*** Official ASUS A7N8X/Deluxe (nForce2) Thread ***

[Dan]

As I understand it, the major change with "A" is that it fixes the cpu fan's temp activation utility.

 

[talas213]

This question may be a bit more nForce2 related than specific to the A7N8X....

Does anyone have any experience with what Mushkin reported with the A7N8X test here ?

Unlike the original nForce 420 or 415, the nForce 2 does not take any performance hit with a single DIMM as opposed to two DIMMs, however, running 1GB unbuffered DIMMs, the performance dropped by approximately 50% which may be caused by the specific addressing scheme of the chipset.

I realize that 1GB-512MB requires 30-bit addressing whereas 512MB only requires 29-bits, but is this effect real and does anyone have any insight as to why ? Is it indeed a change in the addressing scheme ? What aspect of performance (latency, bandwidth) ?

I was planning a system with the nForce2 based A7N8X with two 512MB sticks, but if the memory bandwidth goes to crap....

Thanks in advance.

- Talas213

 

[Atrail]

My board should be here tommorrow and I have a question.
Right now I have 3 sticks of Corsair XMS 2400 256mb each.
Would you suggest just using 2 Dimms or all 3?
I know there is a slight increase in band-width but I am not sure what would help the most, in lets say games.
Thanks!

 

[floccus]

Atrail, use all three. Not only more ram, but dual channel is still used. Besides, dual channel is nothing to having more ram straight out.

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: floccus
Atrail, use all three. Not only more ram, but dual channel is still used. Besides, dual channel is nothing to having more ram straight out.

Agreed. It might hinder your FSB OC'ing headroom to some degree, but unless its all or nothing (150MHz vs 147MHz or 150MHz vs 133MHz), I'd sacrifice a few MHz for 256MB more RAM.

Chiz

 

[Revelate]

I have the A7N8X board and I'm interested in knowing how DIMM sizes might affect the dual DDR performance of the nForce2 boards. I found this information from Anand's article titled "NVIDIA nForce2 Preview".

If you install two DIMMs, a 128MB and 256MB module then only the first 256MB (smallest memory module size X number of memory modules installed) of memory will be accessible using both 64-bit memory controllers; any memory accessed above 256MB will only be accessed using a single 64-bit channel.

The bolded text is what's confusing me. I can understand the formula with two DIMM modules as explained here, but when three are present, doesn't the dual DDR funtionality depend on the minimum total of RAM in each channel as opposed to the individual DIMM size?

For example, if I have three 256MB sticks filling every socket, wouldn't it make sense that since one DDR channel only has 256MB available, the board will use a combined 512MB with both 64-bit channels and the other 256MB will be 64-bit? Anand's formula of (smallest mem module size X number of modules installed) suggests that 256MB * 3, or all 768MB, would be operating with both 64 bit channels. Is that correct?

If the formula holds true, a system configured with a 512MB stick in one DDR channel and two 256MB sticks in the other would only operate 768MB (256MB is smallest DIMM size * 3 modules) with both 64-bit channels, even though the RAM total is an even 512MB split between two DDR channels. Also correct?

[EDIT] Grammar.

 

[rwalterk]

I've had the A7N8X Deluxe for a couple of months now. Just recently I noticed one very weird thing. When I fire up Real One Player and try to use it to play a CD, the system crashes immediately (it's okay when playing MP3s or video clips). It happened once before with one of my other media players (can't remember which one), but after I upgraded the version it didn't happen anymore. Any suggestions?

I normally use Winamp 2 because it's so lightweight, but I hate to have any sort of lingering problems (even with software that I can't stand).

A7N8X Deluxe
Athlon XP 2100 (thoroughbred)
1x512MB Corsair XMS PC2700
Audigy 2
Gainward Geforce 4 4200
Sony DVD ROM
Creative CDRW

Thank you in advance.

 

[moonshinemadness]

Can someone post a link for the Bios flash that works please? Te two i see up there one is corrupt (May be my computer) and the other just wont work. Cant seem to find it anywhere on the net either. Thanks

 

[pcmax]

Okay 2 questions, just installed the board, everything seems to be fine except a flag on motherboard resources in device manager and 3com nic not pulling an IP. I know the nic thing has been discussed in thread somewhere but thought I would ask here for the sake of consolidation.

Update: The device manager flag thing is apparently only related to people using a USB mouse and KB which I am and supposedly doesn't affect anything, just kind of annoying though.

 

[h0mi]

I have 2 questions.

1> I have the deluxe model. To update the bios, do I need to have a floppy? I don't have a floppy drive installed.

2> I'm running win2k pro, and so far all seems to work except for the 3com NIC and sound. Windows is detecting the sound card and saying it's playing sound, but I get no sound at all. The speakers are plugged into the lime green connector. So I'm kind of stuck here.


Any ideas? I'd rather not RMA the board.

 

[Dan]

moonshinemadness: I just sent you copies of AWDFlash.exe and bios version 1002a. Also, YHPM.

h0mi: You shouldn't have to RMA the board.

1. There are 2 ways to flash the bios. One uses a bootable floppy and the other uses the mobo's built-in flash memory writer utility. See pages 40-41 of your manual for more info.

2. Have you checked the speaker set-up tab in the nvidia media control panel? It took me two tries to get my Cambridge SoundWorks 5.1 speakers plugged in properly. It's worth it though. The onboard sound quality is so good that I didn't bother to install my Audigy 1 when I ipgraded from an MSI KT3 Ultra mobo.

 

[bigtimmn2]

Ok, guys, I am highly frustrated, just want to make sure i am on the right track.

Just bought a a7n8x (non deluxe), I am upgrading from a k7s5a, which was plagued during the whole time i had it, first i was told PSU, bought a new one, tried new memory, then had "fatal error" issues on boot up, was told it may be my HD, bought a new HD, still same issues, I then felt all that was left was the MBoard, I returned the new HD and I bought this MBoard and installed it last night, as well as Windows XP.


Upon finishing install of XP, evertyhing worked good, until I went to start loading in the drivers, after completing the Audio, Lan and USB drivers, my system will now not complete booting, I realize that I didn't turn off the Auto restart, so I know i am getting a BSOD, but cant see what it is.

I am going to do a fresh reinstall of windows again tonight, and here is where i am confused on what to do, should i just go thru the Hardware Manager and install items one by one, or use the auto install on the disk? I would like to just get my LAN up and going, and download the newest drivers (its my only system at home, and i was an idiot and didnt do the drivers before tearing apart my system).

Here are my specs, if anyone sees a problem, let me know.

Athlon 1700XP (1 Yr Old, plan on upgrading this summer)
512MB 2100DDR (256mb Crucial, 256mb generic)
20gb WD Hard drive
Toshiba DVD
Sony CD-RW
Geforce 3ti200 (havnt installed Vid drivers)
Soundblaster Audigy (havnt put in system yet)
Pinnacle PCTV (havnt put in system yet)
Antec Tru Power 330w PSU

Temps last night at 100mhz were 38 and 42 133mhz not under load.

 

[patrickmacdonald]

I am happy with my new a7n8x.... but with one exception.....
I find the POST/pre-OS-loader too slow.... It takes almost the same time from powering up- to the windows loading screen, as it does to load windows....
I have enabled the fast POST, but the system still waits for a few seconds when it looks for the raid drives, and also when it does some dmi pooling thing....

Any suggestions on how I can speed these things up, or at least switch off the drive detection sequence? I have tried to access the settings by hitting shift+s and F4.... but it never works, and windows loads as usual....

Any help appreciated.

 

[chizow]

bigtimmn2, try disabling everything in the BIOS under integrated peripherals other than the nVidia onboard LAN and then do your XP install. Update to SP1 and then grab the latest nForce2 UDA from Asus' site. nVidia's 2.03 is supposed to fully support the A7N8X-D, but Asus still recommend their version for their tweaked version of SoundStorm. Once you have the latest UDA's installed, go back into BIOS and enable the other options (like USB 2.0 and SoundStorm) you want to use and Windows should autodetect them using their native nForce2 drivers rather than the generic Windows drivers. If you still have problems boot into safe mode (hit F8 during bootup) and see if there are any hardware conflicts.

h0mi, you can also use AsusUpdate which flashes your BIOS from Windows. I've used it extensively and found it to be quite excellent. Just download the BIOS image you want to flash to, run Asus Update and choose install from a file. Point to the image on your HDD and sit back and relax. If you are overclocking, I would recommend setting everything to defaults before flashing (even in DOS). For the 3com NIC to work properly, you'll need to install its driver. The latest version should be on Asus' site. As for the onboard sound, try the Asus UDA rather than the nVidia UDA.

patrickmacdonald, unless you are actually using the serial ATA RAID controller, you can speed things up by disabling the controller by changing the onboard jumper. Consult your manual for the exact location; its near your CMOS battery and the SATA controller, and you should only have to move it from pins 1/2 to pins 2/3.

Chiz

 

[ArchAngel777]

I have come to share some information on this topic based on my recent upgrade experience.

I purchased a Asus A7N8X Deluxe and 2 - 256MB modules of Crucial PC2700 ram. I installed WindowsXP, that worked fine... Whenever I stressed my System it would reboot on me and lockup on me. At this point I was running my 2500+ XP Barton at 333FSB (within spec). I was running BIOS 1002.

I played with the memory times and memory speeds, I found that my Crucial PC2700 were not stable at 166Mhz speed... I downclocked them to PC2100 (133Mhz) and the board was rock solid. It is good to note that Prime95 failed within the first 5 minutes when running at 166Mhz memory speed. Anyways, I called Crucial and got an RMA, I was not confident that 2 of the same kind of memory is going to fix my problem, so I paid the difference and upgraded to PC3200. I purchase 3 PC3200 modules and tested them and they work at 333Mhz 5-3-3-2T and its solid... I also tested them at the SPD 400Mhz bus and they were rock solid as well.

In a nut shell, all my problems were from 2 bad or imcompatable sticks of PC 2700 from crucial... I dont think the memory is defective, I think its more of an issue with the Nforce2 chipset...

I also tested each of the PC 2700 sticks one at a time, they failed either way. So wether they both are defective or not I do not know, but both chips would not run at their rated speed... The good news is that the PC3200 cleared up all my problems.

Now that I have my problems sorted out my system config is now

AMD Athlon Barton 2500+ clocked at 2800+ (2.08Ghz) @ 1.7 volts.
Asus A7N8X Deluxe
768MB PC3200 (clock agressively at PC2700 for performance reasons)
Antex 400 WATT PSU.
ATI Radeon 9500 Pro
40Gig HD Western Digital
The rest is just blah blah...

Anyways, perhaps someone can help me with this mystery....

My XP2500+Barton is not locked (none of them are to my knowledge). So when I select 166X12.5 I get my 2.08Ghz (XP2800+). But when I bring the multiplier up one more, to 166X13 or even 166X13.5 the system detects my CPU as a 817Mhz or a 943Mhz (depending on wether I choose 13 or 13.5 multiplier)... Any thoughts? And it is indeed running at that speed... So I am curious how I can get this thing to clock at a XP3000+


Thanks for reading, any ideas would be great, even far fetched ones!

 

[h0mi]

I got the 3com card working, with the latest drivers & also updated the bios. Had a hard time downloading/installing the bios upgrade because the asus server was down, or couldn't find the file but it worked. yay.

I'm still stuck with the speakers though. Does it matter that I've got a front speaker connector plugged into the MB as well? I tried the nforce control panel and that didn't help.

Chizow- you said use the Asus UDA instead of Nvidia NDA ... I'm not sure what the NDA is, or where to download it :/ ... a little help please .


This upgrade has been a bit more stressful than it needed to be ... i'm currently stuck in an IE5/IE6 melded world with win2k doing really wierd things on me, so the lack of sound is a little worrisome. I'm going to complete downloading the various system patches that I needed to since I repair-installed win2k. Hopefully that will help with those changes.

 

[h0mi]

1 final question. I've got the 2100 XP CPU ... I think its the tbred B or the barton... its an OEM I got from newegg and I pretty sure its the tbred B. I'm not sure which. What is the "expected" operating temperature for this thing? When I started the installation of this, the bios monitor said the CPU temp (F) was between 125-132, but Asusprobe is saying its currently between 98-108. (with the temp usually being 100).

 

[XPgeek]

i've got this board, tis very good.
had to update BIOS to OC, but that was painless.
did have to use the boot floppy, but it worked well.
have had my 2400 runnin at 2700 on the 166 bus for about a month now.

 

[h0mi]

Scratch that NDA/uDA comment.

 

[Atrail]

Well I just got my board setup today (mostly)...
I didn't have any problems really.
I wonder why they dropped the 2 extra IDE ports. I kind of liked having everything on its'
own channel. Oh well.
Still need to do some tweaking in the BIOS and then I will be ready to over-clock it a little.
Do they still reccomend bumping the FSB one mhz at a time or should I just set it where I want
it and let it rip???
Thanks can't wait to get home and play some more...
Stupid job...

 

[chizow]

Looks like we got promoted

Atrail I would check out one of the extensive results threads on OC'ing and see what people are achieving with your chip. Simply run a seach on the CPU/OC'ing forum and search for 2100+ or 1700+. There's four distinct threads to look for, 2 are massive and over 500 posts and detail (somewhat painstakingly ) the results people achieved, but go in great detail how people achieved them. The other 2 are more or less straight settings threads that give vital statistics like stepping, voltage, FSB speed and timings, parts used, cooling, temps etc.

Once you get an idea of what kind of OC you can expect from your chip, set it somewhat aggressively to start (within 200MHz or so) of your ideal target clockspeed and then gradually increase in increments of 3MHz or so until you hit a wall. Then tweak from there.

Chiz

 

[Soulo]

I got an Athlon XP 2400+ and after I updated the bios to rev.1002 (should i get upgrade it to 1002a? and is that the beta version?). At first it showed up as a 2400+ in the Asus Probe, but after I powered down and turned my computer back on, it showed up as a 1800+.

The bios is at default and I'm a bit clueless when it comes to the bios. Does anyone know what's going on with this? If so, what do I need to change?

 

[touchmyichi]

Soulo, go in your bios and set the fsb to 133. And thats all.

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: Soulo
I got an Athlon XP 2400+ and after I updated the bios to rev.1002 (should i get upgrade it to 1002a? and is that the beta version?). At first it showed up as a 2400+ in the Asus Probe, but after I powered down and turned my computer back on, it showed up as a 1800+.

The bios is at default and I'm a bit clueless when it comes to the bios. Does anyone know what's going on with this? If so, what do I need to change?

Flash it to 1002A. Its not a beta, its what 1002 final should have been. BIOS' are hit and miss, even if they don't become official, a Beta BIOS can be better than a shipping or final revision BIOS depending on your needs. 1002.001 Beta was the best BIOS for about 2 months until 1002A was released only recently.

The reason why your CPU is showing up as an 1800+ is b/c your BIOS has reverted settings back to safe defaults of 100MHz x default multiplier (probably b/c it didn't like what your RAM was doing at default SPD settings). I believe the default multiplier on the 2400+ is 15, which makes sense as 15 x 100 = 1500MHz which is close to an 1800+ (1533MHz). After you flash to 1002A, do the following:

1) Change your FSB speed to user defined and set it to 133MHz.
2) Change CPU interface and Memory timings to Optimal and
3) Set Memory ratio to 100% or "Sync". Save/Save and Exit.

Any time you exit after making changes, make sure to save first and then save and exit.

Now you are essentially running at stock clockspeeds, but your RAM is underclocked. You can run it synchronously at a higher FSB at this point, since your RAM can theoretically handle 185MHz at its specified RAM timings. The nice thing is the nForce2 unlocks Athlon T-bred B's so that other multipliers can be accessed via the BIOS.

Simple math shows that a 166MHz FSB yields a 12x multiplier to achieve stock speeds of 2000MHz, so if you go back into your BIOS and change those 2 settings, you won't really be overclocking (total clockspeed is the same), but you will see a performance increase b/c of the increased bandwidth between the CPU and main memory (and the rest of the system). You could do this w/out overclocking anything until the theoretical max of your RAM at @ 11 multi and 185MHz FSB. If that settings seems to be stable, you can then tweak your memory timings to the rated speeds for those Kingston PC3000 modules. If you aren't sure or don't feel comfortable setting them yourself, just change the setting from Optimal to Aggressive.

Chiz

 

[Macro2]

I'm still running the 1002.001 beta bios. Whats better about 1002a?