The Maximus Formula Thread - Help/OCing/Guide/Rampage conversion

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Originally Posted by ZenEffect

you should really set it to about 1.9 and re-check your volts again to see exactly how much it over volts. not only is this information good to know, but the word "AUTO" scares the shistuffingst out of me when it comes to asus + voltage. once you know how much it over volts, correct your voltage once again in bios with the adjusted value you just figured out to the factory spec. you could probably squeeze more mhz out of your ram by relaxing your timings on ram, going beyond factory spec on voltage to the ram modules, or a combination of both... in my experience i cant do this by having the voltage on auto.

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manually changed the DRAM Voltage to 1.90 and PC Probe still shows the same value of 1.98V...I then went back to the BIOS and lowered even further to 1.86V...PC Probe now shows a DRAM value of 1.94-1.95V (fluctuates back and forth)...so it looks like this board overvolts by .08 to .09...can I keep lowering the voltage or is it fine to leave it at 1.86 (1.95 actual)?

in the BIOS there are 2 other memory options called DDR2 Channel A REF Voltage and DDR2 Channel B REF Voltage...both are set to Auto right now...do I need to change those as well?

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Originally Posted by ericab

zen,

so you dont like the crucial 8500's ?
damn too bad i was planning on grabbing a set of them for my upgrade. oh well..
i may go for those mushkins you got there, seeing as ive used mushkin many times before, and i never had a problem.

can you hook me up with a link to where you bought them ?

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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820146720
when i got them they had a 45 dollar mail in rebate and a 10 dollar instant rebate

i will probably test some pc-8500 dominators or some kingston hyper-x tomorrow :D

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Originally Posted by Titus

manually changed the DRAM Voltage to 1.90 and PC Probe still shows the same value of 1.98V...I then went back to the BIOS and lowered even further to 1.86V...PC Probe now shows a DRAM value of 1.94-1.95V (fluctuates back and forth)...so it looks like this board overvolts by .08 to .09...can I keep lowering the voltage or is it fine to leave it at 1.86 (1.95 actual)?

in the BIOS there are 2 other memory options called DDR2 Channel A REF Voltage and DDR2 Channel B REF Voltage...both are set to Auto right now...do I need to change those as well?

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keep adjusting the volts till its at factory spec in pc probe. leaving those 2 to auto is ok.

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Originally Posted by ZenEffect

keep adjusting the volts till its at factory spec in pc probe. leaving those 2 to auto is ok.

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factory specs meaning 2.0-2.1V?

http://newgskill.web-bi.net/bbs/view...d=g_ddr2&no=98

that would mean raising the voltage from where it's at now...I thought having a lower DRAM voltage was better?...I thought the voltage listed on the manufacturer's website was the max recommended voltage?...or is the listed 2.0-2.1 the optimal voltage?

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Originally Posted by Titus

factory specs meaning 2.0-2.1V?

http://newgskill.web-bi.net/bbs/view...d=g_ddr2&no=98

that would mean raising the voltage from where it's at now...I thought having a lower voltage was better?...I thought the voltage listed on the manufacturer's website was the max recommended voltage?...or is the listed 2.0-2.1 the optimal voltage?

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you are right but you need to test stability first with memtest, then start lowering volts and retesting :up:

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Originally Posted by ZenEffect

you are right but you need to test stability first with memtest, then start lowering volts and retesting :up:

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I ran OCCT for an hour with the slider set all the way to RAM at the current 1.86V BIOS setting and everything was stable...will run Memtest later tonight for a few hours

is there a minimum voltage I should not go past because I want to make sure not to undervolt as well...what is the absolute minimum DRAM voltage?

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Originally Posted by Titus

I ran OCCT for an hour with the slider set all the way to RAM at the current 1.86V BIOS setting and everything was stable...will run Memtest later tonight for a few hours

is there a minimum voltage I should not go past because I want to make sure not to undervolt as well...what is the absolute minimum DRAM voltage?

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0 :up:

but really... i guess you would have to call the manufacturer as there is too much involved to even begin to guess. i would just lower them until it becomes unstable then set it at the lowest stable voltage.

Is the 1004 bios more stable than 907? I can't seem to get stable on anything higher than 3.8 on my e8400.

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Originally Posted by ericab

@Teko:

i had some nb/sb reading problems when i updated to the maximus rampage bios. a simple FULL uninstall and reinstall of everest fixed the problem. (make sure you backup your "Everest.ini" file before you do it if you have any custom settings...)
also, why not try the rampage bios ? everyone's been having amazing results...

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The 1004 isn't the rampage bios is it? On the ASUS forums they sem to have all sorts of problems with the 1004, but might be an idea to try it :) Not going to use the rampage, as I don't want to loose waranty on the mobo, not sure I'll get another one for a 100$ ;)

Not Rampage bios but 1004 bios for Maximus Formula... works fine here with Q6600 and QX9650... with my usual settings and TRFC has again a wider range like with 1003 better for 2gig dimms...

So we've seen lower vcore, better bandwidth, more tweakings so far from this switch?

Maybe we should compile a list of the benefits brought about by the change.

@Cheese

I found 1004 excellent for 8400 chips. I would recommend it for sure

I have yet to see "better" bandwidth but volts are lower for sure.
Lots more options tho.
I'm gonna bounce back to MF 1004 and to a head to head today.
I'm beginning to feel ther is zero benifit from making the switch. Just more headaches

Well, lower volts would be nice right there, especially for 24/7 on Penryn chips. If you can use lower volts, you can theoretically get higher clocks.

Anyone have Asus aacenter running in there task manager?
Mine seems to be sucking up 50% of my CPU today for some reason, wich is having an effect on Everest, mobo temp is a cool 131 celcius lol

Hoo ray for DDR2 1066 Ballistix Tracers being total :banana::banana::banana::banana:! I just had another stick die on me, it was at 2.22v. This will be the 3rd RMA for this set. I will be selling these and getting something else.

Hey guys, guess what? My 1066 tracers died again! Yay, I love RMAs! Once I get these back, they will be sold.

Now what to get guys? It has to be 1066 minimum that can do 1200. The 1200 kits look nice as well. 2x1GB preferred. Suggestions?

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Originally Posted by teko

Yes, I saw that recomendation :) but how is 505 bios with 4*1GB mem?

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I'm using 0602 with Q6600 and 8Gig ram and it works better for me than the later bios versions, also used 0505 on previous board and it worked great with 4x1 gig sticks, I actually hit 1200mhz ram with 4x1gig sticks with the 0505 bios on a previous board before I messed it up by going to 0907 :down:

If you can, try to stay with the 0505 or 0602 bios when using the Q6600.

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Originally Posted by Renegade5399

Hoo ray for DDR2 1066 Ballistix Tracers being total :banana::banana::banana::banana:! I just had another stick die on me, it was at 2.22v. This will be the 3rd RMA for this set. I will be selling these and getting something else.

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Ok , I have Ballistix 8500 also at v2.27
What are the signs that we can know it's a dead ram ??
Just for reference in case my ram die in the future, thanks

@ Grnfinger. Bothered running those settings? Results? Or you're moving back to MF 1004?

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Originally Posted by icecpu

Ok , I have Ballistix 8500 also at v2.27
What are the signs that we can know it's a dead ram ??
Just for reference in case my ram die in the future, thanks

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Windows errors, F@H errors, and finally no POST. 1 stick completely died on me. It looks like an unstable overclock at first. But you know it's the RAM cause it will give errors in memtest even at stock.

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Originally Posted by Renegade5399

Hey guys, guess what? My 1066 tracers died again! Yay, I love RMAs! Once I get these back, they will be sold.

Now what to get guys? It has to be 1066 minimum that can do 1200. The 1200 kits look nice as well. 2x1GB preferred. Suggestions?

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mushkin hp-2 8500's
i love this ram, right now im running @ 1200
ram is rated to 1.35v and i a/b'd them against crucial ballistix pc-8500 *not tracers* and the mushkin pwned.
im probably going to test some kingston hyper-x today so i will let you know how that goes.

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Originally Posted by Grnfinger

I have yet to see "better" bandwidth but volts are lower for sure.
Lots more options tho.
I'm gonna bounce back to MF 1004 and to a head to head today.
I'm beginning to feel ther is zero benifit from making the switch. Just more headaches

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odd, im feeling the exact opposite... but then again the only thing we have in common is the motherboard. ive experienced better bandwidth (rampage lets me overclock the mushkins to 1200 memtest stable pl6 while the maximus only allowed 1165 pl7) lower volts, alot lower actually which resulted in a higher 24/7 overclock to 4ghz now 24/7 usage 1.464 volts 8hrs prime95 small ffts before i killed it to play some games... and stupid me forgot to take screen shots but i plan to get prime stable with good volts at 450 fsb as im at 445 now. i can get 2 hours prime before core #2 throws an error. so i think i need 1.5 volts as i tested it at 1.49 for 450fsb.

Any recommendations would be appreciated... I have the QX9650 and these settings:

Extreme Tweaker
Ai Overclock Tuner : Manual
OC From CPU Level Up : This option is not available to me under 0907
CPU Ratio Control : Also not available
- Ratio CMOS Setting : Also not available
CPU Ratio: 9
FSB Frequency : 366
FSB Strap to North Bridge : 400
PCI-E Frequency: 100
DRAM Frequency: DDR2-8500 @ 975
DRAM Command Rate : 2T
DRAM Timing Control: Manual
CAS# Latency : 5
RAS# to CAS# Delay : 5
RAS# Precharge : 5
RAS# ActivateTime : 15
RAS# to RAS# Delay : AUTO
Row Refresh Cycle Time : AUTO
Write Recovery Time : AUTO
Read to Precharge Time : AUTO

Read to Write Delay (S/D) : AUTO
Write to Read Delay (S) : AUTO
Write to Read Delay (D) : AUTO
Read to Read Delay (S) : AUTO
Read to Read Delay (D) : AUTO
Write to Write Delay (S) : AUTO
Write to Write Delay (D) : AUTO
DRAM Static Read Control: Disabled
Ai Clock Twister : Light
Transaction Booster : Disabled

CPU Voltage : 1.3
CPU PLL Voltage : AUTO
North Bridge Voltage : 1.45
DRAM Voltage : 2.0
FSB Termination Voltage : 1.5
South Bridge Voltage : 1.050
Loadline Calibration : Enabled
CPU GTL Reference : AUTO
North Bridge GTL Reference : AUTO
DDR2 Channel A REF Voltage : DDR2_Ref
DDR2 Channel B REF Voltage : DDR2_Ref
DDR2 Controller REF Voltage : DDR2_Ref
SB 1.5V Voltage : 1.5

NB LED Selection : NB Volt
SB LED Selection : SB Volt
CPU LED Selection : CPU VOlt
Voltiminder LED : Enabled

CPU Spread Spectrum : Disabled
PCIE Spread Spectrum : Disabled

Advanced CPU Configuration
CPU Ratio Control : Manual
- Ratio CMOS Setting :
C1E Suppport : Disabled
CPU TM Function : Disabled
Vanderpool Technology : Disabled
Execute Disable Bit : Disabled
Max CPUID Value Limit : Disabled


USB Configuration
USB Functions: Enabled
Legacy USB Support : Disabled


Anyone clue me in on the differances between the 0907 Im running now and the 1004? Not sure if I should be happy with this BIOS or what if any benefits I might see with going with the 1004. And what about reverting back if I had any issues?

Under load Im seeing temps (using stock air cooler) of 67c - 70c on all cores. Ran OCCT for 1hr and Prime 1hr... not trying to push this too much on air, because within a couple weeks my case should be in and everything will be LC.

Has anyone tried AISUITE with the 1004 bios yet? Does it work?

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Originally Posted by HousERaT

Has anyone tried AISUITE with the 1004 bios yet? Does it work?

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the only time i ever got aisuite to work was when i took the mobo out of the box for the first time and fired it up. ever since my 1st bios update, it has always crashed, even after completely reloading a fresh install.