video hardware, the era of high performance onboard graphics had finally arrived. Fast high bandwidth main memory was required, to make sure the video hardware was not constantly stalled waiting for the main memory.
However, with discrete graphics cards (not onboard), this excess of memory bandwidth made little difference in real world benchmarks, because the throughput of the system was limited by the FSB of the Athlon XP. In which case, dual channel memory produced only a 0 to 5% increase in performance. Furthermore, as a chip architecture, the Athlon XP was demonstrated to be less bandwidth sensitive than the rival Pentium 4 chip anyway.
In this period, graphics technology changed so fast, that the onboard graphics technology of the chipset, rapidly became uncompetitive. With this in mind, a later cheaper OEM version was developed with single channel memory, that retained a surprisingly competitive performance. Sadly, this was not to be the last time NVIDIA was to remove features from its motherboards to reduce the price point.
The ASUS Deluxe version rapidly became a favorite for hardware enthusiasts, with the integrated SoundStorm chip especially noted for providing high quality Dolby 5.1 output, while maintaining extremely low CPU usage. Many people also welcomed the consumer choice SoundStorm offered, in the face of a near market monopoly held by Creative labs for PC audio.
The board became a focus of nostalgia and frequent letter writing for hardware enthusiasts, because in the next generation of nForce boards, the SoundStorm audio was dropped, reportedly due to cost considerations. NVIDIA stated that other motherboards with inferior audio were seemingly never marked down in reviews, so the extra manufacturing cost of Soundstorm was not justified.
Some see the passing of SoundStorm as a classic example of the bottom dollar approach to building computers sweeping the PC industry, with component quality being gradually eroded, in favor of pricing considerations.
External links
- NVIDIA: nForce2 (http://www.nvidia.com/page/nforce.html)
- Anandtech: NVIDIA nForce2 Preview (http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=1719)
- Anandtech: NVIDIA's nForce2 Performance Review (http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=1654)
- Anandtech: NVIDIA's nForce2 Part II: Diving Deeper (http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=1731)