TH7II-raid dip-switches

Hi,
This is my first post here. I have been lurking for some time since I intend to overclock the system I currently am putting together.
This question has nothing to do with overclocking and am not sure it's the appropriate forum, but I've seen that many people here have the abit-TH7II-raid board and hopefully someone can get me an answer.

Why is there a dip-switch setting where I can choose between
"Select CPU Frequency 100Mhz" =on
"Select CPU Frequency 133Mhz" =off

The defualt setting for the CPU frequency is 133Mhz, which I find strange for a P4 board (supposed to run at 100mhz). I also thought all those settings were made in soft-menu.

What will this switch control and what should I set it at for an 1.8A?


Thanks in advance!

Welcome to the Forums!

If you are in the process of putting together your system for the first time I would strongly suggest reading your entire motherboard manual. It has almost all you need to know.
Go to page 2-5, Section 2-4, Titled: Connectors, Headers and Switches

I will quote from the manual:

Here we will show you all of the connectors, headers and switches, and how to connect them. Please read the entire section for necessary information before attempting to finish all the hardware installation inside the computer chassis. A complete enlarged layout diagram is shown in section 1-3 for all the position of connectors and headers on the board that you may refer to.

Click to expand...

The dip switches are there for those who do not wish to utilize the SoftMenu. Switch 8 will allow you to Enable/Disable it, so if you don't want to mess with the DIP Switches leave them alone.
The default setting of "OFF" will Enable SoftMenu. This is what it should be set at when you open the box.
Also, the default setting for the CPU frequency is 100MHZ.

Thanks for your answer!
So if I understand it correctly, as long as I enable soft menu (Switch 8 = off) it doesn't matter what the other switches are set at?
I also think you are referring to switches 3 & 4 which are defaulted at 100mhz but I was wondering about Switch 2, which makes you choose between 100mhz and 133mhz. This one is defaulted at 133mhz.

And yes, this is the first time I'm building my own system but I actually did read the entire manual (both once and twice ) and extensively searched the net before posting, but I am new at this and there are some things that are unclear to me.

I also think you are referring to switches 3 & 4 which are defaulted at 100mhz but I was wondering about Switch 2, which makes you choose between 100mhz and 133mhz. This one is defaulted at 133mhz.

Click to expand...

You are very much correct! Switches 3 and 4 are settings for your memory! not your CPU. Settings 1 and 2 are for your CPU. So, in answer to your question, yes, if you leave the setting on switch 8 to OFF then it doesn't matter what switches 1 and 2 are set to. If you do decide to use them you have several options:
1. leave the cpu auto setting ON and don't worry about 2.
2. Turn switch 1 OFF, disabling the auto setting and change
switch 2 to ON. This would give you the default 100Mhz.
3. OR, when you start overclocking the option to change switch 2
to OFF would raise your FSB to 133. Do not do that until your
comfortable with overclocking and you've taken into consideration all the major variables, most importantly cooling.
However, I do think that changing switches 3 and 4 does have an effect even if switch 8 is OFF. I did that and it didn't affect anything until I reset my CMOS. Then I noticed a miniscule increase in my speeds. Either way, I would recommend leaving everything at default, even switches 1 and 2, because that's what I'm using and it's working great. But by all means if you want to experiment and just play with the DIP switches we'd all love to share in your experience.

As for "why" Abit has set the default CPU frequency to 133, I'm not sure anyone at Abit's support site would be able to give you an answer. It would make sense if they put it at the default so that if you forgot(or accidentaly) changed switch 8 to ON and switch 1 to OFF you wouldn't lock up your computer. This is probably exactly why they did it like that

Good job keeping me on my toes though!
Arch5

Just leave all the dipswitches at default and change the settings within the BIOS. That's what we all do.

Just leave all the dipswitches at default and change the settings within the BIOS. That's what we all do.

Click to expand...

Yeah, but who's to say we're all right? He may decide to try using the DIP switches and get better results. Then if he decides to share that info with us we will have all learned something.
Batboy, I'm sure you don't want to stiffle his interest in trying.
That's how we all learn. By others' mistakes
And Showlow, I'm not saying it's a mistake but it is definitely easier to play with the bios without having to crack your case open to make some changes.

A word of Advice for your first build Showlow: Put everything together OUTSIDE of the case the first time. Unless you are lucky you will probably have at least One wire or cable turned the wrong way. It is a lot easier to make these changes outside of the box. Plus, be sure to wear an Anti-Static Wrist Strap. You can get them at Radio Shack. Just attach the alligator clip to a grounded source like something metal that is plugged into the wall. Or you could plug in your Power supply and if it's attached to the case you can clip yourself to it. Good Luck and Have Fun

Arch5
Arch5

Thanks a lot Arch5 for explaining in detail! I am somewhat picky about stuff and I really want to know what the various settings mean on the motherborad even though I might end up not using them. What completely threw me off was the Attention box on the previous page in the manual reminding me of "Do not forget to set the correct bus frequency and multiple (sic!) for your processor" to be followed by DIP switch settings that didn't make sense when turning the page. Well, I now understand that they DO make sense... kind of ;-)
I leave the switch as is for now but might play around with it once I get the stuff up and running. About 1000 obstacles to overcome before I get there though...

I ran a thick copper-wire to a metal pipe on the outside of my house that I attached to some bare metal on the box. I try to touch it as often as I remember to get rid of possible static. Easy to forget though and I probably should run over to radioshack and get an anti-static wrist strap instead. Thanks for the tip!

Since I bought the hardware with overclocking in mind I also got 4 case-fans for extra circulation. Case is a Chieftec with 420W (Antec SX840 clone). Hopefully the stock heatsink will keep my tempreatures in spec for at least my initial moderate overclocking. Will keep a close eye on the temps before I try higher FSB and/or increased vcore.
But I need to get it up and running first which is big enough challenge as of now... Funny thing is that it is a lot more fun reading about overclocking than the basic stuff )

Again, thanks a lot!