GA-K8NSNXP-939

[imported_Hornswoggler]

To update everybody on my dual-channel memory problem:

I determined that one of my Crucial Ballistix modules was bad, so I sent it back to Crucial and received an RMA replacement.

I put the replacement DIMM and other module in sockets 3 & 4. WORKED GREAT!!! speeds were DDR400, timings were good, performance was great, and Prime95 ran for over 11 hours before I stopped it (to use my computer, lol).

So I ran that for a few days, not a single incident.

This morning I thought I would try my luck and move the RAM to DIMM sockets 1 & 2. Didn't work! System boots and runs Windows fine (from what I could tell) but had failures in Prime95 within a few minutes.

Here is what I have gathered so far:

- On this mobo, DIMM sockets 3 & 4 appear to be more reliable.

- This processor or chipset does not like Corsair 3200XL and possibly other samsung-based low latency memory.

I am still working the tech support process with Gigabyte. I will keep everybody posted if they have anything to say for themselves.

Now that my memory is good, I might try the MSI motherboard again as previous results could have been tainted with the bad DIMM.

 

[savoybc]

Hmm... what you guys have been commenting on F4 BIOS so far, makes me want to NOT get it.

 

[GTTeamKiller]

Ok i finally purchased it ... it should be in my mailbox on the next 5 days ...

 

[flawlssdistortn]

That's great news Hornswoggler, because that RAM was on the compatibility list!!! So that gives me hope that if I use RAM that is on the list, it will work for sure. Now what command rate are you using? And you say you have doubts about samsung RAM? I thought that brand was on the list.

 

[flawlssdistortn]

Now for those of you with corsair memory, could you please test those modules in dual channel with the F4 bios to see if gigabyte fixed any of the compatibility issues?

 

[imported_Hornswoggler]

Originally posted by: flawlssdistortn
That's great news Hornswoggler, because that RAM was on the compatibility list!!! So that gives me hope that if I use RAM that is on the list, it will work for sure. Now what command rate are you using? And you say you have doubts about samsung RAM? I thought that brand was on the list.

I didn't say that all Samsung memory would not work, but atleast the low latency 2-2-2-5 stuff is suspect.

Corsair doesn't fab their own memory chips, and many others use the same chips in their RAM as well. Samsung makes the chips in Corsair 3200XL. I think some of the less aggressive Samsung stuff is supposed to work just fine, but my personal testing is limited.

Crucial is a division of Micron, who does make their own. I also recall in one of the anandtech articles that some others use the same Micron chips in their memory.

Just because a brand has approved modules on the list, doesn't mean that everything that company (i.e. Samsung or Micron) makes is either good or bad... depends on the exact numbers on the chips.

 

[imported_Hornswoggler]

Originally posted by: flawlssdistortn
Now for those of you with corsair memory, could you please test those modules in dual channel with the F4 bios to see if gigabyte fixed any of the compatibility issues?

Once I figure out how to install the BIOS, I'll try it for ya.

I took a shot at it this morning (from Windows), but it told me it was the wrong chipset, lol. I had to go to work so no time to fiddlejack with it. Maybe my BIOS is write-protected? I'll have to check.

I'll try the new BIOS tonight.

 

[savoybc]

DAMN! I decided to run torture test once again while I was at work. I return home to an error message

"Torture test ran 8 hours, 37 minutes - 1 errors, 0 warnings"



Going to install F4 BIOS in a few minutes. Going to copy Main BIOS to Backup BIOS in case I don't like F4 first...

 

[pantner]

lol, yesterday and the day before were to only days i didn't check gigabyte for a new BIOS....

am downloading now....and we'll see how it goes....

 

[savoybc]

Installed F4 BIOS. Accessed BIOS, went to Advanced Chipset Features. I check the RAM clock, it's at 100MHz, should be 200... so hmm. I go to modify it, and when I do, the BIOS freezes (there is no option listed.) I have to ctrl-alt-del out, and I tried several more times. Finally I gave up and thank god I backed up my older main BIOS to the Backup BIOS. I copy the Backup BIOS to Main BIOS, modified the RAM clock to AUTO and reinstalled F4 BIOS. RAM clock still displays 100MHz, but this time I was able to modify the field. Weird huh? That's why you're supposed to be happy for Dual BIOS!

CPU Temperature seems to be responding normally(and correctly) for me - I have 34C at Idle. I think that's about right.

Aaanyway!

 

[Brickster]

Originally posted by: savoybc

Going to install F4 BIOS in a few minutes. Going to copy Main BIOS to Backup BIOS in case I don't like F4 first...

Looks like you already went through with this, but you probably already had the F3 on your Backup BIOS installed from the factory, so it's not necessary to overwrite that. An alternative is to load the F3 onto a floppy or two, and flash from that. Your call, but I personally wouldn't push a Backup overwrite unless totally necessary - plus, even though Ballistyx never uses his, a cheap ol' floppy disk still can prove useful

For those who haven't seen it, Check giga site for BIOS flashing on this one - good information HERE.

 

[savoybc]

I avoid using a floppy disk whenever possible. Old technology... time to move onto new technology!

Running Prime95 Torture test with same settings, only difference this time it's F4 BIOS. Let's see how well she operates!

By the way I'm almost out of floppy disks. :thumbsup:

 

[Brickster]

So, let me ask this question...

Does anyone have 4 DIMMS installed with Dual Channel enabled, and are able to run at normal speeds?

I.e., are we limiting our HT speed by using all 4 slots?

Just looking for some clarification.

thanks,

 

[BF04]

Couple of questions since i have not used a Gigabyte with dual bios before.

1. What are talking about F4 bios, F3 bios? Does it give you an option to load certain bios on boot? Or is one just a primary and one a backup?
2. Is it easy to flash? If I want to flash my main bios to back bios(like someone did eariler) how easy is it?
3. So far the main problem I was reading was that CPU temp which was fixed? Also if your running 4 dimms could be a problem. I plan on running 2 dims OCZ performance Series DDR PC-3500 2x512ram.
4. are there any other real issues that people are having ie open box wont boot..etc?

I dont plan on doing OCing, or very little if at all. However, I want a board that is fast and stable and so far the 939s arenot looking like it.

I am going to be using a 90mn 3200+, I want to use a ZALMAN CNPS7000A-Cu or possible CNPS7000B if I can find it. Will the CNPS7000A fit on this board?

thx for any help

 

[flawlssdistortn]

You are correct BFO4, there is just a primary and a backup. If there is an error in the primary, the system automatically goes to the backup. And yes, it is fairly easy to flash, as a windows program that does just this is included on the driver CD. The CPU temp problem has been fixed.

 

[flawlssdistortn]

I noticed in the BIOS options that there is a feature "enable 2T timming". Obviously this is the command rate, but the only selections are "auto", "enable", and "disable". Does this mean that there is no 1T command rate, or would that be "disable"? And what do you guys have this set on? I tried calling gigabyte tech support but couldnt get a straight answer. Some of those guys are ridiculousyl incompetent. The guy i spoke to clearly learned english like 4 months ago and tried to tell me that there was no known problem with corsair memory, and that my board did not support dual channel mode. Also, I was unable to get any documentation for the F4 bios. I mean honestly, who puts out an update with no documentation?!?! For all we know, the BIOS department hard-coded our temperature readings in and didn't do a goddamn thing regarding dual channel memory instabilities.

 

[savoybc]

Torture test fails at 14 hour mark this time. I'm stumped...

This is using DIMMS 1 & 2. I'm going to try DIMM 3&4.

Edit:
BFO4, to flash main BIOS to bakcup BIOS and vice versa go into BIOS and then hit F8. Hit enter to enter DUAL BIOS utility. Go to Q Flash (on the bottom) and you'll see your options.

 

[pantner]

ok, installed the official F4...nothing really wrong with it...my temp read a *little* higher (about 2C) but nothing drastic.....

seems ok......

 

[Ballistyx]

I've reverted to the F3 BIOS. I found a few things wrong with the F4 BIOS. I'm going to send Gigabyte a note telling them what I found. Here it is:

My USB2.0 HD fails to be detected in Windows XP with the F4 BIOS. The HD activity LED on the drive just stays on steadily. If I connect the drive to my IBM ThinkPad T40 laptop, it works fine. If I revert my BIOS to the F3 BIOS, it works fine. I checked the USB settings under the F4 BIOS, and they ARE correct. In fact, they're the same settings that worked fine for the F3 BIOS.

If you insert four DIMMs and the memory bus speed is set to 200 (which is what it defaults to.. at least for me), instead of automatically kicking down the speed (or, as the F3 BIOS did, just give you an error beep), the machine boots from the backup BIOS.

 

[pantner]

the thing with your USB hard drive is weird.....my 256mb thumbdrive works fine....i'll give my dad's 2.5" USB Case a try and see if that works...

 

[imported_orionbg]

Hi All

I have the K8NSNXP-939 and an Athlon64 3500+. Dual channel is nowhere near stable!! Random restarts and so on! Using both the F3 and F4 BIOS!! Is there a way out of the situation??

 

[imported_Hornswoggler]

Originally posted by: orionbg
Hi All

I have the K8NSNXP-939 and an Athlon64 3500+. Dual channel is nowhere near stable!! Random restarts and so on! Using both the F3 and F4 BIOS!! Is there a way out of the situation??

What memory are you using?

What DIMM slots are you using?

May or may not be a solution other than to RMA your motherboard, or get something different.

 

[flawlssdistortn]

Originally posted by: orionbg
Hi All

I have the K8NSNXP-939 and an Athlon64 3500+. Dual channel is nowhere near stable!! Random restarts and so on! Using both the F3 and F4 BIOS!! Is there a way out of the situation??

Also, tell us what power supply you have... It should definitely be at least 400W.

 

[Pohemi]

AAARRRGH!! This is the first time I've used anything Gigabyte, and I'm not impressed. You have to write them a short novel just to ask a simple question!(Tech support from website)

I built this system last week:
GA-K8NSNXP-939(F3 bios)
Athlon 64 3500 w/Thermaltake Venus 12 HSF
Corsair TwinX1024 3200XLL
BFG GeForce 6800 Ultra OC
(2) WD 74Gb Raptors in Raid-0 on Sil ports
Maxtor 250Gb SATA NOT Raid on Nvidia port
Ultra X-connect 500W PSU
Thermaltake XaserIII case(7 fans)

Initially I had a ton of problems configuring the Raid array and installing WindowsXP Pro. Took me about a day but finally worked through that. Now, as most of you with similar memory, I have not been able to stabilize my RAM in dual channel. I've been following this forum quite often lately for advice(THANKS GUYS!), but am still sorely disappointed in the obvious shortcomings of my system. The best settings I have found for both speed AND stability in dual channel are as such:

F3 bios version(afraid to mess w/F4!)
Max memclock set to 166 in bios
Latency timings set to 2-3-2-9(from 2-2-2-6)in bios
HT multiplier set to 4x(from 5x)in bios
CPU multiplier set to 10.5 in bios
CPU voltage: 1.6
DDR voltage: +.2
HT voltage: +.2

THEN, from EasyTune4 in windows:
Turned up System bus to....218? I think so...

this will raise the DDR speed to about 181. This is about the highest I've been able to set up the system and not fail miserably in Prime95. When you turn the max memclock down in Bios to 166, ET4 will show your CPU clock lower than stock, around 2.1 gHz. After you adjust the system bus(NOT DRAM SPEED) from ET4, it ends up around 2.3 gHz, a very slight increase from stock speeds. I guess this will do for now, but it still sucks.
Finally, I have a problem I have NOT seen on any forums yet. After flashing the bios(F3, just to reset it) my system will now only boot every other time I turn it on or restart it. I have cleared the bios a few times now and even booted from my backup Bios, but the problem persists. It stalls and locks at the boot screen where it says it's detecting IDE devices. I have to hard reset it, and then it'll boot fine. The bios is identifying my Raid-0 array as an SCSI device even though it's SATA, and my storage drive(SATA also) as an IDE drive. Could there be something wrong the SATA drivers or is it the Bios/Mobo? Both the array and the other SATA drive work fine once Windows is booted. What's my problem? SOMEBODY HELP ME PLEASE!!

 

[imported_Hornswoggler]

Best advice I can give is to get different memory.

I have been having better luck with Crucial Ballistix with this chipset.

Ugh, I don't think much of the gigabyte board either. I definately think its a combination of problems.