A8N-SLI Deluxe BIOS settings

[TheNiceGuy]

Hi all.
I have the setup in my sig. Due to some issues, I am double checking to make sure that my BIOS settings are not the culprit.
Basicaly, I want the most trouble-free, basic setup as possible. Therefore I have only installed the bare things I need. No NOS, AI, Cool n Quiet, Nvidia SATA Controller, Hardware Firewall, or Nvidia sound driver installed. I am not running SLI, or RAID. I don't do any oveclocking (that I am aware of).

So far in BIOS I have disabled: RAID; Silicon SATA controler.

What other BIOS settings different from the default should I use?

Thanks!

 

[Chunkee]

you should be good...

jC

 

[TheNiceGuy]

How about OC options? I noticed in BIOS they are set to "auto".
For example, one such "auto" setting is the RAM voltage. Should I change it to "manual" and set it at the 2.6 volts that my RAM is meant to run at?

 

[Chunkee]

how is your stability now?

jC

 

[TheNiceGuy]

Not good for my Hard Drives. You can read all about it here:
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=27&threadid=1978819

Trying to eliminate the possiblities one at a time.

 

[Chunkee]

that is more than likely memory, try some corsair or kingston...since you are not overclocking..the kingston may be just fine...
corsair value ram is also good.

if the memory replacement does not work...more than likely it is your MB controller for the hdd OR just the MOBO itself. your power seems good, as well as everything else...run a seagate test (bootable) you can download them for free and test your hard drives. more than likely it is your memory...if the true voltage is set and stock setting is lower, raise it to the true voltage as noted by the manufacturer

jc

 

[TheNiceGuy]

Hi Chunkee
In the link I posted, you can see I have run exaustive tests on the memory and HDs - as well as the exact nature of the problems I am getting.
To recap (IIRC), the problem is either (in order of likely hood):

MB (either drive controllers or just generaly messed up);
BIOS version/settings;
Driver/utility combination;
HD generation difference;
Unstable city power.

Now, I have always suspected the first option (as have other people), but wanted to be sure it wasn't something else.

I really want to understand what the BIOS features do exactly, and which ones are best to avoid as messed up. The manual and ASUS site offer no details on this.

Anyway, I'm not sure what you mean by "if the true voltage is set and stock setting is lower, raise it to the true voltage as noted by the manufacturer".

 

[Chunkee]

you can sett the ddr voltage applied.

make sure it is set to the spex of the manufacturer.

if you have exhausted all other realms other than cpu and mobo..then they are your most likely cuplrit

jC

 

[TheNiceGuy]

In BIOS, under OC profiles, it has the option to change the DDR from "auto" to "manual". The lowest setting is 2.6 V, my RAM manufacturer's reccommended voltage. I can do this, but I have no idea what it is running as in default, as it does not say, and I can't find it in BIOS or Windows.

 

[Chunkee]

look under the monitor and see what it is

jC

 

[TheNiceGuy]

I just installed Asus Probe II from the site. Not sure if this is what you're after, but under "DMI Information" -> "Memory Contoller (Type 5)", amoung other info, it has the Voltage as 2.9.
I'm not sure if this is what it is running at or not though, as I don't really understand this stuff.

 

[Chunkee]

i think you just need to RMA the board at this time...or look on the forsale forum and pick up another.... and try it.

JC

 

[TheNiceGuy]

OK, if it's none of the othe stuff, I'm gonna tank this board. I don't want another A8N-SLI afte all the grief.
Any recommendations on a new board that I can swap all my hardware to? I don't need SLI, RAID, etc., BTW.

 

[TheNiceGuy]

Can anyone link me to a description of what exactly the BIOS features do?

 

[chynn]

Here's a link to a Dutch hardware site (in English) that has everything you should need to know about your motherboard.

It's the site I used to set up my A8N-SLI Deluxe motherboard (when I was still using it).

http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/38623/

 

[TheNiceGuy]

chynn, thats quite a useful link, thx. Working through it now.

 

[mlc]

This would certainly seem to point to a hdd or controller problem ...

Sorry if you've answered some of this..

The most common problem with the NF4 chipset (and there were a few) when it was first introduced was with the use of NCQ. Are you 100% certain that NCQ is disabled ? Check within the IDE CONTROLLER properties of the Device Mgr for primary/secondary channel ..

the 6.86 nvidia chipset drivers seem to be the most stable, just make sure you do NOT install the IDE drivers when prompted.

then I would doublecheck with Seagate support to see if they have any firmware updates for your particular drives... They will need the serial number off each drive to confirm.

Then i would rule out the memory related issues.. (which you did)

then i would ensure that you have USB LEGACY SUPPORT disabled within your bios.. as this has caused folks to have a variety of problems with this board....

bad cable would be unusual, but you may have a damaged port.. so try other sata ports if you havent already (It sounds like you did)

PSU is ALWAYS a good choice for investigation with any type of problem with an NF4 SLI board.. especially if the 12v rails are marginal...

the default bios settings should be ok for the most part.. Just go in and disable the USB LEGACY setting.. If you ran the mem86 test with no findings, then I wouldn't touch any of those settings, otherwise you may try loosening the timings and increasing the ddr voltage as suggested.. But if the test was ok.. leave this alone, as you'll only complicate matters...

hope this helps.. sorry if it was already discussed. but i didnt have time to read through the linked post you attached.

 

[TheNiceGuy]

Thank you for the interest mlc.
Well, Seagate appears to have no firware available for my drives (ST3120827AS and ST3320620AS).
And I checked for NCQ options, but there are none. I assume this is because I have not installed ANY disk controllers (just using the automatic Window's ones - as recommended before).
I have BIOS set pretty much as you mentioned mlc, although I enabled SMART (as per the link).
I have never tried the RAID ports, just the SATA ones. If I experience more issues, I will try them.
If (big if) there is a power issue, it is with the house power. Not much I can do about that. I would get a UPS, but I understand they are not made for continual low power.

What you think?

 

[Old Hippie]

You could try at the Asus Independent forum. They seem to specialize in the A8N series.

 

[mlc]

I had time to go back and read through your other post....

It's easy and popular to blame the mobo in situations like this.. but to be honest, many problems you read with these NF4 boards are due to the users/builders of these systems. Many of the problems have been due to either inadequate PSU's (weak dual rail models), incompatible memory (this chipset is picky) and earlier on, chipset driver issues.
Having said that, I think your problems are most likley due to some sort of damage resulting from your home circuit woes.. (i.e. voltage surge). The board and PSU would be the top victims.

If you suspect that you still have issue (you mentioned that you thought they were fixed) you can always try an outlet on a different circuit.. just to rule that out...

On another note.. is it possible there is a virus at play here? You mention that you've reformatted/reloaded windows.. but you may be re-introducing some type of virus via your data drive..... just a thought...

lastly, if there are specific bios settings you're curious about, let me know and I can dig them up.. My 2nd setup is based on this same board..

 

[TheNiceGuy]

That's a great link Hippie, thx!

mlc- I doubt its virus, because of the behaviour, complete disk reformats, and 2 XPs I've used.
Power issues...have tried setup in 2 houses, with simular results.

I have never tried the RAID SATA ports. Should I switch all 3 drives to them? Or a combo of my normal SATA ports and the RAID SATA ports?

 

[mlc]

I would agree with the virus .. but wanted to rule it out... You say you reformatted .. but did you reformat your "data"drive as well.. ? My point being your reload of the OS will work.. but you may be reintroducing the virus if you reload your data, or reinstall a 2nd drive containing that data... assuming its corrupted with some type of virus...

So you've ruled out the power source now. . . which is good....

Unfortunately I still think the most likely problem is a damaged board or psu as a result of the power issues you had.. Assuming thats the case .. you can try to swap in another PSU if you have access to one... The testers they sell and the monitoring tools are not always reliable.. so I wouldn't bank on them...
To rule out the board.. try the other ports as suggested.. and do the same with other components you have where multiple ports/slots are available.. (e.g. memory, PCI cards, etc.)..