Asus Rampage Formula (X48) Thread

[mistargill]

my E8500

BIOS 803 and 701(the right side of the config others are same



Ai Overclock Tuner [Manual]

OC from CPU Level Up [Crazy]

CPU Ratio Setting:[9]

FSB Strap to North Bridge[333]

FSB Frequency [450]

PCIE Frequency [100]

DRAM Settings [Manual]

DRAM Frequency [1.081MHz]

DRAM Command Rate [2N]

DRAM CMD Skew on Channel A [Auto]

DRAM CMD Skew on Channel B [Auto]

DRAM Clock Skew on Channel A [Auto]

DRAM Clock Skew on Channel B [Auto]

DRAM Timing Control [Manual]

CAS# Latency [5]

RAS# to CAS Delay [5]

RAS# Precharge [5]

RAS# Active Time [12]

RAS# to Ras# Delay [Auto]

Rew Cycle Time [Auto]

Write Recovery Time [Auto]

Read to Pre Time [Auto]

Read to Write Delay (S/D) [Auto]

Write to Read Delay (S) [Auto]

Write to Read Delay (D) [Auto]

Read to Read Delay (S) [Auto]

Read to Read Delay (D) [Auto]

Write to Write Delay(S) [Auto]

Write to Write Delay (D) [Auto]

DRAM Static Read Control [Enabled]

Ai Clock Twister [Stronger]

Transaction Booster [Manual]

Common Performance-Level [07]

Pull-In CHA PH1- Pull-In CHB PH5 full [Disabled]

CPU Voltage [1.33125V] [1.32500V]

CPU PLL Voltage [1,50V]

North Bridge Voltage [1.31V] [1.33V]

DRAM Voltage [1.90V] <---- This is possible with my ram, you should just use rated voltage for yours

FSB Termination Voltage [1,20V]

South Bridge Voltage [1,050V]

SB 1.5V Voltage [1.50V]

Loadline Calibration [Enabled]

CPU GTL Reference [AUTO]

North Bridge GTL Reference [AUTO]

DDR2 Channel A REF Voltage [Auto]

DDR2 Channel B REF Voltage [Auto]

DDR2 Controller REF Voltage [Auto]

CPU Spread Spectrum [Disabled]

PCIE Spread Spectrum [Disabled]

CPU Clock Skew [normal] [Unavailable]

NB Clock Skew [normal] [Unavailable]

-------ADVANCED---------

CPU Ratio Setting:[9]

C1E Support [Disabled]

CPU TM Function [Enabled]

Vanderpool Technology [Disabled]

Execute Disable Bit [Enabled]

Max CPUID Value Limit [Disabled]

Intel(R) SpeedStep (TM) Tech. [Disabled] - I think it disables when you lock your multiplier anyway


EDIT: your CPU should be fine between 1.28~1.33 in bios. try starting from setting 1.3250 in bios and blend test it. core 2 duo doesnt need 1.45 voltage on North Bridge. use 1.33 for now. anyquestions feel free to ask.

[Demented]

OK, I decided to come here for help, and without being too long winded, here's the issue. My system is my sig rig, overclocked to said settings. I keep getting random 0x00000124 BSOD's and I'm at my wit's end trying to figure them out. I was wondering that if someone with a similar setup may look over my settings, and tell me where the issue might be resolved. This BSOD will be gone for days, then pop up when I'm watching TV on my system, and browsing the web. Or it will pop up while playing City of Heroes, usually accompanied by a very fast sound stuttering. This leads me to believe that it is related to my Audigy drivers conflicting with my nVidia drivers, as I have read that it is sometimes caused by that.

Anyways, here are my settings. Any advice would be helpful, as I will be watching this thread while I watch Heroes!

PHP Code:

ASUS Rampage Formula BIOS 0803 Template

*Extreme Tweaker*
Ai Overclock Tuner               [Manual]
OC From CPU Level Up             [Auto]
CPU Ratio Setting                [09.5]
FSB Strap to North Bridge        [Auto]
FSB Frequency                    [443]
PCIE Frequency                   [100]

DRAM Frequency                   [DDR2-886MHz]
DRAM Command Rate                [2N]
DRAM CMD Skew on Channal A       [Greyed Out]
DRAM CMD Skew on Channal B       [Greyed Out]
DRAM CLK Skew on Channal A       [Auto]
DRAM CLK Skew on Channal B       [Auto]

DRAM Timing Control              [Manual]
 1st Information
  CAS# Latency                   [5]
  RAS# to CAS# Delay             [5]
  RAS# PRE Time                  [5]
  RAS# ACT Time                  [15]
  RAS# to RAS# Delay             [Auto]
  REF Cycle Time                 [Auto]
  WRITE Recovery Time            [Auto]
  READ to PRE Time               [Auto]
 2nd Information
  READ to WRITE Delay (S/D)      [Auto]
  WRITE to READ Delay (S)        [Auto]
  WRITE to READ Delay (D)        [Auto]
  READ to READ Delay (S)         [Auto]
  READ to READ Delay (D)         [Auto]
  WRITE to WRITE Delay (S)       [Auto]
  WRITE to WRITE Dealy (D)       [Auto]
 3rd Information
  WRITE to PRE Delay             [Auto]
  READ to PRE Delay              [Auto]
  PRE to PRE Delay               [Auto]
  ALL PRE to ACT Delay           [Auto]
  ALL PRE to REF Delay           [Auto]

DRAM Static Read Control         [Auto]
Ai Clock Twister                 [Auto]
Ai Transation Booster            [Auto]

CPU Voltage                      [1.34375v]
CPU PLL Voltage                  [1.52v]
North Bridge Voltage             [1.37v]
DRAM Voltage                     [2.00v]
FSB Termination Voltage          [1.40v]
South Bridge Voltage             [1.10v]
SB 1,5V Voltage                  [1.55v]
Loadline Calibration             [Enabled]
CPU GTL Voltage Reference        [Auto]
NB GTL Voltage Reference         [Auto]
DRAM Controller Voltage REF      [AUTO]
DRAM Channel A Voltage REF       [AUTO]
DRAM Channel B Voltage REF       [AUTO]

CPU LED Selection                [CPU Voltage]
NB LED Selection                 [North Bridge Voltage]
SB LED Selection                 [South Bridge Voltage]
Voltiminder LED                  [Enabled]

CPU Spread Spectrum              [Disabled]
PCIE Spred Spectrum              [Disabled]
CPU Clock Skew                   [Auto]
NB Clock Skew                    [Auto]

*Advanced settings*
CPU Ratio Setting                [09.5]
C1E Support                      [Disabled]
CPU TM Function                  [Disabled]
Vanderpool Technology            [Enabled]
Execute Disable Bit              [Enabled]
Max CPUID Value Limit            [Enabled] 


[mistargill]

my e8500 has hard time staying stable with low voltage like yours. Try on the bios 1.3625 and LLC enabled. Clock twister to Level 7 and Booster to moderate or the other way around. (sorry Not at home)

[Demented]

Originally Posted by mistargill

my e8500 has hard time staying stable with low voltage like yours. Try on the bios 1.3625 and LLC enabled. Clock twister to Level 7 and Booster to moderate or the other way around. (sorry Not at home)

Well, I tried to do that, but my system wouldn't boot. Overclock Failed!

So I put it back to what it was, then bumped Vcore to 1.3500v in BIOS, and Northbridge to 1.39v. Hopefully that will do the trick...or someone else will come along with another suggestion.

[Ghostleader]

@Demented

Probably to low vcore but have you tried to disabled Loadline Calibration (you have to raise vcore to compensate the drop) to see if you still got that BSOD?

What test have you run to determine if it´s stable?

Recommed to run Prime95 small FFT and blend, OCCT small FFT or if you really want to stress that CPU, try LinX with max problem size and max memory use.

Those OCZ Reaper are they PC6400 or PC8500?

[Demented]

Originally Posted by Ghostleader

@Demented

Probably to low vcore but have you tried to disabled Loadline Calibration (you have to raise vcore to compensate the drop) to see if you still got that BSOD?

What test have you run to determine if it´s stable?

Recommed to run Prime95 small FFT and blend, OCCT small FFT or if you really want to stress that CPU, try LinX with max problem size and max memory use.

Those OCZ Reaper are they PC6400 or PC8500?

Well, I can try disabling LLC, but as stated above I raised my vCore to 1.35v. I ran Orthos for only an hour, I'll admit. I can try OCCT for a longer test, or even Prime 95. I'm just not as familiar with those programs.

The RAM is PC8500. I did have it oc'd to 1111Mhz, but recently went with a 1:1 ratio to try and help with the BSOD's.

[Ghostleader]

Originally Posted by Demented

Well, I can try disabling LLC, but as stated above I raised my vCore to 1.35v. I ran Orthos for only an hour, I'll admit. I can try OCCT for a longer test, or even Prime 95. I'm just not as familiar with those programs.

The RAM is PC8500. I did have it oc'd to 1111Mhz, but recently went with a 1:1 ratio to try and help with the BSOD's.

Sorry m8, but 1 hour Orthos don´t cut it, you need more.

Run Prime95, Torture test, small FFT ~12hrs and then blend ~12hrs, if no error you should be quite stable.




You should consider to run OCCT v3.0.1, the LinPack feature, Custom, Test mode "Max (90% free mem), this don´t only stress the CPU, it also stress your NB and memory, if you run this without error you don´t need to run Prime95 small FFT.



If you think that your Audigy drivers conflicting with your nVidia drivers, have you tried a more moderate OC, exemple 400 3,6 800 555 15 to check to see if the problem still occur?

[Arbie]

I've been running a Rampage Formula since last August, using a QX9650 oc'd to 3.8GHZ on air. It does Orthos/Prime stable for 24+ hrs at 102 deg F ambient. The quad gets hot but it's stable. Never a BSOD.

In setting up this rig I learned a LOT from Kris Boughton's excellent articles on the Anandtech site regarding this mobo. He made a very good point regarding LLC (http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets...x?i=3184&p=6):

"ASUS' implementation of this feature, labeled as Load Line Calibration and included with their latest line of motherboards, is particularly worthy of our attention for a number of reasons. The first is that setting lower voltages with this option enabled actually results in a condition in which the CPU voltage under load is higher than the idle voltage. Imagine our confusion as we desperately struggle to understand why our system is Prime95 stable for days yet continues to crash under absolutely no load.

Suffice it to say, we found it better to leave Load Line Calibration disabled."


Kris has also published some related works on Ars Technica. Tracking back through those and the Intel datasheets he references, it is clear to me that Load Line Calibration is a silly feature put in by Asus to satisfy some poorly-informed enthusiasts who think the power to the CPU can and therefore should be more tightly controlled. They want to eliminate the "VDroop" characteristic purposely specified by Intel to provide more positive and negative headroom for inductive kicks out of the bucking converter when CPU load changes. Turning this feature ON will do no good and will often cause seemingly random blue screens / lockups, especially when going from heavy load to light load (which puzzles everyone). There's no information on what the AUTO does so it's safest to choose DISABLE.

I'll bet that if you disable LLC, your random BSOD problem will go away. There could be another cause, of course, but this is the prime suspect.

Arbie

[TFL Replica]

Originally Posted by Arbie

I've been running a Rampage Formula since last August, using a QX9650 oc'd to 3.8GHZ on air. It does Orthos/Prime stable for 24+ hrs at 102 deg F ambient. The quad gets hot but it's stable. Never a BSOD.

In setting up this rig I learned a LOT from Kris Boughton's excellent articles on the Anandtech site regarding this mobo. He made a very good point regarding LLC (http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets...x?i=3184&p=6):

"ASUS' implementation of this feature, labeled as Load Line Calibration and included with their latest line of motherboards, is particularly worthy of our attention for a number of reasons. The first is that setting lower voltages with this option enabled actually results in a condition in which the CPU voltage under load is higher than the idle voltage. Imagine our confusion as we desperately struggle to understand why our system is Prime95 stable for days yet continues to crash under absolutely no load.

Suffice it to say, we found it better to leave Load Line Calibration disabled."


Kris has also published some related works on Ars Technica. Tracking back through those and the Intel datasheets he references, it is clear to me that Load Line Calibration is a silly feature put in by Asus to satisfy some poorly-informed enthusiasts who think the power to the CPU can and therefore should be more tightly controlled. They want to eliminate the "VDroop" characteristic purposely specified by Intel to provide more positive and negative headroom for inductive kicks out of the bucking converter when CPU load changes. Turning this feature ON will do no good and will often cause seemingly random blue screens / lockups, especially when going from heavy load to light load (which puzzles everyone). There's no information on what the AUTO does so it's safest to choose DISABLE.

I'll bet that if you disable LLC, your random BSOD problem will go away. There could be another cause, of course, but this is the prime suspect.

Arbie

Nice first post and welcome to OCN, enjoy your stay!

[Demented]

Originally Posted by Arbie

I've been running a Rampage Formula since last August, using a QX9650 oc'd to 3.8GHZ on air. It does Orthos/Prime stable for 24+ hrs at 102 deg F ambient. The quad gets hot but it's stable. Never a BSOD.

In setting up this rig I learned a LOT from Kris Boughton's excellent articles on the Anandtech site regarding this mobo. He made a very good point regarding LLC (http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets...x?i=3184&p=6):

"ASUS' implementation of this feature, labeled as Load Line Calibration and included with their latest line of motherboards, is particularly worthy of our attention for a number of reasons. The first is that setting lower voltages with this option enabled actually results in a condition in which the CPU voltage under load is higher than the idle voltage. Imagine our confusion as we desperately struggle to understand why our system is Prime95 stable for days yet continues to crash under absolutely no load.

Suffice it to say, we found it better to leave Load Line Calibration disabled."


Kris has also published some related works on Ars Technica. Tracking back through those and the Intel datasheets he references, it is clear to me that Load Line Calibration is a silly feature put in by Asus to satisfy some poorly-informed enthusiasts who think the power to the CPU can and therefore should be more tightly controlled. They want to eliminate the "VDroop" characteristic purposely specified by Intel to provide more positive and negative headroom for inductive kicks out of the bucking converter when CPU load changes. Turning this feature ON will do no good and will often cause seemingly random blue screens / lockups, especially when going from heavy load to light load (which puzzles everyone). There's no information on what the AUTO does so it's safest to choose DISABLE.

I'll bet that if you disable LLC, your random BSOD problem will go away. There could be another cause, of course, but this is the prime suspect.

Arbie

Nice info man! I think I've nothing to lose by trying it!