EPoX 9NDA3+ S939 nForce3 Ultra Motherboard Review

EPoX’s 9NDA3+ has been designed to appeal to the largest possible audience. Layout is pretty good in most respects, aided by having only a single chipset bridge. The feature set is also a well-balanced affair. Due attention is paid to ensuring the board isn’t just a stripped-down dragster, designed for pure performance. Instead, audio is given a helping hand by Realtek’s ALC850 CODEC and dual S/PDIF-out jacks. There’s also decent SATA and Gigabit Ethernet support, and the Power BIOS firmly has the enthusiast in mind. However, I’d like to see EPoX offer a greater variety of voltage options, especially with respect to the undervolting DRAM line. Overclocking on our sample was excellent. Stability at 280MHz makes it the most overclockable (non-modified) S939 board we have tested, but we cannot guarantee that every sample will match this figure.

EPoX has manufactured a solid nForce3 Ultra motherboard with the 9NDA3+. The problem that currently exists in Socket-939 land is that nearly everyone else can produce a solid, stable, and fast board, replete with goodies such as integrated 54g Wireless and 4-port SATA. The quality level is such that manufacturers need to have at least one stand-out feature that absolutely screams BUY ME. Unfortunately for EPoX, try as hard as I might, I just don’t see that killer selling point here. It’s not bad by any means, but neither is the £90 EP-9NDA3+ a must-have board. Certainly one to pop on your S939 shopping list, though.

Score: 8 / 10

Hexus
EPoX 9NDA3+ S939 nForce3 Ultra