At last, the Gigabyte FAQ for OCWorkbench has been released.
The motherboards that will be mentioned in this FAQ will be:
nForce3 (K8 Platform)
GA-K8NSNXP
GA-K8NSNXP-939
GA-K8NS Pro
GA-K8NS
GA-K8NNXP
GA-K8NNXP-940
GA-K8N Pro
GA-K8N
nForce2 (K7 Platform)
GA-7NNXP
GA-7N400 Pro
GA-7N400 Pro2
GA-7N400L1
GA-7N400L
GA-7N400E-L
Even if your motherboard is not listed (i.e the popular 7S748), some of these problems may apply to your board. Have a quick skim if that's the case.
MOST COMMON USER PROBLEMS: (this applies to most new Gigabyte motherboards)
Q: AHH! My temps are skyrocketing! My CPU is idling at 50+ degrees Celsius! What's wrong?!
A: Recent Gigabyte boards read the temperature from the CPU diode, rather than from a socket sensor. Therefore, you should expect temps that are about 8-12 degrees higher than usual.
Q: Where are the RAM timings, and other misc. functions in the BIOS? This BIOS has nothing!
A: To access the advanced BIOS menu/functions, you must press CTRL+F1 in the BIOS main screen. You should see a flash. Then, when you go into the submenus, you should see other options like RAM timings and AGP Aperture size, etc.
BIOS
Advanced BIOS settings
Supported by: All above boards listed.
To find the advanced settings in the most BIOSes, you must hit CTRL+F1 to enable the advanced BIOS settings throughout the configuration menu. The screen SHOULD (it may not ) flash, then just check out the new settings where there weren't any before in the menus. EXAMPLE: If you go into the Advanced Configuration, you will now find RAM timings.
Flashing your BIOS
Supported by: All above boards listed.
When you want to flash your BIOS, I would recommend that you do NOT use @BIOS. Most of the time, Windows flashing utilities create more problems than they fix. Download the BIOS you'd liketo flash, unzip it and place it on a floppy disk and restart your computer. Then enter the BIOS and use QFlash to flash your BIOS. For more flashing instructions, please see your motherboard manual.
Voltages
Supported by: All above boards listed.
VCore Adjustment : Increases CPU Voltage. Common choices are [+5%] or [+7.5%] or [+10%]. This should allow you to overclock a bit more, although Vcore isn't always the bottleneck. Gigabyte boards are weak because of "%" stepping in my opinion, but at least you still get to control your voltages to some extent.
DIMM Overvoltage Control : controls how much overvoltage you would like to run your ram. Choices are usually [+0.1v] or [+0.2v]. This usually helps in running your RAM at faster speeds to overclock even more.
AGP Overvoltage Control : Is how much you would like to overvolt your AGP Port. Choices are usually [+0.1v] or [+0.2v] or [+0.3v]. This is somewhat dangerous, but if you have good cooling on your video card, this can help in overclocking the GPU.
CPU Ratio Control (NOT AVAILABLE on 7N400 Pro2 and 7N400L and 7N400-E-L) : controls your CPU Multiplier. Choices are Normal or a variety of multipliers ranging from 5.5x to 22.5x
RAM
Supported by: All above boards listed. When configuring your BIOS, remember to set the RAM speed at 100% of the FSB. If you do not, it will result in decreased performance and can result in system instability. This is due to the nature of the nForce2 chipset. So if you see at POST that your RAM comes up at a lower speed than what you expected when you bought the RAM, that's okay as long as it's running at the same speed as your FSB. Personally, I run mine on "auto". It will choose the best option (usually 100%), but when I'm trying new overclocking configurations, and the RAM speed is too high for my RAM, "auto" will downclock the RAM speed so that my computer will run in async mode. Even though this hinders performance, this prevents me from having to Clear CMOS.
As well, it has been found that setting the T(RAS) which is the Row Active Delay to 11 increases performance on most nForce2 boards.
Common RAM problems
Supported by: All above boards listed.
Some people have ran into problems with some sticks of Corsair RAM. The symptoms of this is most often one successful boot and allows access to the BIOS. If the RAM is set by SPD, on the next boot the system will not POST. The only way to get the system to POST again is then to clear the CMOS. This can be resolved by increasing the voltage to the DDR to 2.7v or relaxing the timings on the T(RCD) which is the CAS to RAS latency to 3. This allows the system to POST properly. The early versions of TwinX came with a T(RCD) of 2, but due to compatibility issues with Intel boards, it was changed to 3 in a later revision. This resolves the issue.
If you would like to populate all four slots on your mobo with RAM, only the first two slots (1 & 2) can have Double Sided RAM (which doesn't mean both sides have chips) and the last two slots (3 & 4) require Single Sided RAM (which doesn't mean one side alone has RAM chips on it either). The nForce2 chipset can only handle 6-banks of RAM (0-1 map to slot 1, 2-3 map to slot 2, and 4-5 map to slots 3 AND 4). Double Sided RAM sticks then take up two banks (one stick in slot 1 = banks 0 & 1 in use) while Single Sided only uses one bank (one stick in slot 1 = bank 0 in use). This does make purchasing RAM a bit more complicated. If you would like to do this, you're going to have to do some research on the brand you would like to purchase and contact either the manufacturer or your local shop to inquire for more information as to whether or not they sell Single Sided RAM in the size you need.
Hardware
CPUs
Athlon XP (Palomino, Thoroughbred, Thorton, Barton), Duron.
Supported by: All above boards listed. EXCEPT on GA-K8NSNXP, GA-K8NS Pro, GA-K8NS, GA-K8NNXP, GA-K8NNXP-940, GA-K8N Pro, GA-K8N
As it is well known, most nForce2 based motherboards unlock the multipliers only on Thoroughbred-B and Barton core CPUS. To change the multiplier (on most boards), use the CTRL+F1 menu option and you will find it under Advanced Configuration.Many people will find that when they install an Athlon XP 2500+ when the machine first POSTs it will detect at a speed of 1100 MHz. For some reason XP 2500+s don't always detect correctly. This means you have to (Always in the BIOS) set the FSB. It is found under Advanced Configuration.
Note: Newer Thoroughbred-Bs and Bartons are now superlocked at the factory using a different method that the nForce2 cannot unlock. This requires a modification to be performed to the CPU to allow the multipliers to be adjusted.
Thermal Throttling
Supported by: All above boards listed EXCEPT nForce3 boards.
Thermal Throttling can only occur with Athlon XP CPUs (because they have the integrated temperature diode). Thermal Throttling occurs when the CPU hits a certain temperature then the board basically "throttles" it's speed down to prevent the CPU from burning up. That's why you have % options in that menu option. That's how much it'll throttle it back, and if it doesn't cool down enough to safely operate, then the board automatically shuts down to protect the CPU.
Temperatures
Found on: All above boards listed EXCEPT on GA-K8NSNXP, GA-K8NSNXP, GA-K8NS Pro, GA-K8NS, GA-K8NNXP, GA-K8NNXP-940, GA-K8N Pro, GA-K8N
You'll notice that in the more recent BIOS revisions (after August 2003) your CPU temperature will be HIGH. It appears that the Gigabyte motherboards run their processors hotter than other brand motherboards. Try to keep your CPU temperature under 65c (load temp) if possible to avoid potential problems.
Heatsinks
Found on: All above boards listed EXCEPT on GA-K8NSNXP, GA-K8NS Pro, GA-K8NS, GA-K8NNXP, GA-K8NNXP-940, GA-K8N Pro, GA-K8N
The Gigabyte nForce2 boards have VERY little space around the CPU socket. Many larger heatsinks will barely fit or will not fit at all without modification. A good example is the Vantec Aeroflow. The only way to mount it is to cut out a corner using a dremel, just to accomodate a really close capacitor near the top of the board.The stock heatsink from an early 2500+ (nickel plated copper bottom screwed onto the heatsink) fits fine. So most stock HSF should fit with little to no trouble. Recommended: For quiet and sufficient cooling, I would recommend the Thermaltake Silent Boost; it fits fine on each of these boards and will provide enough cooling for almost all systems (it's also easy on the ears).
PCI and AGP Bus
nForce2 (Ultra 400, 400)
Found on: All above boards listed EXCEPT NOT AVAILABLE on GA-K8NSNXP, GA-K8NSNXP-939, GA-K8NS Pro, GA-K8NS, GA-K8NNXP, GA-K8NNXP-940, GA-K8N Pro, GA-K8N
To date no one has definitive proof (from a testing device) that the GA-7NNXP and it's bretheren have a locked PCI Bus, but it certainly does have a locked AGP clock. From experience so far though, it does appear to have a lock.
nForce3 150
Found on: All above boards listed EXCEPT on GA-K8NSNXP, GA-K8NSNXP-939, GA-K8NS Pro, GA-K8NS, GA-7NNXP, GA-7N400 Pro, GA-7N400L1, GA-7N400 Pro2, GA-7N400L and GA-7N400-E-L
The K8NNXPs (therefore theoretically so do the other nForce3 150-based Gigabyte boards) feature an AGP lock, so it is assumed that it also has a PCI Bus lock.
nForce3 250
Found on: All above boards listed EXCEPT on GA-K8NNXP, GA-K8NNXP-940, GA-K8N Pro, GA-K8N, GA-7NNXP, GA-7N400 Pro, GA-7N400L1, GA-7N400 Pro2, GA-7N400L and GA-7N400-E-L
The nForce3 250 is similar to the nForce2 in that the PCI/AGP lock is supposed to be standard. Information on whether it is implemented is yet to be found.
The ATX 12v Power Connector
Found on: All above boards listed.
If your board has a ATX 12V 4 pin connector, it MUST be plugged in at all times. Some users have reported a variety of issues while not having the 12v power connector plugged in. Results include shorting out and overheating of the ATX power connector. Problems may not occur at first, but after time they may appear due to stress. Its purpose is to supply voltage to the CPU, and thereby reducing the amount of stress on the main ATX power connector.
Fans
CPU Fan
Found on: All above listed boards.
There has cropped up an issue that when the smart fan control on the CPU fan is enabled, it occasionally will stop the fan. So disable that in the BIOS (Under PC Health).
Northbridge Fan
Found on: All above listed boards EXCEPT on GA-K8NS, GA-K8N, GA-7N400L1, GA-7N400L, and GA-7N400-E-L
Also, if you have an older version of EasyTune4 installed, it may stop your Northbridge fan from spinning. UNINSTALL IT if it does, it can kill your motherboard if that fan stops when things are getting hot.
The AGP Pro slot
Found on: GA-7NNXP and GA-7N400 Pro
The AGP Pro slot found on the 7NNXP is designed to match the AGP 3.0 Pro (a.k.a. Professional) slot specification. That means that a professional video card like the ATI FireGL or nVidia Quadro series cards will fit into this slot. However, for cards like those to fit, there is a white spacer that must be removed. BUT, for regular video cards (ex: ALL RADEONS and GEFORCEs) the spacer must remain in the slot to prevent the card from moving forward in the slot and hitting the additional power connectors and frying the AGP card and/or the motherboard. So, if you don't have a FireGL card, Wildcat or Quadro, don't touch the white spacer.
Soundstorm
Found on: GA-7NNXP, GA-7N400 Pro
Soundstorm is a onboard sound which has quality known to be much higher than regular integrated sound (it's been said that it is better than SBLive 5.1 cards). Another way of finding out if your motherboard has Soundstorm (other than checking the box), is to see if the southbridge is the nForce "MCP-T". Most nForce boards are just the regular "MCP" southbriges which are NON-soundstorm boards.
RAID Related
SATA RAID Powered by Silicon Image
Found on: All above listed boards EXCEPT on GA-K8NS, GA-K8N, GA-7N400L1, GA-7N400L, and GA-7N400-E-L
Performance
For all those who are wondering what performance increase you can expect by running SATA drives on nForce-based (powered by Silicon Image 3112a controller or 3512 controller) boards, you won't find any. Due to the fact that the SATA controller is running on the PCI bus, it is limited to a maximum peak bandwidth of 133 MB/s. This is because the PCI bus itself only runs with a maximum bandwidth of 133 MB/s, and shares the PCI bus with any other PCI devices. Even without any extra PCI devices, you're drives will never hit their theoretical maximum bandwidth of 150 MB/s (SATA Spec 1). So unless you are using the SATA controller integrated into the southbridge (nForce2 Ultra 400GB) or Northbridge (nForce3 250GB), you won't be able to come any closer to hitting that maximum bandwidth.
SATA Drivers
Found on: All above boards listed EXCEPT on GA-K8NS, GA-K8N, GA-7N400L1, GA-7N400L, and GA-7N400-E-L
No matter what mode you are using the Silicon Image SATA controller (Just a Bunch Of Drives [JBOD] or RAID) it's a good idea to use the RAID drivers. Why? Well, it appears that the Silicon Image 3x12 SATA IDE driver just plain sucks performance wise, and actually slows the drive down more than a regular Parallel ATA drive. So make sure to use the RAID drivers if you're doing a clean install of Windows, or adding a RAID array to your current install.
Credits: stitch, HyperX
Last thoughts: If the information in this thread does not answer your inquiries, then:
1. Post a new thread.
2. E-mail Gigabyte Tech Support
3. Do a quick google search.
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