Where Are The Gigabyte GA-X48-DQ6 Motherboards?

[Blazer7]

Hello Kapt'n,

Any luck with those super fast mems of yours? Some Everest/Sandra scores maybe?

Originally posted by: TheBeagle
Good Afternoon Everyone.

There's a new F8a Beta BIOS posted on the Gigabyte (Taiwan) web site for the X48 board. I'm told that it is intended to allow for 1333MHz DDR2 memory. Now the only problem with that is where does someone even begin to acquire that type of memory, and if you could get it, what would be the probable outrageous cost?

Maybe someone at G/Skill will read this posting and decide to offer us some DDR2 1333 stuff at a very reasonable cost, in both 2GB and 4GB modules - LOL!

Best regards to everyone. TheBeagle :beer:

UPDATE: I have also learned that the new BIOS is modified for the E0 Stepping Code of the latest version of Intel CPUs.

http://ocxtreme.org/forumenus/showthread.php?t=3499

http://news.softpedia.com/news...2-From-OCZ-35551.shtml

 

[Kaptdeath]

Blazer7,

They are rated at 1200. I probably won't try to run them over that for a while. The price was extremely reasonable. I think they were $53 after rebate from Newegg for 2X1GB. I have XP so any more memory is a waste. They DO seem to be hard to come by as they seem to sell out instantly after Newegg gets em'.

I need to tweak the CPU a bit before I start benchmarking. I am only running at 3.2 GHz on a Q9450.

Currently:

400MHz FSB
3X on the mem
8X on the CPU
2.1V on the mem
1.33V on the CPU

Everything else is stock voltage.

15C - 20 C Idle ~ 40C full load on CPU.

My goal is to get the memory to it's potential at the next lower multiplier since the CPU appears to have some headroom. So my goal is:

450[1] MHz FSB
2.66X on the mem

If I can do this w/o too much voltage and heat I will be a VERY happy camper.

The Kapt'n

 

[Kaptdeath]

Blazer7,

The system will start and run for a while with the CPU @ 3.60GHz. I am having some reboots under load. It seems to generate the same heat at 100% load (37C - 40C). Would you expect to have to bump the FSB voltage at this kind of clock rate? (450MHz). For now I will try bumping the CPU core voltage to 1.35V. I am noticing a slight vdroop (~.03V) under load.

The Kapt'n

 

[Blazer7]

Hello Kapt'n,

Some boards do have "FSB holes" so I guess that you can try increase the FSB a bit and see if things get any better before bumping the voltage. As I don't have the board in question I can't really guide you on this. Maybe some of the guys here (jaggerwild, TheBeagle) can offer some more help on this.

 

[Kaptdeath]

Blazer7,

I have been stable for 1 hour at 100% CPU and 40C. Looks ok so far. Those are some truly insane memory speeds from the links you supplied. 1500!?!?!?! Yaeiiiiiiiii! BTW I got the reaper series, not the water cooled OCZ. They do get warm after a few hours of memtest86. My "calibrated finger" says about ~40C.

The Kapt'n

 

[Blazer7]

Yes I know. 1500MHz DDR2 ?!?!?! It's still hard to believe. There's a post on page 3 on that thread that quotes the post of a G.Skill techie that says that the actual speed was around ~1350MHz and not 1500. Anyways, that's still great. I guess that it won't be long before we see std production 1300MHz kits.

Are you using 2 or 4 sticks? I've heard many complain about compatibility issues with OCZ reapers. If you get your rig stable please post some mem scores. I would love to know what you're getting out of those 1200MHz mems.

 

[Kaptdeath]

Blazer7,

Ran for 1.5 hours and freaked (not bad though). Minimal bump on FSB and MCH voltage. Core voltage 1.35 still.

Kapt'n

 

[Kaptdeath]

Blazer7,

BAD idea bumping FSB & MCH voltage. System no like to boot. Back to normal. Bump CPU voltage. There is a setting called "Loadline Calibration" (currently "AUTO"). Could this be what is fiddling with Vcore? It says it lets the BIOS "fine tune Vcore". I see Vcore bouncing between 1.31 and 1.33. Though I set it to 1.35 & some change.

The Kapt'n

 

[Kaptdeath]

Blazer7,

Hmmm, started getting real crazyness with the extra volts. I'm going back to 1.33Vcore. From what I have read the loadline calibration is ok at reduced voltage (part of why I'm stepping back to 1.33Vcore). Loadline calibration is on (not auto) now. I also read some stuff that indicated that the 45nm chips do not handle voltage as well as the 65nm chips. I bumped the FSB to 451. (Perhaps I am in a "hole".) Seems strange that adjusting the chipset voltage makes windows not boot. I'd rather not settle for 3.2GHz, but I can't really have a machine that could wig out at any moment. (Reminds me too much of the "good old days".)

The Kapt'n

 

[Kaptdeath]

Blazer7,

I downloaded Sandra 2009 (I guess it's new) and ran a few benches. The results were ok, I think I have a few questions for you about advanced memory timing settings (I have read a fair amount, but some suggestions would be appreciated.) If you would prefer a PM, or to post it here please let me know. (I will also understand the response "Google is your friend" )

My current settings are:
5-5-5-15 @ 1199MHz, CPU @ 3.6GHZ, FSB @ 451MHz

I am using the system comparison numbers from Sandra:

Integer Memory Bandwidth:
ME, X48, DDR2-9600 (5-5-5) - 8503 MB/s
P35, DDR3-10600 (10-10-10) - 8731MB/s
P35, DDR3-8500 (9-9-9) - 8483 MB/s
X48, DDR3-8500 (9-9-9) - 6687 MB/s
X48, DDR2- 8500 (5-5-5) - 6438 MB/s
790FX DDR2-6400 (4-4-4) - 10203 MB/s

Float Memory Bandwidth:
ME, X48, DDR2-9600 (5-5-5) - 8522 MB/s
P35, DDR3-10600 (10-10-10) - 8785MB/s
P35, DDR3-8500 (9-9-9) - 8524 MB/s
X48, DDR3-8500 (9-9-9) - 6690 MB/s
X48, DDR2- 8500 (5-5-5) - 6444 MB/s
790FX DDR2-6400 (4-4-4) - 10245 MB/s

I threw the 790 in there for some idea where the king of the hill is at.

There are a few oddities here:

1) The P35 is MUCH faster than the X48 with the exact same DDR3 memory.
2) The DDR3 memory at the same clock speed and more latency than the DDR2 memory is a little faster in the X48.
3) My bandwidth increase is significantly larger than would be expected for increasing the clock from 1066 to 1200 in a DDR2 equipped X48:

(1200-1066)/1200 = ~11%
(8503-6438)/8503 = ~24%

The only explanation I have is that the reference machines all are using a QX9650 @ 3.0GHz and I am at 3.6GHz.

If there are any other benchmarks I can do. Please let me know.

The Kapt'n

P.S. That DDR2-1500 would theoretically "catch" the FX790, if it scaled as expected....

 

[Blazer7]

Hello Kapt'n,

Yes the 2009.1.15.42 is the latest ver. You got some pretty impressive scores there. I wonder if any of the folks here have anything faster on their rigs. Since you do have the X48-DQ6 this is definitely the place to post your questions. I'm sure that if not me some of the other gents will answer them.

The 790 is undoubtedly the king of the hill but that's mostly because the memory controller is integrated in the CPU. We are talking about an extremely fast memory controller with extremely low latencies. Even a lesser processor with even slower mem would probably beat your setup. The FX790 coupled with a fast Phenom and that DDR2-1500 could theoretically give Nehalem and Intel a run for their money. At least in the beginning.

I'm running 4 1GB sticks @5-4-4-3-2T @1066 - 1.950V with my cpu @stock (E6850-3GHz). Your mem scores are +20% on top of what I get so I can say that I'm really impressed with the MCH of the X48. As for other programs besides Sandra, Everest is one of the best out there but I think that the latest versions are not free. If you can get your hands on an older ver that will also do.

 

[Blazer7]

New LAN drivers for win XP 32/64 and Vista 32/64. Release date 10/15/2008.

 

[jaggerwild]

Questions where?

Don't let this die!!!

Regards :beer:

 

[bigsnyder]

There are newer LAN drivers since Blazer7's post.

 

[jaggerwild]

Originally posted by: bigsnyder
There are newer LAN drivers since Blazer7's post.

There may be just go to realtech to see, google if you have to.........
Cheers!:beer:

 

[Tatiania]

How do I install Vista with the GSATA set to AHCI with two hdd connected to it? I just want the hdd's for additional storage. XP and Vista will be installed on the ICH9R set to AHCI. I just don't understand the manuals explanation of installing Vista. Any help would be appreciated. Also, will my SATA DVD burners work with ICH9R set to AHCI, they are currently on SATAII4 and SATAII5 of ICH9R.

Thnx

 

[Blazer7]

Originally posted by: Tatiania
How do I install Vista with the GSATA set to AHCI with two hdd connected to it? I just want the hdd's for additional storage. XP and Vista will be installed on the ICH9R set to AHCI. I just don't understand the manuals explanation of installing Vista. Any help would be appreciated. Also, will my SATA DVD burners work with ICH9R set to AHCI, they are currently on SATAII4 and SATAII5 of ICH9R.

Thnx

I'll be damned. This thread doesn't wanna die .....

Hello Tatiania and welcome aboard.

I don't quite understand why you want to connect your extra HDs to the GSATA controller in the first place. The ICH9R is by far superior so I suggest that you make the most out of it and connect all your HDs there. I also suggest that you connect your DVD burners to the GSATA controller and leave it at RAID/IDE mode. This will most certainly simplify things. Besides, most of the benefits that come with ACHI like hot swap and NCQ are most often related with HDs and not DVD burners.

HTH

Regards

Blazer

 

[jaggerwild]

Originally posted by: Blazer7

Originally posted by: Tatiania
How do I install Vista with the GSATA set to AHCI with two hdd connected to it? I just want the hdd's for additional storage. XP and Vista will be installed on the ICH9R set to AHCI. I just don't understand the manuals explanation of installing Vista. Any help would be appreciated. Also, will my SATA DVD burners work with ICH9R set to AHCI, they are currently on SATAII4 and SATAII5 of ICH9R.

Thnx

I'll be damned. This thread doesn't wanna die .....

Hello Tatiania and welcome aboard.

I don't quite understand why you want to connect your extra HDs to the GSATA controller in the first place. The ICH9R is by far superior so I suggest that you make the most out of it and connect all your HDs there. I also suggest that you connect your DVD burners to the GSATA controller and leave it at RAID/IDE mode. This will most certainly simplify things. Besides, most of the benefits that come with ACHI like hot swap and NCQ are most often related with HDs and not DVD burners.

HTH

Regards

Blazer

Yeah Blazer,
I had a guy send me a email about the GA-680SLi-DQ6 told him to search here for the locked thread.
I'm gonna turn my X48 into an HTCP seeing as I have a E1400 sitting around and a few stick of 800DDR2, extra hard drive and so on.......... Should work out good. I can't really put my 4870 in it as the water blocks use too much space, I'd also like to use them for a I7 build just need some money for the hole thing.
Peace guys!

 

[Blazer7]

Hello Jaggerwild,

The X48 is an axcellent board but I think that it's a bit big for an HTPC. If you're considering an upgrade to a X58-i7 system (like I am) then selling the X48 may be a better choice. TheBeagle has recently built an HTPC that you may find interesting. You can find the specs for his machine here -> ASUS Rampage II GENE - 8GB Memory Limitation?.

 

[jaggerwild]

Originally posted by: Blazer7
Hello Jaggerwild,

The X48 is an excellent board but I think that it's a bit big for an HTPC. If you're considering an upgrade to a X58-i7 system (like I am) then selling the X48 may be a better choice. TheBeagle has recently built an HTPC that you may find interesting. You can find the specs for his machine here -> ASUS Rampage II GENE - 8GB Memory Limitation?.

Thanks for the link!
Yeah I understand your point about size, but I have all the stuff sitting around and selling is really not an option as I will not flee bay anymore. And I do have that huge Thermaltake case for it, i stripped the guts out of it and made it a BTX inside. I was gonna toss it so i opted for the one time flip of its guts, there is a photo of it
You can check all my photos out if you'd like to...

Not great but I'm way part fussy lately. Dude over @guru of 3D just beat my3dmark03 score, now I'm eying the GA-X58-UD4 just over two hundred. I'll think on it for a while though as i have only a very little amount of scratch lately:brokenheart:
Oh well, nice talking to ya!
TTYL!

 

[TheBeagle]

Good Evening Messrs Blazer & JaggerMan,

WOW - It's really hard to imagine that this thread that I started many, many months ago is still alive! However, I am still using my X48 board as a primary PC. It just hums along at 3.81GHz every day, no pain and no strain. I was seriously considering building a new i7 primary PC, but then I thought about it for a while, and decided that I'd probably not run a new i7 build at more than 3.8GHz, so aside from some small discrete differences, the horsepower and functionality was just about the same. I did flash the X48 with the latest BIOS revision (F8c), and that seems to have made the onboard controllers a bit more stable.

However, looming not too far in the distance will be some newer boards that will implement the USB 3.0 standard that was very recently approved and adopted. Now THAT will likely be enough of an incentive for me to give a new build a try for me. In the meantime, I have been building a number of new PCs for a friend to utilize at his business, and we used the Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R (Rev 1.0 & 1.1), and that is one VERY fine board! For anyone looking for a rock solid mid-line Socket 775 board, that will also run COOL at 3.80 all day, that's the board. Also, I built two HTPCs for other friends using the Asus P5Q-EM board, and both of those turned very well also.

The very latest HPTC that I built for another friend (as Mr. Blazer mentioned) uses the new Asus Rampage II GENE i7 board, which is really quite a powerhouse in a very small package. I'm still messing around with some hardware and software adjustments, but that also is a SCREAMER, especially with 12GB of DDR3-1600 memory. You can load up as many apps as you want and have the TV tuner running and music and video streaming on the network, and it never skips a beat.

Anyway, it's great to see you guys still on the board and still trading perspectives on both the new stuff, and also offering some commentary on a few tried and proven ones (X48) as well. Best regards to everyone. TheBeagle :beer:

 

[jaggerwild]

Hey Mr. Beagle!

Yeah no doubt the X48 is a great board, but I think I may have hurt mine over clocking it. As lately it will have errors, I have swapped out ram still the same. Only thing I did not try was replacing the operating system, at that point I figured I messed it up by going to big on an OC put it back in its box. I did not know they have a new bios out though so I may pull it out and try again.

I read your thread on the HTPC build VERY nice! My reasoning for wanting a I7 build is mostly for the higher over clock(4 or 8 cores), I know Even then they do not over clock much better. But I have seen some postings about the new DO stepping and them over clocking even better then the original chips. I have a few Friends with the EP45 board they love it, most of them are using LN2 to over clock with.

Great talking with all of you guys!
Cheers!

 

[jaggerwild]

Hey Da Beagle,

Flashed the bios after pulling her down from the shelve and 0 problems. I know I just read that certain MB have issues with certain PSU, I neva knew this? So I'm guessing all the issues I had past and present had to do with my combination of MB and PSU (Enermax Galaxy 850), I'm now using a Galaxy 1000.
Not really tried to push her yet but did have it up to 475, witch with the ram I have is a bad combo. I just figured I'd put that out there for others as I have probably read that before but till I had the issue I did not keep the info.........

Because I left my room A/C on over night and did not have my BioStar MB in a case, I fubared my Enermax 850. Good news is even though it was a fleebay purchase, I contacted them for a warranty telling them my problem. They said just fill out the RMA forum (gotta love them) :thumbsup: .I have not worked in over 4 months so I'm not purchasing anything un-needed like the I7 for a while............

Cheers!:beer:

 

[TiredOne]

Hey there just joined this forum when I saw the posts earlier by Liet. I am haveing the same problem. My DQ6 will not post. I have a Q9550, Kingston HyperX 4GB(2 pcs), and a GB 9800 GT. Model number of my ram is KHX6400D2LLK2. On the kingston website it says they run at 2.0v. I will go buy some ram just like Liet and see if that works to get into the bios and flash it to a newer version. If this works I will post again probably in a couple hours (cant wait to see if it works). Otherwise if it does not I will post again with all of the steps I have done up to this point. I am close to RMA the motherboard but would be nice if I did not have to.

Wish me luck.

 

[jaggerwild]

Hey Tired,
Question what PSU are you using and do you have access to another one? As this may be an incompatibility problem..