ASRock 939Dual-SATA2 - Socket 939 with PCI-E and real AGP and Socket AM2 upgrade path

[qsrk]

Originally posted by: designit

Originally posted by: qsrk

Originally posted by: designit
try all rams to the looser settings (the one you said shows looser), and 2T command rate.
4gig will require 2T . the command rate is the one called "MA" timing, right below TRP(memory clock setting to manual).
post your settings and we will see what need to be adjusted.

I did try out the looser timings at 2T. I think that I read somewhere that DDR400 Dual Channel will only run at 2T with Athlon X2 CPUs. I also tried 1T just in case, and no help. One thing I noticed was that the system did not like to boot / reboot on the first try with manual memory settings. Once I put them back to Auto, the system was rebooting on the first try. Do you want me to post some other settings?

I also learned that 3 sticks of RAM will report in Windows as 2.50 GB, but 4 sticks still report as 2.00 GB! See the other thread that I mentioned - at least one other person had the same results using an X2 4400+ on an ASRock motherboard with a 256MB GeForce video card.

EDIT: The OP in the other thread also had an X2 and and ASRock motherboard, but with a low-end ATI video card. The common link looks like X2 and ASRock.

If I recall, i read somewhere that winxp does not support 4gig. You might want to try winxp 64 edition and see if it shows them correctly.
If you set your memory timing on auto, the bios will reduce them to 333mhz and will use the lossest timing possible to make the board post.
This is why you should set memory timing manualy. But have to find out what they spec to.
google the memory serial #, and you will most probably find a pdf file for them or some forum or review site on them.
I posted a link to some bios settings that will get you going untill you resolve the issues you'r having.
It does not matter if you use X2, opteron, of FX55, or any athlon cpu, 4 dimms occupied will force 2T. That is unfortunate, but 2T is not as bad as you might believe. It is only about 2-4% performance reduction. but more memory in 2T, is better than less memory in 1T.

Sorry - I gues everything isn't on Auto - I did manually set the memory clock to DDR400. The memory timings (2-3-2-5 btw) were on the OCZ packaging, but since other things like voltage settings were not, I phoned OCZ, and had a tech walk me through all of the BIOS settings to match my RAM.

With the apps I'm running right now, x64 is not an option. When I did my original research, I had the impression that 32-bit could handle up to 4GB.

 

[imported_Woody]

I posted earlier thinking I may have network errors using the board's built in LAN while overclocked. As it turns out the network errors were some fluke on the routing between my ISP and the BF2 server I was playing on. So....no problem there!

 

[RIGorous1]

does anyone else who has this board and the xp-90 know if we really need the back plate from thermalright? Can we use the unthreaded center screw hole?

Thanks,

Rig

 

[nealh]

Originally posted by: RIGorous1
does anyone else who has this board and the xp-90 know if we really need the back plate from thermalright? Can we use the unthreaded center screw hole?

Thanks,

Rig

Huh...does this mobo need a special backplate from TR for the XP90...the retention mechanism is very easy to install on an XP90..no need to even remove it from the case

 

[RIGorous1]

Originally posted by: nealh

Originally posted by: RIGorous1
does anyone else who has this board and the xp-90 know if we really need the back plate from thermalright? Can we use the unthreaded center screw hole?

Thanks,

Rig

Huh...does this mobo need a special backplate from TR for the XP90...the retention mechanism is very easy to install on an XP90..no need to even remove it from the case

Hrm... You're right, the retention mechanism is good, but I'm not sure if I can use the unthreaded middle holes. On the thermal right website it says that i need a backplate, but is this old information?

Anyone here with a dual939 and xp90 want to make a comment?

 

[nealh]

Hrm... You're right, the retention mechanism is good, but I'm not sure if I can use the unthreaded middle holes. On the thermal right website it says that i need a backplate, but is this old information?

Anyone here with a dual939 and xp90 want to make a comment?

wow..glad you saw this..I would have been annoyed if I bought and found this out later....

thanks

 

[nimo]

What's a good hardware monitor to use on this board?

I have everest
I'm running prime now and the temp moved from 32 to 33(opteron 148 stock)
Some how I don't buy the idle vs load is only one C

 

[BlackPear1]

I installed my XP-90 on this board using an extra backplate I had on hand from an Abit motherboard (I installed a Zalman on that board and it uses its own non-standard mounting hardware). The backplate from any standard spec retention bracket should work - I also successfully fitted a DFI backplate.

As for monitor software, I'm using SpeedFan. A one degree C difference between idle/load would make me wonder if I was looking at the correct sensor.

 

[Somniferum]

Another vote for SpeedFan. Look for the sensor with the highest temp under load, and that's more than likely your CPU -- even if it's labeled something else.

 

[nimo]

I installed speedfan still its only 32C idle 35C full load
I'm running opteron 148 at stock with zalman 7700-cu

I know opterons run cool but not that cool

 

[Bad Dude]

Originally posted by: RIGorous1
does anyone else who has this board and the xp-90 know if we really need the back plate from thermalright? Can we use the unthreaded center screw hole?

Thanks,

Rig

Yes you do. You can use any old one if you have it. The heatsink black plastic retention unit needs to be screw on to something.

 

[dadach]

does anyone know if this motherboard supports x1800xt ? tnx

 

[imported_Woody]

Originally posted by: dadach
does anyone know if this motherboard supports x1800xt ? tnx

ATi graphics card? Yes, it will, very easily.

 

[logicmaster2003]

hi its me again.. I'm not sure if this is an OK place to ask this question..

but for my ASROCK939 dual-sata II with Opteron 148, what types of RAM speed are supported ? Cuz on the ASRock website it only says "up to DDR400" but I've seen people here posting their spec with DDR533, DDR667 and such. I'm confused !

Please help ! cuz I want to buy a 2x1GB RAM but I don't know what speed I should get. Please advice and thanks
oh yea.. the ASRock939 + Opteron 148 that I received last week is in the box waiting for RMA because it quits on 4th day of use. So in the mean time I want suggestions on what type of RAM (2x 1GB) that you guys recommend for my system.

 

[Somniferum]

The board only "officially" supports up to DDR400 ... but you can go higher by overclocking the memory bus. For example, with memory divider at 1:1, changing the HTT from 200 -> 220 results in the memory running at 220MHz (440 effective). In theory you could go much higher than that, provided your RAM supports it. If your CPU can't handle the extra speed, you could reduce the CPU multiplier at the same time to keep the CPU speed from going too high.

I doubt you will see much "real-world" difference with super-high-speed RAM on this board, though. I would buy name-brand DDR400 (Corsair, Kingston, etc.) and save the extra money for a more substantial upgrade.

 

[logicmaster2003]

hi Somniferum

thank you soooo much

what do you think of this one ? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820227210
this one is not over-clockable is it ?

 

[Somniferum]

Originally posted by: logicmaster2003
what do you think of this one ? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820227210
this one is not over-clockable is it ?

That RAM should be fine. You can probably overclock it some, but not as much as RAM that's rated for higher speeds, obviously. Every DIMM module is different though and the only way to know for sure how fast it will run is to test it. If you look at the comments for that OCZ, one guy says he's running it 218MHz @CAS 2.5. I'm running Corsair ValueRAM @220MHz, so that sounds about right. There are a couple who even claim to be running it at 240 (CAS 3) and even 260MHz, so who knows, you could get lucky.... :Q

 

[logicmaster2003]

THank you soo much but isnt that 218 mhz @ CAS 2.5 is better than 240 mhz @ CAS 3.0 ? so the SPeed of the RAM is inversly proportional to the CAS ? It would be fun to do some benchmark on those values !

yea anywayz.. im still waiting for my RMA (signed return authorization form) to be mailed to me so I can ship my defected mobo+cpu back. Hopefully I'll get em back next year and I'll probably go get that OCZ deal on the link above before the rebate expires on 12/31.

So what do u use your PC mainly for ? me I have 2 PC. PC#1 is the gaming pc (the one that I describe here) and PC#2 is a poor-man's PVR ( a 4 year old HP workstation with Pentium4 2.4ghz + 256mb ram pc2100 + 120gb + ATI 8500dv). I use "VVCRS2" to record tv shows together with bunch of codecs (ffshow) that I downloaded separately.

currently my PC#1, i put my old mobo+cpu back on with HD disconnected, then i popped in the DSL-LIVE CD and has been virus-scare-free online for 2 days now

Well have a nice evening

 

[Somniferum]

Originally posted by: logicmaster2003
THank you soo much but isnt that 218 mhz @ CAS 2.5 is better than 240 mhz @ CAS 3.0 ? so the SPeed of the RAM is inversly proportional to the CAS ? It would be fun to do some benchmark on those values !

I've read some articles where the reviewer benchmarked and compared memory timings (CAS, RAS, etc.) vs. clock speed, and in most cases clock speed is the more important factor. So 240MHz @CAS3 would be faster in most cases than 218 @CAS2.5. It depends what you are doing though.

In general, higher clock speed = increased memory bandwidth, whereas tighter timings = lower latency. The difference between bandwidth and latency is kind of like the difference between the width of a highway vs. the speed of the cars on it. Low bandwidth with low latency is like a single-lane highway with cars going 100 mph ... whereas high bandwidth and high latency is like an 8-lane highway with cars going 40 mph. Which one is better depends on what you are trying to achieve. Obviously, the ideal situation is high bandwidth and low latency together, but sometimes you have to compromise one to obtain the other.

So what do u use your PC mainly for ?

Currently I just have my one computer, which shares a home network with my GF's computer (which I built also, hehe), networked using a router that is plugged into a DSL modem and laser printer. I use my computer mainly for gaming, web surfing, e-mail, etc. And of course I am an enthusiast so I also use it to overclock, benchmark, break, and fix.

 

[nealh]

I've read some articles where the reviewer benchmarked and compared memory timings (CAS, RAS, etc.) vs. clock speed, and in most cases clock speed is the more important factor. So 240MHz @CAS3 would be faster in most cases than 218 @CAS2.5. It depends what you are doing though.

In general, higher clock speed = increased memory bandwidth, whereas tighter timings = lower latency. The difference between bandwidth and latency is kind of like the difference between the width of a highway vs. the speed of the cars on it. Low bandwidth with low latency is like a single-lane highway with cars going 100 mph ... whereas high bandwidth and high latency is like an 8-lane highway with cars going 40 mph. Which one is better depends on what you are trying to achieve. Obviously, the ideal situation is high bandwidth and low latency together, but sometimes you have to compromise one to obtain the other.

So what do u use your PC mainly for ?

Currently I just have my one computer, which shares a home network with my GF's computer (which I built also, hehe), networked using a router that is plugged into a DSL modem and laser printer. I use my computer mainly for gaming, web surfing, e-mail, etc. And of course I am an enthusiast so I also use it to overclock, benchmark, break, and fix.

very nice comparison..kinda makes it hard to know what to sacrifice

However, Zebo showed that CPU clock speed is key..memory will help most in winrar for example..but games and most benches low latency or high mhz ram speed makes very little difference in reality

I got some OCZ PC3200 gold ram that did 200@2-2-2-5-1t but it seemed to be my valuram@250 3-3-3-7-1t was snappier

now I switched to DC opteron @2610 and lowered the ram (that was a 250mhz 3-3-3-7-1t) to 217@cas 2.5-3-3-7-1t and maybe it is slight snappier with tighter timings...still trying to figure this out

I am not using benchies but general everyday tasks

BTW is 1.45 or 1.5v max vcore max without modification on this mobo

 

[logicmaster2003]

yea maybe it got to do with stability (i.e. games freezing up) and I heard looser timining which equates to higher mem speed seems to prevent pc freezing up.

 

[Somniferum]

Originally posted by: nealh
However, Zebo showed that CPU clock speed is key..memory will help most in winrar for example..but games and most benches low latency or high mhz ram speed makes very little difference in reality

Yeah I think that is true. I always try to find maximum CPU speed first (at reasonable voltage though -- I've had a few CPUs fail at low temps so I'm kind of gunshy about cranking the voltage). OC'ing the memory is like icing on the cake. If you can do it with stability and it fits into your CPU overclocking scheme, then you might as well. But it's not worth spending extra money on IMHO -- unless you are doing it purely for fun, which enthusiasts have been known to do.

BTW is 1.45 or 1.5v max vcore max without modification on this mobo

ASRock VCORE max is 1.45v without mods. VDIMM max is 2.7v unmodded.

 

[Somniferum]

Originally posted by: logicmaster2003
yea maybe it got to do with stability (i.e. games freezing up) and I heard looser timining which equates to higher mem speed seems to prevent pc freezing up.

That's exactly it -- the higher you set the memory clock speed, the more likely it is to fail at default timings. Loosening the timings is one way to improve stability at higher speeds (at the expense of some latency).

 

[logicmaster2003]

hey this is one interesting review by John Chen / Allan CHen..

http://www.insanetek.com/review.php?id=20&page=2

I think i'm gonna go for this instead of that other OCZ that interested me cuz this one is cheaper (also with rebates)..
$219 after rebates + no tax + free S/H: http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=83745

yip.. i just ordered it online 10 seconds ago At first I was gonna go for the Corsair but the problem is.. the test voltage was 2.75v, whereas the the that i just ordered ( Patriot PDC2G3200LLK 2GB) runs between 2.6 to 2.7v and the 2.7v is the "high" of the unmodded ASRock 939 dual sata2 board

 

[Gbaby1008]

Just installed this board today with a new cpu & memory, didnt post the first couple times & i kept on restarting it then finally got a post, everything was working then crashed when loading windows. Put in a old nvidia tnt2 card and posts everytime but still crashes on windows (which i expect is normal cause i havn't reformated it yet. i read there was some stability problems with some 6800's but mine (5900xt) wont even post. Anyone?

Thx