• AOpen AX4PE Tube

    AOpen AX4PE Tube

    Soham Raninga, Sep 15, 2003 0000 hrs IST

    This motherboard is based on the Intel 845PE chipset.

    Excellent build quality, Tube sound, Overclocking options, Good performance, feature packed

    845PE chipset will soon be phased out, Slightly expensive, Tube sound not for gamers

    Check specifications
    Write Review
    Expert Rating :
    Rating
    mail share

Expert Review

    next

Yes you read it right, the board has something to do with a tube and that alone is enough to make heads turn and one starts wondering, "What is it about the tube?" We shall soon find out.

AOpen is known for its "experimental" nature and so whenever they announce something new, one can be assured that it's going to be "new". The board looks very promising and the packaging itself is simply novel and pleasing to the eye. It comes in four variants globally, AX4GE-Tube, AX4PE-Tube, AX4GE-Tube-G, and the AX4PE-Tube-G. The suffixes GE and PE indicate the version of the Intel 845 chipset used. The "GE" version features the Intel's 82845GE chipset with the integrated graphics solution, while the "PE" version is without the integrated graphics solution. The suffix "G" is to indicate the value version, which takes away the Serial ATA (SATA) support. The AX4PE Tube is what AOpen terms as the fusion of current day P4 technology, with the century old Vacuum Tube, to create the world's first motherboard that claims to provide more lifelike reproduction of music and gaming audio. "Tube sound" is a form of sound reproducing technology, which is based on the vacuum tube technology for sound amplification and reproduction. We shall have a detailed analysis on the "tube sound" later.



The Package
Let's unfold the package and check what the board has to offer. The build quality is excellent and it feels like one of those well-built boards with high quality materials. One quickly realizes that the package is filled with goodies and the most interesting one is the Tube, which comes with the board. The tube we received had "Made in Russia" written on it, by default the board is shipped with the Russian made Sovtek 6922 vacuum tube. The chipset is of course the Intel 845PE chipset, the form factor is ATX and the board supports all Intel socket 478 CPUs right up to 3.06 GHz with FSB of 400 and 533 MHz and also supports Intel's Hyper-Threading technology. The board also provides support for overclocking the CPU FSB to 800 MHz, AOpen claims that its R&D team has found a special way to adjust the ratio and override the chipset settings without modifying the hardware.

The board holds 3 DIMM sockets, which together take 2 GB of DDR RAM with speeds of PC 266 or PC 333. Also the board has support for the latest SATA apart from the regular IDE interface. Strangely, they have gone in for 2 IDE connectors supporting ATA 66/100 and the third one supporting ATA 133. It has 3 PCI slots and a 4X AGP slot along with the usual floppy drive connector. A full ATX board with just 3 PCI slots does cut down on the expansion options, but then this motherboard has almost all the basics embedded into it. This version has an onboard LAN and also incorporates 6-channel sound based on the Realtek AC97 audio codec. At the back panel one can find 6 USB 2.0 ports, PS/2 connectors for mouse and keyboard, a COM port, a parallel port, LAN connector, and the audio connectors for Line Out, Line In and Mic.

The board comes with an installation guide, driver CDs, IDE and FDD cables, Norton Anti-virus 2003 CD, USB extender module, digital out module. It also comes with a tube sound out module, which is used to connect speakers/headphones to the motherboard while one is using the Tube amplification. The manual is very well written and explains almost everything this motherboard has to offer. A separate manual takes care of the tube sound feature, which proves to extremely helpful in understanding the working and implementation of the tube sound technology. The heatsink on the chipset is gold plated and that is a testimony to the fact that this board is premium in build quality. The layout is fairly simple and easy to understand and setting up the board is a breeze.

Follow Techtree on Twitter

    next

Do you agree with this Review?
YesNo

Related Links
Tag keywords
AOpen AX4PE Tube motherboard review Motherboards Basics



Discussion Board
Jason Wilson
,Tampa, on Apr 21, 2004 08:08 AM
I have one of these boards with a P4 2.4 GHz 533 MHz Bus and 1 GIG of RAM I'll sell it if anyone wants one. My email is vwbusdrivingdude@hotmail.com
** Message edited by moderator **
Report abuse
SORIA SOTHISOM
,LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA, USA, on Apr 29, 2004 01:15 PM
YOU STILL HAVE AX4PE TUBE FOR SALE?
Report abuse
Nicklas
,Delray Beach, FL, on May 14, 2009 09:27 PM
Hi, I know this is an ancient post, but by any chance do you still have this AOpen tube amp main board? If you do and it is still working, I am interested in buying it. Thanks Nicklas
Report abuse
alberto
,orem, on Nov 17, 2006 08:28 AM
i want to learn how to make a vacuum tube computer because i want to learn the basic stuff first.
Report abuse
Hifying
,Seattle Washington, on Mar 18, 2004 06:01 AM
To Daklord who posted his comment about him thinking his "SOUND CRAPSTER" will probably "kick its Ass"...must still own a Fred Meyers/Walmart/Sears, Stereo... To the Post about Tube Technology being outdated, all I can say is... Man are you lost!!!! This board with tube audio output is by far one the most musical 3d & involving Computer sound chips on the market...
Report abuse
Jim Z
,Dorr, Michigan, on Jan 15, 2004 12:07 PM
I want one!(Aopen AX4PE-tube) I can`t seem to find any of these boards? are they still making them? any help would be great!!!
Report abuse
Jim Z
,Dorr, Michigan, on Jan 15, 2004 12:04 PM
I want one!(Aopen AX4PE) I can`t seem to find any of these boards? are they still making them? any help would be great!!!
Report abuse
Samir Jhaveri
,Mahabaleshwar, on Sep 30, 2003 12:36 AM
who knows wats on the store for the buyers but as long as i know the most outdated technology known to man is the tube (transistor) hope its not the same
Report abuse
vinay
,mumbai, on Sep 17, 2003 10:00 AM
Useless stuff!!!! Just use the izotope ozone plugin with winamp and u will get the required tube sound which i bet will sound better than this MB!!!
Report abuse
Darklord
,Pune, on Sep 17, 2003 04:56 PM
Jazzy Stuff but i think my Creative Audigy 2 Platinum sound card will easily kick ass
Report abuse
audiophile
,new delhi, on Sep 19, 2003 09:22 PM
vaccum tube kabhe use kiya hai tum logon ne ! dekha bhe nahin hoga : it give zero crossover distortion ( when the sine wave changes phase / crosses the zero level ) all transistor based output stages give a crossover distortion . we are talking of the output to the speaker which is analog , not the codec . Incidentally creative is lousy they apparently do not even bother about the right phasing !The best codec in the mass segment is the Analog Devices AD1985
Report abuse
Rahul Jawale
,Mumbai, on Sep 15, 2003 10:19 PM
Dont buy such boeard based on old Chipsets that r going to be phased out. They r DUMPING THE REMAINING OF THEIR STUFF in India. Electronics companies still think of India as a MARKET for outdated , 'to be phased out' solutions. Please I request u all there Dont buy such boards. Such things wont find any support from the Softwares developed in future. Go out & visit any foreign Hardware Review Site , they would never recommend u such outdated solutions.
Report abuse
Neo
,Zion, on Sep 16, 2003 12:31 PM
This board is more about the TUBE sound technology than the Chipset. I dont totally disagree with the dumping grounds thingy but this board seems to offer far more than the ordinary 845PE chipset boards mainly due to the overclocking options and the features. This is a kind of cult board. But I love my nForce ;)
Report abuse
tube sound
,., on Sep 17, 2003 04:48 PM
the board is a premium product which is selling well all over the globe.
Report abuse
Mohammed Minhaj
,Hyderabad-India, on Sep 16, 2003 07:45 AM
i read the details and finds it amazing but the price is not known yet. let us see it practically when available in our place.
Report abuse
PRITHVIRAJ
,KOLKATA, on Sep 16, 2003 05:36 PM
Read the last page of the review for the scintillating conclusion that shall answer your query with regards to its monetary value in Indian rupees, however depreciated it might be, at the present moment.
Report abuse

Opinion Poll