IS7-G NB Strap query

I have been ocing fro quite some time now and have oc'ed PIII slot1 and celeron slot1 to death back in my undergrad days, and more recently the amd platforms and now the p4's, but for the life of me I cannot figure what the use of the NB strap function is. I mean in seems to me if you strap the mch to a lower fsb it is just the same as setting mem ratios.

Am I wrong in this? I would rather get the quick answer from someone in the know rather than trying to search the web for answers, since I already made a half hearted attempt and still didn't get the answer I was looking for.

i've been wondering this myself. i changed the NB strap on my IS7
from "by CPU" to "800mhz" and CPU-Z still shows my FSB @ 1100mhz.
i was too sceered to change it to 400 or 533.

also i saw a review (can't find it) on either an IS7 or an IC7.
they were benchmarking with a, B, and C chips. they set the NBS to
533 for all of them .

good question Archangel8

C_H

Yeah I also read a review where it was discussed and I can't find it now. I know that the N/B Strap function does not work unless the setting is either equal or lower than the FSB being utilized, but i remeber something about the review stating that the setting needs to be 533 as opposed to 800, and I can't remember why. What I was hoping is that you could set the cpu/ram ratio to 1:1, set the N/B strap so as to keep the GAT functioning and still OC the cpu, but my experiments in this arena have lead to nothing but failure to post.

So who in the hell is in the know about this?

BTW smart move on NOT lowering it as you will end up having to clear cmos and redo your bios settings

NB Strap adjusts how the CPU interacts with the memory. Changing the NBStrap allows you to use different mem ratios. This should only be changed if you have weird memory requirements (like you want to run DDR500 at spec speed while still at 200 fsb).

I think I udnerstand what you are saying,

In order to run DDR at 500 (2x250) mhz and the cpu at 200 FSB (effective 800) then I would set the strap to 800PSB and the FSB to 250, 1:1 ratio. So this would mean that purpose of the N/B strap is to allow for the use of 100 (effective 400FSB), 133 (effective 533), cpus with higher frequency memory.

This makes sense to the extent that the N/B strap only works when it is equal to or less than the FSB. However, I have tried to set the N/b strap to 533PSB while at a 247FSB and it has resulted in nothing but crashing. This does not make sense to the extent that the cpu should become more stable, not less with a decrease in fsb. Add the fact that the cpu is still being recognized at an increased speed and I am perplexed as to how this actually works.

Thanks for the tip though, and I will look into it further.

Update, the only thing that the NB strap seems to be good for is to allow for 400fsb and 533 processors to be implemented. The NB functions in such a way as to limit the ratios available dependign upon selection. I don't see any utility in the option for ocing the puter.