Nvidia Nforce 2 may have serious problems

NVIDIA'S NEW NFORCE 2 CHIPSET was eagerly awaited and gratefully received but PC enthusiasts around the world are finding problems. It seems that some motherboards based on the chipset are causing far more headaches than they should.

The best example is the Shuttle SN41G2 barebones system. The tiny machine features an Nforce 2 motherboard in a neat looking case. It seems the BIOS shipped with the combo can stop the system even POSTing if you change certain settings. The only way to get the machine going again is to open up the machine, clear the CMOS and boot with the Insert key held down.

Then there's the case of the Asus A7N8X Deluxe which seems to suffer from a combination of BIOS and battery problems. And the Epox 8RDA+ has been showing up problems too. Even Abit seems to be getting more than the usual share of issues cropping up.

This could be a sign of problems with the chipset. It could be just individual manufacturers having problems with early production motherboards. Either way, you might want to take a good read of the various hardware forums before buying a board.

We will keep our eyes on the situation. More news on the problems as and when the information becomes available to us. µ

L'INQS
Shuttle problems on AthlonXP.com forum
Asus problems on AMDForums
Epox problems on AMDForums
NforcersHQ Asus A7N8X FAQ and forum
Hard OCP Forum

Please note that many of the people on these forums have found fixes and work-arounds for some of the problems. If you have an Nforce 2 motherboard and are experiencing trouble, it is well worth visiting these places to see if someone has found a fix.