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

[rbV5]

so far so good. Set to 11.5 x 202MHz just to test for stability

nice..

 

[J5im8yo]

arghhhhhhhhhhhh! I just did 3dmark03

BIOS 1001 = 4450
BIOS 1003 = 4390

WTF!

 

[RandySavage]

Come on heh... I have posted a couple times... but does anyone here have a SATA raid 0 setup on their mobo.... Over in the NF7-s forum, they have experienced data corruption after some overclocks... I was wondering A, if anyone had a SATA raid array on their Asus and B, if so, did you have any troubles? C, what were they? D, how did you fix them?

 

[touchmyichi]

Hey I would just like to say to everyone who has been helping me out that I got a new cd writer and it works fine now. I guess it was just a problem w/ having a older drive. Thanks everyone

 

[FingerDemon]

I hope I'm not breaking too many rules or anything, but I'm a motherboard newbie and I was wondering if you folks with experience with this board would describe it as at all "newbie friendly" or perhaps "newbie hostile"? I just don't know if I should be considering it as the board for my first self built machine.

I wish I had answers to the outstanding technical questions to offer in exchange for any replies... however, it is extremely unlikely that I will figure any of them out before others do.

Thanks in advance for any replies,

FingerDemon

 

[chizow]

Errr....not so hot update on my A7N8X-DLX with BIOS Rev. 1003. I got greedy and jumped it up to 220MHz from 210MHz and got some fun hieroglyphics upon BIOS exit. Needless to say I've got post-BIOS-write death syndrome now. :Q Anyways, replacement board coming from Newegg on Wednesday, it was a good excuse for me to take a shot at a rev 2.0 anyways. All known attempts to resuscitate the board have failed. Just wanted to let you guys know so you don't go frying your BIOS.

Chiz

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: FingerDemon
I hope I'm not breaking too many rules or anything, but I'm a motherboard newbie and I was wondering if you folks with experience with this board would describe it as at all "newbie friendly" or perhaps "newbie hostile"? I just don't know if I should be considering it as the board for my first self built machine.

I wish I had answers to the outstanding technical questions to offer in exchange for any replies... however, it is extremely unlikely that I will figure any of them out before others do.

Thanks in advance for any replies,

FingerDemon

I'd say its a pretty advanced board to set-up, particularly if you want to overclock. The steps to get it up and running are nothing too advanced, just there's a LOT of potential pitfalls for the inexperienced DIY'er. There's also a lot of ways to troubleshoot and fix such problems, but most would come unnaturally for a beginner. Most of the issues are getting past the BIOS settings; the A7N8X-DLX has more options than any other board I've ever dealt with so it can be overwhelming if you aren't familiar with soft BIOS settings and menus.

If you have access to a secondary computer, you should be able to research and solve any problems other than the lost-BIOS issue, which is very real (just experienced it myself this weekend), and random. I managed to go through 9 or 10 different BIOS flashes and countless BIOS changes without any problems until I got greedy this weekend. Before 1002.A I could just cold boot without even a CMOS reset; then I needed to reset the CMOS; now I get nada.

Chiz

 

[dionx]

for those with high FSB overclocking such as 166 to 200FSB, is it necessary to add active cooling to the northbridge? or will the heatsink alone be fine and maybe just add arctive silver in its place?

 

[floccus]

Finger.. The board is pretty simple to set up as long as you take your time and read the manual and understand what you are doing before you begin. Its a common issue for newbies to just try and jump into the build w/o actually understanding what they're doing. Just take your time and double check everything and things should turn out fine.

The same advice goes for you "experienced" builders. We've all had problems b/c we've rushed things and made stupid mistakes that we shouldn't have so just take your time and have fun with it. Personally I have more fun swapping cards in and out and replacing this or that so I'm not in a rush to get it back and running so I can benchmark it.

 

[XRdirtHead]

MY device manager has some errors:
1394 bus controller
PCI raid controller
creative sb16 emulation

When I put the Nforce2 cd in the drive I get "Ascdsio.dll SMBus_WriteByte Failed!" What does that mean....

My IE says detection proxy settings everytime I start it for the first time and it takes about 15 or 20 seconds for Yahoo to load but only the first time I open IE. It seems to connect right away after that. (until the next time I boot up)

Could someone tell me how I should have my bios set up for the memory and multiplier. Also any suggestions on changes I should make to my bios from the default settings.

AMD 2100 and a 2200
Crucial one stick of 512 PC2700 in each computer
Sound Blaster Live
Geforce3's
Asus 52x cd drive
Lite on burner
One USB hub
floppy
Thats about it.....

Which internet connection should I connect my cat5 to the top one or bottom one.

I have long boot ups and read I should disable what I'm not using. I'll have to figure out whats not in use somehow....any suggestions...

I'd like to use the bios window update but I have never flashed bios before and I know how scary it can be.....

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: XRdirtHead

When I put the Nforce2 cd in the drive I get "Ascdsio.dll SMBus_WriteByte Failed!" What does that mean....

I have no idea what causes SMBus errors, but I do remember getting them when using Asus Probe once in a while. Try using Motherboard Monitor 5 instead. It can be found in the first thread in the CPU forum.

My IE says detection proxy settings everytime I start it for the first time and it takes about 15 or 20 seconds for Yahoo to load but only the first time I open IE. It seems to connect right away after that. (until the next time I boot up)

Make sure you have everything set to auto-detect unless your ISP specifies otherwise. If you're still having the same issues after disabling the other MAC, then try calling them and settings up your connection statically.

Could someone tell me how I should have my bios set up for the memory and multiplier. Also any suggestions on changes I should make to my bios from the default settings.

If the 2100+ is a T-bred B, you should be able to achieve pretty good OC'ing results if you want to try OC'ing. Run a search on T-bred B to find out from the markings on your chip or you can use WCPUID, which is provided in a link at the top of the CPU forum. In the revision box it'll indicate "0" for T-bred A and "1" for T-bred B. I'm not sure if the 2200+ is unlocked or not, but if the 2100+ is a T-bred B, you should be able to simply raise your FSB to 166MHz and run your memory at "100%" or "Sync". For the 2200+, you can try lowering the multiplier to its default MHz/166MHz = new multiplier so that you can run your FSB synchronous to your RAM. I'd worry about these settings last. There are plenty of good OC'ing threads where you can get a better idea of what you need to change and what you can expect. If you want to maximize your system performance w/out OC'ing, just take your stock MHz and divide by 166MHz and change your multiplier to that setting.

Which internet connection should I connect my cat5 to the top one or bottom one.

The top one is the nVidia MAC, and its the one you'll want to use if you only need 1. Disable the 3Com MAC in the BIOS. If you need to use the 3Com MAC, make sure you get the updated drivers for it from Asus. Its not in the nForce2 UDA.

I have long boot ups and read I should disable what I'm not using. I'll have to figure out whats not in use somehow....any suggestions...

Long boot-up is probably due to the unused SATA controller, which has proven to be somewhat buggy to begin with. Disabling it should decrease boot-up time significantly. If you're still having slow boot-up, try this fix for high CPU utilization with IDE devices..

And yes, it is a good idea to disable anything you are not using in the BIOS under the Integrated Peripherals tab , as this will free-up system resources and avoid any potential IRQ conflicts, which it seems you have. If the only peripherals you are connecting (printer, mice, keyboards, joysticks etc.) are USB, disable EVERYTHING except the nVidia MAC. Parallel, Serial, MIDI, Com, Gameport....all of that stuff for the most part is legacy support for older devices (that probably don't work under 2K and XP anyways). Unless you have a device that uses Firewire, disable that as well and don't bother hooking up or connecting the header. That should clear up some of your problems:

1394 bus controller
PCI raid controller
creative sb16 emulation

The SB16 emulation shouldn't be showing an error; SBLive! issues were well-known with Via chipsets. Its probably an IRQ conflict. What does the message say when you click on the properties of the SB16 emulation in device manager? If its an IRQ issue, hopefully disabling unused devices clears it up. Otherwise, try moving slots. It shouldn't make a difference in 2K or XP what slot the card is in, but you'd be surprised..........

I'd like to use the bios window update but I have never flashed bios before and I know how scary it can be.....

I've found the Windows BIOS update to be 100% reliable and much more comforting than the dark confines of DOS. Its really simple, but don't try a web install or don't bother searching online for the BIOS. Just download it to a root directory off of C:\ Unzip it, then run the utility and point to that directory. Click on the BIOS image and then flash. Make sure you don't have other programs running, and undo any OC before flashing. Don't reset, as it may appear to hang and your mouse will be unresponsive, but its just doing its thing.

 

[XRdirtHead]

Thanks! I'm at work tonight but I'll try those fixes when I get home!
I'm still running 98SE
with five computers at home for my family it would be hard to swing $1,000.00 for an OS. Its hard enough to keep fresh computers on everyones desk!

 

[chizow]

NP, forgot to mention you need to disable the SATA controller via jumper; you'll find it near the SATA controller and the CMOS battery on your mobo. Consult your manual for exact locations.

Ahh...98SE, well that makes sense with the SBLive!, as it will still be assigned IRQs via the BIOS/slot placement. If you haven't already, put it in slot 2 or slot 4, as those PCI slots don't share an interrupt with any other PCI devices. Windows may still share an IRQ, but disabling onboard devices may solve that. Also, never put anything in PCI slot 1 unless you absolutely have to.

Chiz

 

[snik]

Hello guys. Just finished putting my new system which includes the A7N8X of course (non-delux). I'm planning on overclocking and I need your suggestions since I'm a beginning overclocker. Here are my system specs:

A7N8X (1002.A bios out of box)
2400 XP Tbred (wow this runs so much cooler than my 2100 Paly)
256 MB Corsair XMS PC2700 (I just got one 256MB stick for now to see how it works. So far spectacular with aggresive settings)


The default "settings" for 2400 (2.00 GHz) are 15x133 = 1995 GHz. I bumped the fsb to 145 and kept the stock multipler (15) so, 15x145=2175 GHz. This is my first time overclocking so I'm already excited hehee (sorry) . Now I'm afraid to do anything else without asking for your help

:

Should I just keep bumping the FSB up? Or change some multipliers? How much will my memory handle (PC2700)?

Any help is appreciated: comments, suggestions, etc? Thanks!

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: snik

The default "settings" for 2400 (2.00 GHz) are 15x133 = 1995 GHz. I bumped the fsb to 145 and kept the stock multipler (15) so, 15x145=2175 GHz. This is my first time overclocking so I'm already excited hehee (sorry) . Now I'm afraid to do anything else without asking for your help

:

Should I just keep bumping the FSB up? Or change some multipliers? How much will my memory handle (PC2700)?

Any help is appreciated: comments, suggestions, etc? Thanks!

I would bump it up incrementally by 3MHz or so to find the MHz ceiling for your CPU. Did you get a chance to take a :camera: of your CPU and stepping? That would give us a better idea of what you might expect in terms of OC'ing. The original 2400+'s were around week 40 I believe, so if you have an earlier 2400+, you may be nearing your ceiling. If its a later stepping (week 50 or later), you may have a good bit more headroom.

Your PC2700 is rated at 166MHz at default settings. The XP core shows some significant benefits from increased FSB speeds as you increase the clockspeed. This is true all the way to DDR400 and probably beyond, as long as you are running synchronously with relatively tight RAM timings. Not sure what kind of PC2700 you have or what its rated timings are, but I would try to keep it at cas 2.5 or lower. Running a lower FSB will allow you to run faster/tighter timings at the expense of increased bandwidth. If you can find a FSB setting close to 166MHz and balance that with your total clockspeed ceiling, that would be ideal.

You may have to lower your multiplier to accomplish this, but I think there are some snafus with the 2400+ and above chips when it comes to multipliers lower than 13. I had good results with my PC2700 (before upgrading) at 14 x 166MHz=2324MHz, so thats a setting you might want to keep in the back of your head. I'd still go slow though until you determine your max OC'ing headroom. You may also need to incrementally bump up your Vcore, but I wouldn't go higher than 1.85V and 2.7V for Vdimm.

Keep an eye on temps, run a few stress benches until you error or crash (Prime95 torture found in the stickied thread in the CPU forum and 3DMark). Then back it down and try again. If you are pushing your RAM beyond rated specs, I'd also run memtest86 (again in stickied thread). Once you feel you've got a relatively stable OC, run loops of 3DMark and Prime95 overnight and see what happens. Tweak from there accordingly.

Chiz

 

[snik]

Thank you, Chiz buddy. Helpful indeed. Here is my RAM: (will it be my bottleneck fo OC'ing?)

CORSAIR MEMORY XMS Extreme Memory Speed Series 256MB 32MX64 PC-2700C2PT With Platinum - Silver Heat Spreader OEM
Specifications:
Speed 333 MHz
Organization 32M x 64
CAS Latency 2-3-3-6-T1
Memory type DDR
Part number: CMX256A-2700C2PT Model#: CMX256A-2700C2PT

EDIT: If the system becomes very unstable, will I be able to get back into bios and change everything back?

 

[chizow]

NP.

Your memory is good quality, so it should give you some headroom beyond 166MHz FSB (333MHz DDR effective). You will probably need to relax your timings some beyond ~172 or so; if you set your memory interface to aggressive, this should adjust your timings accordingly. I'd stick to the aggressive timings to test for stability first; if you are able to reach a stable clockspeed, tweak your timings a little bit lower to see if you can get a little more performance.

EDIT: If the system becomes very unstable, will I be able to get back into bios and change everything back?

A week ago, I would've said you were bulletproof, but I suffered from BIOS-death syndrome this weekend, so I'm not so sure anymore. If you take it slow and keep your FSB settings reasonable, as well as changing only a few things at a time and "saving" and then "saving and exiting" from the BIOS, you should be OK.

If your OC is unstable, generally you'll just lock up or you'll restart; when you reboot it'll probably load up at default 100MHz FSB x stock multiplier, and you can just go into the BIOS (with your last POST settings) and adjust the 1 or 2 things that made your clock unstable. I've found that high FSB speeds that your RAM can't handle simply won't POST. With this board (and most nForce2 boards), I've found that the North Bridge is the limiting factor in a high FSB overclock. It seems stable up until the 185-190MHz, beyond that is a bit more risky (in terms of loss BIOS, voltage mods etc.) With PC2700, you should probably stay below 190FSB anyways; there are plenty of good multiplier and FSB combos to get a nice OC without pushing beyond 190MHz.

I've found 1002.001 to be the safest BIOS, followed by 1002.A, 1003 killed my BIOS. With 1002.001 and BIOS revisions before that, I could abuse my BIOS and a cold-boot would POST if anything went wrong. With 1002.A, I would actually need to clear the CMOS to get back to defaults. With 1003 clearing the CMOS let me boot once; then nothing. Not based on anything "scientific", just my experiences.

Chiz

 

[snik]

Thanks for sticking with an oc noob, chiz .

So far my oc'ing experience is quite nice, I've got these 2 setups:
12.5 x 170 = 2.125 GHz @ 1.675 volts
13.0 x 166 = 2.158 GHz @ 1.675 volts
I guess this isn't much, but it' my first time... PC2700 is stopping me.

I will go ahead and upgrade my ram. Chiz, you say that this board stops at around 185-190 fsb, so does this mean that buying memory above PC3200 is pointless? What brand and kind what you recommend? Corsair XMS and what kind?

Also I've got a question about voltages. Vcore settings are from 1.650 to 1.800. At what point should I stop? Is 1.800 volts a point where I definitely shouldn't be at? How about memory voltage? Should I mess with that?

Chiz, how did you achieve your overclock? Wow it's nice

edit: spelling

 

[pcmax]

Originally posted by: chizow
Errr....not so hot update on my A7N8X-DLX with BIOS Rev. 1003. I got greedy and jumped it up to 220MHz from 210MHz and got some fun hieroglyphics upon BIOS exit. Needless to say I've got post-BIOS-write death syndrome now. :Q Anyways, replacement board coming from Newegg on Wednesday, it was a good excuse for me to take a shot at a rev 2.0 anyways. All known attempts to resuscitate the board have failed. Just wanted to let you guys know so you don't go frying your BIOS.

Chiz

Sorry to hear that Chiz. I have fried more than a few bioses overclocking, I think I sent my Tyan board back 3 times, not made for overclocking but stability but still did 150fsb perfectly stable (p3-500@750) 50% overclock but it's never enough.

 

[XRdirtHead]

THANKS CHIZ!

I was able to flash my bios and fix some of my problems. I didn't have time to address all of the problems but I'm on my way to getting my computers squared away.

Thanks again! People like you make anandtech forums #1!!!!!!!!!!!!

One problem left in my Device Manager:
PCI Raid Controller- Drivers not loaded
Ya I'm a newbie but could someone help me through the loading of this?

SMBus_WriteByte Failed.....Would I need to contact Asus for help with this one? I get this when I put the nforce2 disk in the cd drive.
thanks
Ed

 

[floccus]

SATA needs to be disabled by a jumper on the board, not the BIOS.

 

[XPgeek]

so, just downloaded the 1003 BIOS.
should i flash it? i really dont feel like toasting my BIOS like Chiz.
or did you OC too far and fry it Chiz?
i've got a 2400+ @ 13x166 so 2158 MHz.
2x256 DDR 333, still at 333.
would this be too much of an OC? i know its not tooo severe of an OC, but if the BIOS is touchy...
just always in the search for more speed, thas why i still use a GF3 Ti 500

 

[XRdirtHead]

Thanks Floccus.....Chiz told me that in one of his earlier answers....doh!

 

[bjamm2]

just wanted to add i got my computer up and working now I had a DOA Mobo (no video) and returned it to googlegear, i sent back a 1.06mobo and got back a 2.00 rev. So i can confirm googlegear.com is shipping the a7n8x deluxe 2.0 rev's now! but still YMMV

Asus A7n8x deluxe mobo
480 True blue antec power supply
1000amg Antec case
AMD Barton 2500+ CPU /w stock heatsink/fan @ 333fsb
Kingston HyperX PC2700 512mb memory.

Running XP PRO , and running great, i did try 98 SE and had major problems but switched to XP and it fixed all of them.

Not gonna OC yet though This 2500 is sure nice though, fast!

bjamm

 

[bjamm2]

just wanted to add i got my computer up and working now I had a DOA Mobo (no video) and returned it to googlegear, i sent back a 1.06mobo and got back a 2.00 rev. So i can confirm googlegear.com is shipping the a7n8x deluxe 2.0 rev's now! but still YMMV

Asus A7n8x deluxe mobo
480 True blue antec power supply
1000amg Antec case
AMD Barton 2500+ CPU /w stock heatsink/fan @ 333fsb
Kingston HyperX PC2700 512mb memory.

Running XP PRO , and running great, i did try 98 SE and had major problems but switched to XP and it fixed all of them.

Not gonna OC yet though This 2500 is sure nice though, fast!

bjamm