Hi all, new to Abit. Have a few questions...

Hi all. I am an ASUS convert. I have a few questions, and I hope you all can sort them for me.

Board: Abit NF-7 S Revision 2.0
CPU: Mobile 2500+ Barton
RAM: Corsair 3200LL Rev. 1.2 (Winbond CH-5) (2x512)
Board came with Bios 19, I am on Tic Tac's 22 for the time being.
Heatsink: Thermalright SP97, Arctic Silver Ceramique, Vantec Tornado attached to Nexus 205 Controller, running at ~2600RPM (for now).
Idle as shown by mbm5 and bios: ~31c
Load as shown by mbm5 and bios: ~35c

What would you all consider the best bios for OC'ability and power? I have read that 10beta4 and 10beta4x4 are the best for high FSB ranges. 16 being second. I can flash to 16, but I cannot downflash to 10 using awdflash. I get an error saying "Flash Rom is Write Protected". Is there a way to downflash to 10 using awdflash?

On my ASUS board, matched dual channel config worked best in slots 1+3 for high FSB ranges. Does the same hold true for this board? I have read that 2+3 works best for matched Dual Channel configuration and high FSB ranges.

Which 100% SYNC ratio seems to work best when reaching for high FSB ranges?

My ram has a Voltage Regulator contained within the IC's. It hates voltage. I have read that this board overvolts the RAM by .1. Is there a way to get around this, either by a BIOS revision giving a 2.5vdd option and or otherwise?

I have read that this board cannot read from the CPU diode and the temp. readout is in socket form. Does anyone know the actual deviation from socket to diode on this board (that has tested with a HW probe and or otherwise) and or is there a way for me to read the diode through software (MBM5 reads the same as BIOS)?

Does the P4 plug from the PSU add to stability for the +12 rail, or is that all psychology?

Anyone with a Mobile 2500+ and able to attain an FSB greater then ~218 (~DDR 438)?

My ram in Dual Channel Configuration on an Athlon 2600+ Tbred. B in the ASUS board did FSB of 221-223 (DDR 442-446).

Thanks all, sorry for the long post.

pershoot.

What would you all consider the best bios for OC'ability and power? I have read that 10beta4 and 10beta4x4 are the best for high FSB ranges. 16 being second. I can flash to 16, but I cannot downflash to 10 using awdflash. I get an error saying "Flash Rom is Write Protected". Is there a way to downflash to 10 using awdflash?

d10 seems to be pretty good. I have not had luck with others, aside from 18 which seems pretty good to me. It really depends on the MB, you have to try them to find the best one for your setup.

As for flashing back you can use a BIOS flash tool of the abit website. It works in windows, and is the safest and easiest way. Plus it won't give you the ROM PROTECTED error.



On my ASUS board, matched dual channel config worked best in slots 1+3 for high FSB ranges. Does the same hold true for this board? I have read that 2+3 works best for matched Dual Channel configuration and high FSB ranges.

Again you need to test to see, it depends on the setup. There are no constants for this MB




Which 100% SYNC ratio seems to work best when reaching for high FSB ranges?

Depends on the bus. Most people run 6/6.




My ram has a Voltage Regulator contained within the IC's. It hates voltage. I have read that this board overvolts the RAM by .1. Is there a way to get around this, either by a BIOS revision giving a 2.5vdd option and or otherwise?

You could do a voltmod on the MB and lower the voltage. The defualt V-Dimm is 2.6 and thats as low as you can set it. In the end it over volts to 2.7v

You can find a volt mod here www.motherboardfaqs.com




I have read that this board cannot read from the CPU diode and the temp. readout is in socket form. Does anyone know the actual deviation from socket to diode on this board (that has tested with a HW probe and or otherwise) and or is there a way for me to read the diode through software (MBM5 reads the same as BIOS)?

Correct again. Different BIOS version read the temp differently, again there is no constant deviation. On average I have been told that its high around 10c. The newer the BIOS the less this holds true.




Does the P4 plug from the PSU add to stability for the +12 rail, or is that all psychology?

Yes, it helps. Especially with high voltages.




Anyone with a Mobile 2500+ and able to attain an FSB greater then ~218 (~DDR 438)?

Im sure some have, but not me. I think its the MB and not the chip. I couldn't get the MB stable with any set up over 210.


I hope that answers most of your questions. Welcome to the forums too. You will find that shorter questions get answered faster, if you are in a hurry.

best bios for ocing if you dont use sata is the ORIGINAL d10 bios imho, and you will have to use flashmenu to get back to it, download the bios from www.motherboardfaq.com, making sure to pick the one for the rev 2 board, and updat from file, dont do a live update as it will likely result in a dead mobo


no constant for this, just whichever works best for your setup, i personally run in 1 & 3

i run 3/3, but again, whatever works best for your setup

i havent found the temps to be too bad, except for the d14 bios, which was way way out, about 10 deg c like you say

the 4pin atx12v connector will help, but you have to have a strong power supply

the mobiles have gone way beyond that afaik, depends on bios revision and luck really more than anything else