Abit IP35-E Review (500MHz FSB board)...$90 @ NewEgg + $6.61 ship

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Spike

Diamond Member
Aug 27, 2001
6,770
1
81
Originally posted by: blahsome
Originally posted by: MadScientist
Originally posted by: TmBlackFlag
I am running this board with an e2140 and Arctic Freezer 7 Cooler

With AS5 applied (i didn't overdo this) and a 1.405 vcore running my chip @ 2.8 I Idle at 45-48degrees and hit 65-68 playing WoW. That seems awfully high to me. This is all inside an antec 900 with 4 case fans. If i go any lower on the vcore i can post but can't boot into windows. I have yet to upgrade my BIOS
I'd try reseating your HS. Make sure that the plastic push pins are fully seated. I replaced them on my Coolermaster Hyper TX2 HS with a Thermalright Bolt-Thru-Kit.

The bold sentence is key. Plenty of times you would think the push pins are fully seated while they are not! The only way to make sure is to listen for a click sound for EVERY push pin, especially the last one. Take a look at the pins on the back of the motherboard. All four of the inner (black) pins should be level with the outer (white) plastic. Again, pay attention to the last one that you pushed in.

This is my issue. I still can't get the 4th pin on my Hyper TX2 to seat properly but even with that my load temps are normally in the high 40's so it's not the end of the world. I might get that kit you linked to and fix it anyway...
 

swind

Senior member
Dec 12, 2006
685
0
76
I have an issue right now where I can boot up, but it hangs on the abit screen and I stripped everything down and it still won't let me go into the bios even with a ps2 keyboard. Anyone have any advice they can offer?

btw I'm using a Q6600 G0 Hd3870 and a-data vitesta ram(1 piece right now) with it.
 

hokiealumnus

Senior member
Sep 18, 2007
332
0
71
www.overclockers.com
Originally posted by: MadScientist
Originally posted by: Heller
Sorry if this has been answered, but which bios is best for o/c?
V12, V14 beta, or V15. For oc'ing, Hookie has checked them out and can answer this.

Thanks for the vote of confidence. :)

They all OC the same for me. If speed is what you're going for, v.12 benches faster than any of them. If the double-boot isn't a big problem for you and you have a 65nm chip, that's the one to go with. Here are test results from all the versions I've gotten my hands on.
 

Heller

Diamond Member
Jul 10, 2006
6,551
0
0
Originally posted by: hokiealumnus
Originally posted by: MadScientist
Originally posted by: Heller
Sorry if this has been answered, but which bios is best for o/c?
V12, V14 beta, or V15. For oc'ing, Hookie has checked them out and can answer this.

Thanks for the vote of confidence. :)

They all OC the same for me. If speed is what you're going for, v.12 benches faster than any of them. If the double-boot isn't a big problem for you and you have a 65nm chip, that's the one to go with. Here are test results from all the versions I've gotten my hands on.

What do you mean by double boot?
 

MadScientist

Platinum Member
Jul 15, 2001
2,183
63
91
Hokie,
From your Abit forum post:
"Additionally, the FSB reset issue when you remove power that presented itself with v.14 is still present in v.15. Shutting down & powering back on fixes it (restarting doesn't), but annoying nonetheless."

I thought Abit fixed that with v15, thanks for the info. I'm staying with v12 for now.



"If it aint broke, I'll fix it till it is."
Canterwood

 

BoberFett

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
37,562
9
81
Originally posted by: Heller
Originally posted by: hokiealumnus
Originally posted by: MadScientist
Originally posted by: Heller
Sorry if this has been answered, but which bios is best for o/c?
V12, V14 beta, or V15. For oc'ing, Hookie has checked them out and can answer this.

Thanks for the vote of confidence. :)

They all OC the same for me. If speed is what you're going for, v.12 benches faster than any of them. If the double-boot isn't a big problem for you and you have a 65nm chip, that's the one to go with. Here are test results from all the versions I've gotten my hands on.

What do you mean by double boot?

When you power up the computer from Off, it will start, you'll hear fans, etc. then it will shut down. A couple seconds later it will start back up and boot normally. My wife has one of these boards and it's a minor annoyance, especially if you leave your machine on 24/7. I'm sure it drives some people nuts though.
 

Replay

Golden Member
Aug 5, 2001
1,366
72
91
Originally posted by: blahsome
What's the benefit of zero-filling a used hard drive before using it with a new machine? I understand for privacy reasons to zero-fill a hard drive when selling or RMAing it, but I have never zero-filled one for my own reuse. I simply deleted the existing partition. What am I missing here? Thanks.

Zero-filling is pointless busywork IMO. Repartition if you like, and do a quick or a full format. I like to install the OS on an empty partition, but only use zero-fill or other wiping tools to clean an old hard drive before selling it.

 

Peav

Member
Nov 15, 2007
41
0
0
Hi there,

Finally got my IP35-e today, built it up with the q6600 and 2x1gb corsair ram etc.

Had a few problems initially with my pata cdrom not being picked up by the jmicron ide connector. Flashing to 14b05 seems to have fixed it. Also had missing NIC port, non working PCI slots and general slow booting.. would take a good 20 seconds to get off the first bios screen. CMos clear remedied that. (even tho i've done about 20 cmos clears tonight.)

Thermalright XP-120 fits fine. It overlaps the VRM circuit heatsink but doesnt touch, so that will help keep them cool.

First double boot was a bit scary. Have to get use to it doing that without thinking something has blown.

Currently sitting at 8x400 (3.2Ghz ) on my q6600@1.35 vcore.

Other than the above problems its been stable, but a bit of a pita to get going compared to my last abit mobo which was the nf7.

Anyhoo if anyone has any advice onhow to get the best out of this mobo with the q6600 i'm all ears.

Ta!!

Peav
 

mib200

Junior Member
Jan 27, 2008
14
0
0
this board is AWESOME!!! I OC it to 500 FSB steppimg all voltages [NB, SB, and VTT] one notch up with no fuss and no instability... I was dammn sure it was able to reach atleast 525 FSB.

I am currrently working with 435 FSB with 435 * 8 = 3480MHz CPU speed WITHOUT any voltage changes coz I don't want extra energy wasting for just another 500 Mhz of processing power and that too when most of the time this extra bit of power is not gonna used like when my PC is idle during downloading files etc.[trying to help environment keep green and clean from my side :)]. Only voltage changes is that of RAM to 2.1V

Only negetive of this board is unavailability of firewire port which is pretty standard todays.

anyways... 5 stars to this board and both my thumbs up...
 

JaYp146

Senior member
Jul 28, 2005
410
1
81
mib200^, be sure to torture test that OC with Orthos blend. My E6750 performs similarly but needs 1.45v to hit 3.4 Ghz stable.
 

AMDBOY

Senior member
Mar 25, 2001
436
0
71
May I ask a bios update question?
Never flashed a bios before. Recently purchased this board and would like to know if the bios version that is shown in the little tv screen/window of the FlashMenu, is currently on my PC, OR is it showing the version it will update to?

Where does it indicate the current version I now have?

The version in the FlashMenu screen shows 6A790A1AC-15. That's version 15, correct?

Is that what I now have?

Thanks for any help. I get a little chicken when talk of flashing bios.

The OneClick Live Update button in the FlashMenu makes it look easy. Does it actually flash the bios and update it in one click just like it sounds?

Thanks for any help to this noobie flasher. Hmmm, kinda got a nice ring to it eh? lol. Thanks.
 

hokiealumnus

Senior member
Sep 18, 2007
332
0
71
www.overclockers.com
To verify your BIOS version, go into BIOS. In the lower right of the screen there will be a long string of letters & numbers in parenthesis. The last two numbers are your BIOS version. I can't stress this enough, so here come the caps: DO NOT EVER USE ONE-CLICK LIVE UPDATE!!!! That's the method that gives you the greatest chance of borking your BIOS. I have never (and never will) flashed from Windows. The best and safest method is with a floppy (make sure your drive and disk are stable). Here's how I do it:

First, you'll need to create a boot floppy to use to flash it. The one I use is easily created with THIS utility (drdflash, it creates a boot floppy without drivers, which take up all the space).

After using that to create your boot floppy, copy your BIOS files to the disk. Your BIOS (if an official release) should come with awdflash.exe, abitfae.bat and runme.bat along with the {yourBIOSversion}.bin file.

---
If you're flashing the BIOS on an IP35 or IP35-E board to correct the double-boot problem, proceed with the step in the next paragraph. If you are not, please skip the following paragraph and continue on.

Before flashing, it's recommended you edit abitfae.bat's command line to include the "/wb" switch. Edit (right-click and choose "Edit") your abitfae.bat file. You'll see a command like this: AWDFLASH.EXE %1 /py /sn /cd /cp /cc /cks. Simply add /wb to that command, like so: AWDFLASH.EXE %1 /py /sn /cd /wb /cp /cc /cks You don't have to do this, it's just a good idea.
---

Restart into BIOS and choose "Load Optimized Defaults", then set your RAM voltage to the manufacturer's recommended value. Set your floppy as the first boot device (should be done when you Load Optimized Defaults, but check to be sure). Put the floppy in and restart.

Once at your command prompt, simply type "runme", hit enter and watch it do it's job. DO NOT INTERRUPT POWER OR RESTART UNTIL IT TELLS YOU TO! You will end up with a dead BIOS chip and be extremely unhappy.

After flashing, you'll probably get a hang at BIOS and a checksum error. This is normal. Power down and clear CMOS and load optimized defaults like so:

Remove power from the system.
Hit the power button to discharge the capacitors.
Move the CCMOS jumper (or switch) to the clear position.
Wait ~30 seconds.
Place the jumper (or switch) back in the normal position.
Restore power and boot up immediately into BIOS.
Select "Load Optimized Defaults" and set the recommended voltage for your RAM
Save & exit.
On reboot, go directly into BIOS and set the recommended timings for your RAM and any other options you'd like to set (i.e. boot order, etc.).


 

MadScientist

Platinum Member
Jul 15, 2001
2,183
63
91
Amboy,
It appears that your board came with the latest bios, v15, loaded.
Even if it didn't, why flash your bios if you don't have to. If your computer is running fine there is no need to flash your bios to a newer version unless you, i.e., upgrade to a new CPU and/or it needs the support of a newer bios. Even if you flash in DOS there's still a chance if you don't do it correctly you will toast your bios chip.
Someone over on the Abit forum said they do it just for the heck of it?????:confused:



"If it aint broke, I'll fix it till it is."
Canterwood

 

AMDBOY

Senior member
Mar 25, 2001
436
0
71
Thanks hokiealumnus and MadScientist. Yes it appears that I have Ver., 15. Thanks for the heads up where to look. Everything gets a little more complicated without much sleep.
You are correct, the double post appears to be gone. No bios flash for me. One less headache. But thanks for the guide to correctly flash, will come in handy if necessary in the future.Thanks guys.
 

evident

Lifer
Apr 5, 2005
12,127
744
126
Originally posted by: slickms
Originally posted by: Heidfirst
Originally posted by: slickms
Now the PC won't boot up. The last things I see on the screen is "Verifying DMI Pool... ". Doesn't move any further.

If this being cause because of a double boot issue?
Can someone tell me if I can update the BiOS using a USB thumb drive?
Try clearing CMOS.

Yes, you can update the BIOS from an USB drive.

I did clear the CMOS. No luck. I will now try to update the firmware and see if that would help.

great!!!! another person with the exact some problem i have

i ran xp sp2 install from cd, but upon the first reboot. i get hung up at verifying dmi pool data................. as well

im going to try to swap out my ramz and everything now.
 

evident

Lifer
Apr 5, 2005
12,127
744
126
Originally posted by: evident
Originally posted by: slickms
Originally posted by: Heidfirst
Originally posted by: slickms
Now the PC won't boot up. The last things I see on the screen is "Verifying DMI Pool... ". Doesn't move any further.

If this being cause because of a double boot issue?
Can someone tell me if I can update the BiOS using a USB thumb drive?
Try clearing CMOS.

Yes, you can update the BIOS from an USB drive.

I did clear the CMOS. No luck. I will now try to update the firmware and see if that would help.

great!!!! another person with the exact some problem i have

i ran xp sp2 install from cd, but upon the first reboot. i get hung up at verifying dmi pool data................. as well

im going to try to swap out my ramz and everything now.

problem solved. I formatted the SATA hard drive i was installing windows to. this was the dumbest solution ever since all i had on it was random files and i was hoping to keep a bunch of them on the new system im building. good luck, i hope your solution is as easy as mine!
 

mib200

Junior Member
Jan 27, 2008
14
0
0
I did PRIME 95 and Orhos prime both... for abt 12.5 hrs and there were no errors....

However as soon as jumped to 3500 MHz from 3480 Mhz it started showing errors after about 1 hr of testing.

Even same CPU models OC diffrently. 1.45V for CPU is way too high from my CPU standards. I was able to run at it 3.8 Ghz at this high voltage.

I reached 4 Ghz with 1.5V when I was testing at 500 Mhz FSB.