My feeble attempt at a MB comparison - Asus A8N-E vs MSI Neo4 Platinum

Question

Hi all,
I just thought I'd share a post I just finished submitting at the Asus forum.  Here's my experience, in a nutshell, with both the Asus A8N-E and the K8N Neo4 Platinum:
I've decided to give up on the A8N-E and Asus (for now) in favor of the MSI Neo4 Platinum.  The layout of the Asus board is top notch, but there are some significant issues with it.
The CUSL2 turned me into a huge Asus fan, but no more.  After a week of playing with both here's my review:
Asus A8N-E (v2.0)
Pro's
-Superior Layout - See Neo4 cons below.  However, there are two electrolytic capacitors on the back end that had to be nudged out of the way to install my 6600GT.
-No superfluous features.
-Stable
-Performance on par with other nF4 mobos.
-I love the Ctrl-Esc wake up feature and will sorely miss it.
Con's
-Will not run 2225 OCZ Gold Dual Channel RAM any faster than 2325 (bios must be reflashed).
-Quirky recovery features.  You need the mobo CD or floppy disk.  Also, there was one instance where it failed to post (due to 2225 memory timings) while running v1008 and I kept getting a BIOS checksum error when reflashing with v1008.  Had to reflash with v1006.  Also, one time I didn't get a checksum error, just a lot of beeps.  Clearing the CMOS proved troublesome as shown in the next issue.
-Cheap battery terminal.  IMO you should not pull the battery when clearing the CMOS with the Jumper (even though the manual says you should).  It doesn't have a lever to eject the battery (just two little teeth holding it in) and my battery lost contact with the terminals when I put it back in.  Afterwards, when I unplugged the PS the settings in the BIOS were reset.
-Somewhat limited instruction manual.
-Asus LiveUpdate failed to connect to a server on several repeated attempts.  It never connected successfully.
-There was no Mobo installation CD in my box!
-This forum software and layout is really limited and frustrating.
-It's been three days now and still no reply to my tech support inquery regarding 2225 memory timings.
MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum (v1.0)
Pro's
-Runs 2225 OCZ Gold Dual Channel RAM at 2225, no issues whatsoever.
-More reliable Bios/System utility.  There's a button to load BIOS setup defaults in case of problems.  Autorecovery feature flashes factory BIOS version embedded in mobo Core Cell chip.
-Packaging is simply beautiful.  Obviously not a big reason to buy it but trust me, it's exceptional.
-Extensive instruction manual, test report, and large fold out color diagram of layout.
-Add-on module with diagnostic LED's.
-Stable
-Performance on par with other nF4 mobos.
-MSI version of LiveUpdate worked flawlessy on every occasion.
-Cheaper than A8N-E with rebate.
-Firewire port
Con's
-Inferior layout, although still better than others (ie Epox 9NPA+ and ATX power connectors).  SATA connectors get in the way of my HDD's.  x16 PCIe socket sits below x4 PCIe and x1 PCIe slots.  This orientation causes my long 6600GT card to get in the way of the back end of one of my HDD's.
-Who need's DUAL Lan?  And the ability to run 8 SATA devices is overkill IMO.
-CPU Heatsink Fan mount backplate is GLUED to the backside of the PCB.  Had to remove it with a credit card and a hair dryer to make room for my Zalman.
As I'm sure most of your would agree the Memory timing issue with the A8N-E was the deal breaker.  I'm sure in time Asus will get around to fixing this with a bios revision.  The faulty battery interface was also a downer.
For now, so long Asus!  Good luck A8N owners!
Jason

Answer 1

One big pro for the MSI you forgot to mention is this forum.   This is by far one of the best forums for any motherboard manufacturer (if only ATI would get the hint ).
IMO I like the 8 SATA ports. I have 4 hard drives in my system, and I am desperately needing more. I have one more SATA slot to fill before I am out. Some people are absolute packrats (like me ) and they need the additional hard drive ports. The other benefit is you can end up using this as a low end server board (which I will be doing in the next couple of weeks). It is by far cheaper then getting a system with opterons. Instead I can just get an X2 for alot less, plus I don't have to spend the extra to get registered memory.
The dual lan can be really help who use ICS. This way they don't have to purchase a router.
Both of these I don't see as cons, as they really don't cause a problem. For you I just wouldn't list them as pros.
But thanks for sharing your ideas, hopefully this can become helpful to others who are determining what mobo to buy.
Have Fun
Jeremy