The Athlon64 platform is quickly becoming reasonably affordable, as both processor and motherboard pricing has dropped considerably since their arrival. However, there are now two Athlon64 platforms and one is noticeably better value. AMD launched the Athlon64 processors with a 754-pin count which was lovely in itself. Unfortunately, they quickly decided this was not going to be enough pins and did the unthinkable. AMD simply turned away from the 754-pin platform and now its all about the 939-pin processors. There are a few issues here that have created some very enraged customers. For a start, all those that built a 754-pin platform are now going to be limited in their upgrade path. The other issue is how expensive an upgrade to the 939-pin processor currently is.

These new 939-pin Althon64 processors cost roughly $50 US more when rated at the same frequency. Furthermore, the 939-pin motherboards cost lightly more simply because they are now new products. Unfortunately, for those that forked out the big dollars when the 754-pin platform first came out, there is little positive I can shed on the situation. However, those on a budget looking for a quick and easy upgrade, may find the 754-pin platform has much to offer. As I said before, the processors and motherboards are considerably cheaper which makes the 754-pin platform a feasible solution.

Here at Legion Hardware I do quite a lot of motherboard reviews. Yet there are still a number of manufacturers that I rarely get a chance to review their products. There have been just a few Soltek motherboards to make their way down here to Australia for testing. After quite some time, I am pleased to introduce the new Soltek K8AN2E-GR. This motherboard is designed around the NVIDIA nForce3 250 chipset and is engineered to utilize 754-pin AMD64 processors. The K8AN2E-GR is just one of five Socket 754 motherboards that Soltek has on offer.

In spite of the nForce3 150 chipset, the NVIDIA sales are much better these days and this has only been possible due to the nForce3 250. Originally, NVIDIA have struggled to compete with the VIA K8T800 chipset. So what have NVIDIA improved on or added to the nForce3 250 chipset? The biggest improvement for this chipset was the ability to operate as the K8T800 does, with 800MHz HyperTransport frequency support providing a 1.6GB/s memory bandwidth in both directions. Overall, the nForce3 250 was quickly recognized as a far superior chipset to that of its predecessor.

This chipset also supports both the 939-pin and 754-pin AMD64 processors, giving the motherboard manufacturer the freedom to choose either platform. Currently, Soltek offers just a single 939-pin motherboard based on the K8T800 Pro chipset. Obviously, they feel at this stage the 754-pin platform is much more popular due to it being a better value option. Therefore, Soltek is currently focusing their attention on the 754-pin platform and the new K8AN2E-GR motherboard is more evidence of this.