The Unofficial ASUS P5N-E SLI 650i Board Thread

[Core2]

Originally posted by: KilleRomantic
Hi, I just buy a P5N-E SLI ASUS motherboard, and after instalation (hardware & windows) I use the ASUS Update to flash the older 0202 BIOS version to the 0401, during this the machine crash. I wait for several minutes to ensure the PC was REALLY crashed.
I shutdown and when booting there was no video response, no beeping at all, the HD light stay on each time i reset. I don't know if there is something I can do before send the board back.

Everything I tried had the same rasults, NOTHING.

1- I put out all my HD and left only a CD player with the ASUS CD installation.
2- I clear the CMOS
3- I put out all my memories, except one of course
4- I even tried to boot whitought the video card to see if it give me a beep error

I'm hoping for a good answer...!

Sorry to say but, a bad flash means a dead board. RMA the board back. Next time if your going to flash the bios do it within the bios not in windows

 

[dustycpu]

Hi all, i'm new to this board. I recently setup a P5N-E system (I finally upgraded after 5 years from AMD XP 1900+).

After trying to setup a Gigabyte DS3 P965 board, it was really unstable, only once was I able to load windows and perform some benchmarking. After my frustration, I purchased a P5N-E board and installed.

It seems to be stable at 350x8 for a E6400 (2.8Ghz). Memory timings are at 4-4-4-12-2T. Vcore is set to 3.500v, and using a Zalman 9700 for cooling. I am unable to get it stable at 3.0ghz or higher using active cooling on NB and SB. I have put a fan on the NB, and a heatsink/fan on the SB.

This board seems slower than the DS3 P965 chipset, especially while benchmarking real life applications, such as compressing video.

DS3 P965 - 36 minutes for DVD to AVI
P5N-E -55 minutes for DVD to AVI

Anand's review also verified that disk access slows down during heavy processing.

Super Pi on P5N-E is 20s for 1M.

I've read the reviews about 650i not performing well in disk access and also multi-tasking performance. Am I doing something wrong or do you think that Asus / Nvidia will release patches / bios to fix this issue?

Thanks in advance...

 

[Nalle]

Hello

Total newbie here when it comes to core 2 duo systems and i need some help. All my parts just arrived and i'm currently trying to install the processor but have a question in this regard. The problem is that the load plate is slightly bended, which results in having to apply quite an amount of force to push the lever down. I'm not sure, but the amount of force needed feels like it might crush the cpu. Is this normal or am I completely borked?

Thanks in advance.

 

[jkcheng122]

well not sure how it looks in ur situation, but do make sure the cpu and the socket alignment matches. it does take a bit of force put push it down and it felt like to me also that something might get crushed. u should be able to push it down with just one finger, if it takes more than that i'd be a little worried.

 

[Nalle]

Well, unfortunately it doesn't look too good. By only pressing on it a little it actually made tiny marks in the IHS on the cpu. Aside from that, the motherboard is so greasy on the backside that it looks like a disgruntled technician poored soda on it. The box also wasn't sealed so it has probably been opened, possibly used before. Definately not gonna buy from that retailer again :disgust:

Thanks for the reply though.

 

[jkcheng122]

which retailer was it (hope it's not directron) so we know to stay away from it in the future.

but just a note, motherboard boxes are never sealed, i'm not sure why, but they come from the manufacturers/distributors that way. so u can't really tell if it's been opened by lookin at the box. greasy backside would be a good hint it's been tempered with.

 

[ArtfulCodger]

I wonder if anyone saw this...

http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=625&p=0

Jumping straight to 1750 fsb with a E6400 to get 3.5G without ANY voltage adjustments.
The only comment regarding stability says that it seems very stable....
Anyone like to comment on that....given my trials with an E6600...boots at 3.6 no problem but not Orthos stable....working back to a reasonable figure, I'll put it all in my sig when I get there....

A point on flashing the bios...this is my first ASUS board and I had problems just getting the bios flash routine to recognise where the new bios file was located...after about 6 attempts I got it to see the C drive and it went ok from there...it seems a trifle touchy to me....and I don't have a floppy on the system....in the end seemed to recognise my USB key though as well as the HDD.

BTW at idle at 3.6 (not Orthos stable remember) the cores were at 37 and 38 deg C ambient around 25C...

thanks to all the regulars on this thread....

 

[Nalle]

Originally posted by: jkcheng122
which retailer was it (hope it's not directron) so we know to stay away from it in the future.

but just a note, motherboard boxes are never sealed, i'm not sure why, but they come from the manufacturers/distributors that way. so u can't really tell if it's been opened by lookin at the box. greasy backside would be a good hint it's been tempered with.

Well the retailer is danish, so it shouldn't be a problem for that many people in this thread.
Also, they have a pretty good reputation so it's probably a fluke, although from my point of view it is of course just bad service.

The grease is pretty much all over the backside of the board, and on the edges I could actually peel off sticky gunks of grease.

You may be right about the sealing, I don't think I've seen a sealed anti-static bag but I do seem to recall a few motherboard boxes sealed with a little round sticker, might be wrong though.

This is a great thread by the way, lots of great info. Thanks to all involved and I'll likely be returning when I get my new system up and running, if the thread is still active that is

 

[darkshippo]

I guess you bricked your P5N-E SLI,KilleRomantic.

I've been narrowing down my problems with network connection problems. I'm using a 3com oldie 100Mbit card and i still get the same "limited networkconnectivity problem". Either my ISP doesn't like my switch or Win XP has somekind of bug. Now I'm putting a router infront of my connection. Then I can narrow out if I have problem with my ISP or this board simply is weird.. our my windows installation.

 

[Core2]

Originally posted by: dustycpu
Hi all, i'm new to this board. I recently setup a P5N-E system (I finally upgraded after 5 years from AMD XP 1900+).

After trying to setup a Gigabyte DS3 P965 board, it was really unstable, only once was I able to load windows and perform some benchmarking. After my frustration, I purchased a P5N-E board and installed.

It seems to be stable at 350x8 for a E6400 (2.8Ghz). Memory timings are at 4-4-4-12-2T. Vcore is set to 3.500v, and using a Zalman 9700 for cooling. I am unable to get it stable at 3.0ghz or higher using active cooling on NB and SB. I have put a fan on the NB, and a heatsink/fan on the SB.

This board seems slower than the DS3 P965 chipset, especially while benchmarking real life applications, such as compressing video.

DS3 P965 - 36 minutes for DVD to AVI
P5N-E -55 minutes for DVD to AVI

Anand's review also verified that disk access slows down during heavy processing.

Super Pi on P5N-E is 20s for 1M.

I've read the reviews about 650i not performing well in disk access and also multi-tasking performance. Am I doing something wrong or do you think that Asus / Nvidia will release patches / bios to fix this issue?

Thanks in advance...

I'd have to check back through my Super Pi scores but I'd say 20sec is normal at 2800MHz. Have you tried any other benchmarking programs. Run Future Mark 3Dmark06 or PCMark 05 and see what you get for a scores. The Intel chipset runs Super Pi's a little faster than Nvidia's chipset. Nvidia's a little faster in 3Dmarks. What kind of HD are you using. SATA, IDE or a combination of the two? Have you updated your Nividia chipset drivers? Page 92 of this thread has a link along a lot of info.

 

[dustycpu]

Hi Core2,

I have since then been able to oc to 3.0 Ghz and have it completly stable. It required the voltage increase of the nb to 1.39v. I am using the latest drivers from nvidia's website for my chipset and also video card. The score came right around the 3000 3Dmark06. Do you think this score is too low? I am not oc'ing my video card, its at default settings. (7600GT) I am using all IDE drives, I have 7 of them, 3 connected to the main IDE ports, and 4 connected to a 2 port ATA133 cards.

Speaking of drive controller cards, this motherboard will not work with the Highpoint 454 RocketRaid! No matter what settings in the bios, the card doesn't work. It works fine with my older board the Asus A7V333. I love this card because I can connect up to 8 drives, but I had to run out and purchase a 2 port generic ATA133 card from a local place because I needed the data from my drives. I have contacted Asus and HighPoint. Asus customer service is horrible, Highpoint suggests that I speak to Asus. Highpoint also said that they are very close with Asus to make sure their controller cards work, and that they would check into it.

Because i have so many drives, I believe the ICH8 on the P965 boards may have been a better choice for me. Ican't RMA this board, the vendor only has a limited exchange policy, no refunds. I will try to call them, maybe they will allow me to purchase a P5B Deluxe.

Any thoughts? Do you think I should go for the Intel Chipset?

Thanks..

 

[jkcheng122]

finally seeing some negative reviews on this motherboard: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mainboards/display/asus-p5ne-sli.html

and indeed quite a few of the negative points made have been experienced by users here.

 

[phog]

Originally posted by: dustycpu
Super Pi on P5N-E is 20s for 1M.

I run Super Pi in just under 18s on a E6600 @ 2.4 stock speed. But this is under Linux.

 

[darkshippo]

I found that review a bit weird. The author is comparing this board to an Asus Striker Extreme. I don't know about the pricerange in other countries in the world, but here in Sweden, Asus Striker Extreme costs 3 times more than the P5N-E SLI. Shame on Asus if they didn't build a better board setting a pricetag on Asus Striker Extreme.

 

[Core2]

Originally posted by: darkshippo
I guess you bricked your P5N-E SLI,KilleRomantic.

I've been narrowing down my problems with network connection problems. I'm using a 3com oldie 100Mbit card and i still get the same "limited networkconnectivity problem". Either my ISP doesn't like my switch or Win XP has somekind of bug. Now I'm putting a router infront of my connection. Then I can narrow out if I have problem with my ISP or this board simply is weird.. our my windows installation.

Try this post from Chung near the bottom.
Chung's Post

 

[jkcheng122]

striker is goin for $400 over here in the states with the p5n-e sli at about $130. asus didnt set that price tag btw, the demand for it did.

 

[Genuine Imitation]

yeah the striker is almost 3x as much in the US as the P5N-E. But the review was pretty solid in terms of what I complain about with this board too. Poor SATA and cmos reset placement, average to poor sound. But when I compared my other options, I was gonna have to spend double to get an intel SLI board, I can live with those smaller issues. The bottom line, the board runs stable even overclocked, runs my SLI cards without a hitch, and pushes my 6600 pretty far.

 

[Core2]

Originally posted by: dustycpu
Hi Core2,

I have since then been able to oc to 3.0 Ghz and have it completly stable. It required the voltage increase of the nb to 1.39v. I am using the latest drivers from nvidia's website for my chipset and also video card. The score came right around the 3000 3Dmark06. Do you think this score is too low? I am not oc'ing my video card, its at default settings. (7600GT) I am using all IDE drives, I have 7 of them, 3 connected to the main IDE ports, and 4 connected to a 2 port ATA133 cards.

Speaking of drive controller cards, this motherboard will not work with the Highpoint 454 RocketRaid! No matter what settings in the bios, the card doesn't work. It works fine with my older board the Asus A7V333. I love this card because I can connect up to 8 drives, but I had to run out and purchase a 2 port generic ATA133 card from a local place because I needed the data from my drives. I have contacted Asus and HighPoint. Asus customer service is horrible, Highpoint suggests that I speak to Asus. Highpoint also said that they are very close with Asus to make sure their controller cards work, and that they would check into it.

Because i have so many drives, I believe the ICH8 on the P965 boards may have been a better choice for me. Ican't RMA this board, the vendor only has a limited exchange policy, no refunds. I will try to call them, maybe they will allow me to purchase a P5B Deluxe.

Any thoughts? Do you think I should go for the Intel Chipset?

Thanks..

The 3DMark score is about right for that VC and speed. I get around 5600 at 3200 MHz with a 7900gs overclocked. Those IDE drives are going to slow you down vs SATA so changing boards are not going to help that much. The P5B Deluxe can be trouble some too. I have one but, I only run SATA drives on it. The JMicron controller on the P5B can be a pain in the neck to configure especially with that many drives. I really can't be much of a help in that dept because I don't use IDE drives anymore with these new Core2 boards. Sorry

 

[Core2]

Originally posted by: jkcheng122
finally seeing some negative reviews on this motherboard: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mainboards/display/asus-p5ne-sli.html

and indeed quite a few of the negative points made have been experienced by users here.

I didn't think that review was good. We knew most of those issues and found work arounds. They didn't even tell you what bios version they had. Read the review that ArtfulCodger posted above.

 

[Core2]

Originally posted by: phog

Originally posted by: dustycpu
Super Pi on P5N-E is 20s for 1M.

I run Super Pi in just under 18s on a E6600 @ 2.4 stock speed. But this is under Linux.

Thats because you have that nice E6600 with the extra 2mb of cache. Makes a big difference when running 1mb Pi's

 

[jkcheng122]

Originally posted by: Core2

Originally posted by: jkcheng122
finally seeing some negative reviews on this motherboard: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mainboards/display/asus-p5ne-sli.html

and indeed quite a few of the negative points made have been experienced by users here.

I didn't think that review was good. We knew most of those issues and found work arounds. They didn't even tell you what bios version they had. Read the review that ArtfulCodger posted above.

think they said 0401, and mentioned that it is much more flexible than previous bios meaning asus is still working on this board so it still has potential.

 

[jkcheng122]

Originally posted by: Core2
Try this post from Chung near the bottom.
Chung's Post

if i have the latest 650i driver i dont need to worry about that RIS thing? i do have higher than expected pings playing WoW, but not a lot of disconnect issues and i had thought the problem is my cable connection is probably being used by too many ppl in the neighborhood.

 

[darkshippo]

Originally posted by: Core2

Originally posted by: darkshippo
I guess you bricked your P5N-E SLI,KilleRomantic.

I've been narrowing down my problems with network connection problems. I'm using a 3com oldie 100Mbit card and i still get the same "limited networkconnectivity problem". Either my ISP doesn't like my switch or Win XP has somekind of bug. Now I'm putting a router infront of my connection. Then I can narrow out if I have problem with my ISP or this board simply is weird.. our my windows installation.

Try this post from Chung near the bottom.
Chung's Post

I tried that, but my board already had the "nvidia resource manager", but it was an older driver installed. Anyway.. it doesn't matter. I still have my 3com networkcard inside. I tried the thing that Chung described, well time will tell if it will work or not.

 

[darkshippo]

Originally posted by: jkcheng122
striker is goin for $400 over here in the states with the p5n-e sli at about $130. asus didnt set that price tag btw, the demand for it did.

Well, Asus might not have set the pricetag, but the Striker Extreme is targetting the Enthusiast's segment, while the P5N-E SLI is targetting the budget/performance segment.

You can't compare a big apple with a small apple like they do in the review. It's like comparing a Dodge Viper with a Ford Escort. They are both cars and they have wheels.

I was surprised that Striker was going over $400 in US, because the VAT in Sweden is 25%, and you can buy a Striker $450 here.

 

[Core2]

Originally posted by: jkcheng122

Originally posted by: Core2

Originally posted by: jkcheng122
finally seeing some negative reviews on this motherboard: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mainboards/display/asus-p5ne-sli.html

and indeed quite a few of the negative points made have been experienced by users here.

I didn't think that review was good. We knew most of those issues and found work arounds. They didn't even tell you what bios version they had. Read the review that ArtfulCodger posted above.

think they said 0401, and mentioned that it is much more flexible than previous bios meaning asus is still working on this board so it still has potential.

Your right 0401. I missed it when I read it the first time. I found this to be a little bit of a surprise.

Quote from the article.

To achieve this result we had to increase the North Bridge voltage to 1.563V and the CPU voltage to 1.475V. It seems simple, but it is not. It?s been a long time since ASUS made its last mainboard on which all overclocking options worked well without any reservations.

First, we achieved such a high FSB frequency only after installing a fan on the North Bridge heatsink. Without that fan, the mainboard would freeze during the POST even at 450MHz FSB.

Agree but I think they have their voltages wrong If they used AUTO for the NB it would have been easier

Second, tests suggest that there?s little sense in high FSB frequencies on the ASUS P5N-E SLI as well as on the ASUS Striker Extreme. The FSB strap is changed somewhere within the 400-450MHz range and leads to a catastrophic hit of memory performance, which is not always made up for well by the CPU frequency growth.

Totally agree. The best performance level to strain ( heat, voltages, ) is at 1600FSB. I get the same performance level with my P5B Deluxe. It's effortless to attain and stays cool and benchmarks are great.

Third, we encountered a FSB hole with our ASUS P5N-E SLI. The mainboard was totally inoperable at FSB frequencies from 400 to 450MHz.

Don't agree totally but, it could be effected by the chip strap for each processor. For mine the E6400 it was the 418 - 423FSB that there were holes. It seem like they tried to make the Striker board look better when in fact the P5N-E SLI is easier board to clock. I even have my ram documented running at 1143MHz and I didn't even try to go higher and a couple of us hit 485- 490FSB with the 8 multiplier. I like the other review it was more of what this board is like