Official GA-8IEXP Thread !!!! Able to hit 150 FSB with 3:4 ratio STABLE!!! RMAing board b/c i found a better board !!!!

[Sukhoi]

If the 2 USB 2.0 sockets are used by the rear USB, where would I plug in the front USB ports?

There are two pinouts on the mobo itself for USB wires/connectors. Normally these two go to the USB slot cover you get with the mobo. I guess you could run one of those to the front of the case and then only use two of the four on the back slot connector. If you do this just cover the two dead ports with tape or something. Just tell the person you rerouted those ports to the front of the case so they are easier to use.

What's the FireWire issue you're talking about?

 

[gsethi]

ok.....update on this mobo again........

I am thinking about sending this motherboard back but decided to give it a last try. Reinstalled Win XP again...

Right now, I am running stable at 140 FSB at DDR 372 @ 2.7v dram voltage @ default CPU Voltage. My hopes have come back again.
This was my first try on this reinstall.

Next, i will try 145 FSB with 3:4 ratio and then 150 fsb with 3:4 ratio (My ultimate goal).

I have disabled RAID this time though. Last time Raid was enabled and there were drives connected to RAID. I wonder if Raid affects overclocking.

will keep you updated.........

 

[gsethi]

Ok here are my Sandra scores at 145 FSB: system again seems stable....ran Prime 95 for about 10 min but before it used to fail within 1st minute
Memory: 2908 seems like it is at true DDR 386.

TIME TO REJOICE
FSB: 150 Mhz:
Memory: 3011 (DDR 399)

Stability: Prime 95 ran for 45 minutes (stopped by me)

My Current BIOS Settings:

FSB: 150 Mhz
Memory Ratio: 2.66 (3:4)
DRam Voltage: 2.80v maxed out
CPU VCore: 1.55 v (@ default, board was undervolting.....now actual is 1.53 v)
Memory Cas: 2.5/6/3/3

RAID DISABLED for now.

Air Cooling: Thermaltake Dragon 478 @ medium setting (~4600 - 4800 rpm)
CPU Temp: 54-56 C Full load (running heatsink fan at full speed reduces by ~2-3C but it is loud)

Sukhoi, you wanna give this config a shot ? I think that RAID is the culprit but not sure.....will enable Raid later and then update here. Right now, i want to see how high i can go.

EDIT: Changed CPU VCore to default now
Memory CAS set to SPD now.....everything else same
Testing Prime 95 again........seems stable again
Sandra score: 3013

Seems like i dont have to send this board back now

now, i am just wondering how will the GA-8IGXP do. will it also perform like this board ? What about 4:5 memory ratio on the GXP ? if it is included, i will get that one and try to run my setup at 160 FSB with 4:5 memory ratio (we humans will never get satisfied )

ofcourse, i havnt tested the limit of my memory yet. My CPU can go upto 165 FSB (upper limit not tested yet). If the GA-8IGXP will be as good as this board, then i will be getting that one and run my 1.6a at 160 FSB with DDR 400 . Now i want the GA-8IGXP...........

 

[gsethi]

UPDATE:

Prime 95 failed after 25 minutes when i used "SPD". After that it would fail again within 1st minute.

Changed back CAS to 2.5/6/3/3 and it is running fine again......will let it run for atleast 30 min tonight before going to sleep now. Again, i havnt tested the limits on how high my RAM will go. CPU limit hasnt been determined yet but it was stable at 165 FSB using 1:1 memory ratio.

Sandra scores are 30xx (3011 - 3033). Looks like actual DDR 399.

Sukhoi, i would like to hear from you too. Burn in your board for about 2-3 days at default speeds and then try the higher speeds.
I also went to higher speeds at first and it wouldnt do it. Ran it @ default for couple of days and was gonna RMA it tomorrow morning. I was going to get the Epox 4G4A+ tomorrow morning and compare the two actually. But now, i will stress test this board tomorrow .

 

[gsethi]

UPDATE:

Prime 95 failed this time with CAS 2.5/6/3/3 after about 20 minutes. First time, it went on for over an hour....hmmm......
then next two times, it failed within first minute.
Now, its going again and it has been about 10 min........what to do.....what to do ?

i will run it this time overnight and see if it goes till morning. What do you guys say ? Should i go out and get the Epox 4G4A+ to compare with this board tomorrow morning or play more with this board only ?

Any Suggestions ????????

 

[oldfart]

Nobody has tried out the EPOX 4BEA or 4BEAR (RAID) 845E board yet. The 4BDA2+ was the best 845D out there. 150 FSB DDR400 is easy to do on them. It would be interesting to see if the 4BEA follows suit.

Did you try 2.5 7,3,3? 2.8 V on the ram is pretty high. Is it getting too hot?

 

[looper]

GSethi...

Wow, you've been spending a lot of time on that Gigabyte board...

Maybe, you should still consider the Abit IT7, and get the parallel and PS2 to USB adapter cables; or, get the Asus P4B533-V...

I'm doing exactly the above this afternoon: either the Abit IT7 or the Asus P4B533-V... what cpu do you think with these two, the 1.8a or the 2.0a... hoping to get to 2.6 or 2.7 OC on the cpu. I will have the Corsair XMS memory... with an Antec case w/430 PS...

 

[gpanda]

I'm returning my gigabyte. Never got it running at 150FSB with 400DDR.
I just threw my new IT7 up at 150FSB and 400DDR and it is working without a hitch. I'll push it some tonight and see where it goes.Gigabyte need to work on their board.

 

[oldfart]

From what I've seen so far with the new 845E/G boards, the ABIT BD7II/BG7/IT7 are the ones that are doing 150 FSB DDR400. I'm still curious about the EPOX 4BEA, but If I were to get a new 845E/G, it would be ABIT at this point.

 

[THUGSROOK]

right now its kinda a givin that you aint gonna be running much higher then 400DDR.
with that in mind - a 160fsb 4:5 400DDR is preferable over a 150fsb 3:4 400DDR.

all that onboard equipment is a bit of a deterant tho. i845G prices aint cheap either :disgust:

 

[walwynd]

hi.....gsethi, can the radeon 7000 64sdr video card 2x/4x work with the GA-8IEX?

 

[gsethi]

ok....heres another update:

Ran Prime 95 overnight (~7 hours) and it was going on until i woke this morning. So, i consider that system is 100% rock stable now.

Now, if i were to keep an I845E board, i would keep this one since i got DDR 400 on it and it has all the features. So, i am not looking for another I845E board now (that rules the IT7 and BD7II out)

Now, what i am really interested is the I845G board with 4:5 memory ratio. I want to run my setup at 160 fsb with DDR 400 (being greedy here). I have 4 boards in mind:

Epox 4G4A+ - despite initial problems, people are getting good overclocks now on this, i can go and get this today and then compare it with my EXP - $130
Asus P4b533-V - really nice board but way way expensive - $170+ - no way i will spend that much money on this board w/o Raid
GA-8IGXP - not realeased yet but full of features - probably will be around $150
Abit BG7 - it lacks features and is last on my list

what do you guys say ? should i go and get the 4G4A+ ?

walwynd....any AGP card should be fine on the EX tooo (just make sure that it is not the 3.3v one)

 

[looper]

GSethi...

So, you're thinking the Asus P4B533-V will be "faster", (all things considered), than the Abit IT7 ?

 

[gsethi]

Abit IT7 will have 3:4 memory ratio and so that will be 150 FSB @ DDR 400

Asus P4B533-V also has 4:5 memory ratio and so that will be 160 FSB @ DDR 400 (this will be faster).

but IT7 definately has more features like Raid, IEEE, more USB ports and so on as compared to the Asus board.

it depends on what you want........more features with little less performance or more performance with less features ?

Also, the P4B533-V is way expensive for me, thats what actually keeping me away from trying it.

i still dont know about the Epox 4G4A+.....whether to go and get it or not ? what do you guys say ?

 

[bwass24]

I HAD an Epox 4G4A+ for a few days. It ran great! I had my 1.6A CPU (Vcore=1.60) running at 162fsb with 4:5 mem (Vdimm=default) and I got a Sandra mem score of 3089.

That was until a voltage regulator on the board fried:disgust:. It was right near the DIMM sockets, and since I wasn't running at over default voltage, I suspect that it was just infant mortality. I RMA'ed the baord and I should be getting a replacement some time next week.

I'll let you know what happens.

 

[walwynd]

only info on box is AGP 2x or AGP 2X / 4X universal slot....does not have any info obout 1.5v/3.3v.....

 

[gsethi]

going to get the Epox 4G4A+ then....if you were able to get 162 FSB and will see what happens.....

walynd.....its 1.5v.......go ahead and pop it in......

 

[Rkonster]

I am planning to run my 1.6A at around 2.7 with 1:1 divider. So DDR will be around 340 or so. I am also planning to use a raid mirrored storage device. Do you still think I should say way from this board?

EDIT: I just got my Gigabtye 8IRXP from newegg AGAIN, and this time it has the reboot issue at all FSB over default with the latest F7 bios, so that must be RMAed. Now I have no board again!

 

[looper]

I pulled the trigger...can't believe it...

Ordered Abit IT7, P4 1.8a, Corsair XMS512-3200 memory, Gainward GForce 4-4400 Ultra, Antec 830 case w/430 true power, Santa Cruz sound, Lite-On Burner, Toshiba DVD Reader, Linksys router, Win XP...Haven't decided what HSF yet...thoughts?

I'm psyched...geez...next Friday by the time I fire it up...an ETERNITY...

Thx for all the input from different people over these past 4 weeks or so...

 

[gsethi]

wow....horrible day to drive in the Bay Area today. accidents everywhere.......
just got the EPox 4G4A+ and will test it soon.

regarding the heatsink looper, get ThermalTake Dragon 478 or Thermaltake Volcano 7+. I have the dragon and it is good. temps are down like 5-6C as compared to stock running at middle speed. Make sure that you get the "S" version with the switch so that you can control the fan speed else the fan maybe too loud.

ok....gotta test the 4G4A+ now....wish me luck

 

[Sukhoi]

Interesting that you're now getting good memory speeds again...I'll have to go try DDR354 again and see how it works.

Where the heck are you getting all those memory speed settings from? I have the F3 BIOS and there is nowhere to set CAS speeds. The only thing I can do is turn the "Top Performance" on or off.

I don't think I'm going to turn the RAID controller off as I'm using it for my main HDD right now and I'd have to rerun all the cables in my case to get my HDD on the motherboard controller.

Have you tried enabling RAID again and seeing if it affects anything?

 

[gsethi]

Sukhoi, press CTRL + F1 to go into advanced BIOS there you will see advanced menu where you can change CAS settings. My memory wont run over DDR 354 at 2/6/3/3 but it runs DDR 400 at 2.5/6/3/3. try that.

I havnt turned back RAID.....so i cant input on that right now.

Right now, i have my EXP plugged out and am installing WIN XP on the Epox 4g4a+. on first impression, it looks better than the EXP. The quality of the board looks much better as compared to EXP but will let you know the overclocking results of that in a short while, couple of hours.

let me know if you can reach DDR 400 on the EXP. reduce the CAS to 2.5, bump up the voltage to DRAM (mine took 2.80v inorder to be stable). Top performance disabled.......i dont think that RAID will have any affect on overclocking but you never know.

hope that helps

 

[Sukhoi]

My processor won't do 150 MHz FSB, so I can't test DDR400 at all. I'm going to be doing some more overclocking tests the next few days, so I'll let you know if I ever get DDR354 stable. I'm not sure if I'll go up to 2.8V RAM voltage though...kinda hesitant to run such expensive RAM at that high of voltage. I'll do 2.6V for sure and probably 2.7V, but I dunno about 2.8V.

Thanks for letting me know about the Ctrl-F1 thing, where did you hear that?

 

[gsethi]

hehe..np

i know....Gigabyte should mention that CTRL-F1 in the manual but no....guess they are lazy guys.

Thanks to a fellow anandtecher (was it Barrei or bwass ?? ) who has a GA-8IRXP who told me that. It is somewhere mentioned in this thread if i recall correctly.

btw, that Epox 4G4A+ is turning out to be a better board this one........

 

[Sukhoi]

What does the "Top Performance" mode actually do? I thought it set it to CAS2 rather than running it at SPD, but according to the advanced BIOS screen the memory timings don't seem to change when the "Top Performance" mode is enabled or disabled.