**Official ASUS Striker II Formula Discussion/Review/Overclock/Guide/BIOS Thread**

[Marios]

My problem is that the previous striker II I had,had a big performance increase when changing trd.Setting from auto to 5 had readings from 9200MB/s to 11400MB/s.This one doesn' change anything.Flashed diferent bios but nothing

I have the same problem.
It seems like tRD does nothing.
Mobo rev 1.03G 902 bios.

[leffe]

Hey guys. I pointed this forum out to a guy having troubles, and here is his story. Maybe you can give some insights at what could be wrong.
--------------------------------------------------------------

All games that I have installed (for example Supreme Commander, Company of Heroes OF, UT3, Bioshock...) crash after I have played 5-40 minutes. Windows doesn't give any reasons why this happens. I have tried the following to solve this, none of them have helped:

- I have updated my drivers
- I have checked if there was a BIOS update, there wasn't
- I have tried both XP Pro and Vista Ultimate (both 32bit), same problem occures in both
of them
- I have tried disabling SLI
- I have removed 2GB of my RAM (I have total of 4GB)
- I have tried completely different RAM
- I have tried to use only one graphics card ( I have done this with both cards)
- I unplugged my somehow broken sound card (Supreme FX II, it makes random noises)
because someone at the SLI Forum said that the sound card was the reason for crashing
- When I was using Vista I downloaded all the hotfixes for SLI
- I have run Memtest (although I know it's not the memory since I had the same problem
with completely different RAM)
- I got about 16200 points in the 3DMark06, which sounds about right
- I have run the NVIDIA stability test with no problems
- I have also tried to put my RAM to different slots on the MB
- I have formatted my PC and reinstalled XP (that's what I'm currently using)

My temps are under load (these are only estimates): MB: 40-45C, CPU 35-45C, GPU1:65C and GPU2: 60C
I haven't overclocked anything and I haven't changed the BIOS settings (except the usual ones such as time, boot order and so on).
My little head can't figure out any other reason than a faulty motherboard. Is there any other thing that could cause this?


My current configuration:
QX9650 + Zalman CNPS9700-cooler
ASUS Striker II Formula
2x EVGA 8800GTS G92 in SLI
4GB G.Skill DDR2 800MHz 4-4-4-12
Thermaltake ToughPower 1000W PSU
2x WD Raptor 150GB + WD Caviar 500GB (no RAID)

[coo-coo-clocker]

Can you describe the crash? Is it crash to desktop? BSOD? Hang?
Are 3D games the only source of instability?
Will the system run a multi-hour stress test, like orthos or P95?

[leffe]

Can you describe the crash? Is it crash to desktop? BSOD? Hang?
Are 3D games the only source of instability?
Will the system run a multi-hour stress test, like orthos or P95?

It crashes to desktop and gives no reason. Apparently it has given bluescreen when surfing around in windows multiple times too, but no bluescreens in games just a crash to desktop. I'll tell him to test out orthos.

[bookie60]

i had a problem just like this a few years back. turned out to be another peice of software causing the problem. alienware autopsy i think it was some system monitoring software that shipped with the laptop. i uninstalled it and the problem went away. so it sounds as if it could be software related. just a thought.

[Marios]

NAM causes lots of similar problems.
Also it sounds like an overheat problem.
Vista memtest is better to check hardware stability and bios settings.
I mean you may quickly check, with two passes, whether you need more volts or not.
Suggestions. 1.42v-1.44v NB and 2.1v-2.2v vdimm @900MHz FSB 1350.

[zakelwe]

I'd check the RAM, set it to default speed and if it still does the same then use one stick at a time to see if one has a problem.

I'd set the FSB to default as well if i is not already at it.

Regards

Andy

[crash5s]

My Striker Extreme is back on the oh-so-fun CPU INIT antics again so I'm looking at this board, though I have some questions.

First I have the 4 block EK Striker Extreme Kit, will any of those fit, or do I have to drop for more blocks. Second, my Corsair DDR2 6400c4d 4-4-4-12 never worked properly on the first Striker, does this board have any known issues with it?

[Leeghoofd]

NB and that bridge chip will surely not fit, EK made a new block for that have a look at their site...

[crash5s]

NB and that bridge chip will surely not fit, EK made a new block for that have a look at their site...

It doesn't say under any of their blocks if it fit's it or not

Then the real question remains is if this dominator ram is going to work with it.

[Wiinter]

Well folks - I've read through the whole thread, and I'm now caught up. WeStSiDePLaYa, I feel I know you pretty well now, haha. I've gleamed a lot of OC ranges, taken in a lot of good info (and I thank you all) and plan on starting my own OC endeavor soon. For now, tho, I have something to contribute.

Some of you will say "WTF" to this setup, and others will treasure every last scrap of data I'm about to offer here. Specifically, while you guys were testing the OC limits, I've been hammering the RAID controller on the 780i Striker board. I'll get right to it.

I'm greedy - not only do I want a triple-SLI and a decently OC'd quad, but I wanted to drastically increase my hard drive performance (game load times). So, I opted for a 6-drive RAID-0. Don't start a preaching session about the dangers of RAID-0 (seriously, XtremeSystems is not a place for conservatives). My ultimate goal: Find the absolute best stripe, cluster and settings for the fastest overall RAID-0 setup on the Striker II.

My test setup:
- 6 x Western Digital SE16 320gb (RAID-0)
- ATTO, Length=4mb Size=1024kb
- HDTach, short bench
- 15gb partition (edge of disk)
- Sector hex edit (start on sector 3072 instead of 63. More on this later)
- 8, 16, 32, 64, 128k RAID stripe size tests
- 4, 16, 32, 64k windows file allocation/format size (aka cluster) tests

Findings:


You can see that if You're up for 128k stripe and 64k cluster, you can achieve 1gb per sec read speeds when accessing files over 1mb in size! Even higher with one more tweak (more below).

If you look closely at the same 128k+64k table, tho, you'll see horrible read speeds with files under 128kb in size. Which is understandable; the read/write duration is pretty long at 128k+64k, so there is a lot of wasted effort from the drives on small files at these settings.

So, how to determine the best balance? I scoured a windows install, complete with games, to get a sense of how big and how many files we load on average. I decided to take the following sample file numbers, and create a read/write time simulator:

20,000 x 4kb files
5,000 x 16kb files
10,000 x 128kb files
4,500 x 1mb files

Basically, the time simulator would estimate how long it would take to read that many files of each file range, add them up, and point out the quickest one on average.

Time simulator matrix:


Results (lower is better):


Suggestions:

A. Your time is spent on your comp playing a handful of specific games. You do not use your machine for work, video digitizing, processing large quantities of files. Suggested settings on 6-drive array: 64k stripe, 32k cluster. Parition your C: separately at 4k cluster.

B. Or, you want to maintain a balance of read and writes (you like to use your comp for things other than games, and/or you cycle your games often, trying new things). Suggested settings: 32k stripe, 32k cluster.

C. Or, you want to keep your games on the same parititon as your Windows install, and have balanced read/writes. Suggested settings: 32k stripe, 4k cluster.

D. You do like to play games, but you'd rather tweak the speed to its maximum processing of large files (moving TV shows around, editing, capturing video, etc.. anything with large amounts of large files, especially swap files). Consider 64k stripe, 64k cluster. But emphasis on capturing (writing) will actually benefit from 64k stripe 32k cluster better.

Limitations to consider before starting:

1) Windows XP will only allow you 'install' on a 4k cluster format (I even tried Acronis image restore, can't get it to boot). So you may wish to do 32k/4k for a C: partition, and a 32k/32k for the remainder, and install your games on the second partition.

2) Do not use drives larger than 320gb, or you will end up hitting the 32-bit drive space addressing problem that limits you to 2tb.

3) Your first partition will be the fastest (closest to edge of disk), so if you were really anal, you should create a parition for your games, and THEN your C: parition.

Other Interesting Notes and Enhancements:

1) 3072 sector hack. I'll give the short version, and then if anyone's interested, I can walk you through it. I found that Windows' (XP and older only) first partition starts at sector 63, and I had read that it is incredibly crappy for RAID (any kind) performance. This is due to the fact that when data is writing to the drives, the write durations can never be fully synchronized across all the drives; your comp will always write in 4k chunks (for example) so it will often have to pick up the head and move to another location to finish writing the file, on at least the first drive. You can manually adjust a newly created partition to start at a multiple of your stripe size x width, and the performance increases no less than 12% avg. Inquire if interested!

2) Disabling NCQ. I was surprised to find that this helped increase average speeds up to 9%. Once you've installed your OS, go under your device settings, select each of the three nVidia RAID controllers (Port 0 & 1 tabs) and uncheck the "Enable command queuing". Click "no" to the restart option, until you're done your last.

3) Contrary to what you might read out there on the subject, disabling your Write Cache WILL cripple your drive speeds.

4) My particular time simulator is bias towards equal read and writes. You may find your usage warrants more emphasis on reads than writes. If you would like, I can send you the time simulator spreadsheet, and you can edit the number of files in the simulator.



-Wiinter

Rig:
Asus Striker II Formula 780i
Intel Q6600 Kentsfield
2 x 1gb Crucial Ballistix PC8500
2 x XFX 8800GTX SLI
6 x Western Digital SE16 320gb (RAID-0)
(4tb alternate storage & backup)
Silverstone Olympia OP1200 (1200w single rail)

WTB one used XFX 8800GTX (575mhz)

[WeStSiDePLaYa]

Great post Wiinter.

You might even want to copy that into a new thread, as it will apply to all 780i boards, and could really help some people.

What is your NB and SB volts, and what kind of temps do they see.

It will be interesting to see how much volts your nb will need with all that stress. I find mine needs quite a bit with only regular SLI.

[polar bear]

to XS

Wow, thats alot of data, must have taken a great deal of time. If also vote for a separate thread on this. Just came home from work and will need to take some time to digest all this - but great work.

[WeStSiDePLaYa]

NEW OFFICIAL BIOS RELEASED
http://dlsvr01.asus.com/pub/ASUS/mb/...la/S2F1001.zip

[WeStSiDePLaYa]

i gained 100 points or so with the official 1001 bios, compared to the beta 1001 beta.

So far seems good, seems to have more accurate voltages.

[nuclearjock]

i gained 100 points or so with the official 1001 bios, compared to the beta 1001 beta.

So far seems good, seems to have more accurate voltages.

100 points from where??

[Leeghoofd]

prolly on top of his previous 3dmark result...

[WeStSiDePLaYa]

100 points from where??

haha, sorry, was a bit late when i posted that.

My 3dmark06 score.

[Marios]

Compare CRC check.
Beta is exactly the same with final 1001 BIOS.

[Wiinter]

WeStSiDePLaYa, ya I never thought the SB temps might go up under high load from the SATA controller - I'll test that out. BTW, what can I use to view the temps while in Windows? Or does everyone just watch the bios monitor?

[Leeghoofd]

Try Everest Home or even the Asus probe The latter is on the cd of ya mobo

[Marios]

Everest aux sensor reading is actually the CPU temp.
Core1 core2 are OK.
Any way to get NB SB temps with any program?
I use an extra sensor on opt1 and I know the difference from the actual NB temp.
But I can only get this reading from PC probe, not everest.
Everest doesn't support this mobo.

[Wiinter]

Oh, I have been using PC Probe - up until I had adjusted some of the voltages, and now the app won't run (error when launching). I just thought there was some better, more thorough tool. I'll try Everest.

[fox3]

I use probe but don't see the NB or SB temps. I asked this question in the aircooling forum and was informed evefest ultimate can show the NB temp but now here it is posted everest does no support this board. I find it a PITA to hafta go into the BIOS to read this data

[polar bear]

Try Everest Ultimate. I really recommend this program. It can monitor most things if not everything that you also find in BIOS - actually more come to think of it. It can also log temps/voltages in a graph and has a decent system stability test too.