PCMark04	Source: FutureMark

The latest version of the popular PCMark series, PCMark04 is an application-based benchmark and a premium tool for measuring overall PC performance. It uses portions of real applications instead of including whole applications or using specifically created code. This allows PCMark04 to maintain a smaller installation size while still giving accurate results.

PCMark04:
Overall	Points	Ranking
Epox 9NDA3+ (NF3 Ultra 200/400) A64 4000+	4927
Gigabyte GA-K8NXP-9 (NF4 Ultra 200/400) A64 4000+	5024
ASRock K8 Combo-Z/ASR (Ali M1689 200/400) A64 4000+	4804
ASRock K8 Combo-Z/ASR (Ali M1689 200/400) A64 3200+	4055
AOpen n250a-FR (NF3 250 200/400) A64 3200+	4193
CPU	Points	Ranking
Epox 9NDA3+ (NF3 Ultra 200/400) A64 4000+	4563
Gigabyte GA-K8NXP-9 (NF4 Ultra 200/400) A64 4000+	4564
ASRock K8 Combo-Z/ASR (Ali M1689 200/400) A64 4000+	4552
ASRock K8 Combo-Z/ASR (Ali M1689 200/400) A64 3200+	3794
AOpen n250a-FR (NF3 250 200/400) A64 3200+	3800
Memory	Points	Ranking
Epox 9NDA3+ (NF3 Ultra 200/400) A64 4000+	4994
Gigabyte GA-K8NXP-9 (NF4 Ultra 200/400) A64 4000+	5757
ASRock K8 Combo-Z/ASR (Ali M1689 200/400) A64 4000+	4968
ASRock K8 Combo-Z/ASR (Ali M1689 200/400) A64 3200+	3705
AOpen n250a-FR (NF3 250 200/400) A64 3200+	3705

While there is a marked difference between the 3200+ systems and the 4000+ systems on this test, the performance of the AOpen n250a-FR is still decent, and it establishes itself again as the better of the two socket 754 systems in this test.

3DMark2001	Source: FutureMark

By combining DirectX8 support with completely new graphics, 3DMark 2001 SE continues to provide a good overall system benchmark. 3DMark2001 SE was created in co-operation with the major 3D accelerator and processor manufacturers to provide a reliable set of diagnostic tools. The suite demonstrates 3D gaming performance by using real-world gaming technology to test a system's true abilities. Tests include: DirectX8 Vertex Shaders, Pixel Shaders and Point Sprites, DOT3 and Environment Mapped Bump Mapping, support for Full Scene Anti-aliasing and Texture Compression and two game tests using Ipion real-time physics. Higher 3DMark scores denote better performance.

3DMark2001SE:
Motherboards	Points	Ranking
Epox 9NDA3+ (NF3 Ultra 200/400) A64 4000+	28127
Gigabyte GA-K8NXP-9 (NF4 Ultra 200/400) A64 4000+	27766
ASRock K8 Combo-Z/ASR (Ali M1689 200/400) A64 4000+	27601
ASRock K8 Combo-Z/ASR (Ali M1689 200/400) A64 3200+	24479
AOpen n250a-FR (NF3 250 200/400) A64 3200+	25481

I was pleasantly surprised by the 3D performance of the AOpen n250a-FR motherboard in 3DMark2001. The overall score is not that far behind the more expensive systems, great news for gamers on a budget!