Hi, there just got this mobo last monday, been testing it for a week now, and thought I weigh in with some info and questions:
My setup:
Athlon 64 3000+ Venice core + boxed cooler
FID version mobo, 3.00 bios.
1x maxtor 250GB pata harddisk
1x FDD
1x NEC 1100 DVD-burner (regionfree hacked)
1x 120 mm fan blowing gently at the harddisk
Micro-atx case (used to hold an intel ca810e mobo)
1x PSU 380 Watt, 2 fanner, got it from a housemate. OK, just a bit loud.
Windows 2000 with (Unofficial) service pack 5
My experience:
-The FID didn't come with a sp/dif bracket. This was last week, so it sure as hell isn't supplied standard every time! Check with your supplier before ordering.
-It also didn't come with a usb-bracket.
-The Norton Internet security you get with the mobo is a 90-day trial version. Beware.
-Installation was a breeze. I like the boxed cooler for it's ease of installation. No more risking crushing your cpu. One thing tho: The ATX connecter is poorly placed and interferes with the hdd/fdd casing on my mATX case. It's very likely it will too in other mATX cases.
-CPu doesn't get hot at all, and is a good overclocker. Details:
I'm booting it right now at 9x250FSB= 2250 Mhz. CPU@ Idle: 28dC. @Full Load: 43dC max. Please take note: Cpu will run hotter with Prime95 AND cpuburn running than with only Prime95.
Above temp readings is with CnQ enabled, so at 1.4V max. With Case closed. With Case opened temp is 1-3 dC lower. HT-bus is 1000cpu-to-nb16-16, 800nb-to-sb8-8. Runs stable.
Memory is at limit->183 Mhz, so runs at about 228 Mhz. Voltage=2.7V
With Clockgen, in windows, I managed to get it at around 2570 MHz before reboots occur.
Haven't tried oc'ing beyond that. Can run it at around 2400, but haven't tested that speed thoroughly.
-Power consumption is incredibly low. Above system is measured by a kill-a-watt type power socket pass-through meter. +/- 77 Watt idle, about 110Watt@full cpu load. This is with CnQ enabled. My AthlonXP system runs 155Watt idle.
QUESTIONS:
-USB: I have a few old usb brackets from Asus mobo's left. Can I use those on my FID?
-I have two sticks of 512Mb ram, but it won't run in dual channel mode. Are there ways to try to force this in dual channel mode, or are there ways to see why it won't run in dual channel mode? Both sticks look physically the same, just different stickers, and in PCwizard2006 they have exactly the same specs. Do I need to tone down the speeds before it runs in dual channel mode? Please advise.
-Has somebody tried to hack the bios yet for cpu voltage mod and similar? My current bios is fine, it's just a shame later bios's are not as good. One would expect later bioses to become both more stable and quicker, but apparently Msi has other plans.
-PC Alert is a bit of a resource hog and won't record my harddisk temp (which is 28-30dC btw). I tried Speedfan but it won't see anything but my hd. Any tool out there that will do both?
-Apparently, the Realtek drivers come with spyware! Check your startup items. Does anybody know what SkyTel.exe does? No info on the net available.
-Does anybody have any details on how to build an optical sp/dif out/in ? I prefer optical over coaxial.
EDIT: Forgot to mention one thing: The onboard lan is apparently a bit finnicky with non-cat5e cables. If you installed the lan drivers, connected the cable, and then get a "cable disconnected" popup in windows, in regular intervals, then try another cable.