Not runing sli atm because of a DOA second 8800gtx :\ RMA status. I also replaced my Tuniq Tower with a Zalman CNPS9700 LEDand tested the thermal grease with AS5 and saw a 1-2 fluxuation in temps. I like the Zalman Thermal Grease applicator too, sorta like nail pollish - all should be doing this IMO. Anyway, heres some crappy cellphone shots. System is now rock solid since I replaced the OCZ Flex XLC pc2 9700 1gb sticks with 4 Crucial Ballistix pc8000 (512 x 4). Hey, I wanted the 1g x 4 but atm the bios is fubar with highend memory and seems to cap out at certain voltages. I am running the Ballistix @ 2.2v without a hitch. I'll probably wait till the OC issues are fixed with this 680i before pushing things to limits, and god I cant wait, so hell, I'll probably start to OC tonight and see where I get on air, and bump up mem voltages, etc. Damn I wanted to use that OCZ so I am still holding on to it. Been a few weeks and I havent checked for any new bios updates.. Think last was P24 or something. I'll take a look, but the OCZ was most definately causing ALL of the nv/usb/etc BSOD's. Because I've yet to have one yet and I've been burning in for days now.
Any new info would greatly be appreciated, especially concerning the OCZFlex9700 (the ones with the waterblock options) cause I cant return them anymore and ebay just.. well bleh.
For a while the bottom fan was applying pressure to the double sli connectors from the galaxy so I removed the fourth fan... Btw, silverstone FM121's own. Price, but for the 110.03CFM @17-39dbA, I like Plus they are just great freaking fans period, they last a long time even if you slack at dusting your nasty *&^*&^# out The right vacume > disposable duster anyway.
On a sidenote the wife got this for me (for Vallentines...) and I suck for buying hernew headset.. lol :\
But back on topic...
Is the 680i worthy enough to go out and buy right now? Well, if I was a ATI buff I'de go with Intels newest board which is amazing especially in the OC and stability dept. Unfortunately, I have 8800GTX's and I have always seemed to favor NV; I still have my voodoo's collecting dust So yes, IF YOU DO YOUR RESEARCH, preferably on the evga motherboard forum section - find out whar RAM is stable, the best voltages at It's current buggy state, timings etc. Too many people dont do any research and cry " IT WONT POST c1 ERROR WAAAH!! EVGA SUCKS), when in fact there are quite simple fixes - search is your friend. I believe this board is > than the striker. Talk about instability. Picky sob - however, the heatsinks and design seem to be better than evga's standard north and south bridge + 1 pipe and the fan you "MUST" screw on and you need some eyeglasses screws IMO. Please dont do a halfass job screwing on the extra fan, or your MCP will have some issues.
There are some OC issues and for the people who own the locked quads, thats going to hurt them more. This must be fixed soon, and I am sure .. hell, maybe it is fixed. I'm going to head over to the eVGA forums and see whats been going on.
Word of warning on the Zalman CNPS9700's... and the eVGA 680i... there WAS a recall but you may end up with one of the older versions that has capacitors that can be smashed by the heatsink bracket on the bottom of the mainboard, near the CPU socket area (cept reverse side of the board). Like I said, theres a sticky on this and It's an easy fix - and It's easy to find out if you have a revised board.
Last thing, eVGA (or I can sit here all day and blame Foxxcon but I wont, It's a moot point thus far), the thermal paste under the north and south bridge is disgustingly applied. Theres a whole thread over there about it. Most of the overheating was due to this. I'm not exagerating either... the capacitors, etc were totally covered. looked like cheap white generic... how can I put it. Like the slapped on a huge piece of GUM. So yes, everyone now is removing the north and southbridge (very easy with the pushout pegs) .. I reccomend ArticClean 1 thermal material remover, but be very careful, take your time. Then apply ArticCleaner 2 Thermal Surface purifier, let it dry for about 5 minutes and apply a thin even coat of Artic Silver (or whatever you prefer). Anything is better than the crap eVGA was using ffs. Makes me wonder about their 8800's and the thermal paste on the gpu's sigh... Now I'm getting pissed. Wish BFG or better yet DFI had their 680 board ready... they are watching ASUS, eVGA, and the rest very closely - and working with Nvideo to correct these multiple problems, moreso OC'ing quadcores and not killing your RAM > 2.4v (OCZ for instance).
Welp, like I said, I may not be running the OCZ flex as intended without C1 errors but the Ballistix has fixed everything for now.
I'll end this note on a good one. There IS a new bios update Maybe they fixed the RAM fubarness and OC'ing with the QC's weeee. I do believe this board will kick some serious arse in the near future as it already is. It's all about knowing wtf your doing. Many memory requires low voltage pos ram to get into bios to even change your mem settings, timings, etc. So dont pout if you cant post with your uber new memory that works on your other rig. Bios fixes are incoming and on that note, I'm off to update to:
I'll report back! Good luck.
PS: Id wait for the new DFI just around the corner *wink*
Any new info would greatly be appreciated, especially concerning the OCZFlex9700 (the ones with the waterblock options) cause I cant return them anymore and ebay just.. well bleh.
For a while the bottom fan was applying pressure to the double sli connectors from the galaxy so I removed the fourth fan... Btw, silverstone FM121's own. Price, but for the 110.03CFM @17-39dbA, I like
Plus they are just great freaking fans period, they last a long time even if you slack at dusting your nasty *&^*&^# out The right vacume > disposable duster anyway.On a sidenote the wife got this for me (for Vallentines...) and I suck for buying hernew headset.. lol :\
But back on topic...
Is the 680i worthy enough to go out and buy right now? Well, if I was a ATI buff I'de go with Intels newest board which is amazing especially in the OC and stability dept. Unfortunately, I have 8800GTX's and I have always seemed to favor NV; I still have my voodoo's collecting dust
So yes, IF YOU DO YOUR RESEARCH, preferably on the evga motherboard forum section - find out whar RAM is stable, the best voltages at It's current buggy state, timings etc. Too many people dont do any research and cry " IT WONT POST c1 ERROR WAAAH!! EVGA SUCKS), when in fact there are quite simple fixes - search is your friend. I believe this board is > than the striker. Talk about instability. Picky sob - however, the heatsinks and design seem to be better than evga's standard north and south bridge + 1 pipe and the fan you "MUST" screw on and you need some eyeglasses screws IMO. Please dont do a halfass job screwing on the extra fan, or your MCP will have some issues.There are some OC issues and for the people who own the locked quads, thats going to hurt them more. This must be fixed soon, and I am sure .. hell, maybe it is fixed. I'm going to head over to the eVGA forums and see whats been going on.
Word of warning on the Zalman CNPS9700's... and the eVGA 680i... there WAS a recall but you may end up with one of the older versions that has capacitors that can be smashed by the heatsink bracket on the bottom of the mainboard, near the CPU socket area (cept reverse side of the board). Like I said, theres a sticky on this and It's an easy fix - and It's easy to find out if you have a revised board.
Last thing, eVGA (or I can sit here all day and blame Foxxcon but I wont, It's a moot point thus far), the thermal paste under the north and south bridge is disgustingly applied. Theres a whole thread over there about it. Most of the overheating was due to this. I'm not exagerating either... the capacitors, etc were totally covered. looked like cheap white generic... how can I put it. Like the slapped on a huge piece of GUM. So yes, everyone now is removing the north and southbridge (very easy with the pushout pegs) .. I reccomend ArticClean 1 thermal material remover, but be very careful, take your time. Then apply ArticCleaner 2 Thermal Surface purifier, let it dry for about 5 minutes and apply a thin even coat of Artic Silver (or whatever you prefer). Anything is better than the crap eVGA was using ffs. Makes me wonder about their 8800's and the thermal paste on the gpu's sigh... Now I'm getting pissed. Wish BFG or better yet DFI had their 680 board ready... they are watching ASUS, eVGA, and the rest very closely - and working with Nvideo to correct these multiple problems, moreso OC'ing quadcores and not killing your RAM > 2.4v (OCZ for instance).
Welp, like I said, I may not be running the OCZ flex as intended without C1 errors but the Ballistix has fixed everything for now.
I'll end this note on a good one. There IS a new bios update
Maybe they fixed the RAM fubarness and OC'ing with the QC's weeee. I do believe this board will kick some serious arse in the near future as it already is. It's all about knowing wtf your doing. Many memory requires low voltage pos ram to get into bios to even change your mem settings, timings, etc. So dont pout if you cant post with your uber new memory that works on your other rig. Bios fixes are incoming and on that note, I'm off to update to: I'll report back! Good luck.
PS: Id wait for the new DFI just around the corner *wink*
Last edited:
