P4B533-V: a good overclocker??

is the asus p4b533-v a good board for my 2.26b P4??

thx

I personaly like the Asus P4B533-E better. Do you all ready have the 2.26 or are you going to buy it? If you don't have it get a 2.4B they are the same price of $5 or $6 more.

Don't get the P4B533-V. I have one, and it has a lot of problems with memory overclocking.

The P4B533-E is much better!

@debovenk2002

i all ready have the 2.26b

@Jola

which Kind of Problems?

which ram?

webwilli

No problem with your 2.26B - wish I had one!

A lot of users have had problems with memory overclocking with the P4B533-V.

The main problems are:

Problems with two sticks of any brand. Better to have just one 512MB. If you need more than this you have a problem. This is a general o/c issue but it is worse on the P4B533-V.

Problems with Corsair memory - it will not work at CL2 on this board at any speed. Example, XMS3200C2 will not work at CL2 at 166.5MHz, well within spec. And it seems not to be a Corsair memory problem, rather a P4B533-V problem. There have been reports of similar problems with other brands.

The 3:4 multiplier over FSB=133 only exist on a Beta BIOS, and may be unstable on that. On the P4B533-E the 3:4 is available over FSB=133 via a switch trick DP6) and is stable.

I have one of these boards, and would advise you to stay away. You can't use the onboard graphics anyway, it slows the memory right down (shares system memory).

If I could exchange my board for a P4B533-E, it would do it on the spot, even if I had to pay in (although my P4B533-V wasn't cheap at USD260).

Why do you want the V? Except for the graphics that you can't use anyway, it has nothing over the E.

And there have been reports that 845E boards will be able to support hyperthreading with a BIOS upgrade, while the 845G boards won't be able to do this because of a design problem. I think that the source of this is Intel.

Need any more reasons?

Look, if you just want to run a P4 at standard speeds with cheap memory then the board is OK. But then you can buy an Intel D845EBT at a much better price to do this.

Whoa !! There Jola

Have a look @ this link then tell me the P4B533-V is`nt a good overclocker.
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.cfm?catid=29&threadid=806972

Also the latest Bios (1003) enables support for DDR333 re a 4:5 divider memory set to 166.25=332.5

Acko

hm....

I absolutely need a new motherboard. my bd7-I is on end now. I thought the -V is a good board, but now...

Asus has announced the P4B533-VT. A new rev. of the -V. With S-ATA, and and and...

maybe i should wait.

Look, don't get me wrong, the P4B533-V is a good board. It's just that you can do better at this time.

If you want negative reports, look at the compatibility section of the Corsair support section at www.houseofhelp.com. But the issues all revolve around the memory problem (which is the only problem that I have experienced or that I know of).

I am irritated because, even though I run my 1.8A at FSB=143 (CPU= 2.57GHz) and my memory at 3:4 (Beta Bios, 190MHz or DDR 380), I have to run my memory (Corsair XMS3000C2) at 2.5-3-3-6, whereas the P4B533-E will run it at 2-2-2-5, and the E will possibly support hyperthreading.

I am not using two sticks (single 512Mb!) but this is a problem for some people.

I could have achieved my memory performance with memory sticks a $100 cheaper than the Corsair. And it is not a Corsair problem but a P4B533-V one.

But this is being finicky, I'll admit that the board is very stable and is performing well. I won't throw a tantrum and will live with it because it's OK.

And I know that some people have managed to get the odd memory sticks that work well with the P4B533-V. But they were lucky, whereas almost everyone is "lucky" (and happy) with the P4B533-E.

All I'm trying to say is that if you haven't got anything yet, you can do better. The P4B533-E is excellent - so why the uncertainty?

My biggest problem is actually that I don't have a "B" CPU, because then I could push the memory speed so high that the fact that CL2 doesn't work on the P4B533-V would become irrelevant. So if you have a "B", maybe you shouldn't worry and just get the P4B533-V if you like it. Just remember the two stick problem, so get all that you think that you will need in a single stick (eg 512MB). This issue may be resolved in a future BIOS update, but there is no guarantee.

There is also a timing issue - new versions of both the 845E and 845G chipsets are out in about a month - when this will hit the street in new motherboards I don't know. But those will have official Intel DDR333 support (not that that matters, I am already running well over that) and will support hyperthreading. And the memory timing issue as in the P4B533-V will have been resolved.

But you can't wait forever, and just have to make up your own mind.

Just be careful with other and new variants - the P4B533-VM (micro-ATX) has many disadvantages, and you should check these out carefully.

Best of luck!!!

IN A NUTSHELL: It's a great board, just be warned that it has one or two little problems that you can work around if you are aware of them - like buying a "B" CPU, don't get CL2 memory but rather high speed memory (PC3200 or PC3500), and buy a single stick!!!

Update: Check out new P4B533-VT with Gigabit Ethernet, Serial ATA support, support for 3 gig and above Hyperthreaded CPU's, etc.

http://www.legionhardware.com/html/doc.php?id=207

Skipper, I hate to disappoint you, but there is an unresolved issue using two Corsair sticks on the P4B533-V.

Check out the compatibility section of the Corsair support site at www.houseofhelp.com.

If you don't overclock the memory it will be OK, but this is boring (and slow).

Get the P4B533-E, it doesn't have this problem. Or wait for the new boards to come out.

There is no measurable performance difference between the two boards, the P4B533-E just doesn't have the 4:5 memory ratio. But if you use the Dip Switch 6 trick it has 3:4 above FSB=132Mhz.

The reason why you don't see that many posts about the P4B533-E any more is because everone using it have successfully overclocked their computers to hell and back, and are happily busy using them without problems.

Jola said:

Skipper, I hate to disappoint you, but there is an unresolved issue using two Corsair sticks on the P4B533-V.

Click to expand...

Hmmmmm.... I am afraid I understood that. On one hand I need hardware quite quickly, on the other - even more important - I do not want to stick to "older" hardware at this moment, when 845G is out since long time, and there seem to be upcoming versions of these boards.... like the "VT" one.

I suppose picking abother vendors PC3200 CL2 sticks wouldn't solve the problem, as this seems to be an Asus issue and not Corsair one, right?

845G does have better (official or unofficial) support to get it to DDR400+ specs, and some tweaks. Besides I am buyng for the next 2-4 years, so I do want all I can get: USB 2 native support and all other fancy things... OF course, I will never use the integrated graphics, but put a G4 Ti4200 card inside... Also a RAID card, but integrated RAID does not help me, as I want a specific solution I have in mind...

I will take a look at Corsair help site, and see if I can check whether this is still an issue with P4B533-VT... IF yes, I can as well turn to a different board manufacturer...

I understand there are also issues between 845G and Linux, as I'll be running it aside W2000, another important this for me to check!

In any case, thanks a lot for your insight.

Hi Jola

Do you know why Asus does`nt officialy support PC2700 DDR on there site (P4B533-V) yet there latest Bios. (1003) does support DDR333?
Whats going on? Is it official or not?
Also does the faster ram add any exta heat to the system & do you have to change the divider manually (4:5) or will it do it automatically?

Acko

Intel doesn't officially support DDR333 for the 845G chipset, even though the chipset does have the functionality built-in. That is why Asus doesn't officially support it. And it is understandable that Intel doesn't support it officially, it is quite clear that the P4B533-V does have some memory timing problems, eg the inability to run at CL2 with most memory sticks.

I can't remember what the board defaults to with the memory ratio, but I think that it would be 1:1 for a "B" CPU.

If you overclock your RAM very high, for example FSB=160, memory ratio 4:5, then your RAM will be running at 200MHz or DDR400, and your RAM will generate some heat, but probably not enough to influence your case temperature a lot. Note that the good chips like Corsair come standard with a heat spreader. It may be a good idea to get this if your memory chips don't have this.

Note also that the 1004.014 Beta BIOS allows you to run your memory at a 3:4 ratio. The general opinion of the final 1004 BIOS is pretty negative, it seems to be based on an earlier Beta. I you look on the Taiwan site they only push the Final 1003 or the Beta 1004.014 BIOS. The status of the "final" 1004 is pretty suspect.

So use either 1003 Final or Beta 1004.014 (I use this, it's fine).

And with 3:4 you could run your memory at 200Mhz with an FSB of only 150, or at 213MHz at an FSB of 160. But you need good chips and a bit of luck to achieve this, both wrt the memory and the CPU. More people have been successful at this with the P4B533-E than with the P4B533-V.

Skipper: Just a warning if you decide against the Asus boards. Almost any board that you can try will give you more problems than the Asus boards. I had a GA-8IEXP that I returned because the memory overclocking was poor.

As far as I know the only really good overclocking boards are the Asus P4B533-E and the Abit BD7-II.

IMHO...

I've read similar stories on the boards at Overclockers Australia. Though the V looked better on paper (and at Anandtech in his review) I'm glad I didn't get the V.

I opted for the P4B533-E and haven't had any problems. None at all. Zero. I don't think that there is any real-world difference in performance between the E and the G chipsets. I thought that the better memory controller in the G was worth waiting for but I don't think that it's going to make any real difference.

Get the P4B533 or the -E if you want the extra bits. No official support for DDR333 won't stop the -E from running it.

Mavrick, looking at your setup you are just proving my point.

You P4B533-E boys are just quiet because you've solved your computer problems and are beavering away at the computers, or have found something more interesting (wine?, women?, song?).

I unfortunately have the P4B533-V because the P4B533-E's were out of stock when I was buying. It's not bad but the P4B533-E would have been faster because I would have been able to run my Corsair CL2 at CL2.

Jola said:

Skipper: Just a warning if you decide against the Asus boards. Almost any board that you can try will give you more problems than the Asus boards. I had a GA-8IEXP that I returned because the memory overclocking was poor.

As far as I know the only really good overclocking boards are the Asus P4B533-E and the Abit BD7-II.

Click to expand...

I have to admit, although it was hard because of some neat -V features, that you're all making a good point here. Hence, it seems I will have to give up the -V and just take the -E board.

Jola: but with the -E version, there's a whole lot of other "issues". Most can be workaround-ed, but...

For instance, if I take an P4B533-E, does it make sense to get XMS3200 CL2 or could I be fine with XMS3000 for achieving the same results? What I mean, because there is no 3:4 or 4:5 ratio support above certain FSB, will I be able to overclock the RAM sticks to DDR400 spec or even above?

In overclocking terms, what can I reasonably expect with P4B533-E, with 2 times 512Mb (yes, I need two sticks and 1Gb total) and an 2.4B, provided air cooling is as perfect as it can be?

I admit I was not following that much the P4B533-E issues as I was already set to go for a -V one... Besides, I will get a RAID which I do not want (I need HighPoint 404), but OK that's my problem...

Skipper said:

Hence, it seems I will have to give up the -V and just take the -E board.

Click to expand...

I've just taken a quick look at P4B533-E at Asus site, and it seems fine as it has all I was looking for (USB 2.0, firewire, LAN, sound, RAID.... at least the version my vendor is selling...).

One thing I do not get though: Asus site states that the mobo has "Intel® i845E and ICH4 chipset "?! Am I confusing something, or is it that ICH4 was supposed to be the companion to i845G chip?

perhaps not an issue for this thread anyway... I just hope I will be able to disable default RAID controller and replace it by the card of my choice, stupid.... but that's how it gets.

Thanx for the info Jola you seem to know your onions!!

I think I will just leave my 2 x 256 PC2100 DDR in this system for a while I don`t think its worth the hassle to change to PC2700 & pay out the exra bucks.

I must add that I`m really happy with this set up I`ve got now I do not have one single issue, things that did`nt work to well with my old AMD / Via system work perfectly on this P4B533-V.

Acko

Skipper,

The P4B533-E does have an undocumented 3:4 ratio above 133FSB.

It's called the dip switch 6 trick I think - basically you leave the board in jumper-free mode but switch dip #6. The ratios in the bios read the same as they did before but the actual ratios are as follows:

READS - ACTUAL (after dip switch trick)
4:3 - 1:1
1:1 - 3:4

I tried this and then verified the results using Sandra as follows:

FSB - 1:1 - 3:4
150 - 2273 - 3044
155 - 2349 - 3148
160 - 2427 - 3248
163 - 2472 - 3309

You might also want to consider though that there may be issues in overclocking 2 x 512 sticks. I've read that this is is a universal i845x problem.

Cheers

One more post.

There looks like a good thread here that seems to cover the P4B533-V.

I don't think you need to be registered. Let me know if you need to and I'll cut and paste some of it.