845pe Albatron $89 on pricewatch - Update **Official Info/OC Thread**

[OvErHeAtInG]

Nice to hear the Gigabyte's workin' for ya, Oakenfold...
This Albatron is pretty cool. My only complaint so far is similar one as alobar...

everytime i set to manual and c2 and then i restart and check the bios it somehow reverts to c2.5. I know the memory can run at c2 cause sandra reports it ok. but i cant get it to stick. anyone else have that problem?

What mem ratio are you running (2.0, 2.5, or 2.66)? When I set mine to 2.66, I get the same problem where it'll set my timings to really conservative like 2.5-3-3-7. Not sure why this is, and I haven't tried upping VDIMM yet. I noticed it b/c on my first attempt at DDR400, all my benchmarks went down (except for PCMark mem, which liked the extra MHz). If you look in the review, Evan was able to reliably run the board at 2-2-2-7 @ ~430 with the same memory I have... hmmm. Too bad, looks like I may not be able to take advantage of this memory.

So far, running the 2.53 at 2.85 / DDR374. Peak temp 47C. No stability issues whatsoever (except for the magic changing memory timings ) BTW upped the VCORE to 5.5, 4.9~5.2 actual.

 

[alobar]

Originally posted by: lookin4dlz
BlessidThug, glad the document helped

cmdrdredd - could you explain what you referenced in your last post? Thanks.

hrm...never noticed my memory timings jump back to default.

[/q

he was referring to my post. basically im having a problem with my memory settings. I have a 512 corsair xms3200c2 chip and everytime i set it to cas2 settings and reboot i find that it goes back to c2.5 in the bios.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Originally posted by: alobar

Originally posted by: lookin4dlz
BlessidThug, glad the document helped

cmdrdredd - could you explain what you referenced in your last post? Thanks.

hrm...never noticed my memory timings jump back to default.

[/q

he was referring to my post. basically im having a problem with my memory settings. I have a 512 corsair xms3200c2 chip and everytime i set it to cas2 settings and reboot i find that it goes back to c2.5 in the bios.

yeah and I was just saying you should try to add just a bit of voltage to the memory and see if the settings stick. Maybe the undervolting forces the BIOS to reset it to 2.5? I never noticed it jump back because when I set it it sticks

 

[Oakenfold]

Hey Over,

The ram is Corsair XMS 333 @c2 but I haven't found a way to play with the cas level in the bios, attempting to run @ 2.83 right now and I'm getting lockups..hmm bet I need to get it up to 2.5 cl and I'll be able to hit 2.83@ 374..
Me wonders if the albatron is the better choice..no voltage, can't find no stinking cas adjustment...eek!

EDITED found the cas option...
cnrtl +f1

 

[alobar]

Originally posted by: OvErHeAtInG
Nice to hear the Gigabyte's workin' for ya, Oakenfold...
This Albatron is pretty cool. My only complaint so far is similar one as alobar...

everytime i set to manual and c2 and then i restart and check the bios it somehow reverts to c2.5. I know the memory can run at c2 cause sandra reports it ok. but i cant get it to stick. anyone else have that problem?

What mem ratio are you running (2.0, 2.5, or 2.66)? When I set mine to 2.66, I get the same problem where it'll set my timings to really conservative like 2.5-3-3-7. Not sure why this is, and I haven't tried upping VDIMM yet. I noticed it b/c on my first attempt at DDR400, all my benchmarks went down (except for PCMark mem, which liked the extra MHz). If you look in the review, Evan was able to reliably run the board at 2-2-2-7 @ ~430 with the same memory I have... hmmm. Too bad, looks like I may not be able to take advantage of this memory.

Im running at 2.66 to get my ram at 405 at 152fsb. and i have upped my vdimm to 2.6. Evan if you can explain how you got yours at 2-2-2-7 im sure im not the only one who would appreciate it.

thx

 

[OvErHeAtInG]

Originally posted by: alobar

Originally posted by: OvErHeAtInG
Nice to hear the Gigabyte's workin' for ya, Oakenfold...
This Albatron is pretty cool. My only complaint so far is similar one as alobar...

everytime i set to manual and c2 and then i restart and check the bios it somehow reverts to c2.5. I know the memory can run at c2 cause sandra reports it ok. but i cant get it to stick. anyone else have that problem?

What mem ratio are you running (2.0, 2.5, or 2.66)? When I set mine to 2.66, I get the same problem where it'll set my timings to really conservative like 2.5-3-3-7. Not sure why this is, and I haven't tried upping VDIMM yet. I noticed it b/c on my first attempt at DDR400, all my benchmarks went down (except for PCMark mem, which liked the extra MHz). If you look in the review, Evan was able to reliably run the board at 2-2-2-7 @ ~430 with the same memory I have... hmmm. Too bad, looks like I may not be able to take advantage of this memory.

Im running at 2.66 to get my ram at 405 at 152fsb. and i have upped my vdimm to 2.6. Evan if you can explain how you got yours at 2-2-2-7 im sure im not the only one who would appreciate it.

thx

Alobar-- I solved it by backing off to 2.50x ratio. Currently I'm running 154FSB, that gives me 2.93GHz / 385DDR. I'm running 2-3-3-6, bear in mind that that's what our memory's rated to run at 400. I'm not being too picky about mem bandwidth here, I mostly just bought the corsair so I wouldn't be held back my RAM.

What's the general consensus as to what the highest "safe" voltage is on Northwood? Also the highest safe temperatures? This board reports "system temp" 2~4 C higher than "CPU temp"... might it be reversed/mixed up?

 

[cmdrdredd]

The highest safe voltage is 1.75v it will take more, but it will be risky. This translates to a setting of 1.825v on the Albatron board since it undervolts to 1.74 when i set it here. This is great! The normal temps are anywhere from 40c to 55c but it will not start clock throttling until 65c so it's cool.

I think they're rated to 70c before you need to seriously worry too much.

Also I achieved a NEW OVERCLOCK!!!

yes my 2.26 is now resting at 2.68 at 158Mhz FSB and my Corsair PC3200 is resting at 421Mhz @ cas 2.5-3-3-6 (sandra reports 2.5-2-2 though...)

my sandra memory bench is reading: 3211/3204
sandra CPU arithmetic: 5912/3271
sandra CPU multimedia: 10582/13243
3dmark2k1SE score: 15751 with Radeon 9700Pro

update: a little gaming benchmark with Unreal Tournament 2003's built in benchmark app with no AA or AF at 1024x768 gets me a flyby score of 202.6fps and a botmatch score of 71.0fps


this is with vcore at 1.74 actual and vdimm at 2.6

after checking the BIOS it did revert back to 2.5-3-3-7 and I set to 2.5-3-3-6 and let it go. I don't know if it reverted back, but I like my score anyway

just a note on Motherboard Monitor the Albatron only has 2 sensors...just set sensor 1 for winbond 1 and sensor 2 for winbond 2 and the 3rd is erroneous since there is no 3rd.

 

[ucfdoughboy]

Can anyone tell me where i can buy the PX845PE Pro II besides computerhq.com? I've already gone that route and am now RMA'ing back the PX845E Pro II i received instead(yes, i did order the correct one, they messed up). I cannot get their RMA people on the phone. I did talk to a sales person who was able to tell me they are now out of stock and do not know when they will recieve more.

Never the less it is dissappointing to have everything from newegg sitting here 4 days prior to recieving the motherboard and then it being the wrong one. Now I am stranded for at least another week if not longer. As usual i have no problems with everything i recieved from newegg. Thanks for any help.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Originally posted by: ucfdoughboy
Can anyone tell me where i can buy the PX845PE Pro II besides computerhq.com? I've already gone that route and am now RMA'ing back the PX845E Pro II i received instead(yes, i did order the correct one, they messed up). I cannot get their RMA people on the phone. I did talk to a sales person who was able to tell me they are now out of stock and do not know when they will recieve more.

Never the less it is dissappointing to have everything from newegg sitting here 4 days prior to recieving the motherboard and then it being the wrong one. Now I am stranded for at least another week if not longer. As usual i have no problems with everything i recieved from newegg. Thanks for any help.

Do you need the RAID? Do you need the Serial ATA? Do you need the Intel LAN? if yes then I cannot help you, but if you can do without the Intel LAN and go with a different LAn solution I'd try the Asus or Epox or Gigabyte boards. If you don't need the RAID or serial ATA I'd go for the Albatron PX845PEV Pro no frills, but solid performance.

 

[iMage]

Guys,

I just got my Albatron 845pe pro today. I was trying to set it up... when i got everything in.. i booted... and it kept rebooting on me...

First there was this prompt that the cpu changed... so i went into the cmos.. and basically saved the settings. (volatage 1.5v for cpu). Then when i gets to my hd.. it just reboots.. it wont go into WINXP

.... I'm not really sure what the problem is. I have a Gainward ti4600.. could this be the issue? (I dont think so though - I know my card works.. i just took it out of my other system - which was runnin asus p48sx <- this was very unstable which is why i went with the albatron). ....

Any one have any ideas??? could it just be a bios setting or something????... getting a bit worried. please chime in if you have any suggestions..

 

[cmdrdredd]

it did that to me too...what happened is Windowscannot boot with this board since it changed the entire config. What you need to do is startup from your WinXp CD and have windows repair the install. It will keep all your programs and drivers but install an entire new OS and delete the old one. This will solve your problem. Course you'll have to install SP1 and all the updates again.

Either that or reformat

 

[alobar]

Originally posted by: cmdrdredd

after checking the BIOS it did revert back to 2.5-3-3-7 and I set to 2.5-3-3-6 and let it go. I don't know if it reverted back, but I like my score anyway

So from what i have read is i can either have cas 2 timings at a lower memory or have a higher memory speed with cas2.5.
For example my fsb is now 152 x 2.66 and my memory is 405 mhz @ c2.5 3 3 7.
if i wanted cas2 timings it would have to be fsb 152 x 2.5 and my memory at 380 @c2 3 3 6.

Which one is ideal, i mean which one is better.

Overheating: thanks for the info, i emailed albatron tech support, maybe they have a better answer than backing down to 2.5.

thanks for all the great info, even with this little hiccup i still am loving this board.


Edit:
after some initial testing i have these numbers.

p4 2.4b@2700
1.52 v actual
msi 128mb GF4 4200 at stock

150fsb mem x2.5 375mhz@ cas2 6 2 2 timings

cpu 5338/3288
cpu multi 10620/13290
mem 2901/2902
3dmark 2001se 11649

150fsb mem 2.66 400mhz@ cas2.5 7 3 3 timings

cpu 5331/3286
cpu milti 10597/13284
mem 3050/3050
3dmark 2001se 11621

so i guess i am going to stick with the cas2 timings, unless someone has a better idea.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I think higher bandwidth is better than lower timings. You won't even notice the difference really IMO. I think a BIOS update will take care of this for us

 

[Yourself]

Have you guys had any problems with warm/cold boot problems? I ran into an issue today where I would change some settings in the Bios and then hit save and it would go to blank screen like a typical reboot problem. Once I get it back, it resets everything(cpu, mem, etc.) back to defaults. Kinda got me puzzled....

Self

 

[OvErHeAtInG]

Originally posted by: cmdrdredd

just a note on Motherboard Monitor the Albatron only has 2 sensors...just set sensor 1 for winbond 1 and sensor 2 for winbond 2 and the 3rd is erroneous since there is no 3rd.

Dredd, are you sure? I thought 1 and 3 were the "System" and "CPU" temperatures respectively, and 2 was erroneous. I really hope it is because winbond 2 is reporting 72C load / 69 idle!! This is even with lower clock speeds. In the BIOS, the temps it reports seem to correspond with 1 and 3. Also "Board temp" is higher than "CPU temp." Is this normal? Maybe because of the passive cooling on the northbridge? If I knew that 72C was bogus I would be a little more brave with my overclocking... I really think I installed that HSF correctly!!

Alobar, I've now reversed my stance and agree with cmdrdredd. My system runs great at DDR400; however I agree that slower timings suck since we're not taking advantage of our memory. I actually think that this is an intentional "safety feature." I say this because when I change mem ratio to 2.66, then go into <Advanced Chipset Features>, it has automatically changed to conservative settings (!) without even rebooting. I can then change it, F10 out, and it seems to be running the more aggressive timings. I can try to verify that later tho....:

 

[cmdrdredd]

yeah every once in a while it does this. Like I said I think a BIOS update would fix these things

 

[Aradune]

Hi everyone, I'm new to the board and sorta new to overclocking but have been studying. I'm seriously considering buying the Albatron m/b with a 2.4b and 1 stick of corsair xms 3200 512mb. It seems like most people are going fairly conservative on the fsb overclocking. Has anyone been able to get into the 160-166 fsb range with stability? What was everyone's maximum stable fsb and cpu mhz at 2.0x mem ratio? Evan got all the way to 166 on the fsb with a p4-2.26 and had aggressive timings on his ddr400 o/c. We should be able to match this or come close at least, no? Anyone who has this board, I would really appreciate any input or insights you might have. Thanks alot in advance!

 

[OvErHeAtInG]

Originally posted by: Aradune
Hi everyone, I'm new to the board and sorta new to overclocking but have been studying. I'm seriously considering buying the Albatron m/b with a 2.4b and 1 stick of corsair xms 3200 512mb. It seems like most people are going fairly conservative on the fsb overclocking. Has anyone been able to get into the 160-166 fsb range with stability? What was everyone's maximum stable fsb and cpu mhz at 2.0x mem ratio? Evan got all the way to 166 on the fsb with a p4-2.26 and had aggressive timings on his ddr400 o/c. We should be able to match this or come close at least, no? Anyone who has this board, I would really appreciate any input or insights you might have. Thanks alot in advance!

Aradune, welcome to the forum!!
The Albatron's a great board. If you want to go really high on the FSB, you need the lower multiplier of the 2.26 that Evan used. Even then, he was probably held back by core speed, not FSB. I would recommend you get the 2.4B though since it's actually cheaper. Shoot for 150FSB, 2.66 mem ratio, and consider anything over that a "bonus." That would give you 2.7GHz, DDR400, you will have a fast machine.

The 2.0 mem multiplier is for DDR266 (133*2.0=266). There's no reason to use it if you're using the Corsair 3200C2.

 

[alobar]

Originally posted by: OvErHeAtInG
Dredd, are you sure? I thought 1 and 3 were the "System" and "CPU" temperatures respectively, and 2 was erroneous. I really hope it is because winbond 2 is reporting 72C load / 69 idle!! This is even with lower clock speeds. In the BIOS, the temps it reports seem to correspond with 1 and 3. Also "Board temp" is higher than "CPU temp." Is this normal? Maybe because of the passive cooling on the northbridge? If I knew that 72C was bogus I would be a little more brave with my overclocking... I really think I installed that HSF correctly!!

as far as i can tell the winbond 1 sensor corresponds to the system temp and winbond 3 is the cpu temp. i wouldnt worry about the second sensor. its cold up here in upstate ny and my cpu temp is at 22 guess i should turn the heat on soon.

Alobar, I've now reversed my stance and agree with cmdrdredd. My system runs great at DDR400; however I agree that slower timings suck since we're not taking advantage of our memory. I actually think that this is an intentional "safety feature." I say this because when I change mem ratio to 2.66, then go into <Advanced Chipset Features>, it has automatically changed to conservative settings (!) without even rebooting. I can then change it, F10 out, and it seems to be running the more aggressive timings. I can try to verify that later tho....:

i got a reply from "Dr. Pro", unfortunately we cant 2.66 and cas 2, no explanation either. poo, i still dont get how evan got those timings and the ddr400.
evan if your listening please share with us

here's the reply
Dear Thomas,


Thank you for using our product, and sorry fo rthe inconvenience.
Please don't use the trubo mode, and setup cas 2,then you will see it is 2.
If you have further questions,please do feel free to contact us.
Thanks!


Best Regards.


Dr.Pro

well i have to say at least the reply came back quickly. too bad it wasnt what i wanted to hear, im going to reply and see if a future bios will correct it.

im going to stick with my mem at the 2.5 speeds until i do more testing but as my previous numbers showed my 3dmark went up with cas2 settings. i know its not scientific, but i need more testing to be sure.

Originally posted by: Yourself
Have you guys had any problems with warm/cold boot problems? I ran into an issue today where I would change some settings in the Bios and then hit save and it would go to blank screen like a typical reboot problem. Once I get it back, it resets everything(cpu, mem, etc.) back to defaults. Kinda got me puzzled....

Self

its a feature of the motherboard, if it cant post properly with the settings it reverts to default. it is a nice feature, it reverts without having to go in your case to reset your mobo bios.

Originally posted by: Aradune
Hi everyone, I'm new to the board and sorta new to overclocking but have been studying. I'm seriously considering buying the Albatron m/b with a 2.4b and 1 stick of corsair xms 3200 512mb. It seems like most people are going fairly conservative on the fsb overclocking. Has anyone been able to get into the 160-166 fsb range with stability? What was everyone's maximum stable fsb and cpu mhz at 2.0x mem ratio? Evan got all the way to 166 on the fsb with a p4-2.26 and had aggressive timings on his ddr400 o/c. We should be able to match this or come close at least, no? Anyone who has this board, I would really appreciate any input or insights you might have. Thanks alot in advance!

Hi aradune,
i have the same setup as your looking into. i can fsb 150 x 2.66 to get 400 mem and prime95 fine but when i fsb to 152 i cant prime 95. i havent had the time to run at lower mem ratio's cause i dont really want to. 2.5 mem ratios are the lowest i would go and i havent really tried them yet. im currently running at 2.5 and my fsb @150 with my memory at cas2 2 2 6 timings. Also take into account that i am only running at 1.52 v actual, i havent tried upping the voltage. You might be able to get farther than i, i dont think i am going to push much further, i pleased as punch with my setup.

 

[cmdrdredd]

i've gone to 167Mhz FSb at 2.00x memory and worked 100% everything stable, but I preferred the faster memory

 

[Oakenfold]

Originally posted by: cmdrdredd
i've gone to 167Mhz FSb at 2.00x memory and worked 100% everything stable, but I preferred the faster memory

Nice FSB!
Gosh, a hardware monitor would be nice about now..
(referring to my gigabyte board of course)
So over what's your verdict on this albatron?

 

[cmdrdredd]

If I were a system builder for Gaming Rigs I'd always recommend them first! The Albatron that is


I'd love to have a hardware monitor that is built around the board so I don't have to use MBM's hard to use interface. I like Intel's monitoring software ALOT

 

[Aradune]

Thanks for the info cmdrdredd. Very impressive o/c on the fsb!

 

[lookin4dlz]

I wasn't able to do much last night. This new rig involved a new case as well, plus the light in my office was out & the flashlight very dim (when it worked).


SYSTEM
P4 1.8A Phillipines 9/14/02 SL3X, B0 stepping
Albatron
Intel Stock HSF / thermal tape
Corsair XMS2700 1x 512mb (Cas 2.5-3-3-6)
Antec 400w
Radeon 64MB VIVO

Was able to boot into Win XP at 150fsb with the above memory timings, but not every time & didn't played around with it. From messing around though, I'm pretty sure that the memory is going to hold me back.

Solid at 148fsb 2.67GHz with memory at DDR394 and Sisoft mem score of 2981. Installed Win XP at this speed and stress-tested (for one hour only) with no problems. CPU temp 36C vcore set at 1.75, actual 1.64 and everything else except memory speed/timings at default.

 

[senior guy]

Originally posted by: pulse8

Originally posted by: OvErHeAtInG

Is there another place to pick up the Albatron PX845PE PRO II? Reseller Ratings doesn't appear to be very good.

Newegg ($99shipped) and Googlegear ($94 shipped) both have them, they're both good retailers. Got mine today! System's goin' together!!

I don't think that's the Pro II model. I've only found the Pro II model in the store posted above. I'm hoping Newegg or someone more reputable will start carrying it soon so I can pick one up.

No one has the PE/GE Pro II boards now. Albatron's California support office says that they should be available in the US inside of 2 weeks (1st shipment may even be on one of the freighters waiting to be unloaded at the Long Beach CA docks)!