Thinking of upgrading from KT7-RAID to KR7A-RAID, can I keep my current RAID setup?

[Creig]

I have the opportunity to upgrade my KT7-RAID with a KR7A-RAID (newegg refurb). I currently have an AthlonMP 1600+ that has been loafing along at 1.248Ghz since that was as high as the board would allow at 100MHz FSB. But I have a couple of concerns. First and foremost is the fact that I have two 80 gig Maxtors running Raid0 on the KT7-RAID Highpoint HPT370. If I simply replace my current motherboard with the KR7A-RAID, will the Highpoint HPT372 recognize and be compatible with my current RAID setup or will I have to do a reformat? I sincerely hope so as the thought of having to burn untold gigabytes of files is extremely depressing.

Also, I'm planning on ordering a 256mb stick of Crucial PC2100 to go along with it (CRUCIAL MICRON 256MB 32x64 PC 2100 DDR RAM - OEM 184-Pin, CL=2.5-Unbuffered 2.5V,6-Layers CT3264Z265) which DOES show up on the Crucial website as recommended for the KR7A-RAID. But I've seen a disturbing number of posts from people having conflicts between their Crucial memory and their KR7A mobos. Is this something I need to worry about? Has any definitive answer been found why some people are having problems and others aren't?

 

[JustStarting]

it has been done here. since the hpt370 and hpt372 are basically the same it should work fine. i did the same upgrade and it was great for me. i did not transfer my raid though. i wanted to use some new ata133 hdd's and my old ones were ata66. good luck- paul's site will help out a lot. don't forget to back up "just in case".

 

[JustStarting]

search for KR7A here in the forum. i had a user help page started, but it is a subscriber link for me to copy it for you.

try these settings for your memory:

Note from Pauls FAQ: (some Crucial 256/512 ECC modules do not seem to be compatible)

A lot of people are having problems with CMOS checksum errors at bootup. This is due to either CPU setup or RAM settings. First clear CMOS properly:

Unplug cord
Remove CMOS battery
Cross jumper
WAIT 5 MINUTES
move jumper back to default
install CMOS battery
boot up

Configure you CPU manually with User defined settings- Start with default FSB and Multiplier for you CPU. Default voltage also.

Here are some RAM settings that cured my instability: I am using Bios 6G- I didn't see the need to update to 6N since I got it working.

From SoftmenuIII Setup:
DDR voltage= 2.75V


From Advanced Chipset Features/DRAM clock:
DRAM clock= 133
timing= manual
cas= 2
interleave= 4
Precharge to active(trp)= 2T
Active to Precharge (Tras)= 5T
Active to CMD= 2T
DDR DQS input= Auto
DDR DQS Output= Auto
DRAM que= 4 Level
Drive strength= Hi
DRAM Command= 2T (try this first- if stable then try 1T)
DCLK Feedback= 0ps

I also enabled the 15M-16M memory hole- probably not necessary.

Post back here if these settings work for you. Also if you have a different configuration settings that worked for you, post them here!! I had the same Checksum errors as many of you on installation, so try these first- it worked for me. This board is awesome, but I do think it has some instability/setup issues with the default RAM settings and proper CPU recognition.

 

[Creig]

Doh! COMPLETELY forgot about Paul's unofficial KT/KG/KR site. Thanks for all the info! I now have a refurb KR7A-RAID/256mb Crucial PC2100/Enermax 350w PS on order. For only $89 shipped it took me only a few minutes to decide to order over a new board at $130 + S&H. Probably saved around $50 over new.