Chaintech VNF4 Ultra SATA posts

[perdomot]

I was wondering if this might be why my OC is getting limited because earlier mobos with 4 sata posts only had a couple of them locked. Can anyone confirm that all 4 sata posts on this mobo are locked? Thanks.

 

[perdomot]

bumping for advice

 

[the cobbler]

Yes, all 4 SATA buses are locked. The VNF4ultra doesn't suffer from the issaue with SATA 1&2 on some of the other NF4 boards. If you are really worried and are running one or two SATA drives, use SATA 3&4 instead. Make sure you check the bios settings for your EIDE drives as well, as it sometimes defaults them to PIO rather than UDMA.


Things to be aware of when OCing the VNF4 Ultra:

1. It undervolts horribly. 1.7v Vcore is actually 1.664v, for example. 1.65v on the NF4 is actually 1.60v. Memory @ 2.9v is actually 2.77v.

2. Vcore settings 1.5v-1.575v don't work at all. You jump straight from 1.475v to 1.6v. (and 1.6v is, of course, actually 1.556v)

3. Settings are pretty limited. Ther are no .5 multipliers anywhere and there are just four memory dividers (200/166/133/100).

4. RAM slots are super picky. If you want dual-channel, use only two sticks. Try slots 1/2 (black) then 3/4 (blue) with memtest86, as I got an extra 10mhz+ by moving my sticks to the blue slots.

5. RAM max volts are 2.77v actual when set @ 2.9v. Get an OCZ DDR1 Booster ($10) which will allow you to reach 3.3v or so. The sideways arrangement of the RAM modules allows for good airflow and will keep those sticks cool, even as close together as they are.

6. If you don't already have the Rev. 2 board with active cooling on the NF4, call Chaintech and they'll send you a free heatsink/fan combo. Also make sure you flash to the Rev. 3.0 bios from Chaintech's website, dated 3.15.05. It partially fixes some temp bugs and adds a couple useful settings and is the best OCer of the bios revisions so far.

7. Visit the official Chaintech forums @ PCPerspective:
PCPer - Chaintech

8. Again, the biggest suckage regarding this board is the limited voltage. I can hit ~ 2650mhz aircooled with my 3200+ Winnie, Prime95 stable for 24+hours at 47C. That's at the maximum 1.7v Vcore setting which, again, is actually 1.664v. Basically, you run out of voltage before the board overheats or becomes unstable, even with stock cooling. If you are setting up a watercooled or phase-change rig, send back the VNF4 Ultra and get the DFI board instead.

Negatives aside, this board is incredibly stable and a pretty decent overclocker, IMHO. The BIOS really limits how far you can take the VNF4, but it's such a young board and the bios revisions should improve over time. Chaintech has been very communicative with its customers and many of the BIOS changes in the newer revisions have been a direct results of customer requests.


Question for you:
What kind of overclock are you getting and what seems to be limiting it? I'll do whatever I can to help...

 

[perdomot]

Thanks for the info cobbler, you've been a big help. Is there a guide to flashing the bios on this mobo? Never done this before and need some guidance. Thanks.