EpoX 8KHA and 8KHA+ mainboards and fitting of VisionTek GeForce4 Ti4600

Arris · Mar 8, 2002

From www.HardOCP.com :

VisionTek GeForce4 Ti4600 will not fit properly into the AGP slot due to capacitors on the card and mainboard binding. While this picture shows the card a bit cocked, trust us, the caps on the mainboard were preventing proper AGP card insertion.
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It is our opinion that the VisionTek Ti4600 is not outside the AGP 2.0 specification in regards to the data above.

According to AGP2.0 specifications the spacing around the AGP port on the motherboard isn't really up to the specs. Bit of a messy motherboard configuration by Epox...

Possible solutions from HardOCP :

The first solution, and the correct solution, would seem to me to be that EPoX should replace your mainboard with one that complies to industry standard AGP specifications. They do state the two boards mentioned above to be "ATX" spec. Seeing that these ATX boards have AGP slots, they should abide by the AGP 2.0 specification. Then again, that is just our opinion.

The second solution is this. Return your GeForce4 Ti card, as it is very likely that all or many of them will have the same problem. We have yet to prove this, but almost assuredly, they will all follow the NVIDIA reference design as does the VisionTek Ti4600. This brings up all sorts of questions about restocking charges, etc...

wizard · Mar 9, 2002

Dear Users,
Since March 1, 2002 here at EPoX USA we have been busily working to find out the cause of the problems between the capacitors on the 8KHA(+) and those on the Visiontek GeForce 4 Ti4600. As of today (March 7, 2002) we are prepared to offer this explanation of the cause of the problem and the following solution. First off we’d like to take the time to thank our customers that took time out of their day to let us know of the problem. Here at EPoX customer satisfaction is our number one priority. EPoX’s R/D department during the creation of the 8KHA+ decided that the stability of the DDR memory during over clocking was of utmost importance thus the reason for the numerous capacitors. That’s one of the reasons why the 8KHA+ has much a great overclocking performance. At the time of design, no Video cards had any mechanical issues nor did it have a problem with any video cards in the foreseeable future. Now almost a full year after the final design of the 8KHA(+) was set we have started to have a minor conflict.

Testing with some of the GeForce 4 Ti4600s in our labs has pointed to a problem in which your Ti 4600 card could potentially be damaged if inserted improperly or under force. We would advise all 8KHA(+) owners to use utmost caution when inserting video cards that match that description. Also after testing, we have concluded that there is no significant problem or issue with the motherboard capacitor and the video card capacitor touching. If you own an EPoX 8KHA(+) and it has a definite conflict in which you can not insert your video card there are several solutions available. The preferred solution is to contact your nearest EPoX location. The other solution is to take it to a certified computer technician where they can remove the offending capacitor. It is not recommended that you do this procedure yourself since if done incorrectly it could damage your motherboard and/or your own safety.

We are currently working with manufacturers that do not have this issue and will promote heavily and give all of our EPoX users a chance to buy a G Force 4 Ti 4600 at a lower price.

As always here at EPoX we are glad you have let us know your comments and your concerns with our product. We are glad to be your motherboard of choice and look forward to providing all your future motherboard needs.

Samuel Kang

Marketing / Product Manager
Production Department
North American Operation
EPoX International, Inc. USA

Email I received from EPoX about the issue. I'd say that EPoX has cleaned this one up excellently. There have been more and more people saying that they have a Ti4600 running perfectly on a 8KHA+ so I wouldn't worry about it too much. It seems that it is and oddity to have a Ti4600 that doesn't work, so far there are more people saying it DOES work than it doesn't.

lokem · Mar 10, 2002

I really like how EPOX handle these stuff. I still remember there was a big hoo-haa when the board had problems hitting FSB higher than 140 or something like that. They even offered free BIOS replacements

svtcobra · Mar 10, 2002

"The other solution is to take it to a certified computer technician where they can remove the offending capacitor. It is not recommended that you do this procedure yourself since if done incorrectly it could damage your motherboard and/or your own safety. "

So what exactly does the "offending" capacitor do? Must not be much if it can just be removed. I love the way manufacturers offer these kind of solutions.

TechSpot

EpoX 8KHA and 8KHA+ mainboards and fitting of VisionTek GeForce4 Ti4600

Arris TechSpot Evangelist

wizard Newcomer, in training

lokem Newcomer, in training

svtcobra TechSpot Paladin