*** Official ASUS P4C800/Deluxe (875P) Thread ***

[Xeon]

Originally posted by: Krellor
I can run stable at 247 FSB with a vCore of 1.600 with PAT/PAM and PM enabled, that is if you consider 12 hours of Prime 95 stable.

I just can't go above 247 without moving the vCore all the way up to 1.7. At 1.7 I'm stable at 250 (and maybe at little higher, but 255 was a no go), I'm just afraid to keep my processor running at that high of a voltage setting when everything I've read says "Don't go above 1.7". Especially since with this particular board 1.7 actually means as high as 1.728 at idle and only 1.6 on load.

I realize 3.2 ghz at a voltage of 1.600 is a decent overclock, I was just hoping for a bit more. It's just frustrating when I can see the darn thing running stable at 250 FSB with an "actual" vCore of 1.6 when it's really set at 1.7 in the BIOS. If it didn't fluctuate so much I could easily do 250 with it set way lower than 1.7 and maybe even go a little higher.

Oh well, like I said 3.2 is a decent overclock and I can live with that I suppose.

Yeah, I wouldn't feel to bad Krellor, that's a decent overclock with that processor and keep in mind, we all feel that way no matter how high we get our systems to go LOL! I want 300 FSB with what I got but it's just not happenin LOL!

Anyway, you might want to try another processor or even try swapping the ram with some other sticks to see if it helps or makes it worse. At least then you'd know.

Talk to you soon,

 

[Xeon]

Originally posted by: rpr
I have the typical Vcore fluctuations at 1.60v (1.56 - 1.64v), which doesn't seem to affect my performance or stability. However, my 12v rail is all over the place. It swings from 11.5v to 12.3v!!! I can even hear the fans in my system slowing down when it is under load and the 12v rail drops.

How can I figure out if this is being caused by the motherboard or my power supply? If I need to check the 12v rail directly on the PSU, is there a link to a tutorial on how to do this?

There are two ways you can do this. You can disconnect everything from the plugs and test them at the plug end using a voltmeter, or most voltmeters come with sharp pointed ends that you can either push through the wires themselves while the machine is running (just be careful) or manage to slide them into the connectors touching the metel at the plugs while everything is still hooked up.

As for an actual tutorial, I haven't seen any but you may be able to find them doing a search via Google.com. I try keywords like 'Testing Rails of a PSU' etc.

 

[Crashman]

Heheh, his 12v is all over the place, mine wasn't...but I went further and installed a buffer! What was this magic "buffer"? A car battery!

My CPU is stable at 3250MHz at voltages between 1.64v and 1.75v. If the board did a reasonable job of keeping the core voltage stable I'd set it at 1.675v and get 1.65-1.70v. But it doesn't, motherboard monitor and probe both show it drops below 1.63v and spikes above 1.76v. Well, actually they only show those as the max volages since anything lower than 1.63v results in a lockup, and anything higher than 1.76v a spontanious reboot.

 

[rpr]

Alright, now I'm getting pissed with this board.

For the second night in a row, Asus Probe has shown my PSU fan speed instantaneously drop to zero (but it is still running strong), and my CPU temp instantaneously spiking from 24C to 84C, yet the heatsink is still cool to the touch and the CPU fan is working.

I mean instantaneous. If I check the readings under History, it is an instantaneous change.

What is going on???

 

[Crashman]

I haven't had that problem with this board, but I have had it on other Asus boards. Try using MBM5 instead of Probe.

 

[rpr]

Actually, I just did that. Initially, I got the same reults with MBM5.

I then closed them both, left them closed for a few minutes, and started MBM5 back up, and now my readings are normal.

Since both programs do it, it has to be faulty sensors on the motherboard right?

 

[Xeon]

Originally posted by: rpr
Alright, now I'm getting pissed with this board.

For the second night in a row, Asus Probe has shown my PSU fan speed instantaneously drop to zero (but it is still running strong), and my CPU temp instantaneously spiking from 24C to 84C, yet the heatsink is still cool to the touch and the CPU fan is working.

I mean instantaneous. If I check the readings under History, it is an instantaneous change.

What is going on???

You know, it's funny you mention this rpr, when I initially setup my box, I had this same problem, but then I re-did all my wiring (rerouted and reconnected all my plugs from the PSU to all the equipment) and it went away. Never saw a problem with it after that.

What PSU are you using and do you have fan speed controllers in your box?

 

[Xeon]

Originally posted by: jhites

Originally posted by: Xeon

Originally posted by: Krellor
I'm running an Antec Truepower 480. All the rest of my voltages are stable as a rock. It's just the vcore.

Well then the other thing I would Identify is where this cpu of yours was made. I run the same RAM and MB, but I'm running the 2.4C and not the 2.6C.

Just another thing to consider.

Do you have another cpu and set of RAM there you can test with? That could really elliminate all the other things I can think of that could cause this kind of extreme problem.

The voltage fluxuation on the vcore is a characteristic of this board. You will find that most everyone has a different range for their fluxuation but most are pretty close to the same. 1.600vcore seems to be the safe sweet spot for this board. I am running the Antec Truepower 480 and a 2.6C on mine and do get vcore fluxuation with all the other voltages readings being stable. From the tests that I have run on my board, using 1.5875vcore will hold under full load at around 1.52-.53v. Sounds like your cpu is good up to about 3.2Ghz using the 1.600v and that is most likely where you need to be.

Yeah, I think your right John. BTW, how are those new Raptors doing?

 

[computer]

Hey guys, sorry I can read through the newest 3 pages of posts, I've been very busy lately. But I did come across a couple I may be able to add something to:

Okay next question. How much Vcore is safe on these processors? I see what you guys are talking about with the drops in voltage if you up it. I'm still testing 250 FSB but I'm at 1.7 now. That's the only voltage that doesn't drop below 1.6 when under load. So far I'm stable but I'm letting Prime95 run for a while. Is 1.7 okay or is it too much? My temp tops out at 46C with 1.7 so that shouldn't be a problem.

To the newbies on this particular thread: if you read back few pages for my posts, you'll see I had a Rev. 1.2 and had to RMA it and I got a Rev. 2.0 back. It still has the same countless thousands of errors every E-Deluxe version has running the Windows Memory Diagnostics program (aka WMD) when ANY drive is connected to the Promise controller and enabled. The only thing I DID notice to be different between them was the CPU voltage; it was more stable on the Rev 2.0 but it made no difference in any performance or O'clock ability. So, my assumption on that was the Vcore stability mod probably won't help. Someone mentioned they have to go to 1.7v to see stability......WOW. Every time I tried at any voltage over 1.6v, it dropped down to 1.525v!! In my cases, setting Vcore to 1.58x volts was MUCH higher than setting it to 1.625v! It's a little less "fluctuating" on the Rev. 2.0.

Has anyone had any problems running dual channel on a P4C800-E Deluxe rev 2.00?
I have 2 sticks of Corsair XMS3200C2 512MB and they run fine one at a time in single-channel mode. They run fine together in single-channel mode. But trying to run both at the same time in dual channel and the computer turns on (all fans running) and just sits there and the monitor stays in sleep mode--no beeps or anything--just in a zombie-like state.
Anyone experienced this? It's a brand new board I just got from Newegg. I've changed power supplies, disconnected all MB accessories, IDE devices, etc. The only thing I haven't done is tried changing ram sticks. I might be able to get someone else to sticks his sticks in there and see if it does the same thing but I thought I'd ask here and find if anyone else has any problems like this.

Is this the dual channel kit TwinX? If not, that's probably your problem...your sticks are not matched.

Someone, or you asked about dual channel memory and what it was. It's the same thing, the sticks are just matched and guaranteed to run optimally in dual channel mode. Sometimes you can luck out and happen to get 2 DDR sticks that are perfectly matched and will run great in DC mode, sometimes you won't. Getting 2 sticks in a "dual channel" kit is supposed to guarantee you of the best DC operation.

 

[rpr]

Xeon:

I have an Enermax EG465P-VE FM (431W) PSU. Supposedly has 20A on the 12V rail. It has fan speed monitoring, but not fan speed controllers.

I really think I may need a new PSU. I can even hear my fans slow down whenever I am doing anything to load the machine. It's even noticeable when I am doing something very simple like highlighting a column of cells in Microsoft Excel. I paid a fortune for this PSU 2 years ago. I guess I'm just not completely convinced it is the PSU and not the motherboard at this point.

 

[computer]

FWIW, I've heard bad things about PS's with fan monitoring sensors and the like. Mainly, they add noise to the circuit. This was either at the Tom's Hardware power supply review, or the Anandtech PS review.

 

[Xeon]

Originally posted by: rpr
Xeon:

I have an Enermax EG465P-VE FM (431W) PSU. Supposedly has 20A on the 12V rail. It has fan speed monitoring, but not fan speed controllers.

I really think I may need a new PSU. I can even hear my fans slow down whenever I am doing anything to load the machine. It's even noticeable when I am doing something very simple like highlighting a column of cells in Microsoft Excel. I paid a fortune for this PSU 2 years ago. I guess I'm just not completely convinced it is the PSU and not the motherboard at this point.

Yeah, I can understand your frustration for sure. The only thing I can say about this is to test your PSU with a voltmeter and have someone help you, by doing some of the things you mention to make it drop in voltage. If it indeed drops as drastically as you think it is, then I'd say a new one is in order. If it doesn't then your probably right it's something else.

Having a bad PSU however can cause all kinds of bizare behaviour to occur in peoples machines. Things you wouldn't even think could be caused by a bad PSU. You'll definately have to decide and test other things to try to come to some conclusion as to whether or not it's indeed your PSU.

If you decide to get another one. I highly recommend PC Power & Cooling PSU's. I run a Turbo Cool 510 Deluxe which does 510W Idle and 650W Peak. Unlike all the other vendors they list their IDLE Watts for their units instead of their Peak Watts. They are the most stable of any of the PSU's you can buy. They gaurantee only a +/-1% variation in voltages across all rails.

Sorry I can't help any further,

 

[Crashman]

Originally posted by: Xeon


If you decide to get another one. I highly recommend PC Power & Cooling PSU's. I run a Turbo Cool 510 Deluxe which does 510W Idle and 650W Peak. Unlike all the other vendors they list their IDLE Watts for their units instead of their Peak Watts. They are the most stable of any of the PSU's you can buy. They gaurantee only a +/-1% variation in voltages across all rails.

Sorry I can't help any further,

Fortron Source (maker of Sparkle as well as many Aopen and Inwin power supplies) uses a similar rating system which is why their 350W unit can output well over 400W, it's the unit I recommend to most of my friends and clients.

 

[CiscoMercado]

I'm having the same problems with the P4C800 rev2 board. The vcore fluctuations is keeping me from staying put at 3.4. It's funny that my other board MSI 865PE neo2 can maintain a higher OC than the P4C800.

 

[computer]

Cisco, If you're SURE it's Vcore instability, then the Vcore mod may help you in your case.

Crashman, I use the Fortron-Source FSP400-60PFN because it was the highest rated 400 & under by Tom's Hardware and Anandtech.

I got my new P2.4C from Intel and now it will do 270mhz (3.24ghz) with my OLD CHEAP PC2700 memory I took from my P4B533 (set to SPD and "266" in the BIOS). No Memtest errors and no WMD errors even in extended tests. My replacement memory is due in from Geil Monday or Tuesday so it should do at LEAST that with the replacement Geil PC4000 UP. The CPU I RMA'd would only do 255mhz TOPS. I can't say enough about Intel. In only 5 biz days I sent the CPU back to them and RECEIVED THE NEW ONE, all in only 5 days and they even sent me a Malaysian CPU and sent it 2nd Day Air. I had a Costa Rican CPU and I asked them to send a Malaysian to replace it and I really didn't think they would. They also sent a new HSF unit, it was a complete retail boxed CPU and I only sent them the bare CPU. Geil was also very fast, it only took them two days to send the new memory after they received my old. From the looks of it Intel sent the new CPU minutes after receiving my old one.

I still may end up getting an IC7-G or 865 Neo2 FIS2R due to the WMD errors w/Promise enabled issue.

 

[rpr]

Computer:

On what basis was your original CPU RMA'd? From your explanation, it sounds like it peformed better than rated. It's only "guaranteed" to do 12x200fsb = 2.4 Ghz.

 

[Crashman]

Yes, the Fortron 400W is a great unit, but I prefer the 350W for it's low noise, adjustable 120mm fan. Anandtech reviewed it as a Sparkle Power unit. There are 3 versions at Newegg, two labled Fortron Source and one labled Sparkle, the only differences between them is some have a lighted fan and others don't have the LED.

 

[rpr]

I have a question for those of you that are happy with your overclocking results with this board. My Kingston HyperX PC400 is disappointing. It gives lots of errors in MemTest86 at any 5:4 settings. Seems strange, as higher DDR fsb speeds at 1:1 don't give me any errors. I think this memory is CH5, which I wasn't expecting from PC4000.

If I were to RMA this memory (not sure if Zip Zoom Fly will take it back), what is the concensus on the absolute best memory for this board to get the most out of my overclock.

 

[Crashman]

Have you tried cranking up the RAM voltage?

 

[rpr]

Yep...doesn't seem to make any diff.

 

[computer]

On what basis was your original CPU RMA'd? From your explanation, it sounds like it performed better than rated. It's only "guaranteed" to do 12x200fsb = 2.4 Ghz.

Somewhere on the past pages I mentioned the same kind of errors and in the exact same place running Memtest, and even with different memory. So, I figured it was the CPU. Also, many times when I'd start the mobo up, I'd keep getting "CPU overclocked failed" and it wouldn't even have to be O'clocked. Yeah, any and all CPU's will O'clock some, and we all know they are only guaranteed at their stamped speed, but from what I've heard about the 2.4C, only getting 3ghz out of one is not very good. My suspicions were correct since the errors have disappeared, plus it OC's better and it being Malaysian probably has something to do with that as well.

On your memory, it depends on your CPU. But if you'd read a bit here you'd see it's OCZ's new 4200EL for the best memory. That's for a 2.4 - 2.6..maybe 2.8 too. For a 3ghz & higher, I think Mushkin PC3500 Level II showed a bit better than the OCZ 4200, but can't recall. You can check the memory tests @Anand to be sure. If you can't find the links, LMK. Two are called "memory holy grail" Pt. 1 & Pt. 2 and I think the other was a review on the Mushkin, or maybe the OCZ 4200 and they retested all the memory again for those reviews.

Now if you're going to use Single Sided memory and want to go with 4 sticks, Geil PC4000 Ultra Platinum would probably be best. It's what I use (2 x 256mb). 4 DS sticks disable PAT, but 4 SS sticks do not disable PAT. DS sticks give you more performance/bandwidth on this mobo according to the tests, and even with PAT disabled if I recall it still had a slight edge over 4 SS sticks. I wanted DS sticks and thought the Geil was, but it wasn't and I was ticked at first until I realized that with the Geil I'd still be able to have PAT enabled when I got two more 256mb sticks. Their 1gb DC kit is DS'd, but their 512mb kit is SS. I just didn't want to shell out over 300 bucks for memory at one time, hence the buying of the 256mb x 2. Micheal (Xeon) said on his personal tests he had better results with only 2 sticks of his OCZ Vs. 4 sticks. I don't recall if his is 512mb or 1gb kit, but it is DS'd.

ANY of the OCZ Gold is GREAT (3700, 4000 & 4200). The Geil PC4000 Ultra Platinum is great but ONLY if your CPU will O'clock well, and you can get something more than 265-270mhz FSB because that's when it shines. At lower DDR speeds like DDR500-515 or so, it's not very fast (it can run at DDR546). If you have a 2.4C or 2.6C and want the best O'clocking @ 1:1, skip the OCZ3700 and go with the 4000 or 4200, or the Geil 4000.

 

[jhites]

Originally posted by: Xeon

Yeah, I think your right John. BTW, how are those new Raptors doing?

Never even got to install them. Had some very high
unexpected expenses and decided to sell both of the Raptors.
I will be getting some more in a couple of months.

 

[computer]

By then they'll probably be $99 and the new Raptors $150.

 

[rpr]

Computer:

Thanks for the info. ZZF is going to charge me a 15% restocking fee, but I'm not happy with the HyperX (CH-5). I'll let you know what I end up with.

 

[E-T00L]

Hey everyone Im new to this thread and just got a rev. 2 board this past Friday. I had nightmare from the start because I kept getting file copy errors installing Windows. It turned out my Geil memory I had purchased had one stick that was faulty. One quick question I have is about the whole AI Voice thing. I heard it when I had the onboard sound on but I think my Audigy probally has better sound. Is there any way I can hear the AI Voice through my PCI SB Audigy?





P4 2.4c SL6WR made in China
Asus P4C800-E deluxe
Geil 2x512 PC4000 Golden Dragon RMA'd
ATI Radeon 9500 Pro
Sound Blaster Audigy
Antec Sonata case