Asrock 4CoreDual-SATA2

[Steffche]

I still cant get this darn thing to run 1:1 CPU to Mem ratio.

My E2160 with BSEL mod is running on 285Mhz FSB which should have my RAM running at 570. Its G.Skill DDR550 which I've seen run right up to 290Mhz FSB before. EVen If I slack off timings to 3-5-5-12 it always shows in CPU-z as 4:3 ratio. Memory flexibility is disabled, and Memory Frequency is set to DDR400.

What is going on here???

Tempted to just go out an get some cheapo DDR2 800 RAM and sell the G.Skills...

I've emailed Asrock..wonder what the response will be...?

 

[Peav]

Originally posted by: Steffche
I still cant get this darn thing to run 1:1 CPU to Mem ratio.

My E2160 with BSEL mod is running on 285Mhz FSB which should have my RAM running at 570. Its G.Skill DDR550 which I've seen run right up to 290Mhz FSB before. EVen If I slack off timings to 3-5-5-12 it always shows in CPU-z as 4:3 ratio. Memory flexibility is disabled, and Memory Frequency is set to DDR400.

What is going on here???

Tempted to just go out an get some cheapo DDR2 800 RAM and sell the G.Skills...

I've emailed Asrock..wonder what the response will be...?

The 4coredual-sata2 I believe sets the ram ratio for DDR1 once the FSB has increased above 400. I think its around 230Mhz where it then drops the ratio from 1:1. It means if you run a 266FSB cpu then ram will be at 400. So runnnig fsb at 220 gives a mem bus of 220 also. run 240 and the board drops it back to around 380Mhz. Fit 266 and ram will be 400. That is if you set DDR400 in bios.

Start increasing the FSB from 266 upto around 285 then your again at the FSB the chipset reverts back to a lower ratio.

 

[Peav]

Originally posted by: brokencase
I think you are partially correct. Which is a good thing!

After reading your post I decided to go into my BIOS and set the AGP Voltage to "High". Believe it or not, I have never done this before.
Sure enough I am now able to boot at 280 fsb.

Now here is what I think. I still think it's the old ATI AGP card that is my way.
I had the same behavior in the previous motherboard with this video card when trying to OC.
I think the ATI driver goes through some weird states at windows boot time.

And another thing, why is it that I can raise the fsb to 300 or so once I have booted XP with the softfsb utility?

Let's wait to Alex gets over his current issues and his system is stable and he starts raising the fsb in small increments.
I think with PCIe video he will be able to go higher in fsb without any video boot issues.

Alex, set your AGP volts to high in your bios.

My board will allow me to boot initially at 280MHz FSB, however it will hang at the " - " just before the booting of the HDD / CDRom is initialised.

The board did 280 with an e6600 without the hanging. I might do a small Vagp mod, maybe an extra 0.1 volt and se if it helps, but I'm more inclined to think its a chipset timing issue within the bios instead of a chipset limitation.

This is with my Q6600, and also tried with DDR400 Corsair TwinX and my current TwinX2 800 memory.

What would be interesting is getting into the bios and having a look at the cpu timing table, but thats way beyond anything I can do!!

If I'm correct the Asrock 4coredual series of boards based on the PT880 chipset that support quadcore, so I dont think a comparison of different bios' is going to be possible.

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: martianmisfit

Originally posted by: cpmee

Originally posted by: martianmisfit
what's the best ram to run with this board?

i'm currently running 2 x 1GBs PC5400 DDRII 667 @ 3-3-3-10
even thought G-Skill states it should be 4-4-4-12 ???

w/ Q6600 @ 2.2GHz ( underclocked )

3-3-3 is a tighter and faster timing than 4-4-4, so whats the complaint ?


Just increase the fsb and see how far you can go.

so far any changes i make to the fsb and/or bios causes my pc NOT to boot & just hang.
trying to get more juice out the pc.


also, what's better for this board: E8400 or the E6850
besides the $80 price difference & the 45nm vs 65nm

Neither of those 1333fsb processors are, unless you enjoy running slow with pricey processors. :laugh: e6850 and e8400 have a 9x multiplier. Dont think the e8400 will even run on the board.

The best processor for this board IMO would be the $95 e2200 800fsb processor with 11X multiplier. Then with a bsel mod, you should be able to do 280 X 11 = 3.08 ghz. Or the $145 e4600 with the 12X multiplier. 12 X 280 = 3.36 ghz. But at that speed, a vcore mod may be needed.

If youre going spend that kind of money on e6850 or e8400 processors, then it makes sense to spend like $95 on an overclocking mobo like the abit ip35-e. This board is meant to be a cross over board and as such does the job well for $59. But for most buyers, its also meant to be replaced after upgrades are performed.

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: Alex0915
Ok, I searched high and low and still cant find that pcie setting for turning off downstream pipeline. From what I understand, this is absolutely necessary to stop artifacting with the 8800GTS and the 3870 cards. I went into advanced and chipset config but it just isnt there. Can anyone point out where it is in the list? I have everything set to auto, including the pcie clock...maybe thats the problem?

Its right there, right after IDE Drive Strength and right before OnBoard LAN.


Chipset Configuration <<<===============

DRAM Frequency [266MHz (DDRII533) ]
Flexibility Option [Disabled]
DRAM CAS# Latency [3]
DRAM Bank Interleave [4-Way]
Precharge to Active (Trp) [3T]
Active to Precharge (Tras) [9T]
Active to CMD (Trcd) [3T]
REF to ACT/REF to REF (Trfc) [21T]
ACT (0) to ACT (1) (Trrd) [2T]
Read to Precharge (Trtp) [Auto]
Write to Read CMD (Twtr) [2T]
Write Recovery Time (Twr) [3T]
DRAM Bus Selection [Auto]
DRAM Command Rate [2T Command]

Advanced Memory Configuration [Untouched]

Advanced Host Configuration [Untouched]

DRAM Voltage [Low]
AGP Voltage [Auto]

Primary Graphics Adaptor [AGP]
AGP Mode [8x]
AGP Fast Write [Enabled]
AGP Aperture Size [128MB]
AGP Staggered Delay [Auto]
AGP GADSTB Output Delay [Auto]
AGP 3.0 Calibration [Auto]
AGP 3.0 DBI Function [Auto]
DBI Output for AGP Trans. [Auto]
DBI Output for FRAME Trans. [Auto]

V-Link Speed [Normal]
V-link disable [Enabled]
PCI Delay Transaction [Enabled]
IDE Drive Strength [Normal]
PCIE Downstream Pipeline [Auto] <<<================
OnBoard LAN [Disabled]
OnBoard HD Audio [Enabled]
Front Panel [Disabled]
CD-In [Disabled]
Bus No. [Enabled]
Echo TPR Disable [Auto]


Edited for my timings. By putting in the other timings instead of Auto, I got a couple hundred more mb/s in memory bandwidth. I used Everest to figure out what the other timings for my ram were. I still dont know where I can find my Trtp though.

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: Steffche
I still cant get this darn thing to run 1:1 CPU to Mem ratio.

My E2160 with BSEL mod is running on 285Mhz FSB which should have my RAM running at 570. Its G.Skill DDR550 which I've seen run right up to 290Mhz FSB before. EVen If I slack off timings to 3-5-5-12 it always shows in CPU-z as 4:3 ratio. Memory flexibility is disabled, and Memory Frequency is set to DDR400.

What is going on here???

Tempted to just go out an get some cheapo DDR2 800 RAM and sell the G.Skills...

I've emailed Asrock..wonder what the response will be...?

But, but, but .....................before the bsel mod, you were failing memtest at 245fsb. The bsel mod will do nothing to change that.

Just because the memory will do 290fsb on one mobo model, doesnt mean it will do 290fsb on another. It just doesnt work that way, mobos are finicky with ram, especially ddr1 at those high non-jedec frequencies.

 

[Tokse]

Hi,
Came across this great thread that has taught me a lot about my new motherboard . I was thinking a bit forward about the PCI express 4x-issue, and I was wondering what PCI-Express-videocards will have little to gain from PCI Express 16x and thus be good choices for this motherboard? After all AGP is getting more overprized...

So far my overclocking-efforts has brought me to FSB 273 mhz * 11 multiplier = 3004 mhz. I'm not very experienced with overclocking (second computer I overclock and first Intel) and I haven't done the BSEL-mod yet. I don't know much about memory-settings. I have simply kept it at 400mhz, loosened CL to 2,5 (3 crashed at the present FSB 273), kept the other timings at [auto] and set it to [flexible]. I tried to set it at 333mhz, but that crashed (at the present FSB 273). Anything else I should try with the memory?

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: brokencase

Originally posted by: cpmee
Brokencase, I think your 277 barrier is the chipset wall. For some on this board its 290, others like me, 280. Basically the only way around it is to up the vagp (no matter if pcie or agp card) and do the vagp voltage mod. Vagp is also the chipset voltage. Also make sure the northbridge are properly cooled (and reapply good thermal paste) and maybe even put a sink on a chip between the pcie and agp slots. http://forums.vr-zone.com/showthread.php?t=93127

But even with this mod, (and a vcore mod) it looks like 305 to 320 tops, so its up to you to decide if its worth it. For me its not.

I think you are partially correct. Which is a good thing!

After reading your post I decided to go into my BIOS and set the AGP Voltage to "High". Believe it or not, I have never done this before.
Sure enough I am now able to boot at 280 fsb.

Now here is what I think. I still think it's the old ATI AGP card that is my way.
I had the same behavior in the previous motherboard with this video card when trying to OC.
I think the ATI driver goes through some weird states at windows boot time.

And another thing, why is it that I can raise the fsb to 300 or so once I have booted XP with the softfsb utility?

Let's wait to Alex gets over his current issues and his system is stable and he starts raising the fsb in small increments.
I think with PCIe video he will be able to go higher in fsb without any video boot issues.

Alex, set your AGP volts to high in your bios.

You mean the setsfb utility, not softfsb utility ? Yeah, I can set to 300fsb or so stable in setfsb too.

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: Tokse
Hi,
Came across this great thread that has taught me a lot about my new motherboard . I was thinking a bit forward about the PCI express 4x-issue, and I was wondering what PCI-Express-videocards will have little to gain from PCI Express 16x and thus be good choices for this motherboard? After all AGP is getting more overprized...

So far my overclocking-efforts has brought me to FSB 273 mhz * 11 multiplier = 3004 mhz. I'm not very experienced with overclocking (second computer I overclock and first Intel) and I haven't done the BSEL-mod yet. I don't know much about memory-settings. I have simply kept it at 400mhz, loosened CL to 2,5 (3 crashed at the present FSB 273), kept the other timings at [auto] and set it to [flexible]. I tried to set it at 333mhz, but that crashed (at the present FSB 273). Anything else I should try with the memory?

Only the pricey (over $400+) high end cards are going to be significantly affected by the 4x pcie bus limit. But it would be silly to pair those cards up with this board and an e2200 anyway.
Basically any card under $250 would be a fine choice and wouldnt be significantly affected.

Youre doing good at 273 X 11 = 3004. 3ghz seems to be the average limit for these chips at stock vcore. So I would say its vcore and not memory or chipset that is keeping you from going higher. But doing the bsel mod would tell for sure, and allow you to make senisible ratios for better memory bandwidth speed.

loosened CL to 2,5 (3 crashed at the present FSB 273), kept the other timings at [auto] and set it to [flexible].
2.5 from 3 is TIGHTENING the timings, not loosening them.
Setting the flexible option is probably giving you an odd, slow, slow ratio. Use CPUID to check. What memory are you using ?

 

[Alex0915]

Broken, I think youre absolutely correct about the ati drivers! For me, 8.1 froze my screen right upon boot up. 7.12 is much better, but about 1/10 boot ups I get a totally blank screen (but monitor says it still is getting the signal!) It happens on both my monitors on both dvi ports, so Im thinking its an ati driver issue. Have you guys tried some of the other ati drivers like the omega or the ngo ones? Those are supposed to be the best ati gfx drivers out there; you can find them on guru3d.com

What video card/os do you use?

With some help, I finally found the pcie setting, its on the second page under advanced/chipset config...thats why I hadnt seen it at first! Is there any other pcie setting to change or just the one?

 

[Alex0915]

btw where do you find your memory specs to set the timings in the bios? I have everest home edition 2.2 but cant seem to locate it.

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: Alex0915
btw where do you find your memory specs to set the timings in the bios? I have everest home edition 2.2 but cant seem to locate it.

Everest Ultimate 400 trial version. Under Motherboard > SPD
(at my 3-3-3-9 timing, I did have to adjust the Trfc from Everest 21T to 24T, and the Twr from Everest 3T to 4T to make it perfect. At my 4-4-4-12 timing, I didnt have to change anything from Everest)


I believe thats the only pcie adjustment.
With setfsb, you can adjust the pcie freq mhz from windows, but I think its bad to go more than 110mhz, and it usually doesnt help anyway from the standard 100mhz.

 

[KDK Warhead]

Peav: "My board will allow me to boot initially at 280MHz FSB, however it will hang at the " - " just before the booting of the HDD / CDRom is initialised. "

took my computer 25-30 sec to get passed the "_". Then it boots XP as normal. Now it take 4 sec. Solution:
Change boot order and put SATA first (I disabled the other ones as well).

Cpmee: I still got random XP boot logo freeze. I thought it was the audio driver but I guess you was right and I was wrong...

 

[papounet]

Originally posted by: johnkdev

Crucial Ballistix Tracer (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800 (PC2-6400)


I tried every version of every driver from ASRock & VIA, different BIOS versions, different video cards, disconnecting non-essential components to decrease power consumption - then I started investigating the RAM a little deeper.

With only one stick of RAM (mobo defaults to single channel mode), the reboot problem went away. Then I discovered memtest86+, and ran that a bunch of times. The results:

Ran memtest86+ on both sticks of RAM installed together (#1 in DDRII_1, #2 in DDRII_2)
- 70 errors, all in Test #5
- Ran overnight, 20 passes, 1558 errors in Test #5

Ran memtest86+ on RAM #1 in first slot (DDRII_1)
- PASS

Ran memtest86+ on RAM #2 in first slot (DDRII_1)
- PASS

Ran memtest86+ on both sticks of RAM - swapped this time (#2 in DDRII_1, #1 in DDRII_2)
- Average of 2-3 errors in Tests #3 & #4 each
- ~1.5 million errors in Test #5

At this point I was convinced the motherboard had something wrong with its Dual Channel Mode functionality. I tried setting the BIOS to force Single Channel Mode with both sticks installed, but memtest86+ immediately started showing errors on what looked like almost every read/write, so I didn't run the full test.

Then I found and enabled the "Flexibility Option" in the BIOS. Memory speeds reported by memtest86+ were ~15% slower (i.e. 2092 MB/s vs 2449 MB/s) but all tests PASSED! Both in Single and Dual Channel Modes.

Ballistix tracer probably need more than the 2.0V than the MB can provide with DDR Volt High in the bios
(my ballistix ddr2 8500 require 2.2V)

Test 5 is the most helpful to identify ram which are either undervolted or run with too tight settings
flexibility option probably slow down tRD and other signals

the only way to confirm would be to load the datasheet for the via 800pro-ultra and use WPCREDIT (or use one of cpu-z, everest to dump the register of the chipset)

you may want to look into how to mod the ddr voltage (can be done with pot or pencil i believe)

 

[dragonsm]

Hey everyone-

I purchased this motherboard about a month ago in attempt to give myself a way to upgrade in stages. (and it has been a great motherboard so far without a single hiccup)

Right now I sit with a P4 3.0 with a cooler master hyper TX2, 1 gig of DDR2 3200 ram (yep, you read that right....initially, my buddy thought it was DDR) and a 6800 oc and all of this is sitting in a cooler master AMMO case. (which after reading all the reports of how ugly it is, I actually think it is a pretty cool looking case)

First thing I'd like to replace is the ram, and lately I have been getting email deals from Newegg. Reason for going DDR2 800, I figure that would be the most usable when I do get to upgrading my board. (plus it's cheap)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820145034
I believe I can get that for $29.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...emory-_-E1R-_-20146673

this will run $37.00

Anyone run either of these to modules? or am I better off just looking at the Adata or corsair that runs at 1.8 volts?
What is the max voltage this board handles? I remember reading an article on this board either off of this or TH and they used some OCZ ram that I thought was running around 2.1 volts.

After I get the ram dilemna solved, then that will allow me to upgrade the CPU later this year. (any thoughts on what the best "choice" for this board CPU wise is right now?)

Thanks for all your advice.

Steve

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: dragonsm
Hey everyone-

I purchased this motherboard about a month ago in attempt to give myself a way to upgrade in stages. (and it has been a great motherboard so far without a single hiccup)

Right now I sit with a P4 3.0 with a cooler master hyper TX2, 1 gig of DDR2 3200 ram (yep, you read that right....initially, my buddy thought it was DDR) and a 6800 oc and all of this is sitting in a cooler master AMMO case. (which after reading all the reports of how ugly it is, I actually think it is a pretty cool looking case)

First thing I'd like to replace is the ram, and lately I have been getting email deals from Newegg. Reason for going DDR2 800, I figure that would be the most usable when I do get to upgrading my board. (plus it's cheap)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820145034
I believe I can get that for $29.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...emory-_-E1R-_-20146673

this will run $37.00

Anyone run either of these to modules? or am I better off just looking at the Adata or corsair that runs at 1.8 volts?
What is the max voltage this board handles? I remember reading an article on this board either off of this or TH and they used some OCZ ram that I thought was running around 2.1 volts.

After I get the ram dilemna solved, then that will allow me to upgrade the CPU later this year. (any thoughts on what the best "choice" for this board CPU wise is right now?)

Thanks for all your advice.

Steve

No, dont get those high voltage modules, get the low voltage stuff like Adata or Transcend.
The ram voltage doesnt go too high on this board. Adata and Transcend also use the Brainpower pcb, which is superior, and are even cheaper. I use the Adata ddr2 800.
Review: http://www.iax-tech.com/ram/50bucks/09.htm Also there is a 2gb max (actually 2.8gb) on this board, so just get the 2x1gb packages.

Its no surprise that high voltage dimms list tighter specs, low voltage dimms also run tighter when you throw more voltage at them.


Best choice for a cpu for this board is a conroe with a high multiplier, low fsb. That would be the 11X e2200 or the 12X e4600. The intel stock heatsink on these chips is impressive (for a stock sink) and is good for 3.0 to 3.2ghz at reasonable temps.

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: KDK Warhead
Peav: "My board will allow me to boot initially at 280MHz FSB, however it will hang at the " - " just before the booting of the HDD / CDRom is initialised. "

took my computer 25-30 sec to get passed the "_". Then it boots XP as normal. Now it take 4 sec. Solution:
Change boot order and put SATA first (I disabled the other ones as well).

Cpmee: I still got random XP boot logo freeze. I thought it was the audio driver but I guess you was right and I was wrong...

XP boot logo freezes are usually a corrupt system file. But ramdom freezes anywhere point to memory. Have you run memtest86+ for at least 10 passes ?

 

[Microsystem]

This is my overcloking experience with this motherboard and this hardware
E4500
2*1Gig DDRII667 Kingston Cl5
Sapphire AIW 9600 AGP
I ran ORTHOS about 16H all modes done with Graphite solution (less than 2$) as adhesive and aluminum foil

Stock: Max FBS 231
BSEL mode: System recognizes FBS266 but cannot boot (even in bios)
Volt mod Vcore 1.51: Max FBS 271
Volt mod + BSEL mode: Max FBS 253

I don?t saw any advantage in bsel mod. Is this true for all? Why bsel mod(I done it more tha 10 times) have no advantage for me?

 

[KDK Warhead]

I run Prime 95 for 8 hours, no problem. Only run memtest86+ for 30 min (on pass of every test i think). I set FSB to 266 and AGP,ddr to voltage to high at 15:00 today. Also removed java update. No boot problems so far but that doesn't prove much.
I vill put FSB to 277 and AGP,ddr till auto (3-3-3-10-1T) and then run memtest during the night (so that I see if that was the problem).

My memory is rated 4-4-4-12 @ 2.1v and 5-5-5-18 @ JEDEC standard.
On this motherbord low is 1.8V, normal 1.9v and high 2.0?

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: KDK Warhead
I run Prime 95 for 8 hours, no problem. Only run memtest86+ for 30 min (on pass of every test i think). I set FSB to 266 and AGP,ddr to voltage to high at 15:00 today. Also removed java update. No boot problems so far but that doesn't prove much.
I vill put FSB to 277 and AGP,ddr till auto (3-3-3-10-1T) and then run memtest during the night (so that I see if that was the problem).

My memory is rated 4-4-4-12 @ 2.1v and 5-5-5-18 @ JEDEC standard.
On this motherbord low is 1.8V, normal 1.9v and high 2.0?

Thats what Ive read, on this motherbord low is 1.8V, normal 1.9v and high 2.0. Good a guess as any. I know it doesnt go too high.

Yes, run memtest86+ for many hours. I think your problem may be the 1T timing. From what Ive experienced and read, this board doesnt like 1T with ddr2. I wasnt orthos or memtest stable at 1T.

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: Microsystem
This is my overcloking experience with this motherboard and this hardware
E4500
2*1Gig DDRII667 Kingston Cl5
Sapphire AIW 9600 AGP
I ran ORTHOS about 16H all modes done with Graphite solution (less than 2$) as adhesive and aluminum foil

Stock: Max FBS 231
BSEL mode: System recognizes FBS266 but cannot boot (even in bios)
Volt mod Vcore 1.51: Max FBS 271
Volt mod + BSEL mode: Max FBS 253

I don?t saw any advantage in bsel mod. Is this true for all? Why bsel mod(I done it more tha 10 times) have no advantage for me?

The bsel mod did wonders for me. :thumbsup:

Could be power related. Whats the make and model of the psu you are using ?

 

[Microsystem]

I use a weak power 500W max I think this is about 250W rms
but i have no problem with is when all hardware work at maximum power usage (cd rom, flopy , vga , ...) ORTHOS still is stable

 

[cpmee]

Originally posted by: Microsystem
I use a weak power 500W max I think this is about 250W rms
but i have no problem with is when all hardware work at maximum power usage (cd rom, flopy , vga , ...) ORTHOS still is stable

But it may be vdrooping all over the place. Try OCCT and select speedfan as your monitoring software. It will give you a graph at the end of the run of temps and voltages.


Have you run memtest for at least 10 passes ?

 

[Tokse]

I wouldn't call ASUS 7900GT a top card, but this test shows that even for that card PCI 4x has some negative effects for some games (especially doom) and some 3dmark-tests.

http://www.ocworkbench.com/200...ck/775dual-vsta/b5.htm

I found this comment on Xtreview:
"The difference between PCI-E 4x and PCI-E 16x depend on the used card. for example there is no large deference between (pci-e 4x and 16x) if u have a 7600 gt card .but for a 8800 gtx the deference is pretty clear"

So I thought that maybe different video cards work the graphics in different ways and
that maybe there's a difference between ATI and Nvidia. Anyone has an opinion on that, does ATI and Nvidia take advantage of PCI Express 16x to the same extent?
-----------------------------------------
My memory is 1GB Corsair XMS pc3200 DDR400 , 2-2-2-5. What I wrote about setting CL might have been a bit confusing. First I set CL to 2, than I loosened it to 2,5 and at last 3. So I think we agree there. I have set the other timings to [auto]. Maybe I should
try to insert the other three timings there (2-2-5) instead and remove [flexibility]?

 

[Peav]

Originally posted by: cpmee

Originally posted by: KDK Warhead
Peav: "My board will allow me to boot initially at 280MHz FSB, however it will hang at the " - " just before the booting of the HDD / CDRom is initialised. "

took my computer 25-30 sec to get passed the "_". Then it boots XP as normal. Now it take 4 sec. Solution:
Change boot order and put SATA first (I disabled the other ones as well).

Cpmee: I still got random XP boot logo freeze. I thought it was the audio driver but I guess you was right and I was wrong...

XP boot logo freezes are usually a corrupt system file. But ramdom freezes anywhere point to memory. Have you run memtest86+ for at least 10 passes ?

Its not a ram issue, its a board issue as it didnt do this with the e6600 with same ram.

Anyhoo thats not even an issue now as the mobo fried last night before I even got a chance to do any volt mods, and looks to have taken the q6600 with it. So another SATA2 RMA, first went the same way altho didnt kill my E6600 chip.

Tried the cpu in a 4core-vsta board I use for a HTPC and it doesnt boot.. I dont dare try the e6600 in the SATA2.

It did this a month or so ago. It was all packed up for RMA and I gave it one last shot and it posted.. Had been stable at 266 default FSB since. Switched off browsing these forums last night and I had the horrid smell of silicon burnage.

Seems its VTT again that has gone. Prolly stuck 5V through my cpu Mosfets near the ATX Power get really hot.

Hopefully the store will allow me to get a store credit towards a decent board. However looks like I have to lose my x1950pro as a result, ( or use the new mobo in the HTPC and VSTA in my gaming rig, however I dont trust asrock no more )

Nightmare, but hopefully get it all sorted out by next week.

Anyone else had similar issues running q6600 chips ?

Peav