The OFFICIAL MSI K8N Neo2-939 tips and tricks guide thread

Hello,

I have been reading this thread almost like it was a religion and have a few questions.

I am planning on getting OCZ EL DDR PC-3500 Gold GX Dual Channel Kit 1GB and have not seen any information on how it works with the k8n neo2 plat. Any comments?

I have hit FSB 230 at 3-4-4-8 2T @ 2.7v 4x HTT with the Hynix no problem and would like to test it further. What should I use to test the system for over clocking?

Is 5000+ rpm for the northbridge normal? The fan has started to make a whinning noise that comes and goes.

What can I use to monitor the system other than control center?

AMD 64 3200+ Veince w XP-90
MSI K8N Neo2 Plat. | 2x512mb Hynix BT-D43
200gb Seagatel | ATI AIW x800 xt | SB Audigy Gamer

sideeffect can you post a link to the Build that you have cuz the one i downloaded right off their download section doesnt include the NEO2.

I can't understand why they would lower the voltages even further. thats just well.. i wont say it. Only true reason for it would be stability issues with higher voltages so they forced people to keep them down to see if the issues go away. then raise them in the next version to see if they come back or not.
or quite possible pressure from AMD cuz people are frying chips from over volting them.

Im using version 529 you update to it by holding down ctrl while clicking the update button within systool. Neo 2 was added in build 505 I dont see why u wouldnt see it. Its labeled MSI K8N Neo 2.

Sleepy Samurai use systool to monitor system. The northbridge fan doesnt make any noise for me but other people have also complained about that whining. You can try using Speedfan to limit the speed slightly and it might take the noise away.

What memory chips are on that ocz memory because it really depends on the chips. If its samsung TCCD you should do pretty well with overclocking.

If it is TCCD when you get the memory download and use 1.8rev3 NFM bios set cas =2.5 trcd=3 trp =3 drive stength to weak and HTT multi to 3x and raise Htt till you max out. You might want to set a low cpu multi first so that your cpu doesnt reach its limit.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lestat

I can't understand why they would lower the voltages even further. thats just well.. i wont say it. Only true reason for it would be stability issues with higher voltages so they forced people to keep them down to see if the issues go away. then raise them in the next version to see if they come back or not.
or quite possible pressure from AMD cuz people are frying chips from over volting them.

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Yes possibly to keep it more stable i did notice a much more stable voltage reading when i ran 1.425 +10 percent rather than 1.45 + 10 percent. I doupt its pressure from AMD as the DFI boards and a lot of others go much higher than 1.65 volts.

yeah the AMD comment was just a passing thought.

and update ? hhmm guess i better look for that button lol. yup it works. Thanks!

the download page only offers 0.1 Build 496 too bad the northbridge temps dont work but you always get those temp readings when there is a sensor reader there but no sensor...
sort of like mobo's that have a 3rd or 4th system fan plug but no way to control the fan. It will show whacky fan speeds.

Would you ahve a theory why Prime fails totally at the speeds im at but everything else, benchmarks and games and such work just fine without a single reboot or lock up ? Is prime just that more discreet on the cpu ? where as those other things arent ?
For me a huge test of my memory atleast is Newsleecher. If my ram and sometimes cpu are pushed to far it will download items and they will be checked as bad. but the minute i lower my clocks and redownlaod them they check as good. The program is very ram intensive using anywhere from 100-500+ megs of ram.. and since it is handling and converting binaries... well.... you can see how ram that is pushed to hard might cause bad headers or articles when they really arent bad. (just like memory errors in memtest)

For those having problems with high memory mhz and htt all i can say is you need to spend a lot of time messing with every setting to reach the max speeds.

It took me weeks of trying every setting with a64 tweaker before i got anywhere near the 275 im at now. And also the voltage of the memory plays into it as well.

These are settings that finally proved stable for my Crucial Ballistix but only at 2.65 volts.

http://www.swjka.com/k8nneo2bios//mem.jpg

The settings that really effected stability were Trfc any other setting but 18 would cause crashes. Tras any setting higher or lower than 8 was a no go also. Trc also 13 was the sweet spot. And lastly read preamble at high HTT 5.0 was the best setting and allowed an extra few mhz.

i do believe he means OCZ VX there is no GX and the VX stuff is all Winbond UTT

its gunna take about 3.6v to get that memory up to 260mhz and it will run 2-2-2-5 but even at 3.6v the VX stuff has typically shown that it doesnt go much higher. some have gone slightly higher but its UTT not BH-5

you wanna spend a few extra bucks for some seriously high performance high voltage low latency ram go get some of the Mushkin Redline PC4000 its 196 at newegg and that stuff will pump 270-275 2-2-2-5 at around 3.6v and 300+ on a 166mhz Divider

Im trying to sell my gig OCZ PC4000 El Gold Rev 2 so i can get some redline. ($150 bucks for anyone whos interested) she just needs more volts than the neo2 can provide to go higher than 265


Sideeffect -

with those loose timings what your HTT mhz ?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lestat

yeah the AMD comment was just a passing thought.

and update ? hhmm guess i better look for that button lol. yup it works. Thanks!

the download page only offers 0.1 Build 496 too bad the northbridge temps dont work but you always get those temp readings when there is a sensor reader there but no sensor...
sort of like mobo's that have a 3rd or 4th system fan plug but no way to control the fan. It will show whacky fan speeds.

Would you ahve a theory why Prime fails totally at the speeds im at but everything else, benchmarks and games and such work just fine without a single reboot or lock up ? Is prime just that more discreet on the cpu ? where as those other things arent ?
For me a huge test of my memory atleast is Newsleecher. If my ram and sometimes cpu are pushed to far it will download items and they will be checked as bad. but the minute i lower my clocks and redownlaod them they check as good. The program is very ram intensive using anywhere from 100-500+ megs of ram.. and since it is handling and converting binaries... well.... you can see how ram that is pushed to hard might cause bad headers or articles when they really arent bad. (just like memory errors in memtest)

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Well i spent ages working on prime and now i dont use it anymore since i read a thread about a software bug within it causing problems with newer a64 cpus. Like sometimes for me it would run 6 hours without a error other times it would run 1 hour. That was with my old ram though that did prove to be slightly faulty :). The main reason I dont bother with prime now is because if it crashes after 6 or 7 hours then you have to change 1 little setting then its stable again for maybe the same amount of time and i cant be bothered to do so much testing as i use my pc to much.

As long as my pc never crashes during games like far cry and doom3 etc then im happy. I dont have any Important calcalations that need doing with pin point accuracy with the results of which would decide the future outcome of the world as we know it. If i did i would use stock speeds and maybe not a intel or amd and definitely not microsoft xp :p:

BTW about systool make sure you hold down control when u click the update button and if its not showing new versions completly uninstall it and restart then get the newer version and try again.

yup its updated and working
and yes voltages are pretty accurate even the 3.3 and 12v http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_2_68.gif
sure wish there was a memory voltage sensor
http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_2_63.gif

Yes me to at first i thought there was one because of the way corecenter works showing the voltage but now i think thats not a measurment but a setting from the bios and thats why the vcore shows the wrong setting as well where as the reading is correct.

You could solder or grip a wire from the vddr measuring point and link it to a lcd screen and mount it on the front of the case if you were really bored :rolleyes:

ahh but then its about finding an LCD with the proper sensor in it to understand the signal.

but yeah i thought about getting one of those. I have the SuperFlower Fan/Temp controller and its a sweet piece of hardware but it doesnt have any voltage monitoring.
Now the Digidoc 5 i put in the girlfriends system has voltage, temp and fan monitoring but no way to control the fan speeds.....
i cant win for lose can i ?

I wonder,,,, hhmmm...... could on look around ebay for some old passive voltage gauges and use those. as long as you could verify that that the voltage reading they show is accurate. say compare it with a DMM
that would be nifty...

more modding i dont have the workspace for http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_2_49.gif

hmm that Digidoc 5 sounds cool. You could make your own switches to control the fan speeds separately like 5volt to 7 volt to 12 volt switches. yellow to black, yellow to red, red to black.

If you find something cheap that works let me know cause i might consider it to :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sideeffect

Hi guys Systool has been updated to allow exporting to 3rd party apps so you can now make your own motherboard monitors for neo 2 that actually show the right +12v and +3.3v rails. MBM and speedfan and most other tools dont show the correct reading for the neo 2. Systool does though so try it out if you havnt already.

Heres mine :p:
http://www.swjka.com/k8nneo2bios//monitor.jpg

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hey side would it be possible to get that skin/config off ya?

Yes i can send u the skin config and u can just change it to what u like. once u loaded it in sumurize you will be able to see what i did easier and make a better one im sure :)

Link to download

You will need to put all the files in C:\Program Files\Samurize\Configs for the pictures to work properly.

Edit - the samurize plugin works by detecting the available sensors enabled by systool and then aloting them a number. When you disable or enable different plugins in systool it changes these numbers to a different value. My numbers are based off cpuload.dll, hddtemp.ddl, lm78.dll, memory.dll and nvsensors.dll being enabled only. Also i have 2 hardrives so if you only have 1 it will change the numbering also.

If you rely upon an onboard voltage monitoring device, you will always be getting a subjective voltage reading. Pick up a Digital Panel Meter from a surplus house like MPJA and hard wire it. They have a .05% accurate unit for $18.95. To put that int perspective, Measure 2.70 Vdimm would range from 2.699-2.701. One of those and a rotary switch to select between Vcore, Vdimm, Vagp and LDT/Chipset voltages will take care of being at the mercy of bios and application variances.

You can fit the DPM and rotary switch in a drive bay knockout. Worse case would be to mount some banana jacks on a drive bay knockout, wired to the above-mentioned voltages and plug into your Digital MultiMeter. Every overclocking enthusiast should have a DMM. They have a million uses, both in the PC and around the house/car.

Hoot

Thanks hoot going to try and find one in the uk.

something like this ? Link

hmm how exactly do I use the systool plugins in samurize? I copied the dll's over to samurize but when I try to load them it says "incompatible DLL"

that would work but it looks to be AC only no ac/dc

i couldnt agree more about having a meter but the issue with having one is knowing where on the various mobo's out there to test voltages. the popular boards can be found via google searches but the other ones would probably have to have a schematic emailed ot you via the mobo mfg'r
What i was actually thinking about doing the other day was similar to what Sideeffect said and simply solder a wire on the check points and then instead of a meter in a cdrom bay just run the wires up to the bay cover and drill a few small holes and mount female plugs there.. of course having the wires soldered to them along with a Ground. that way you can just grab your meter and test them any time you want instead of what i do which is lay on the floor with a flashlight in my mouth trying to see and maneuver thru my psu wires and other hardware. Same for a molex which with my OCZ Powerstream 600 i have a few extra of you could even mount a molex there to do tests of the psu under full load.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by uniacid

hmm how exactly do I use the systool plugins in samurize? I copied the dll's over to samurize but when I try to load them it says "incompatible DLL"

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Maybe you have the wrong version of samurize? try 1.62

gettin 1.62, I had 1.61 since the samurize site it down, didn't know which was latest

ok I tried 1.62 of samurize and it still says incompatible dll

any ideas? would it be possible to send me your whole samurize dir or tell me if theres any other options you used?

Nope i just put SystoolSamurize.dll in the plugins directory of samurize. And it works. If it doesnt work for you then either the plugin you have is corrupted. Your not putting it in the right plugins folder. Or samurize didint install properly pehaps.

You are using windows right? Not that i think this is just for windows im not sure but it could be. Im not really an expert on samurize so pehaps ask at their forum if you cant get it working or contact the maker of the plugin in systool forum.

Hope you get it working :)

where is this systoolsamurize.dll ? that would explain why its not working

since the samurize webiste is down can you give us the dll ?

the cpu speed is showing but its wrong,

incase no one noticed a brand new version of Core Center Digi Cell and PC Alert were released today
and something called V Center was released on the 11th.

http://www.msi.com.tw/program/suppor...ist.php?kind=1