question about onboard VRM

[Brain Drain]

My current setup up is a Gateway GP7-500 P/// with an Intel WS440BX MoBo. As I have come to realize Gateways with this setup (and any Intel motherboard as I understand it) are good for holding down paper in LIGHT wind storms. I can't seem to overclock it because the MoBo detects the CPU, and configures it automaticlly. :confused: So now I am on to bigger and better PCs. I have found what appears to be a good MoBo, but I am worried about the onboard VRMs. is this VRM the thing that stops me from clocking the paper wieght I have now, or something all together different? Thanks for any help.

here's the Mobo if you wish to see it. http://www.enpc.com/tyantrin450s.html

[outhouse]

To be honest VRM's i'm not sure about but if you want a good overclocking MB you will need to look for something with FSB [frontsidebus] settings and CV [core voltage] settings, most all name brand PC's as you have found out dont have any of these overclocking options, look for a good overclocking MB like Abit and you will be happy :) If your new at overclocking i would recommend going through the tips section and get yourself a good background also reading through the forums and asking good questions like this will help you get or build a great PC.

[theflyingrat]

Interesting motherboard there; I'm not familiar with that one at all. Is it just the picture, or does it seem to be a dual-CPU motherboard with one of the sockets removed? Odd.....

Tyan doesn't usually make overly great overclocking boards - companies like Asus, Abit, and MSI usually do a little better job. They tend to give you more performance-optimizing settings to you in BIOS to change at your whim.

[Brain Drain]

:p LMAO!!! I didn't even see the other socket area! first clue this may not be a board i want lol. Thx for the replies, I've read all the sections on the main web page on overclocking, and a bunch in the overclocking section of the forum. will start looking for another MoBo. Thx again.

PS, how are gigabyte MoBos? worth the time, or skip it and find an Abit mobo?THX again

[Ebola]

whats a VRM???

if you want a intel motherboard for p3 chips then get an Abit bx 133 raid. thats what i would buy for a single processor.

[Brain Drain]

VRM (Voltage Regulator Module) regulates the voltage fed to the microprocessor not sure if this would hamper overclocking, but i would assume it would as you sometimes need extra voltage to boost the cpu. anyone want to suggest a good place to get mobos online. hopefully with a datasheet

http://www.asus.com.tw/Products/Motherboard/Ddr266/Cuv266/index.html

ok, I think I settled down on the ST6-RAID, if I can find out how much it costs!

[Ebola]

i always look for prices at www.pricewatch.com

in abit and asus motherboards you can adjust the voltage in the bios. most new motherboards have this feature. these are probably the two dominant companies for making overclocker friendly motherboards.

i think these are their websites if you want to check out the specs.

www.abit-usa.com
www.asus.com

[SP]

VRMs are voltage regulator modules. Basically they are the voltage regulators that generate the CPUs core voltage. Think of them as the power supply for the CPU. All boards have VRMs. Some higher end boards, like server boards have removable VRMs. On those boards if a VRM were to go bad (not that they do that often) you could remove and replace it. Also on boards with removeable VRMs if a new CPU comes out that requires different voltages, which the current VRMs are incapable of supplying, it would be theoretically possible to replace the existing VRMs with new VRMs that might provide the voltage needed for the newer processor. Of course, that would be assuming the motherboard manufacture actually made new VRMs to support the newer processors and that there wouldn't be other reasons the newer CPU wouldn't work in the board. Alot of Xeon motherboards had removeable VRMs. Most consumer level boards don't have removeable VRMs, but instead have the VRMs made into the motherboard which is probably the case with the board you linked to. That's not really an issue though as they don't usually fail and need replacing and VRMs are usually capable of producing a wide enough range of voltages to support all the processors that will ever work in that board anyway. Furthermore you won't find the type of board your looking for with removable VRMs. As I said before those are mostly on Xeon motherboard.

Anyway, the VRM is just the voltage regulator circuit that produces the voltage your CPU needs. For example, If you have a coppermine that requires 1.65v where do you get it? Your power supply doesn't produce this voltage. It produces 3.3v, +5v, -5v, +12v, and -12v, but no 1.65v. So, what do you do? Well, that's where the VRM comes in. Basically it's just a switching voltage regulator that takes one of the available voltages and converts it to the correct core voltage for the processor.