Great value in sales, loads of features, good overclocker, DFI, Crossfire
Disadvantages:
Can be buggy . my audio doesn't work, hates value components, no SATAII, complex BIOS
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
I picked this board up in the sales to replace my ageing Abit AX8 and have been using it for the last 3 months or so.
Features
While its not the most feature packed of boards, it has 8 SATA ports (but no SATAII ports), ATi Crossfire, 2 IDE channels and an amazing BIOS.
BIOS
The BIOS on most DFI boards is extremely complex, and the RDX200CF-DR is no different. It has no less than 26 different settings for the memory, and if just one of these is set wrong then the whole system can be unstable! They are also named with the most uninformative of labels, which makes things even harder. Memory settings need to be set manually for the board to work properly, and it is recommended to set as many settings as possible manually which can be difficult.
Building the PC
My build with this board went surprisingly well. I had read about many horror stories but when I set it up with my Venice 3000+ and value TwinMOS RAM I had no problems at all. I had to loosen my RAM timings to make games work, but overall it was a good build. However, when I bought some new RAM it took me over half an hour of constant CMOS resets and changing slots to be able to boot with the RAM - suddenly though it just started working and when I added the second stick a month later I had no problems at all, which was great!
Problems/Cons
1. My Karajan audio module has never worked, luckily though I have a Creative Sound Blaster Live! Value which works fine. This didn't work either though until I upgraded my RAM. I don't think there is anything wrong with the module either, as it worked once.
2. There are no SATAII ports, and while SATAII hard drives are backwards compatible with SATA ports its a bit annoying DFI didn't use a SATAII chip rather than a SATA one, seeing as they went to the effort of giving 8 SATA ports.
3. The floppy port is mounted at 90 degrees, and while many review sites like this I hate it - its very hard to get the cable in properly.
4. My Coolermaster case has + and - LED connectors, while the manual only says "Power LED". There are 8 possible ways of putting in my connectors for both of the ways, and only 1 for each is correct, so I need to contact DFI for more info.
Pros
1. DFI support are very helpful, they gave me advice on what RAM to buy and how to install it and were very patient
2. Loads of features and a great, great price at the moment due to shops getting rid of stock!
3. Its a great overclocker, I run my 3000+ Venice day to day at 2.45ghz from 1.8ghz (200mhz FSB ---> 271mhz FSB) and I've booted successfully at an amazing 2.65ghz (295mhz FSB)! This is 20mhz FSB more than I ever got with my AX8, and my SuperPi time was nearly 3 seconds quicker at the same speed.
4. Having the ability to go Crossfire is great and I'm very tempted to buy two ATi cards!
5. Good manual, which is always a bonus
Overall
Thoroughly recommended, excellent value board - well done DFI! Make sure yours is a A03 revision though, or else you may have problems
More details
Manufacturer Support
Excellent
Instruction manual
Very useful
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