ASRock 4CoreDual-VSTA

[GWEEDOspeedo]

I ran 3DMark06 and PCMark05 with the memory set to DDR333 and it performed well. I loaded up Vanguard and after a while it crashes. Every time i play the game it crashes within 20 minutes. I'm starting to think it's the audio that's causing the problem as 3DMark and PCMark don't have audio. With my SYBE pci card i was only using it to play audio from the drives when it crashed. I uninstalled and removed the X-Fi card and am trying more tests for stability with my onboard HD realtek drivers.

 

[vinnanater]

I just got this board from Newegg and am about to RMA it, but let us see if I can get some relief in this forum.

My system specs:

e6600, 2 X 1 GB of 500 DDR1 OCZ Gold Ram, MSI 8800 GTX, two 80 Gig Maxtor Drives in 160 GB Raid 0, two 500 Gig drives on SATA ports. BIOS ver 1.50 (I have tried 1.60 too). Have also tried the last two Forceware drivers.

Problem:

I have had problems from installing windows, undetected drives, to NV_Disp BSOD errors, this is all while leaving bios setting at default values.

As a last ditch I unhooked all drives except one Sata 500 and the DVD player/recorder.
After several efforts of installing Windows, as soon as I install the 8800 GTX drivers, I start getting NV_Disp BSOD errors. If go to the driver preinstall state, it is OK. So, what gives?
Note: I had an Abit IP-95(VIA chipset) board before this, and everything woked fine on it upto 300 FSB. I wanted to try this board and see if I can get past 300 FSB.

Anyone want to tackle this before I send this board booting back to Newegg? Or am I stuck with upgrading to Nvidia 600 series board and DDR2 Ram?

thanks.

 

[tno]

vinnanater,
I'm pretty sure there's a well documented lack of compatibility with the 8x00 series video cards and this board, let me check.

tno

edit: yeah the 8800's aren't on their compatibility list and i think there's a good reason for that, the electrical difference between a x4 and x16 pci-e slot is pretty drastic.

http://www.asrock.com/mb/vga.asp?Model=4CoreDual-VSTA&s=

 

[GWEEDOspeedo]

Vinnanater,
With your hardware I think you're much better suited for a more capable motherboard.

But aside from that, what type of SATA hard drive is that? The 1.60 BIOS made a patch for Seagates with SATA2.

 

[vinnanater]

Yeah I kinda dreaded hearing something like that. I was just hoping to use my "expensive" OCZ for a bit longer, considering that you get pretty good performance out of good DDR1 vs DDR2 in the real world. Kinda hate it when companies do crap like this, they would probably sell a lot of Motherboards that supported DDR1 for the Core 2 processor.

Oh well what is a good DDR2 board for the CORE 2 that supports the 8800 GTX? I suppose I am looking at the Nvidia 600 series huh?

BTW does anyone want to buy an Opty 165 NIB, a DFI Lanparty Ultr-D (SLI ready) and 2 Gigs of Dual Channel 500 DDR OCZ Gold?

 

[vinnanater]

It is a Maxtor, and I have tried both of the latest bios versions. It craps on me after I install the drivers for the 8800GTX.

I am thinking of a DDR2 board now. I was just hoping to use the 2 Gigs of DDR1 memory I already have for a bit longer :/

 

[GWEEDOspeedo]

I ran auto-all RAM settings and ran memtest86, failed 98% into test #4. Manually set DDR333 and ran memtest86 again, passed 100%.

Games are still freezing... This would usually lead me to believe it's my graphics card, but it's pumping everything out perfectly in benchmarks and in games until the freeze occurs.

 

[tno]

Vinn,

If you want to save some cash, pick up the Asus P5N-E SLI (open box is just $93 at the Egg). That'll save you money to pick-up some RAM. If cash is not an issue, pick up a 680i and some good Micron D9.

From the 77Dual-Vsta thread, though, it looks like the only way these boards will take that card is in Vista. If you're interested in that sort of thing.

tno

 

[GWEEDOspeedo]

I'm starting to run out of options on how to get this to work before RMA'ing. I have tried ATI 7.1 7.2 7.3 and now 6.9 drivers while crashing in game. I even tried omega 7.1 and 6.9 drivers. I'll give my 9800pro a try with different drivers tonight.

With my memory set to DDR333 i have all my PCI cards in and working perfectly fine as they weren't before with DDR400 memory.

I ran Folding@Home all night without a hitch. But when i play a game it still freezes within 10-15 minutes without BSOD.

I ordered DDR2-800 memory because i want to try it and wanted it anyway.

EDIT: Nevermind, the 9800pro is shot.

 

[ComatoseDelirium]

Can anyone post up some 3dmark03 or 05 benchies?

 

[GWEEDOspeedo]

My system is stable enough to run benchmarks that don't take much time, but it wont run games longer than 15 minutes...

Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 (1.86ghz)
Zalman 9500 HSF w/AS5
ASRock 4CoreDual-VSTA
2x1gb GSkill PC3200 (running DDR333 160mhz, 2.5, 2-2-5, 2T)
HIS ATI x1950pro AGP 8x (Turbo ICE Edition)
1x36.7gb Raptor HD
Creative X-Fi XtremeMusic
Thermaltake Armor Case
Seasonic S-12 600watt PSU


3DMark06 - 4725
SM2.0 -1862
HDR/SM3.0 - 2066
CPU - 1556

PCMark05
System Score - 5072
CPU Score - 4547
Memory Score - 3692
Graphics Score - 5821
HDD Score - 4966

 

[Mr Vain]

Originally posted by: ComatoseDelirium
Can anyone post up some 3dmark03 or 05 benchies?

Guy at VR Zone getting 334FSB with pencil volt mods!

http://forums.vr-zone.com/showthread.php?t=93127&page=31

Quote
McTURBO

WOOOOOOOOOOOW

Super ASROCK!

334 Mhz di FSB 1333MHZ - ASRock 4Core Dual-VSTA """S T A B L E"""!!!!!

I'm very happy!!!!! :



Super PI : 19.969

CineBench 2003 Single CPU: 45 sec

CineBench 2003 Dual CPU: 25 sec

3Dmark 2001 : 36017

3Dmark 2003 : 17342

3Dmark 2005 : 10559

3Dmark 2006 : 5338

V-Core : 1.564V
V-AGP : 2.120V
VTT : 1.500V
PCI EX : 126 Mhz or 117 (is good too)
__________________
P&C TURBO-COOL® 1KW - AsRock 4CoreDual-VSTA - CORE DUO E4300 @3010mhz (334X9)WR - 2GB Team Group Cronus PC4000 DDR 500 Cas 2,5 8-3-3- Raid 0 - 2X73 Gb SCSI FUJITSU MAU 15000 RPM - HP LSI MegaRaid 500 + Sata 320Gb+ 160Gb + ATA 200Gb+200Gb - Sapphire X1950PRO 512MB AGP

 

[timzak]

Originally posted by: ComatoseDelirium
Can anyone post up some 3dmark03 or 05 benchies?

3dmark03: 14080
3dmark05: 5723

Honestly, I can't remember for sure what cpu speed these are run in, but I think 2.4Ghz (266 FSB, 200Mhz memory).

On my previous system (identical except for motherboard and cpu), I was getting 11856 in 03 and 5554 in 05. The cpu was an Athlon XP-Mobile @ 2.4Ghz. See sig for the rest of system specs.

 

[vinnanater]

Well I did it...going a little off topic here, but I RMAd the Asrock board.
I have an EVGA 122-CK-NF68-T1 and Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X2048-6400C4 on the way. Is that setup pretty good for my 8800 GTX and the E6600?

thanks.

P.S. Anyone want to buy the Asrock board before I send it back? I also have 2 Gigs of Dual Channel OCZ Gold DDR 500, a DFI Lanparty Ultra-D (SLI ready) and a brand new retail boxed Opteron 165.

 

[timzak]

Well, not so stable after all. The cpu is rock solid at 289 FSB (tested Orthos small FFTs for 8+ hrs), but when I run Blend or large FFT I start getting errors within an hour at ANY setting other than the default 200 FSB for my E4300. At stock 1.8 Ghz, 200 FSB, DDR400, it completed Orthos large FFT for 18 hours before I stopped it. I've tried 266/200 (DDR400 @ 4:3), 289/181 (DDR333 @ 8:5), I've tried loose memory timings, I've tried two different sets of memory (Corsair XMS3200c2 and Crucial Ballistix DDR400). Weird. The crazy thing is I can't technically complain because it's running stable at stock settings. It's just when I get out of the 1:1 FSB/memory ratio that problems start occuring. It's stable enough to complete all my benchmarks (DVD decoding, Far Cry, 3dmarks, etc), just can't handle Orthos.

Here's an interesting thing: I'm currently trying single channel memory mode. At POST it says Single Channel but when I get into Windows, CPU-Z and HWINFO32 both say I'm in dual channel mode?? And when I run my Far Cry benchmark I get the same result as in dual channel mode. I'm going to try Orthos now and see if things are any better.

I guess I can also try downclocking the ram to DDR266 mode and see if that works.

 

[Stumps]

E4300@2666mhz (296x9)
Asrock 4coredual VSTA
1GB DDR400 7-3-3-2.5-1T
Sapphire X1950 Pro 512mb AGP
2x Maxtor Maxline 3 250gb in Raid 0

3dmark01 - 32650
3dmark03 - 17000
3dmark05 - 11250
3dmark06 - 6290


Has anybody got the 8800 series Geforce working properly on this board yet?

 

[timzak]

Originally posted by: timzak
Well, not so stable after all. The cpu is rock solid at 289 FSB (tested Orthos small FFTs for 8+ hrs), but when I run Blend or large FFT I start getting errors within an hour at ANY setting other than the default 200 FSB for my E4300. At stock 1.8 Ghz, 200 FSB, DDR400, it completed Orthos large FFT for 18 hours before I stopped it. I've tried 266/200 (DDR400 @ 4:3), 289/181 (DDR333 @ 8:5), I've tried loose memory timings, I've tried two different sets of memory (Corsair XMS3200c2 and Crucial Ballistix DDR400). Weird. The crazy thing is I can't technically complain because it's running stable at stock settings. It's just when I get out of the 1:1 FSB/memory ratio that problems start occuring. It's stable enough to complete all my benchmarks (DVD decoding, Far Cry, 3dmarks, etc), just can't handle Orthos.

Here's an interesting thing: I'm currently trying single channel memory mode. At POST it says Single Channel but when I get into Windows, CPU-Z and HWINFO32 both say I'm in dual channel mode?? And when I run my Far Cry benchmark I get the same result as in dual channel mode. I'm going to try Orthos now and see if things are any better.

I guess I can also try downclocking the ram to DDR266 mode and see if that works.

How do you know if your ram is causing Orthos/memtest86 errors, or the cpu cache? I just had a thought, what if I have a dud cpu that doesn't like to be overclocked? Maybe the Orthos errors are happening in the cpu cache and not the system ram? Any ideas?

 

[Mr Vain]

Originally posted by: Stumps
E4300@2666mhz (296x9)
Asrock 4coredual VSTA
1GB DDR400 7-3-3-2.5-1T
Sapphire X1950 Pro 512mb AGP
2x Maxtor Maxline 3 250gb in Raid 0

3dmark01 - 32650
3dmark03 - 17000
3dmark05 - 11250
3dmark06 - 6290


Has anybody got the 8800 series Geforce working properly on this board yet?

I have read about dudes got it working on this mobo but in VISTA only not XP.

quote:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by: aussieburger
Can anyone confirm / find out if the new nvidia 8800 winxp drivers will help on this board ?? Otherwise I just run it in Vista (by the way can anyone here actually confirms it works in Vista). I'd really like to put off getting a new mobo for 1 more month due to financial restrictions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



I have a 8800 GTS 640MB in my good ol' 775Dual-VSTA (sig below), and wanted to let you know that if you end up going with a 8800 in your motherboard you will be restricted to Vista (unless 3d acceleration isn't a concern, then XP will run just fine ;-) ).

Whenever I attempt to install 8800 drivers under XP (including the ones they put out a couple days ago), my box goes into an eternal reboot loop until I drop into safe mode and remove them. Vista, however, except for the fact that the 4x PCI-E slot is capping the 8800's speed (which will be fixed in a couple weeks, once semester is out!), runs perfectly fine. Stalker at max settings is quite a nice experience (and smooth to boot).

-------------------------
____________________________
ASRock 775Dual-VSTA
Core 2 Duo E6600
2GB OCZ PC-4000 DDR2 RAM
EVGA GeForce 8800 GTS 640MB
Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum
Zyxel Gigabit Ethernet NIC
1 x 400GB Seagate 7200RPM SATA, 1 x 300GB Seagate 7200RPM SATA (and another 1.2 TB in a server)
450W Antec Power Supply

775Dual-VSTA and 4CoreDual-VSTA virtually the same board.

 

[timzak]

Here's the latest of where I stand with the 4coredual-vsta. Any expert trouble-shooters out there have any suggestions?

I'd like some feedback on my system. I'm trying to determine what is causing Orthos instability with blend and high ffts. My E4300 runs Orthos small fft okay at up to 293 FSB. But it fails blend and large fft within a few hours (sometimes 4-5 hours, sometimes as little as 1 hour). At first I thought it was my ram because I can't seem to get my DDR400 ram stable at 200Mhz @ 2.4Ghz (4:3 FSB/mem). But I just completed 9+ hours large ffts @ 215 FSB (ram @ 215Mhz 1:1, cpu @ 1.9Ghz). So I'm pretty sure my ram is fine. When I set the FSB to 286 (ram is at same 215Mhz it was stable at above, except @ 4:3, cpu @ 2.57Ghz), I boot into a BSOD. But when I drop the ram to DDR333 or 266, no BSOD. So it seems to be an issue of running my memory asynch from FSB. I've tried two different sets of ram: Corsair XMS3200c2 and Crucial Ballistix DDR400. Both have the same problem. So in summary:

FSB 200-215 (DDR 400 @ 1:1, 200-215Mhz): Orthos stable both small fft, blend, and large fft

FSB 266-286 (DDR 400 @ 4:3, 200-215Mhz): Orthos stable small fft only, with >BSOD the higher the FSB

FSB 287-293 (DDR 333 @ 8:5 or DDR 266 @ 2:1): Orthos stable small fft only; programs & benchmarks stable

Is this a motherboard problem or is my cpu failing somewhere in the L2 cache? I understand small fft only tests L1 cache and doesn't get into the L2 cache. For this reason, I'm wondering if maybe my cpu isn't getting enough voltage. If that's not it, then it seems like the motherboard is having issues running my memory asynch.

Does anyone have any ideas? I'd rather not go into volt mods because I'm on a tight budget and don't want to risk damaging components that I can't afford to replace.

Thanks.

 

[Stumps]

Originally posted by: Mr Vain

Originally posted by: Stumps
E4300@2666mhz (296x9)
Asrock 4coredual VSTA
1GB DDR400 7-3-3-2.5-1T
Sapphire X1950 Pro 512mb AGP
2x Maxtor Maxline 3 250gb in Raid 0

3dmark01 - 32650
3dmark03 - 17000
3dmark05 - 11250
3dmark06 - 6290


Has anybody got the 8800 series Geforce working properly on this board yet?

I have read about dudes got it working on this mobo but in VISTA only not XP.

quote:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by: aussieburger
Can anyone confirm / find out if the new nvidia 8800 winxp drivers will help on this board ?? Otherwise I just run it in Vista (by the way can anyone here actually confirms it works in Vista). I'd really like to put off getting a new mobo for 1 more month due to financial restrictions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



I have a 8800 GTS 640MB in my good ol' 775Dual-VSTA (sig below), and wanted to let you know that if you end up going with a 8800 in your motherboard you will be restricted to Vista (unless 3d acceleration isn't a concern, then XP will run just fine ;-) ).

Whenever I attempt to install 8800 drivers under XP (including the ones they put out a couple days ago), my box goes into an eternal reboot loop until I drop into safe mode and remove them. Vista, however, except for the fact that the 4x PCI-E slot is capping the 8800's speed (which will be fixed in a couple weeks, once semester is out!), runs perfectly fine. Stalker at max settings is quite a nice experience (and smooth to boot).

-------------------------
____________________________
ASRock 775Dual-VSTA
Core 2 Duo E6600
2GB OCZ PC-4000 DDR2 RAM
EVGA GeForce 8800 GTS 640MB
Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum
Zyxel Gigabit Ethernet NIC
1 x 400GB Seagate 7200RPM SATA, 1 x 300GB Seagate 7200RPM SATA (and another 1.2 TB in a server)
450W Antec Power Supply

775Dual-VSTA and 4CoreDual-VSTA virtually the same board.

cool!

I'm currently running Vista Ultimate and find it a nice OS, so I might investigate a 8800 series video card for my setup.

 

[ramjet428]

Hi Timzak,

I am also running an E4300 with an Asrock 4CoreDual-VSTA motherboard, BIOS v1.4
OCZ Permier 1GB dual channel DDR400 and Geforce 5200 AGP video card.

I read your posts b4 I got my MB/Processor and found them very helpful along with some of the other members here. As a result I abandonned an Athlon64 upgrade path for a cheaper E4300 and Asrock board, saving at least $200

Anyways, this is my 1st Intel chip since the 386SX days and I expected to have a bit of trouble. But I was lucky. My new Asrock board booted the first time, after configuring it properly, at stock speed I was perfectly stable with E4300 and OSC DDR400 ram.

I then tried to overclock, Chose Async, DDR400, Command Rate 2, instead of 1. OSZ Permier was not very stable in past at Command Rate 1, so stuck with 2.
1st overclock was for 222MHz, my DDR Speed read as DDR444, best DDR speed I ever got with this memory...

Didn't want to overclock the RAM that much, as I never had that kind of lick with it in my older Athlon 3200+ motherboard, but is was stable...

I decided to got for 233, then 266MHz, both were perfectly stable and DDR speed is at 400 4:3divider, as it should be. So my E4300 is now running at 2400MHz and very stable, I will have to get some benchmarks done, didnt have much luck with the graphics portion of PCMARK 2006, probably my old GeForce 5200 is not powerful enough, so I will try PCMARK 2005 instead, but have gotten a marked increase in benchmarks in Everest v4.0 so things look good... Hope this is of some help, but at least it shows that a configuration for the E4300 and this MB does work...

I think I will stick to my present overclock of 2400MHz at least until I get a better cooler.

Once again, I would like to thank you all for your posts, which helped me make my decision and I will try and return the favor...

 

[timzak]

Originally posted by: ramjet428
Hi Timzak,

I am also running an E4300 with an Asrock 4CoreDual-VSTA motherboard, BIOS v1.4
OCZ Permier 1GB dual channel DDR400 and Geforce 5200 AGP video card.

I read your posts b4 I got my MB/Processor and found them very helpful along with some of the other members here. As a result I abandonned an Athlon64 upgrade path for a cheaper E4300 and Asrock board, saving at least $200

Anyways, this is my 1st Intel chip since the 386SX days and I expected to have a bit of trouble. But I was lucky. My new Asrock board booted the first time, after configuring it properly, at stock speed I was perfectly stable with E4300 and OSC DDR400 ram.

I then tried to overclock, Chose Async, DDR400, Command Rate 2, instead of 1. OSZ Permier was not very stable in past at Command Rate 1, so stuck with 2.
1st overclock was for 222MHz, my DDR Speed read as DDR444, best DDR speed I ever got with this memory...

Didn't want to overclock the RAM that much, as I never had that kind of lick with it in my older Athlon 3200+ motherboard, but is was stable...

I decided to got for 233, then 266MHz, both were perfectly stable and DDR speed is at 400 4:3divider, as it should be. So my E4300 is now running at 2400MHz and very stable, I will have to get some benchmarks done, didnt have much luck with the graphics portion of PCMARK 2006, probably my old GeForce 5200 is not powerful enough, so I will try PCMARK 2005 instead, but have gotten a marked increase in benchmarks in Everest v4.0 so things look good... Hope this is of some help, but at least it shows that a configuration for the E4300 and this MB does work...

I think I will stick to my present overclock of 2400MHz at least until I get a better cooler.

Once again, I would like to thank you all for your posts, which helped me make my decision and I will try and return the favor...

Cool, I'm glad to help. Hope it stays stable for you. I seemed to have my system stable at 2.4Ghz just like you, but after flashing the bios a couple of different times (trying different revisions), I lost the ability to run 2.4Ghz with ram at DDR400. I still can't figure out why and got tired of running Orthos all day while working and all night while sleeping.

I'm currently at 2.64Ghz with ram set to DDR333 and running at 183Mhz--2.0-3-3-7 2T. Seems to be running fine as long as I don't run Orthos blend or large fft. Weird. Actually, I wonder if it just takes the mobo time to settle into a particular setting...I should try Orthos again and see if things have improved.

Again, I'm glad you're happy with your setup. This is a great way to slowly upgrade to next-gen components if you're on a tight budget like I am. I figure my next upgrade when $$ permits is 2GB of DDR2 ram, followed by a PCI-E video card. After that I'll be able to get whatever next gen mobo will accept all my components and then probably be able to overclock the E4300 to 3+Ghz (or just get a quad core cpu if prices go down enough by then).

 

[ramjet428]

I am interested in getting some good benchmarks, I havent had too much luck with 3DMARK05 or 06, seems they dont like my ancient AGP card...

What would you suggest?

I am not a gamer, I mainly use my computer to record, edit and burn DVD's. I have been recording lots of tv show, mostly SCI-FI and then editing out the commercials.

On my old Athlon 64 3200+ system, I could encode a 42 min program in 5 min. and 720 X 480 DVD resolution at 7000BPS, now I can do the same in less than 3 minutes. It also tends to be a good stress test of the processor, ram and HD's as you can imagine...

 

[zanna21hg]

in a few days im going to buy this matherboard but im wondering about compability with C2D E4400, this CPU is not in the official CPU support list

 

[timzak]

Originally posted by: ramjet428
I am interested in getting some good benchmarks, I havent had too much luck with 3DMARK05 or 06, seems they dont like my ancient AGP card...

What would you suggest?

I am not a gamer, I mainly use my computer to record, edit and burn DVD's. I have been recording lots of tv show, mostly SCI-FI and then editing out the commercials.

On my old Athlon 64 3200+ system, I could encode a 42 min program in 5 min. and 720 X 480 DVD resolution at 7000BPS, now I can do the same in less than 3 minutes. It also tends to be a good stress test of the processor, ram and HD's as you can imagine...

Yeah, your video card will be the limiting factor in all graphics testing, so 3dmarks or game benchmarks will be useless to you. Like you, I also have an encoding benchmark I use...basically just encode a movie DVD with Nero Recode and jot down the time reported. When using "High Quality Encode" it really stresses the cpu. My previous system used an Athlon XP 2.4Ghz. This new c2d is about 13% faster at standard encoding, but with high quality encoding, the c2d is 2.5X faster. Other good cpu benchmarks are Cinebench and SuperPI. Almost every review site uses one or both so you can directly compare your system to those in reviews.