Gigabyte MA790FX DQ6

[Majmac]

Most of my testing on the MSI was done under Vista64. I only had a few hours under XP before the board died, but it did seem to offer better OC potential. If you don't have too much invested in your Vista install and you have a copy of XP it would probably be worth the switch.

I played with the HT Ref clock quite a bit last night, and I can still get close to 250 using AOD, but trying to get it to boot from BIOS above 235 was pretty much impossible, it may be a limit of my board...

I even cranked up the HTT/HTR/SB voltages and it still seemed to hit a wall..
I know the chip will do 250, cause 250x10x8x8 was my everyday stable on the K9A2... Just thought I'd let ya know my experiences..

From what I can just remember, it used to be that computers overclocked better under Win98 than under XP. I think that each succeeding release adds an extra level of complexity that means a previous-stable overclock cannot be maintained.

[Daveburt714]

Hey Aussie, seems like you've had the Gigabyte board longer than I have, have you played with the "AutoExpress" features in Bios?

This is a very preliminary result, but it seems like setting the CPU Optimization function to enabled does help stability..

I'm still stuck at around 230ht, but it just seems to run a little smoother/more stable.



I do worry a little about the way this board handles CPU v's. My CPU is actually set at 1.325 in bios, and without load it will run close to that, but as you can see it's pushing 1.4 under full load (running Prime 4 core).... I may be a wuss, but I'm not sure I'm comfortable with that.

It may very well be a bios thing, but the K9A2 didn't seem to get squirley on the HT Ref clock until 250.

[Aussie FX]

Dave are you back on a x32 OS?
I'm sure x64 is hurting me.

Yeah I have played with Autoexpress but I didn't see any advantage so I turned it off again. I'm not having any stability issues at all, I just can't get above that wall, so I'm sure it's OS related.

As far as the voltage goes, just run with what you're happy with. More voltage will always hurt a cpu compared to it's stock VID, but I think you're always better with it rising like that and keeping things stable than having the dreaded Asus droop.
If it were me as long as the temps weren't getting out of spec then I would be inclined to keep it where it is. It's a personal opinion really.

I think as far as bioses go ours are good but we desperately need to be able to lift the imc volts. We've got the dual plane cpu, now we need to control it.
The NB multi option is good but I find going below 8 is pointless although that could be an x64 problem too.

[Boschwanza]

I think as far as bioses go ours are good but we desperately need to be able to lift the imc volts. We've got the dual plane cpu, now we need to control it.
.

Tell me about it . Same Issue here 2.75 GHz no problem, >2.75 GHZ No Go, i think too, that the CPU Northbridge Voltage is everything holding back.

I just wrote Gigabyte Support if they are planning to implement a Bios Feature "CPU Northbrige Voltage". Did you already Faced Gigabyte with that Issue?

[Aussie FX]

No I haven't but you have motivated me.
I will do it 1st thing tomorrow.

[Lightman]

No I haven't but you have motivated me.
I will do it 1st thing tomorrow.

+1

I also desperately need NB voltage option

[Boschwanza]

New Bios F4 final

http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Support/M...S&FileID=13392

[Aussie FX]

Great thanks Boschwanza.

Have you tried it yet?

I emailed Gigabyte support this morning asking for the cpu nb voltage option.

[Boschwanza]

Great thanks Boschwanza.

Have you tried it yet?

I emailed Gigabyte support this morning asking for the cpu nb voltage option.

Do not have the DQ6 , MA770 DS3 here but with the same issues like DQ6.

[Aussie FX]

I just got a reply from Gigabyte support.

Here it is
Dear Sir,

Thank you for your kindly mail and inquiry. About the issue you mentioned, we are sorry the board you have doesn't support the feature by H/W. Thus, even BIOS provides the option, you still can't make it working.

I don't believe that.
I'm sure it has a dual power plane.
Anyone know anything about the Gigabyte motherboard not supporting dual power planes?

Lightman I would be interested to hear what sort of reply you get from Gigabyte regarding this.

[Boschwanza]

I just got a reply from Gigabyte support.

Here it is
Dear Sir,

Thank you for your kindly mail and inquiry. About the issue you mentioned, we are sorry the board you have doesn't support the feature by H/W. Thus, even BIOS provides the option, you still can't make it working.

I don't believe that.
I'm sure it has a dual power plane.
Anyone know anything about the Gigabyte motherboard not supporting dual power planes?

It must have SplitPowerPlanes, thats a key feature of AM2+ Boards and to make it clear i can regulate NB Voltage through the MSR Editor of CrystalCPUid, but just decreasing not increasing and it works perfectly.

This Supporter is wrong.

[Aussie FX]

I sent him back another email telling him it must be wrong, so hopefully he looks into it further.

I just couldn't believe it when I saw that answer....

Hopefully you might get through to someone else.

[Boschwanza]

A supporter in the german gigabyte forum just set this issue on the AM2+ Board (all) bug list .

[Daveburt714]

Dave are you back on a x32 OS?
I'm sure x64 is hurting me.

Sorry it took so long to get back to ya Aussie.
Yep, I'm back on XP32. I still haven't decided which OS to stick with yet, as much as VISTA64 sucks I'm sure it's the main focus of Microsoft right now (hopefully it won't go the way of ME ). I'm still trying to decide which OS to actually set for this machine. Vista64 offers DX10 and the full use of my memory, but from my experiences it doesn't seem to OC nearly as well due to stability problems....

I've got half a notion to install 2000Pro on here (Best OS Microsoft ever made IMO), but thats really a step backward with new hardware...

I just got a reply from Gigabyte support.

Here it is
Dear Sir,

Thank you for your kindly mail and inquiry. About the issue you mentioned, we are sorry the board you have doesn't support the feature by H/W. Thus, even BIOS provides the option, you still can't make it working.

I don't believe that.
I'm sure it has a dual power plane.

I find that hard to believe too!! If thats true, I don't see how they could legitimately call it an AM2+ Motherboard...

KTE & Justapost have figured out how to change volatages on the IMC using the MSR registers (see later pages of DFI/K9A2 threads). If I'm feeling frisky and no one else tries it, I may do some testing this weekend to see whether it's true or not....

I get really aggravated with Phenom, but it is fun to play with... Kinda like the Rubic's Cube of CPU's.

[Aussie FX]

I get really aggravated with Phenom, but it is fun to play with... Kinda like the Rubic's Cube of CPU's.

Lol I could never work that bloody thing out. I hope Phenom isn't the same...

[Aussie FX]

A supporter in the german gigabyte forum just set this issue on the AM2+ Board (all) bug list .

I just got another ridiculous reply from Gigabyte.
I still don't know what the guy was on about

Oh well, if enough of us complain we might get somewhere.

[Boschwanza]

I just got another ridiculous reply from Gigabyte.
I still don't know what the guy was on about

Oh well, if enough of us complain we might get somewhere.

What did he say?

Just give them a screenshot of an Asus bios with IMC voltage regulation. Thats what i did.

[Aussie FX]

What did he say?

I have got no idea what he's on about here. Of course the motherboard has got 2x4 pin cpu connectors, that's got nothing to do with dual power planes.

Anyway the reply is in italics.
Thank you again for your kindly mail and inquiry. Yes, this board has 2x4 power connector for CPU. But, even this board has dual power plane, we are wondering there is any relation for memory voltage setting?

Don't get me wrong here because I'm not racist, but why do they use Chinese people to reply when the queries come from English speaking countries. English doesn't translate correctly with Chinese so the answers we get just don't make any sense as the above answer shows.

The question I put to him was Phenom has a dual power plane architecture so surely this motherboard supports it I ask a simple question like that and then receive that gobbledygook answer.

[Boschwanza]

I guess they are just not aware that they can actually regulate the NB (IMC) and the cores Voltage seperatly. I got my answer 4 day before telling me i should check STRG+F1 for such an option. After telling him all about split power planes and showing asus bios Screenshots i am still waiting for a reply.

I hope somebody with more comepetents is checking my question, so it will take a while.

[KTE]

Guys, don't believe obvious hoopla. We were told the same about why no DDR2-1066 would first run with Phenom boards.

That's not an exclusive reply, it's a standard reply of most MB MFGs when either their own board (i.e. HW) does not support adding such a feature within the BIOS or either when they just don't have it, don't want to add it or don't know anything about it. It happens regular, happened with me on all the RD790 boards I tried and worked with MB MFGs with.

You can change NB VID, FID and DID higher and lower on all 9600 BEs. 9500/9600 NB FID can only be dropped but I'm not sure of the NB VID, if it's hardware locked at 1.25VID or not (IDR). IIRC it is locked as is CPU VID, but CPU volts and CPU NB volts are not locked. Either way, CPU NB Voltage is what is required, so even at stock CPU NB 1.25VID you can increase/decrease CPU NB volts to 1.537v-ish.

You can just use MSR Editor or Sam2008's tool to set the VID/Volts you want if you really want it now before BIOS. We were fed up waiting and so we decided to collaborate and Sam2008 jumped in to provide the tool we required to enable easy one click changes to oc without any of the BIOS options or AOD, since Phenom technical documentation is plenty. Now I just start my system and the tool runs auto, and I have the settings I require including downclocked core3.

[Boschwanza]

NB VID is locked at 1.25 Volt, just decreasing not increasing works for me using
MSR Register 0xC0010070

[Boschwanza]

IIRC i, so even at stock CPU NB 1.25VID you can increase/decrease CPU NB volts to 1.537v-ish.

How?

[Daveburt714]

NB VID is locked at 1.25 Volt, just decreasing not increasing works for me using
MSR Register 0xC0010070

Bosch, are you running a Black Edition CPU or a Standard?
As far as I know standards won't allow you to go higher than 1.25v on IMC.
I know my 9600std wouldn't on the K9A2, and it had the option..

KTE: I'll look for the sam2008 software, thanks for the tip!

[KTE]

That's what I said, it's locked. Not Volts, VID. Volts are not locked, that's why we can put up to 1.55V at 1.25VID too, on the CPU and CPU NB. ASUS board is one that can increase CPU and CPU NB voltage at 1.25VID and so can the Abit board.

You're welcome.

[Daveburt714]

Hey KTE.. I really want to see if these Gigabyte boards have the option to change NB voltages or not. I've been trying to figure out the MSR register settings you and Just have been talking about but it's pretty scatered and conveluted for me to get a handle on...

Before I do this can I ask you a question, just to make sure I have it right?

MSR # = 0xC0010070 (current value = 0x30003007)

Setting this MSR # to 0x28003007 should change IMC/NB Vid to 1.3v right?

I know this stuff is getting pretty deep for most folks to mess with (Me included! ).
If one of you Guru's would post a list of important register #'s and important value ranges it would be really helpful. I know all the info is here somewhere, it would just be nice to have it all in one place.