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Rightmark Sound Tests

Not every sound codec supports the same number of channels which affects the overall scores here a bit. The VNF4 supports 50 Directsound channels, 128 software Directsound3D channels, 48 Hardware accelerated D3D channels and 48 hardware accelerated D3D and EAX channels. 32 sound buffers were used for the tests below for the VNF4. The GA-K8VT890-9 in contrast has a 25/128/25/25 set up going so keep that in mind while perusing the processor usage shown below.

The VNF4 handles 2D sound streams like a cool breeze. Processor usage is slightly lower than what was seen on the Gigabyte board and much lower than both the DFI nF4 and the Soltek boards.

The fewer supported channels on the GA-K8VT890 give it a fairly large boost when compared to the rest of the boards in the lineup.

The VNF4 does pretty well with EAX thrown into the mix too. Do remember that it does have the benefit of newer drivers compared to the Soltek and DFI boards.

Call of Duty Sound Test

The lofty numbers seen in Rightmark don't exactly pan out in gaming - the VNF4 rounds up the rear by a fair margin especially with EAX turned on. Both the nForce 4 based boards take a relatively higher hit when compared to the K8T890 boards.

MP3 Encoding

Not much of a difference in MP3 encoding as it's a three second spread over 15 minutes. It's probably a better idea to splurge more on the processor if all you do is spend all day ripping CDs rather than spending extra money on the motherboard.

XviD Encoding

There is a bigger spread in XviD encoding compared to MP3 but not by much. Less than an one percent difference in speed seperates the top from the bottom.