*** Official ASUS A8N-SLI Deluxe (nForce4) Thread ***

[bap4201]

Originally posted by: davidos
The tech support guy i spoke to did not know about it but said to call the RMA dept. at 510-739-3777 #3 and they would know if anyone...

I can't call from work right now... anyone want to try, let us know the results....

Ok, I called that number and they referred me to "pre-sales" because they would definitely know about this. I called 1-502-995-0883 opt 4.

When I read the guy the posting, he laughed. And I asked what was so funny, he said if it was something of that nature, we would know about it immediately from the home office.

 

[bap4201]

PS: I asked for permission to post his reply in this forum and he said "please do". After I finally got the guy to stop laughing!

 

[bharte]

Just wondering what kind of PSU i should have for my system I'm eventually going to get the A8N SLI Deluxe, but i'm only goin to start with one 6600 gt. Right now i have a Power Suppy that came with my case.

My specs:
AMD 64 3200+
Corsair Value Select 1GB(512x2) pc3200
Aopen combo drive
Western Digital 160GB IDE
XFX Nvidia geforce 6600 gt
creative audigy 2 zs
Asus A8N-SLI Deluxe

Do you think i can keep my current psu until a later SLI upgrade? Any suggestions would be great, thanks.

I would rather not buy a different psu unless it is absolutely neccessary.

 

[Tanclearas]

Originally posted by: bharte
Just wondering what kind of PSU i should have for my system I'm eventually going to get the A8N SLI Deluxe, but i'm only goin to start with one 6600 gt. Right now i have a Power Suppy that came with my case.

My specs:
AMD 64 3200+
Corsair Value Select 1GB(512x2) pc3200
Aopen combo drive
Western Digital 160GB IDE
XFX Nvidia geforce 6600 gt
creative audigy 2 zs
Asus A8N-SLI Deluxe

Do you think i can keep my current psu until a later SLI upgrade? Any suggestions would be great, thanks.

I would rather not buy a different psu unless it is absolutely neccessary.

Well, looking at the Kingwin 450W power supply (your case says it has a 450W ps), and at the chart I posted above (straight from Asus' A8N-SLI manual), it looks like that power supply will barely suffice for SLI 6600GT's.

A64 3400+, 2 x 6600GT, 2 x DDR, 2 x HDD, 1 x optical drive, 1 x PCI device, 3 x USB device
Required +12V current: > 17A
Required Wattage: >= 350W

You more than match the required wattage, but the specs at Kingwin's site say that the +12V max load is 17A!

 

[gobucks]

i got this PSU -
http://www.newegg.com/app/view...=17-103-473&depa=0

i decided to go for a nice 24-pin PSU, since it will help with stability (you can run a 20-pin PSU as long as you also use the EZ-Plug connector, but Asus doesn't recommend using one for anything higher than a 6600GT). From what i've heard, most future mobos will be using the 24-pin ATX spec, so it's a good investment. It's got great reviews, plenty of power and connections, and the 3 fan design helps to cool your case. I was gonna go with the Thermaltake 480W PSU, but it was $61, so i figured $30 was worth it to not have to worry about it.

Anyways, i doubt the default PSU is actually 450W. First of all, the picture in the newegg page says total wattage 210W on the side. Also, many cheaper PSUs rate their peak wattage at unrealistic conditions. At, say, 10 degrees celcius, the PSU might pump out 450W, but at 30 degrees C, it might only put out 350, maybe even less at case tempurature, somewhere in the neighborhood of 30-40 degrees C. If you wanna get the SLI mobo, and want to eventually SLI your 6600GT (that's my plan, too), then you might as well buy a PSU that will definitely last you through several upgrades.

 

[exdeath]

Woot! Just got a tracking number for my A8N-SLI from www.buyxg.com after placing the order yesterday evening, so if it doesn't say out of stock yet, might want to call to confirm stock and get one.

Does it look like anyone is working on a SLI power supply with dual PCIe 6 pin connectors? I've been anticipating this since word of SLI, and I was hoping to see a 24 pin PSU with native SATA power connectors and dual PCIe 6pin connectors

 

[bharte]

Thanks guys, i think i'll just try the psu that i have now when i get the board and if it causes problems, invest in a better one.

 

[Caveman]

ExDeath: PC Power and Cooling is making a version of the 510 Delux Express PCI with dual connections for $239. I just bought one.

12V rail can carry 38Amps. You won't find any PSU more future proof than this one...

 

[Cow Fly]

Where are all of you guys getting your video cards for this board. 6600GTs?

 

[exdeath]

Originally posted by: Caveman
ExDeath: PC Power and Cooling is making a version of the 510 Delux Express PCI with dual connections for $239. I just bought one.

12V rail can carry 38Amps. You won't find any PSU more future proof than this one...

Where can you find these? I don't see anything like that on their website.

 

[bap4201]

hey thanks for the tips guys! My board came w/ the card set for dual video too! I had to do a double check to make sure it was seated properly, because it was exactly opposite the manual. Then I thought perhaps this was somehow second hand. Then I thougt maybe they tested it.

I did not switch the setting to single, because I am running 2 pci-e cards. But I can tell you I have not had one single problem installing this.

It was the easiest board I ever set up! mobo fit perfectly over the screw holes, all connections on the board are perfectly placed! Easy to install my cpu water cooler.

Turned it on, started right up. went into bios, it recognized my 2 sata drives immediately. Set bios for options of my network etc. Disable onboard audio, 1394 etc.

Installed windows 1, 2, 3. Within 3 hours of getting this in the mail, I was up and running!! Been playing doom3 today for 5 hours straight, not a single hiccup, in sli mode!!!!

Also, I'm getting excellent 3dmark bench scores!!

Good luck all!!

 

[GuitarDaddy]

I spent a couple of hours working on the settup of the my A8N last night. I have encountered the following problems.

1. The board arrived with the SLI selector set to "Dual Graphics" as others have reported. Since I am only using 1 card, I reset the selector to "Single Graphics". Power up the system and no monitor singnal, and post reporter annouces "failed VGA" test. I removed, checked and reinstall GPU (XFX6600GT), same result. Then I thought maybe there is a reason the board came set to "Dual Graphics", so I reveresed the selector and bingo it will now post. Is this a bios issue? Or will this board only work in SLI mode?

2. I tried to create a raid driver diskette by putting the mobo disc in to my old computer(1.4 Tbird) won't work! In the drivers menu where the manual shows the option "make raid driver disk", mine shows "no proper hardware devices" and no menu options. I thought I had found a work-around, when browsing the contents of the disc I found, 2000XP/chipset/makedisk.exe. So I ran the program and it extracted files and created a diskette, and when I looked at the diskette most of the files have nvraid in the title. BUTT, when I had succesfully configured the bootable raid array using the nvraid utility in bios and attempted to load windows (hitting F6) and inserting the diskette when prompted. Windows would not load the drivers and just keeps prompting for the diskette. I have a third hard drive, so I think my next move will be to undo the raid array, reset bios defaults and attempt to load windows to the 7200rpm just to get the system running. Then maybe I can make the proper raid diskette from the new computer and set up the raptors.

3. Some wierd readings in bios like CPU mhz 4850 ? WTF? I wish.


I'm not as concerned about the raid driver problems, as I feel confident that I can get that resolved.
Nor am I extremely concerned about the bios issues. I accept that as being a "beta tester" of new technology. But the SLI selector issue is more troublesome, as are some of the posts I've read today.
I feel for ya Skybum!

I will be trying to load windows later tonight, and I will keep everyone posted

 

[stelleg151]

Hmm, I just bought this board, and bought a Fortron 530 PSU, but it is only 20 pin. Should I return it and get a 24 pin PSU?

BTW: Im going to have a x700pro in there with a winny 3000, and I am planning to OC a lot.

 

[bap4201]

Originally posted by: GuitarDaddy
I spent a couple of hours working on the settup of the my A8N last night. I have encountered the following problems.

1. The board arrived with the SLI selector set to "Dual Graphics" as others have reported. Since I am only using 1 card, I reset the selector to "Single Graphics". Power up the system and no monitor singnal, and post reporter annouces "failed VGA" test. I removed, checked and reinstall GPU (XFX6600GT), same result. Then I thought maybe there is a reason the board came set to "Dual Graphics", so I reveresed the selector and bingo it will now post. Is this a bios issue? Or will this board only work in SLI mode?

2. I tried to create a raid driver diskette by putting the mobo disc in to my old computer(1.4 Tbird) won't work! In the drivers menu where the manual shows the option "make raid driver disk", mine shows "no proper hardware devices" and no menu options. I thought I had found a work-around, when browsing the contents of the disc I found, 2000XP/chipset/makedisk.exe. So I ran the program and it extracted files and created a diskette, and when I looked at the diskette most of the files have nvraid in the title. BUTT, when I had succesfully configured the bootable raid array using the nvraid utility in bios and attempted to load windows (hitting F6) and inserting the diskette when prompted. Windows would not load the drivers and just keeps prompting for the diskette. I have a third hard drive, so I think my next move will be to undo the raid array, reset bios defaults and attempt to load windows to the 7200rpm just to get the system running. Then maybe I can make the proper raid diskette from the new computer and set up the raptors.

3. Some wierd readings in bios like CPU mhz 4850 ? WTF? I wish.


I'm not as concerned about the raid driver problems, as I feel confident that I can get that resolved.
Nor am I extremely concerned about the bios issues. I accept that as being a "beta tester" of new technology. But the SLI selector issue is more troublesome, as are some of the posts I've read today.
I feel for ya Skybum!

I will be trying to load windows later tonight, and I will keep everyone posted

What are u using to monitor cpu? Try cpuz 1.26. At first 1.23 would not read my memory on this board. But 1.26 reads it just fine!

 

[SkyBum]

I'm convinced that I recieved a bad board. Its killed 2 optical drives and will not power up at all at this point.

thread here: http://forums.anandtech.com/me...AR_FORUMVIEWTMP=Linear

Not really that surprising though, all mobo makers ship bad boards from time to time, most people are having pretty good experiences with it so far and it looks as if my problem is not typical at all for this board. I wouldn't let my experience by itself scare you away from this one......I still hold high hopes for ASUS and I'm sure that they will take good care of me.

 

[Caveman]

ExDeath: Right... PCP&C does not show this on their website... You have to call and ask them for one. They've made a limited run which they released on Monday that are the same as their 510 Express model with one of the standard connectors replaced with a PCI-E connector for a total of 2 for native SLI. I was told that this small order of retrofitted units will be identical to a 5K unit production run in February. Price will be about the same then or maybe $10 cheaper...

 

[Abbett]

Sky Burn- Have you checked your power supply? That should be your first suspect, I don't think it's possible for a motherboard to kill an optical drive.

 

[SkyBum]

it's working fine in my other system, yet it fails when the 12v cable is connected between it and my A8N, hence my suspicions toward the mobo.

My technical knowledge is fairly weak though.....I could easily be wrong.

 

[mrscintilla]

Will Zalman CNPS7700 (120mm) cpu cooler be able to fit on this motherboard?

 

[stelleg151]

skybum, is your PSU 20 pins, because maybe there is a unforseen problem with 20 pin PSU's on the 24 pin slot. I really hope this is not the case, but its a possibility maybe?

 

[bap4201]

mine is a 24 pin, see signature. It comes with a converter to downsize to 20 pin. Now I was surprised to see that this board was a 24 pin. All other skt 939 mobos I've owned, namely: Soltek, Asus A8V, MSI Neo2 and Gigabyte all had 20 pins. I wonder if 24 pin mobos require more power?

 

[iscsidude]

Skybum,
Before we jump to conclusions, did you change that Ultra-X power supply with something a little more substantial?
i.e. 500+ watts, 24 pin connector, etc.

I just ordered a ModStream 520 which I hope will do the trick for a non-SLI setup with this mobo.
I'm currently using a PC Power and Cooling PSU and have had no problems for three years. Hopefully, I will be able to say the same thing about the OCZ PSU.

 

[GuitarDaddy]

Originally posted by: stelleg151
skybum, is your PSU 20 pins, because maybe there is a unforseen problem with 20 pin PSU's on the 24 pin slot. I really hope this is not the case, but its a possibility maybe?

I am using an Antec 550 true control 20pin without and adapter. I have had zero stability problems so far. I have even tested without the EZ-plug (with 1 6600GT) and no problems. I'm running two optical drives, a 7200 eide drive, and two 10,000 raptors.


I also found the problem with loading the raid drivers! I have a dead floppy! woot ! easy fix!
I will be swapping out this weekend.

Now if I can just get it to recognize my cable modem! my next challange.

And I still am running in dual graphics mode with a single card? Seems to work fine, but I will be doing more experimentation and testing this weekend.

 

[Crushproof]

Caveman, thanks for the info on the PC-P&C Dual PCI-Express power supply. Just called and ordered one!

 

[Caveman]

Yes, and 38 Amps on the 12V rail! I could not find a better power supply out there...!

Check this informative PS link!

http://pages.sbcglobal.net/adunlap/psudatasheet.html