BIOS setting for ECS k7s5a

[LoveThisDeal]

I am putting up my first computer, and here are a couple of rookie questions about the bios setup on ECS k7s5a.

Here's the spec
Athlon XP 1700+
ECS k7s5a mb
Crucial 2x256mb PC2100 DDR
WD 60GB 5400rpm ATA100 HDD
No seperate ATA100 controller card (I guess it's not needed on this board, right?)
......

Here are the questions
1) I am quite confused by the settings about the memory. What are the optimal setting are you able to get?
2) Is there any special thing I need to do in order to enable the ATA100, or will it run default?

Thanks for your help in advance.

 

[EternalNemesis]

use the supplied ata100 cable on the drive

get the latest bios from ecs @ http://www.ecsusa.com/ecsusa/www.ecs.com.tw/download/k7s5a.htm
and grab the flash utility at the same page
boot from a disk and flash off the hard drive

use "ultra" setting if the system runs stable
use "2,6,3" for the next three settings if the system runs stable (and keep tweaking higher if you have to for stability)

you might have to use "2.5" setting instead of "2" because ddr usually works that way (unless youve got GREAT ddr ram sticks)

disable system BIOS cacheable (saves cache which is only 128kb L1, and 256kb L2 in size)

disable the two last settings in that page (agpclk... and the one that skips over onto the other page)

-good luck!

 

[GraveJoKer]

<< EternalNemesis >>




<< get the latest bios from ecs @ http://www.ecsusa.com/ecsusa/www.ecs.com.tw/download/k7s5a.htm >>




<< boot from a disk and flash off the hard drive >>



Are you kidding.. telling a NEWBIEE to flash off his BIOS.. without even knowing whether he needs a flash or not??
He might as well end up with him mobo dead...





<< LoveThisDeal >>

what rev your mobo is?? this must be indicated by a small sticker somewhere near the PCI slots...
I won't suggest flashing your BIOS unless you run into specific problems.. or unless your BIOS version is too old.

try going through ECS K7S5A FAQ
will help you a lot.

Initially run the memory settings at Normal, 2.5, 6,4. unless your system gets stable.
Then you may change the first one to Ultra. changing CAS 2.5 to 2 hardly makes any difference to Crucial PC2100 Memory.

what HSF you are using and what PS?? Both of this will play a very important role is making your system stable!!

 

[LoveThisDeal]

Thanks for all the great info.

The HSF is from the retail version of Athlon processor, and the case is Antec SX830 with supplied PS.
Also the motherboard was able to recognize the Athlon XP 1700+ processor (with CPU/FSB set to 133/133).
I don't remember the revision number of the BIOS, and will have to check it after work.

Btw, does any one of you knows what the performance of the onboard IDE? Do I have to buy a separate
ATA100 controller card?

 

[HappyPuppy]

The onbard IDE controllers on this board are ATA 100. Your HDD, if it is ATA 100, runs at 7200 rpm, not 5400 rpm. This is unless WD is making ATA100 drives that run 5400 rpm, which wouldn't make much sense. But then, life is full of BS that doesn't make much sense.

 

[LoveThisDeal]

On the manual inside the box, also on WD website, they are refering the interface is Ultra ATA/100.
Maybe it's just a claim not reality, which would not surprise me.

Another funny thing is that the autodetection of the HDD in BIOS shows the HD has more than 65K cylinders, while the online spec shows 16,383. Other parameters about the disk are off too. Does anyone else has the same experience? Which one should I trust anyway?

 

[hwstock]

>disable system BIOS cacheable (saves cache which is only 128kb L1, and 256kb L2 in size)

"Cached BIOS" means that the BIOS info is cached in system RAM, as opposed to being read from a very slow ROM with each call. (Can't say how it goes these days, but ROMs used to have access times in the hundreds of nanoseconds.) It doesn't mean that the BIOS is stored in the processor cache (though code copied from the ROM, and run, may inhabit the L1/L2 cache, just like any code).

 

[GraveJoKer]

Hey onboard ATA100 is pretty good ... 'm getting good performance numbers from SiSoftSandra...
no need to get a separate controller card buddy

 

[LoveThisDeal]

Thanks a lot, guys. It's good news that I don't have to buy extra card.

Anybody has any insight to the number of cylinder problem with my HDD?