Asus A8N32-SLI initial impression....WOW!

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11-21-2005, 09:56 AM
ben805

Quote:

Originally Posted by madpete

Ben, whats the best stable speed you've got out of the Ballistix so far on this board? :toast:

I didn't play with it long enough last night and went to bed instead, the big typhoon is back in the case and I'd jumped straight from 282 to 300 last night so the best stable speed was at 282 from the previous 3.10Ghz run. I really wish this asus has the CMOS Reloaded option and I think this board is begging for a BIOS update, the TREF only has 3 options so I didn't have much to try there, from experience TREF play a major role in overclocking these Ballistix so it would be helpful if I could get more values to play with. I'd also noticed if the timing and overclock speed was instable then the BIOS would either automatically relax the TREF, TWR, MAL and READ Preamble, or it would not work at all. I suppose the board is doing its job to prevent me from frying these sticks when I was hammering them at 300, though it could be annoying at time. :p: we really need some skillful memory tweaker such as Tony or the OCZ folks who know what their doing to exploit all these timing, for me it's pretty much trial and error shooting in the dark. :D
11-21-2005, 10:19 AM
madpete

Quote:

Originally Posted by ben805

I didn't play with it long enough last night and went to bed instead, the big typhoon is back in the case and I'd jumped straight from 282 to 300 last night so the best stable speed was at 282 from the previous 3.10Ghz run. I really wish this asus has the CMOS Reloaded option and I think this board is begging for a BIOS update, the TREF only has 3 options so I didn't have much to try there, from experience TREF play a major role in overclocking these Ballistix so it would be helpful if I could get more values to play with. I'd also noticed if the timing and overclock speed was instable then the BIOS would either automatically relax the TREF, TWR, MAL and READ Preamble, or it would not work at all. I suppose the board is doing its job to prevent me from frying these sticks when I was hammering them at 300, though it could be annoying at time. :p: we really need some skillful memory tweaker such as Tony or the OCZ folks who know what their doing to exploit all these timing, for me it's pretty much trial and error shooting in the dark. :D

Agreed yeah, looking forward to Tony's results.

Can I just ask you one more thing? Are these results at T1?

I can't get my board and ram to do over 285mhz at T1 (1:1), and the ram is capable 300mhz+ T1 on the DFI.

Cheers Ben.
11-21-2005, 10:34 AM
ben805

Quote:

Originally Posted by madpete

Agreed yeah, looking forward to Tony's results.

Can I just ask you one more thing? Are these results at T1?

I can't get my board and ram to do over 285mhz at T1 (1:1), and the ram is capable 300mhz+ T1 on the DFI.

Cheers Ben.

no problem at all....feel free ask, yes I only use 1T and definitely will stay away from 2T unless I'm running 4 x1GB, which I'll try as soon as I received my RMA pair back from newegg. set 11ns for Async Latency, 9.5ns for Read Preamble, and 24clk for TRFC,TRC in Auto, once you dial in those values then leave them for now, there is only three settings for TREF so play with it one at a time and see what happen.
11-21-2005, 10:55 AM
stone_cold_Jimi

Super-cool ben - i have 2GB Ballistix too and my mobo is being delivered tomorrow. :woot:

I can see myself sparking up my untried VapoChill Ls for the first time with this. Thanks for the luxurious amount of info you've provided here. :cool:
11-21-2005, 11:03 AM
ben805

Quote:

Originally Posted by trza2k

i've got some OCZ EB 2GB that i might test out tonight if i can get over the voltage limit on the cpus :mad:

Try leaving the vcore at 1.40v, and enable the overvolt and see what happen, do not rely on the POS vcore reading from BIOS....it's useless, if it still reads 1.58v but in reality you might be pumping 1.62v so don't get too crazy on the voltage just because the meter report it at 1.58. When I set mine to 1.450v the bios vcore reads 1.50v, when I turned it up to 1.56v the bios vcore still stuck at 1.50v :stick:
11-21-2005, 12:04 PM
cronic

i finally got a response from the guy that started the whole rumor about the rev 2. He stated that the boards he is selling are rev 1.01. SO THERE IS NO REV 2.0!! Which I think we probably already figured out, but I just wanted to add my findings.
11-21-2005, 12:15 PM
ben805

Quote:

Originally Posted by stone_cold_Jimi

Super-cool ben - i have 2GB Ballistix too and my mobo is being delivered tomorrow. :woot:

I can see myself sparking up my untried VapoChill Ls for the first time with this. Thanks for the luxurious amount of info you've provided here. :cool:

no problem ;) when you take out the backplate for your LS install, take your time to do it...the backplate has some sticky stuff on it, if you're going to use screw driver to pry it out just becareful not to scratch the crap out of the pcb :lol: use the provided heatpipe fan anyway eventhough I didn't find any significant gain from it, use the cpu fan header otherwise the BIOS will throw a cpu fan error during POST.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cronic

i finally got a response from the guy that started the whole rumor about the rev 2. He stated that the boards he is selling are rev 1.01. SO THERE IS NO REV 2.0!! Which I think we probably already figured out, but I just wanted to add my findings.

I'd figured...thanks for letting us know though :D :D
11-21-2005, 01:51 PM
fareastgq

Guys, I got my board this morning, I popped in my 3000 to setup the install, played with cpu volts first, I got 1.68 with the overvolt option, one thing I notcied is that the vcore reading is off, set at 1.4 in bios gets u 1.45 (IN the BIOS). I think the bios needs to be updated, I managed 1.68 BUT, if the overvolt (the overvolt that in in ADDITION to the optional overvolt) is not being read, it would actually be correct even though the cpu reading is incorrect, anyone got a fluke/multi meter so we can verify this? Also, Ben, did u notice that there is a thin layer of shin etsu on your mostfet sink? it's covered in plastic to protect the joint in shipping, I peeled it off, then removed the junk and put some ceramic on there, I advise everyone else to do the same. Well, more testing when I get home, I'll pop in my duallys when I get a fresh install in :) MORE TO COME....
11-21-2005, 02:51 PM
Ic3man

Got my board coming tommorow with a 165 opty. Wont be able to do much tho as I aint got my 512GTx coming till the end of the week...I will be keeping a very cloe eye on this thread :slobber: ..gr8 work Ben :clap:
11-21-2005, 03:02 PM
cronic

in stock at mwave. better hurry
11-21-2005, 03:22 PM
ben805

Quote:

Originally Posted by fareastgq

Guys, I got my board this morning, I popped in my 3000 to setup the install, played with cpu volts first, I got 1.68 with the overvolt option, one thing I notcied is that the vcore reading is off, set at 1.4 in bios gets u 1.45 (IN the BIOS). I think the bios needs to be updated, I managed 1.68 BUT, if the overvolt (the overvolt that in in ADDITION to the optional overvolt) is not being read, it would actually be correct even though the cpu reading is incorrect, anyone got a fluke/multi meter so we can verify this? Also, Ben, did u notice that there is a thin layer of shin etsu on your mostfet sink? it's covered in plastic to protect the joint in shipping, I peeled it off, then removed the junk and put some ceramic on there, I advise everyone else to do the same. Well, more testing when I get home, I'll pop in my duallys when I get a fresh install in :) MORE TO COME....

Glad to hear, awaiting results.....hehe. I'd mentioned this before but as a reminder....do not rely on the vcore reading, it's extremely inaccurate! :stick: if you set the vcore to 1.56 and enable the overvolt...you are more than likely pumping 1.76~1.77v to your cpu even if the reading stuck at 1.68v, and yes this motherboard is begging for a bios update to correct a few bugs. I just found out that if you need a vdimm reading you'll have to install the Ai-Booster on your windows, the bios and pc probe don't have any vdimm. For now I'm going to stick with BIOS 703 which is the one that shipped with the board, I do not have much confidence in using the beta 804 and 805 after messing around with them in the past couple days, if I remember correctly I believe those bios date are as follow: 703 - 10/27/05, 804 - 11/6/05, and 805 - 11/8/05. What shin are you refering to? got any picture? I didn't see any on mine....I just put some AS5 on all those mosfets then put the aluminum sink back on.

I'm still at work but when I get home I'll see if I can use my DMM to measure the vcore, alright...someone pointed out the vcore can be measure from one of the mosfet or coil, will have to hunt for it then :D
11-21-2005, 03:36 PM
jw0rd

Quote:

Originally Posted by cronic

i finally got a response from the guy that started the whole rumor about the rev 2. He stated that the boards he is selling are rev 1.01. SO THERE IS NO REV 2.0!! Which I think we probably already figured out, but I just wanted to add my findings.

Very interesting, my board comes sometime around Friday I'll take a look. Gotta love how the price immediately drops tho... :mad:
11-21-2005, 04:06 PM
Ozan Baseski

First of all thanks for your patience and your nice review of this card. You gave us very useful information. I also wonder if there's a chance of giving more than 3.2 volts to ram sticks other than vmodding? I'd love to use some bh5 on this mobo
11-21-2005, 04:50 PM
cronic

Quote:

Originally Posted by jw0rd

Very interesting, my board comes sometime around Friday I'll take a look. Gotta love how the price immediately drops tho... :mad:

yea in 2 weeks they will be 200.00, but thats the price you pay for being on the bleeding edge.
11-21-2005, 05:38 PM
fareastgq

if u take your mosfet sink off ben, look closely, u will see it, it's almost the same color as the sink itself and u almost can't tell that it's there. Unless they missed yours, guess it could happen. There is a plastic layer, then TIM, then the sink itself. it's the same crap amd uses which is made by shin etsu.
11-21-2005, 06:11 PM
ben805

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ozan Baseski

First of all thanks for your patience and your nice review of this card. You gave us very useful information. I also wonder if there's a chance of giving more than 3.2 volts to ram sticks other than vmodding? I'd love to use some bh5 on this mobo

3.2v is the most you can get out of the vdimm on this board, you'll need to either vmod it, or get the OCZ booster.

Quote:

Originally Posted by fareastgq

if u take your mosfet sink off ben, look closely, u will see it, it's almost the same color as the sink itself and u almost can't tell that it's there. Unless they missed yours, guess it could happen. There is a plastic layer, then TIM, then the sink itself. it's the same crap amd uses which is made by shin etsu.

hmm....I don't recall seeing any thing like that, here is the picture of the mosfet sink, I yank it off the minute I took the mobo out of the package....no TIM whatsoever can be found on the sink :confused: lookie here...

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...chmentid=40056

I guess they probably missed it....in a way I'm glad they did because I'll more than likely scrap it off and use AS5 anyway :D
11-21-2005, 06:22 PM
fareastgq

yeah, they didn't do it to yours, I wish they didn't waste it on mine too, wasted 10 mins of my time, heh.
11-21-2005, 08:16 PM
cronic

alright got my ship confirmation on both boards. I will have them tommorow. I will post results as soon as possible. I CAN'T WAIT!~!!!!!!!!!
11-21-2005, 08:33 PM
situman

wat kind of caps does this board use? They look like rubycons, but then again they don't. I hope they are high quality, especially the "RIO" thing they slapped on top of it.
11-22-2005, 05:29 AM
ben805

bad news.....I'd RMA my first pair of Ballistix a week or two ago and while I'm still waiting for them, guess what? my current pair is dying on me ALREADY!!! highest vdimm I tried for the 300 run was 2.9v, no wonder I can't get it to run properly and kept getting those BSOD and corrupted files, put the sticks in Ultra-D and get the same type of deal.....and I only have this pair for 3 weeks :lol: I need to find a 2GB replacement quick and going to stay the h3ll away from these dang ballistix....geewiz, I guess all those horror stories I heard about these ballistix degrading then died are for real. :stick: I'm looking for OCZ as replacement so can someone recommend which 2GB to get?
11-22-2005, 06:46 AM
cronic

I WOULD TRY THE OCZ5002048EBPE-K or the mushkin Model 991492 (991493 dual)
1GB XP4000 Redline . That would be my reccomendation.
11-22-2005, 08:19 AM
cronic

Well Fed ex just dropped off the motherboards. time to make raid drivers and install this sucka
11-22-2005, 08:22 AM
Ic3man

I got the Corsair 2 gig of XMS3500LL as corsair designed the ram around the board apparently (could be wrong). I have always gone with corsair and never had a problem with them at all. Dying to try out this new setup tbh.

Can't comment on OCz although I always assumed they worked better with DFI boards.
11-22-2005, 10:20 AM
fareastgq

Well guys, I got good news and bad news, good news is, this board is rock solid, v-core doesn't budge, it's just as fast as the dfi. bad news, stuck in a 3000, max vcore I got was 1.68, stuck in my opty, max vcore I got was 1.6. I have no idea if those are the real volts, what I do know is, since I couldn't tell from voltage readings, I went off the temp gauge. Setting anything to try to get past these "maxes" set by the board, apparently really does nothing, my temps didn't climb at all so I can only conclude that the volts are not changing, trust me, I tried to dump 1.8 volts into my opty so I could see a temp change. from 1.45 to 1.6, there is about 2c diff., so I should have seen another 2c's or so if the volts actually went up, You may not want to let this discourage you though if you have an opty, I'm at 2.9 and climbing atm :) If you turn on ECC setting for ram, you will not get past a certian point, the system will just not boot into windows. For me it was 2.8gigs. Also, I had to save the bios settings a couple times because for some reason it wouldn't read 260, it booted up at 250 once, then after I saved again, it finally showed 260, I blame a flakey bios. Writing this on a diff comp, so no screenies yet, I'll post them when I run benches and all that for u guys :) Might as well keep this thread going.. Btw, putting the heatpipe fan on netted a difference of about 8-10c, damn it works good. For 250 bux they should have given you another fan though for the mosfet sink. I haven't gotten to my 4400 yet, so I'll post that when I pop it in, might as well see what volts I get with that. I have to remount a few times anyway, I have a feeling my chip is not making good contact with the g5.
11-22-2005, 10:28 AM
ben805

Thanks for the recommendation....wanted to get the OCZ EB but they're out of stock everywhere, and since someone said the Mushkin Redline have the same IC so I'd placed my order just now to have them overnight to me, can't wait for some Infenion action! :D :D.

Quote:

Originally Posted by fareastgq

Well guys, I got good news and bad news, good news is, this board is rock solid, v-core doesn't budge, it's just as fast as the dfi. bad news, stuck in a 3000, max vcore I got was 1.68, stuck in my opty, max vcore I got was 1.6. I have no idea if those are the real volts, what I do know is, since I couldn't tell from voltage readings, I went off the temp gauge. Setting anything to try to get past these "maxes" set by the board, apparently really does nothing, my temps didn't climb at all so I can only conclude that the volts are not changing, trust me, I tried to dump 1.8 volts into my opty so I could see a temp change. from 1.45 to 1.6, there is about 2c diff., so I should have seen another 2c's or so if the volts actually went up, You may not want to let this discourage you though if you have an opty, I'm at 2.9 and climbing atm :) If you turn on ECC setting for ram, you will not get past a certian point, the system will just not boot into windows. For me it was 2.8gigs. Also, I had to save the bios settings a couple times because for some reason it wouldn't read 260, it booted up at 250 once, then after I saved again, it finally showed 260, I blame a flakey bios. Writing this on a diff comp, so no screenies yet, I'll post them when I run benches and all that for u guys :) Might as well keep this thread going.. Btw, putting the heatpipe fan on netted a difference of about 8-10c, damn it works good. For 250 bux they should have given you another fan though for the mosfet sink. I haven't gotten to my 4400 yet, so I'll post that when I pop it in, might as well see what volts I get with that. I have to remount a few times anyway, I have a feeling my chip is not making good contact with the g5.

Glad yours is up and running, and yes always disable the ECC option :D When I was using phase change I didn't see much gain from that little heatpipe fan, maybe my 80mm ram fan was able to cool it along already :D

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