The Unofficial ASUS P5N-E SLI 650i Board Thread

[rbendorf]

I have been watching this forum for several weeks now and would like to add yet another point of view.

As we are all aware every system is different...what works with one may/may not work with another. I have three nVidia systems up and running . My first system is a P5N-E SLI. I also have a BFG 680i and an MSI P6N SLI-FI system(s). I like the P5N-E and have had it running now for several months. I have it OCd to 3200 (fsb 1600). It has OCZ memory in it and the memory seems to be the deciding factor. It is very, very sensitive to voltage settings. I have tried it with 2.085v and ORTHOS locks up at that voltage...one auto it is OK. I have the HR-05 SLI HS on the NB and a Compusa stock HS on the SB. The 6400 cpu hums along.

These new systems with the nVidia stuff in them and eminently OCable, but also very sophisticated...every system needs to be tweaked...out of the case for sometime before it is buttoned up. I have tried various coolers and all work. Some work better on some systems, some on others.

One of the neat things I found was the Antec Spot Cool fan. It has a bendable neck and can be pretty much aimed at any component. I have on on the MSI board aimed at the NB and it has cut down the temp by 20-30C. It is simple and a great investment.

Bottom Line...breadboard your system to get it stable before locking it down. Depending on what HS compound you are using, it could take several weeks to settle down. Building computers is a somewhat inexact science. It is fun, frustrating at times and takes a lot of patience. It certainly is not for the feint of heart or the squeemish. I like the P5N-E and wish all of you luck and blessings on your quest to build a great machin.

 

[rbendorf]

Originally posted by: Scruff Dawg
Guys,
I have had a stable overclocked system for months now, and I am trying to install Vista in a dual boot with XP on this motherboard. XP has been stable and a good performer so far. BUT when I try and install Vista I get a "this computer is not ACPI compliant" error msg.

Obviously, others have installed Vista on our ASUS mohterboard. Did any of you experience this problem? If so, HOW did you FIX it??

ANY help would be appreciated--the internet has some others who have had this also, but I have not found any solutions besides a new BIOS flash. This has NOT fixed their probs, I am using the 0401 BIOS currently.

Thanks in Advance!!

Scruff

I have had Vista Ultimate running on my P5N-E for several months now with no problems. I do not have a dual boot system, although. It may have something to do with the dual boot config. I am runing the 0401 bios with no problem. If you can, try another HD without the WinXP on it...it may make a difference.

 

[JustaGeek]

Originally posted by: Ordski
Hey justaGeek why yellow slots? any specific reasoning? Thanks

No, nothing specific. Just to indicate that the yellow slots work, too.

Many people in this forum seem to have had problems with these, but mine have worked perfectly fine since the beginning.

 

[JustaGeek]

Originally posted by: Scruff Dawg
Guys,
I have had a stable overclocked system for months now, and I am trying to install Vista in a dual boot with XP on this motherboard. XP has been stable and a good performer so far. BUT when I try and install Vista I get a "this computer is not ACPI compliant" error msg.

Obviously, others have installed Vista on our ASUS mohterboard. Did any of you experience this problem? If so, HOW did you FIX it??

ANY help would be appreciated--the internet has some others who have had this also, but I have not found any solutions besides a new BIOS flash. This has NOT fixed their probs, I am using the 0401 BIOS currently.

Thanks in Advance!!

Scruff

I have had Vista Ultimate RC1 installed on a dual boot system, but with a different MB - Asrock 775DUAL-VSTA.

Before I did that, I partitioned the Hard Drive using Disk Director by Acronis. Warning: do not use Acronis' own OS Selector - it will corrupt your Vista installation! It happened to me - I had to disable it and re-install Vista.

You must install Vista on a separate hard drive - either physical, or a partition. And be prepared for a hassle if you decide to un-install Vista. It installs its own "Boot selector", and it has to be removed if you want to do a "repair install" of XP, e.g. when you want to replace a motherboard.

Hope this helps.

 

[Jamin]

Originally posted by: franjam

Originally posted by: Jamin
Hey guys,

First off, this thread is awesome! Here it is, 519am, and i have been reading this page from page 1 thru to page 180-something for the last 4 hours! And I have work soon

Now, as you can see in my sig I have found a stable overclock. However, im still unable to get the 1600/800 to run stable. Windows will run for about 2 mins, when i go to open CPU-Z the system will stall.

This is my first time overclocking, so i get easily confused, and dont have a printer to print any of this info out. I swear I must be doing something wrong with the memory.
While I had it clocked at 1600/800, I ran the memory timings same as spec 5-5-5-18-2T @ 400Mhz @ 1.92V just like everyone has said and recommends.

Im still VERY confused about the SYNC/LINKED/UNLINKED thing.
At the moment, I think im running in SYNC mode, where I just enter 1600FSB, and the memory changes to 800 2 lines down.
Is this right? Or should I try UNLINKED like stated on page 92.
I just dont understand what I am supposed to do then? Like it says in the tutorial on page 92, to keep increasing the FSB slowly untill I find a stable FSB. But I know I should be able to have a stable system at 1600FSB.

Bah, im even confusing myself while writing this!

Any help would be much appreciated!

what 's your voltage on cpu and NorthBridge?

cpu = 1.44v
nb = 1.25v

(everest)

i was just informed on another forums that i sould up the voltage on the nb? but i dont trust myself to play with the voltages

 

[Scruff Dawg]

After a bit more experimentation I was able to do an install of Vista from a straight boot off of my upgrade disk. Soooooo, the problem is NOT our motherboard. Unfortunately, the upgrade disk wont let me activate it unless it is installed from an XP environment--When I do that---the ACPI error pops up again. Obviously some problem exists in XP or the Vista install progam with recognizing a good ACPI compliant motherboard. As usual the Microsoft web sites and knowledge bases lack any useful workarounds or fixes.....sigh.

Guess I will wait to "upgrade" to Vista untill Bill Gates and Co. decide to fix ANOTHER bug in their long list of not ready for prime time progams.....

Scruff

 

[rbendorf]

Originally posted by: Scruff Dawg
After a bit more experimentation I was able to do an install of Vista from a straight boot off of my upgrade disk. Soooooo, the problem is NOT our motherboard. Unfortunately, the upgrade disk wont let me activate it unless it is installed from an XP environment--When I do that---the ACPI error pops up again. Obviously some problem exists in XP or the Vista install progam with recognizing a good ACPI compliant motherboard. As usual the Microsoft web sites and knowledge bases lack any useful workarounds or fixes.....sigh.

Guess I will wait to "upgrade" to Vista untill Bill Gates and Co. decide to fix ANOTHER bug in their long list of not ready for prime time progams.....

Scruff

Ok, here is the deal. If you search the forums you will find the info on how to fresh install the upgrade without haveing WinXP on your system. I am not sure what forum it is, but do a google search and you should find it. It may be Kez.Com...not sure, but I have several versions of Vista, and my Ultimate is the upgrade...the fresh install from the upgrade disk does indeed work. If I find it I will let you know.

 

[rbendorf]

Originally posted by: rbendorf

Originally posted by: Scruff Dawg
After a bit more experimentation I was able to do an install of Vista from a straight boot off of my upgrade disk. Soooooo, the problem is NOT our motherboard. Unfortunately, the upgrade disk wont let me activate it unless it is installed from an XP environment--When I do that---the ACPI error pops up again. Obviously some problem exists in XP or the Vista install progam with recognizing a good ACPI compliant motherboard. As usual the Microsoft web sites and knowledge bases lack any useful workarounds or fixes.....sigh.

Guess I will wait to "upgrade" to Vista untill Bill Gates and Co. decide to fix ANOTHER bug in their long list of not ready for prime time progams.....

Scruff

Ok, here is the deal. If you search the forums you will find the info on how to fresh install the upgrade without haveing WinXP on your system. I am not sure what forum it is, but do a google search and you should find it. It may be Kez.Com...not sure, but I have several versions of Vista, and my Ultimate is the upgrade...the fresh install from the upgrade disk does indeed work. If I find it I will let you know.

Ok try http://vistawired.com

they have the poop on there also if you search "vista fresh install from ugrade disk" it should come upl....good luck...let me know how you do.

 

[franjam]

Originally posted by: Jamin

Originally posted by: franjam

Originally posted by: Jamin
Hey guys,

First off, this thread is awesome! Here it is, 519am, and i have been reading this page from page 1 thru to page 180-something for the last 4 hours! And I have work soon

Now, as you can see in my sig I have found a stable overclock. However, im still unable to get the 1600/800 to run stable. Windows will run for about 2 mins, when i go to open CPU-Z the system will stall.

This is my first time overclocking, so i get easily confused, and dont have a printer to print any of this info out. I swear I must be doing something wrong with the memory.
While I had it clocked at 1600/800, I ran the memory timings same as spec 5-5-5-18-2T @ 400Mhz @ 1.92V just like everyone has said and recommends.

Im still VERY confused about the SYNC/LINKED/UNLINKED thing.
At the moment, I think im running in SYNC mode, where I just enter 1600FSB, and the memory changes to 800 2 lines down.
Is this right? Or should I try UNLINKED like stated on page 92.
I just dont understand what I am supposed to do then? Like it says in the tutorial on page 92, to keep increasing the FSB slowly untill I find a stable FSB. But I know I should be able to have a stable system at 1600FSB.

Bah, im even confusing myself while writing this!

Any help would be much appreciated!

what 's your voltage on cpu and NorthBridge?

cpu = 1.44v
nb = 1.25v

(everest)

i was just informed on another forums that i sould up the voltage on the nb? but i dont trust myself to play with the voltages

It would seem likely that your stability problem comes from lack of sufficient voltage in the NB as this contains the memory controller which communicates between the ram and the cpu, I would try upping to 1.39v and see if this helps, active cooling on the heatsink is a good idea however as overheating will also provoke instability.
There is no absolute right way between linked and unlinked settings ; running the memory faster than the cpu will give you higher bandwidth but often at the cost of lower latencies, the overall performance gain is often minimal,( see my post a couple of pages back).
I personally am more comfortable with linked/synced settings I feel the sytem is more stable I can get lower memory timings and it seems to be the only way to get a 1T command rate with this board.
Don't be afraid to up your voltages slightly but try to be methodical; make one change at a time and test it, write things down so that you remember what you did, that way you can keep track of where you are up to , its easy to get lost.
Have fun;

 

[AMelbye]

Jamin: I see your memory voltage is at 1.9. Try increasing it a bit.

I have almost the same RAM as you, and Corsair Tech support said I should try 1.9, so I did, and it seemed to work ok, so I never changed it. However at higher overcloks, my system now seems to (FINALLY!) have regained stability as I increased my ram voltage to 2.085V. My fsb is currently 1820.

Kinda strange, really, as my system had no problems with this voltage till the FSB went past 1500(my ram stays at its rated 800MHz).

 

[Sylvanas]

Hey guys, well my P5N-E SLI arrived today so hopefully tomorrow I will have some results, I will be using 4GB (4x1) so it will be interesting to see how it behaves in both the yellow and black slots.

 

[Ordski]

Scruff Dawg, Re Dual Boot, I have had to re-install both OSs several times and find any minor change in tech can make the whole thing odd or unstable. XP and Vista Enterprise

The Vista Boot selector is finicky and hard to erase using standard tools (Acronis). As noted, set up a new partition (track the size to insure its the right one you install to) and install vista to the new partition. Just don't add parts after.

I have three versions of Vista showing (though the default one is the correct latest install. Will edit it some day.

My latest install of a 800GTS card has blown it up again (after similar stuff happened with a X-fi card a few weeks back. But vista will work after tweaking.

BTW - Vista is no bonus - I hate UAC interruptions even though the idea makes sense - but if you can't copy files from one partition to another without 3 screens, they need to re-think the implementation.

Final rant - the "cool" color scheme seem exactly like the tunnel in the Detroit airport in color and look! I laughed all the way through it, thinking the know they are pulling a fast one on users. Big icons, giant shortcut arrows - they are goofing on us!

 

[franjam]

Originally posted by: AMelbye
franjam: I see your memory voltage is at 1.9. Try increasing it a bit.

I have almost the same RAM as you, and Corsair Tech support said I should try 1.9, so I did, and it seemed to work ok, so I never changed it. However at higher overcloks, my system now seems to (FINALLY!) have regained stability as I increased my ram voltage to 2.085V. My fsb is currently 1820.

Kinda strange, really, as my system had no problems with this voltage till the FSB went past 1500(my ram stays at its rated 800MHz).

AMelbye ,what you say makes sense but I think you 're confusing me with Jamin, my ram voltage is at 2.17v and all is stable; just for information, have installed the OCZ XTC memory cooler ,(I was hitting 50°c on load),and at 3000rpm it's silent and 8/9°c cooler, excellent piece of equipment and not too expensive.

 

[AMelbye]

franjam: sorry, yes I did. Post will be edited.

Sylvanas: I don't know how to say this without taking your hopes away. This board can usually not handle 4 sticks at more than about 670MHz.

 

[franjam]

AMelbye, how are you getting on with bios 0604? Are there any particular differences with previous bios'? I am hesitant to update in case it sends my now stable system pearshaped, so I probably won't unless it allows you to change the multiplier for example.

 

[Tuvoc]

Originally posted by: AMelbye
franjam: sorry, yes I did. Post will be edited.

Sylvanas: I don't know how to say this without taking your hopes away. This board can usually not handle 4 sticks at more than about 670MHz.

4 sticks here at 711

The key is that you may have to boot with 3 sticks, set at 667, then fit the 4th and try and go up from there. I heard that around 730 is possiblr but have not experimented

 

[AMelbye]

frenjam: bios 0604 is working fine for me. still the multiplier issue from 0502 has not been sorted.

Tuvoc, sorry I got the numbers wrong, still 730 is considerably less than what you can do with just a pair of sticks.

 

[Tuvoc]

Originally posted by: AMelbye
frenjam: bios 0604 is working fine for me. still the multiplier issue from 0502 has not been sorted.

Tuvoc, sorry I got the numbers wrong, still 730 is considerably less than what you can do with just a pair of sticks.

Yes absolutely right. I should be running at 800 but that just doesn't work. It's funny the board thinks it should - it sets the memory speed to that as auto or whatever - and then it just fails to boot. No error beeps that you normally get with memory settings that don't work. I had wondered for a while if a BIOS update may fix it, but I doubt it now. It's a fundamental problem either with the ASUS board or the 650 chipset. As for 1T, I never even bothered trying that !!

I wonder how the board gets on with 2 x 2GB sticks ??

 

[franjam]

Originally posted by: Tuvoc

Originally posted by: AMelbye
frenjam: bios 0604 is working fine for me. still the multiplier issue from 0502 has not been sorted.

Tuvoc, sorry I got the numbers wrong, still 730 is considerably less than what you can do with just a pair of sticks.

Yes absolutely right. I should be running at 800 but that just doesn't work. It's funny the board thinks it should - it sets the memory speed to that as auto or whatever - and then it just fails to boot. No error beeps that you normally get with memory settings that don't work. I had wondered for a while if a BIOS update may fix it, but I doubt it now. It's a fundamental problem either with the ASUS board or the 650 chipset. As for 1T, I never even bothered trying that !!

I wonder how the board gets on with 2 x 2GB sticks ??

 

[franjam]

Originally posted by: Tuvoc

Originally posted by: AMelbye
frenjam: bios 0604 is working fine for me. still the multiplier issue from 0502 has not been sorted.

Tuvoc, sorry I got the numbers wrong, still 730 is considerably less than what you can do with just a pair of sticks.

Yes absolutely right. I should be running at 800 but that just doesn't work. It's funny the board thinks it should - it sets the memory speed to that as auto or whatever - and then it just fails to boot. No error beeps that you normally get with memory settings that don't work. I had wondered for a while if a BIOS update may fix it, but I doubt it now. It's a fundamental problem either with the ASUS board or the 650 chipset. As for 1T, I never even bothered trying that !!

I wonder how the board gets on with 2 x 2GB sticks ??

yes that's an interesting question!
Apart from that is there any thingthat would make you say it was necessary to update the bios?

 

[Scruff Dawg]

rbendorf,

Your link to http://vistawired.com took me to the right place!! Great clue about searching "vista fresh install from upgrade disk." Basically, I just installed Vista on top of Vista to get everything to work. Evidently, the ACPI recognition problem lies with something in XP. I did a boot install of Vista, then reinstalled Vista right on top of it from within Vista. Works like a champ now!! Thank you for the great advice!! Nice to know that our motherboard is indeed fully Vista, and ACPI compatible too.

Scruff

 

[Tuvoc]

Originally posted by: franjam
Apart from that is there any thingthat would make you say it was necessary to update the bios?

From my experience, no - I have not noticed any difference in my machine from any of the BIOS updates. But, I run at stock so perhaps that is to be expected. COuld be that some BIOS updates were better for overclocking

 

[franjam]

Originally posted by: Tuvoc

Originally posted by: franjam
Apart from that is there any thingthat would make you say it was necessary to update the bios?

From my experience, no - I have not noticed any difference in my machine from any of the BIOS updates. But, I run at stock so perhaps that is to be expected. COuld be that some BIOS updates were better for overclocking

Thanks for that, its also my gut feeling with this board that there's not a lot to be gained by changing the bios if you've managed to find a stable setup; in other words its worth trying another bios if you're having serious problems but otherwise it could just create them.

 

[Nnyan]

Anyone that has this board know if it handles 4GB (4 sticks) memory well while OCing?

Thank you

 

[PoopyPants]

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