The mobile Athlon 64 and motherboards

[tofu]

just curious, but do the 1.4 mobile a64's have the same multiplier as the desktop versions?

for example, does a mobile 2800+ (1.6ghz) have 200x8
while a desktop 2800+ (1.8ghz) have 200x9

?

thanks.

 

[gregheitz]

yes

 

[tofu]

yes the multiplier is the same? or yes the 2800+ desktop is 9x while the mobile is 8x?

 

[jaybee]

Originally posted by: tofu
yes the multiplier is the same? or yes the 2800+ desktop is 9x while the mobile is 8x?

The mobile has 1MB cache while the desktop has 512k cache. The extra cache is worth 200 MHz in their rating scheme.

jaybee

 

[Bar81]

Originally posted by: tofu
yes the multiplier is the same? or yes the 2800+ desktop is 9x while the mobile is 8x?

The multiplier is different if the clock speed is different, so in this case the multiplier is different.

 

[Bar81]

Originally posted by: gregheitz
Also, right now I am thinking of returning the cpu and or the board. If i return just the cpu i could get a 3200+ and run stable as all get out at 250. Think that is my best bet? Thanks.

I would advise you to get a board that allows higher voltage adjustment for the mobile CPU. Unless you do a voltage mod, 1.45v is all you will get and that's not enough to hit 2.4Ghz.

 

[gregheitz]

bar81, I have read the first page a lot now and I still can't figure out which board would be a SURE bet to have good oc and good vcore control without need of DT 64bit hanging around. I can run stable at 2.35ghz 260x9, but I want more, I want above 2.4ghz. My cpu runs 29idle 35load, which is very good and thats on the low setting of my fans. I feel like this asrock has horrible control of its bios and voltages. I may look into volt modding it but i see no one who has tried it and I don't feel like being the first. Without getting flamed, bar, what would you say is the best board within the next week to get, that would top my asrock.

 

[Bar81]

Well, I haven't listed the max vcore, vdimm for boards because that's widely available through a simple google search for a review of each board. Based upon your criteria you have two options. If you're comfortable with volt modding then maybe you should check out the Epox. I haven't heard anything but good things about the board. Alternatively, pick up one of the Gigabyte boards depending on whether you have a SATA drive and your budget. They both have AGP/PCI lock and good voltage options so you should be able to hit 2.4Ghz+ although I don't know how high each vdimm goes.

 

[gregheitz]

Ok thats it. I'm buying the gigabyte 8kda3+ and doing the vmod, its simple. Its a $119 board over the $85 dollar asrock and im sorry but the asrock just has what I feel like is a very LACKING bios. I'm used to bios that have a lot more options then that one. The only thing keeping the gigabyte board from working is the low voltage on boot, which I feel should be fixed soon if they update the detection of mobiles. Either way a vmod is a nice thing to do since it will improve the overall overclock potential anyway. There is a vdimm mod that is there too so this seems like the board to go with for the enthusiast.

 

[Bar81]

Instead of blaming the motherboard you should look at yourself. A simple google search will give you a review on the board (and pretty much any other) and what BIOS settings are available. If you are that picky about your overclocking and tweaking then you should have done your homework. Simple as that.

 

[gregheitz]

I relied mostly on this board and I saw that the board was stable and offered the easiest method of using a mobile. Now I see there is a new board that requires work but will be better. I guess in all reality the asrock is a good board for what it is, easy to set up and runs stable with mobiles. I was in a hurry but oh well, newegg will take it back no problem anyway.

 

[Bar81]

Let me be very clear on this point in case other people are confused. I DO NOT intend the recommended board list to be an exclusive exhaustive review of every motherboard listed. In fact, I don't know how looking at the list you could think that. Rather, it is what it is, a list of compatible motherboards and any information pertinent to the topic at hand re the motherboard. If you're interested in a motherboard, PLEASE take five minutes and CHECK OUT THE REVIEWS ON THE WEB; they'll give you information as to the features of the particular board you're interested in.

And if you still have questions then PLEASE go ahead and ask. I'm not trying to imply that you shouldn't ask questions, just please do your homework so this thread can be productive.

 

[gregheitz]

bar81, also in case you haven't seen it around the web lately epox has released a few beta bios version on the AOA forums and should have a bios out soon that will fix the undervolt problem with mobiles. Just thought i'd give you the heads up because that would make this board a very nice one indeed. thanks for all the info again.

 

[Bar81]

Well, if and when they release such a bios lmk.

 

[tofu]

if anyone here wants to sell their flashed to mobile compatiblity vnf3-250, i'd be more than happy to take it off your hands ;D

 

[ToyYoda]

Is this a decent price for a AMD Athlon 64 3000+, 1MB L2 Cache, 1.5v?

$175

New egg has them, Im thinking about it

i believe this is C0 revision and google confirms this, am i right?

so this is not a great overclocker?

 

[tofu]

hmm i wonder why newegg isnt selling OEM versions of their desktop processors anymore..

i was thinking perhaps a desktop would be more suitable for me, considering i have slow ram, i'd need the higher multiplier. even at 100 fsb, i could only go up to 270 HTT or so (damn pc2100). 270 htt on a proc with a low multiplier wont yield the results im looking for D:

 

[imported_Flux]

Bar81,
You might update the top post to mention that the "true" mobiles use the drillhammer core not the clawhammer or newcastle cores.
To make the distinction even easier, the drillhammer core look like a square where the other cores look like rectangles.
Last I checked the 1.4V A64 mobiles/DTRs all use the clawhammer core.

 

[Bar81]

Originally posted by: Flux
Bar81,
You might update the top post to mention that the "true" mobiles use the drillhammer core not the clawhammer or newcastle cores.
To make the distinction even easier, the drillhammer core look like a square where the other cores look like rectangles.
Last I checked the 1.4V A64 mobiles/DTRs all use the clawhammer core.

I don't know where you're getting/who is feeding you this crap, but there's no such thing as a "drillhammer" core. The squarish core you're talking about is a Newcastle core. The rectangular core is the Clawhammer core. All 1MB L2 cache Athlon 64 CPUs utilize the Clawhammer core. Athlon 64 CPUs with 512k L2 cache can be either true Newcastle cores or Clawhammer cores with half of the cache disabled.

As an aside, all this stupid misinformation is getting ridiculous and I have a feeling most of it is starting as a result of the ignorant postings on the amdmb.com and overclockers.com boards. This is getting as bad as the 512k L2 cache 3400+ claims (hint IT DOESN'T EXIST)

I encourage everyone to get familiar with the technical documentation on www.amd.com If it's not there it DOES NOT EXIST in official form. That's where I get all my information. I trust AMD infinitely more than message boards when it comes to what exists and what does not.

 

[gregheitz]

bar81, I was really thinking about getting that epox board, but I don't know if I'm in the mood to spend $158 on it. I have looked up reviews and it seems like it would be a good one to go with. Anyway, do you know or have you heard whether the gigabyte k8ns pro is a very good overclocking board compared to the asrock? I have an acrylic case also so it would look better being blue instead of the epox which is the normal color. Thanks

 

[Bar81]

The person with the K8NS Pro claims to have gotten his CPU to 2.5Ghz or thereabouts, check out the xtremesystems.com forums

 

[mad3d]

I'm using the K8ns pro right now with my 1.4v 2800+ (1.6 1mb) and have it clocked at 8x302 stable, so I'd say it is a good oc'ing board. I'll probably volt mod and try the epox sometime early next week. 302-303 might be the limit of my chip at 8x multi though...got the same results with my k8n pro. The only quirk with the gigabyte boards (both the k8ns and k8n) is that the voltage sometimes won't stick at boot, so every cold boot its a good idea to enter the bios and change the voltage settings for the chip.

 

[gregheitz]

mad3d, do you know if that board is sensitive to SATA harddrives when it comes to overclocking? That is a nice overclock , I'll let you know what I get with my 3000+ 1.4 a64 when I get the mobo on thursday.

 

[tenren]

Does the asus K8N-E support the a64 1.4V mobile variant? I see that only DTR was tested? Newegg doesn't have the A64 3200+ DTR anymore only the mobile 1.4 one.

Thanks.

 

[jkresh]

probably, asus is good with mobile support. Though as far as I know, no-one has tried (or at least if htey have they havent reported results), so no way to know without trying yourself.