ASUS P5N-E SLI 650i Thread

[dpawl31]

ASUS P5N-E SLI w/ NVIDIA 650i Chipset

This thread is a constant work in progress of people who own and love their P5N-E's. I started this thread in January of 2007 and it has, uh, grown
Remember to REP+ anyone that helps you with your board!
(Within TOS guidelines!)
Anyway, welcome. Enjoy reading for hours, because it's going to take that long
P5N-E SLI 650i FTW!

MANUF. WEBSITE SPECS. (Also see below)

TECHAge Review <--- Explains memory issues, which were fixed in 2nd BIOS update. (New boards come with even NEWER BIOS versions.)

AnandTech Review

H Enthusiast Review <--- Proves Dual 8800GTX is not a problem for SLI on this board. (Also see TechSpot Review Below, Page 4)

AnandTech 650i vs 680i <--- Points out the minor differences. Minor for most, extreme hardcore users maybe not so minor.

TECHSPOT.Com <--- Reviews against DS3/P5N32-E/680i.
From this review:

Overall, we believe the P5N-E SLI is a great overclocker and are confident there is a lot more untapped potential. When operating at standard frequencies the P5N-E SLI worked flawlessly and was able to run the pair of 8800 GTX cards with the Core 2 E6700 without a problem. The performance and price is what we have found to be the most impressive aspect of the P5N-E SLI, the features and overclocking abilities are just a nice big bonus as far as we are concerned. We highly recommend the ASUS P5N-E SLI to anyone looking for an affordable motherboard capable of delivering high-end SLI performance.

ASUS P5N-E SLI 650i (currently $127 + S&H @ The Egg, 3.22.07)




Other Things to Note
FSB/Memory can be change manually, unlinked and completely independant.
Full range of Memory timing controls.
500+ FSB proven; generally hits over 450FSB without issue.
The board is finnicky about RAM. Please ask here before you buy, or use from Manuf. Recc. list.
Northbridge runs pretty hot, if doing hefty overclocking suggest a better heatsink/fan.
If you want to stay cheap - a basic 40/60mm fan on the NB will work. Make sure you reseat the NB with AS5!
Southbridge is BARE. Suggest a small heatsink. (Careful about large GPUs!)

Specifications

CPU LGA775 Socket Intel® Quad-Core/CoreTM Extreme/Pentium D /Pentium 4/Celeron CPU processors
Compatible with Intel® 06/05A/05B processors
Intel® EIST/EM64T/Hyper-Threading Technology/C1E/ TM1/TM2


Chipset NVIDIA nForce® 650i SLITM
Front Side Bus **1333/1066/800/533MHz
(** available when CPUs are ready for 1333MHz FSB)
Memory Dual channel memory architecture
4 x 240-pin DIMM sockets support up to 8GB DDR2 800/667/533
non-ECC/ Unbuffered memory
Expansion Slots 2 x PCI Express x16
- Single VGA mode: x16 (Default)
- SLI mode: x8, x8
1 x PCI Express x1
2 x PCI (PCI 2.2)

Storage - 2 x Ultra DMA 133/100/66/33
- 4 x Serial ATA 3.0 Gb/s
- Support RAID0, 1, 0+1, 5, and JBOD
- 1 x External Serial ATA 3.0 Gb/s (SATA On-the-Go)
LAN Gigabit LAN featuring AI Net2
Marvell 88E1116 PHY

Audio Realtek ALC883 6-channel CODEC
Audio Sensing and Enumeration Technology
Multi-Streaming
1 X Coaxial S/PDIF out ports on back I/O

IEEE 1394 Supports 2 IEEE 1394a connector onboard (1 in back + 1 on board)
USB Supports up 8 USB2.0 ports
Overclocking Features - AI Overclocking (intelligent CPU frequency tuner)
- ASUS CPU Lock Free
- Precision Tweaker:
- vCore: Adjustable CPU voltage at 6.25mv increment
max. 1.6V
- vChip: 4-step Chip voltage control
adjust Chip voltage max. 0.55V
- vDIMM: 8-step DRAM voltage control
adjust DRAM voltage max. 0.6V
- SFS (Stepless Frequency Selection)
- FSB tuning from 200MHz up to 750MHz at 1MHz increment
- PCI Express frequency tuning from 100MHz up to 131MHz at 1MHz increment
- CPU Multiplier
- ASUS C.P.R.(CPU Parameter Recall)

Special Features ASUS Q-Connector
ASUS O.C. Profile
ASUS Fanless Design
ASUS PC Probe2
ASUS Q-Fan2
ASUS MyLogo2
ASUS Update
BIOS 4 Mb Flash ROM, AWARD BIOS, PnP, DMI2.0, WfM2.0, SM BIOS 2.3
ASUS EZ Flash 2,ASUS CrashFree BIOS 2
Manageability WfM 2.0, DMI 2.0 , WOR by Ring ,
WOL/WOR by PME, WO USB/KB/MS, PXE, RPL & AI Net2
Internal I/O Connectors 1 x 24-pin ATX Power connector
1 x 4-pin ATX 12V Power connector
1 x Chassis Intrusion
1 x CPU + 2 Chassis FAN connectors
1 x Floppy disk drive connector
1 x CD audio in connector
1 x 1394a connector
2 x USB connector supports additional 4 USB ports
1 x Front panel connector (AAFP)
System panel connector
1 x COM Port connector
1 x S/PDIF out connector
Back Panel I/O Ports 1 x Parallel port
1 x 1394a connector
1 x S/PDIF Out port (Coaxial)
1 x PS/2 Keyboard port (purple)
1 x PS/2 Mouse port (green)
1 x LAN(RJ-45) port
4 x USB 2.0/1.1 port
1 x External SATA
6-Channel Audio I/O port
Accessories 1 x SLI bridge
1 x 2-in-1 ASUS Q-Connector Kit (Retail version only)
1 x UltraDMA 133/100/66 cable
1 x FDDe cable
2 x SATA cables
2 x SATA power cable
1 x 2-port USB2.0 module
1 x I/O Shield
User's manual
Support CD Drivers
ASUS Update
Anti-virus software (OEM version)
ASUS PC Probe II
NVIDIA RIS (Remote Installation Service) application
Form Factor ATX Form Factor, 12”x 9”(30.5cm x 22.9cm)

Above SPECS from ASUS.COM on 3/23/07

[dpawl31]

WORK IN PROGRESS -
Compiling list of compatible: CPU, NB and SB heatsinks, RAM that is not on QVL, and mods required to use certain heatsinks.

NON COMPATIBLE COMPONENTS:
OCZ Platinum Revision 1 RAM
XP-90 CPU Cooler (Even with LGA 775 Kit)
Sycthe Infinity



Asus Tek Qualified Vendor List - RAM from DDR2-533 ~ DDR2-800

Compatible RAM (Not on QVL above- User Tested)
DDR2-800
OCZ Gold 2x512MB Kit
OCZ Gold 2x1GB Kit
OCZ Platinum REVISION 2 2x1GB Kit
G.Skill 2x1GB Kit (F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ)
G.Skill 2x1GB Kit (F2-6400PHU2-2GBNR)
Geil Ultra Series 2x1GB Kit
Crucial Ballistix 2x1GB Kit
Crucial Ballistix Tracers 2x1GB Kit
Corsair XMS2 Twin2X 2x1GB Kit
DDR2-667
Geil Value 2x1024MB
DDR2-665
Corsair XMS2 Twin2X 2x512MB Kit



Compatible CPU Heatsinks (Guranteed fitment with stock NB heatsink, not with aftermarket NB HS!)
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro (Requires slight trimming of plastic on NB side of fan, w/ stock P5N-E NB heatsink)
Zalman 9500
Tuniq Tower 120 (Tight fit, be careful of bending/breaking capacitors)
Ultra-90
Ultra-120
Noctua NH-U12
ThermalTake Silent Tower (Fan must be directed up towards the PSU)
Thermalright SI-128



Compatible Northbridge Heatsinks
Thermalright HR-05-SLI
Thermaltake Extreme Spirit II (CL-C0034)



Compatible Southbridge Heatsinks (Non-SLI; does not work with SLI!)
Thermalright HR-05-SLI
Zalman ZM-NB47J
Thermaltake Extreme Spirit II (CL-C0034)



Compatible Southbridge Heatsinks (SLI capable)
Thermalright HR-05-SLI w/o FAN
Coolermaster Blue Ice

[dpawl31]

Tips and Hints:
Any help would be appreciated: Please PM dpawl31 (me!) with any suggestions!
(Overclocking options can be found under JUMPERFREE Configuration-->MANUAL)

• Firstly - Talk to people here! Go to the last page, introduce yourself, and we'll get you started.
• If you haven't already, check your BIOS and make sure you are running 03** series bios or higher. 0202 was first release and VERY flaky.
• Enter RAM timings and voltage manually. Helps stability.
• Disable all features not neccessary, ie firewire, if you run all SATA drives, disable IDE channels... etc.
• Run Orthos or OCCT for 6+ hours at all stock settings to test for stabilty at stock, to make sure everything is OK at the norm. This will help you to not blame your OC for stability problems, such as forgetting to set your RAM timings and having the auto timings cause a failed OC.
• FSB and RAM are already finalized values. Intel chips are QUAD pumped (QDR) and RAM is DDR. For example, if you have an 800FSB rated chip, your REAL FSB is 200Mhz (What CPUZ will display) but will display as 800FSB in BIOS. Same with RAM, but it is DUAL, so DDR2-800 RAM will display as 800 in BIOS, but 400Mhz in CPUZ.
• When overclocking, run a 1:1 divider for stability. This can be achieved by using UNLINKED mode and MANUALLY entering 1:1 values, ie 1000FSB and 500DDR, or you can choose LINKED-->SYNC Mode to run a 1:1 divider.
• AUTO will keep your FSB/RAM linked, which is bad because it will constantly run a 1:2 divider due to the BIOS displaying QDR and DDR values.
• To find your MAX CPU overclock without overclocking RAM, to eliminate it as the cause of a failed overclock, use full UNLINKED mode, to allow you to manually set your RAM to its full speed without overclocking it. This will allow you to UP the FSB as much as you need.

[davek]

ASUS site dosen't say it does just normal C2D?

What do people think about this compared to the P5B?

[dpawl31]

I guess I assumed it did since it takes dual core Pentium D and Quad Core, and you are right it doesn't say it on the site. But it does say "Quad Core/CoreTM" which I would assume means Core 2 Duo.

Where I bought it, ZipZoomFly, it says C2D.

[Wink]

The Asus 680i does support C2D dual core.. several on the forums running that board with the dual cores.

I would be interested in knowing how far Asus lets you clock the FSB, and if they have fsb:Mem dividers.

It will be interesting to see how this board compares in actual use against the reference boards with true 680i from Evga, biostar and BFG.. but so far it seems the Striker is the king of all 680i.. but even that hasnt been out long enough to truly know much yet

[dpawl31]

Wink, in regards to the FSB and mem dividers(Keep in mind this is the 650i not the 680i)
(all below from techage review listed above)
SPECS:
FSB Overclock Ability: Techage review quote: "Ram rant aside, this is a superb overclocking board otherwise. 86% overclock anyone? Yes, that's a 3.46GHz speed on a 1.86GHz chip. This speed was benchmark stable, but not Prime95 stable. My absolute 100% stable overclock proved to be 3.33GHz, or a 79% overclock.

The point is not of a huge E6300 overclock though, but the fact that the board handled 495FSB without issue. There are reports around the web from other enthusiasts with this board, who have hit 500 - 515FSB no problem. I believe that would be the max of the board, but that is a huge max! With this type of potential, it means you could "technically" get 4.5GHz out of your E6600, which most likely wouldn't happen anyway. I think the thing to make clear though, is that it will be the CPU holding back an overclock, not the motherboard.
"

Vcore Adjust from 0.83125v all the way up to 1.6v in increments of 0.00625v

Vdimm 1.920v, 2.013v, 2.085v, 2.178v, 2.259v, 2.353v, 2.424v and 2.517v

Northbridge 1.208v, 1.393v, 1.563v and 1.748v.

Dividers 1:1, 5:4 or 3:2 (Quote from Techage, "As an example, at one time I chose to use a 375FSB (1500MHz) and then 800MHz for the ram, or DDR2-800. This gave me a divider of 15:16. As odd as it is, it works and works well. This essentially means that your ram should not be the factor for your CPU overclock not being able to reach new heights. ")

Memory: "Like the P5N-Es bigger brother, the P5N32-E SLI, there are many memory tweaking options available. In addition to the standard CAS-tRCD-tRP-tRAS-CPC, you can also tweak the secondary timings, such as tRC, tRRD and others including the Async Latency." "The problem is, this board doesn't seem to want to clock -any- ram beyond DDR2-1000 speeds, regardless of what timings you are running. " <-- the memory issue I spoke of to be fixed in bios update

[dpawl31]

FROM TECHAGE REVIEW:


Pros
Superb CPU overclocker
Pricetag ($140)
Ability to back up your BIOS to thumb drive
SLI-Capable
Vista ready

Cons
No SB heatsink???
Memory overclocking limit
Failed overclocks may result in the need to manually reset BIOS

[dpawl31]

I want to get more cooling on the NB/SB. There is a heatsink on the NB, I have an old 486 (oh god I said it) CPU fan than I was thinking of trying to screw in place on that heatsink. I was going to get that Zalman cooler the wide angled one for the SB.

Any other recommendations? Can I do that fan mod?

[Wink]

wow, looks like Asus did it right with the board! My 2 previous Asus boards werent real OC friendly, sounds liek this one is!

As far as Northbridge goes, on my 680i it has a heatsink built in, witha heatpipe AND a fan.. and it's still hot.

hope the 650i isnt that hot