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SOLVED Crosshair IV formula or ASRock 970 Extreme3 ??

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ToRpEdA667

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Joined
Apr 27, 2011
Hi there my motherboard is going bust so i decided to get a new one.
Well the asus crosshair IV i can see one second hand for half the price of a new one 95 pounds and it's ex display. On the other hand i came across the extreme 3 even cheaper with the am3+ socket and still able to run crossfire got 2 PCIx16 slots/ Overclocking features on that board don't seem to bad. So i got this dilema. Any one got any advice ?? I love gaming but still enjoy overclocking not on a extreme level but still always wanted a crosshair but cant afford the new V :(
Peace overclockers :attn::attn:
 
I'm using the 970 EXTREME3 right now, and unless I'm misreading the manual/board, it has one PCIx16 slot and one PCIx4 slot.

I'd get that verified by someone who knows what they're talking about more than I do, but it's something to keep in mind.
 
He he defo supports crossfire


General
Part Number 970 Extreme3
Model Number 970 Extreme3
Form Factor ATX
Width 30.5cm
Depth 21.8m

Processor Information
Compatible Processors FX
Phenom II
Athlon II
Sempron
Socket Type AM3+

Note: Please refer to www.asrock.com for CPU Support List

Chipset
Chipset Manufacturer AMD
Chipset Type AMD 970 / SB950

Memory
RAM Installed / Max Capacity 0 MB / 32 GB Max
RAM Slots 4 x DDR3 DIMM
Supported RAM Technology Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM
Supported RAM Speeds DDR3 2100(OC)/1866(OC)/1800(OC)/1600(OC)/1333/1066/800 MHz

Expansion Slots
Expansion Slots Total (Free) 2 x PCIe 2.0 x16
2 x PCIe 2.0 x1
2 x PCI

VGA & Integrated Graphics Options
Video Controller N/A
Multi-GPU Support Supports Quad AMD CrossfireX

Ports & Connectivity - External IO Panel (Back of Motherboard)
Ports Present & Quantity 1 x PS/2 Mouse Port
1 x PS/2 Keyboard Port
1 x Coaxial SPDIF Out Port
1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port
4 x Ready-to-Use USB 2.0 Ports
1 x eSATA3 Connector
2 x Ready-to-Use USB 3.0 Ports
1 x RJ-45 LAN Port with LED
HD Audio Jack

Ports & Connectivity - Internal IO (Header pins on Motherboard - Inside Case)
Ports Present & Quantity 5 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s connectors
1 x IR header
1 x CIR header
1 x COM port header
1 x HDMI_SPDIF header
1 x Power LED header
CPU/Chassis/Power FAN connector
24 pin ATX power connector
8 pin 12V power connector
Front panel audio connector
3 x USB 2.0 headers (support 6 USB 2.0 ports)

Storage Interfaces & Controllers
AMD SB950 Chipset 5 x SATA 6Gb/s
1 x eSATA 6Gb/s
RAID 0,1,5,10 Support

LAN & Networking
Controller Realtek RTL8111E
Lan Speed 10/100/1000
Ports 1 x LAN(RJ45) port

Audio
Controller/Codec/Information Realtek ALC892
7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection
Premium Blu-ray audio support
Supports THX TruStudio

Features & Technologies
Feature List ASRock Extreme Tuning Utility (AXTU)
ASRock Instant Boot
ASRock Instant Flash
ASRock APP Charger
ASRock SmartView
ASRock XFast USB
ASRock XFast LAN
ASRock On/Off Play Technology
CPU Frequency Stepless Control
ASRock U-COP
Boot Failure Guard (B.F.G.)
Turbo UCC
 
16x / 16x crossfire is FX chipset only (790fx, 890fx, 990fx) only I believe.
970 may have two 16x slots, but they aren't wired for 16x / 16x crossfire.
 
hmm strange they seem to plainly advertise that it supports crossfire
You my bust motherboard is 890gx a9da-s and i had a lot of problems with running crossfire a lot of screen flickering and i thought it was a bit of a bargin under 50 qd for a motherboard that supports crossfire now the PCI slots are bust as it seems anyways here is a link to the store product Bobnova http://www.novatech.co.uk/products/...m3plusallchipsetmotherboards/970extreme3.html
 
:bang headOn new egg the extended board got 4x16 PCI and it says it supports quad crossfire lol
Dont know what should i go with the asus chpset is a bit older and it wont support buldozer when it comes to upgrading...
ahhh decisions decisions
 
Oh it does suppose crossfire, just not at 16x / 16x.
You can run crossfire in 1x slots, you just lose some performance.

GX chipsets (790gx, 890gx, 990gx if it exists) support 8x / 8x crossfire, though whether the board manufacturer will use that or not varies.

That 970 board supports crossfire, it just does it at 16x / 4x. It's still crossfire.
That web store is lying through their teeth though, that board does not support quad crossfire.
 
heh i see now why my board was saying that one gpu is working at 750 mhz core and the other 500 ... So an older 890fx wich is the chipset of the ROG motherboard would give me much better performance for now
 
The PCIe slot bandwidth won't mess with the GPU clocks, that's something else.
But yeah, a 890FX board is going to brutalize a 970 board when it comes to GPU stuff.

The trick is, the 9xx chipset is identical to the 8xx chipset, the only difference is the socket and CPU support.

So really what you have is a 870 board that supports bulldozers.
 
Ohhh right. There is a few thing i have learned today then :)have You got any link for me that that i could use to learn more about PCIe slot bandwitch then how it works and what is the diference betwen 16x / 16x and 16x / 4x ?? i think i will go for the ROG board then clock this CPU higher with water cooling and upgrade later . i will leave this thred for now still
 
Maybe a 990FX board just for all the PCIE lanes and the better SATA. Not the Crosshair V but there's a 9 series board out there with your name on it for not that much $.
 
Maybe a 990FX board just for all the PCIE lanes and the better SATA. Not the Crosshair V but there's a 9 series board out there with your name on it for not that much $.

well i took the fomula IV still think Il be happy with it and if there is a better buy i don't want to know :facepalm:
 
I'm sure by this point you have all of the technical comparison specs so I will offer you a testimonial.

I got the Formula IV for an amazing price re-furb and so far is has not let me down. (knock on wood) It has a very easy to use bios for overclocking and if you wish software that will make OC easier and then will load it to the bios so you can get the ease of software Overclocking and the stability of bios Overclocking. I am in the process of getting new RAM for my board:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...m1132X509988Xa039f5c5d9539e11a25f17e1f970c755

So if you decide to get it send me a PM and ill tell you how it works out.

Other Specs
AMD Phen II x6
ATI 6870
3x 1TB HD
Cool-it ECO is a great fir for the MOBO
 
:shrug:ehhhhhh If any one reads this stilll i found out what it was i have a HDMI to DVI adaptor that was going bust by the looks of it got a new HDMI to DVI cable and all works great but i got the new board now as well lol :D
peace :attn: :attn:
 
I'm sure by this point you have all of the technical comparison specs so I will offer you a testimonial.

I got the Formula IV for an amazing price re-furb and so far is has not let me down. (knock on wood) It has a very easy to use bios for overclocking and if you wish software that will make OC easier and then will load it to the bios so you can get the ease of software Overclocking and the stability of bios Overclocking. I am in the process of getting new RAM for my board:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...m1132X509988Xa039f5c5d9539e11a25f17e1f970c755

So if you decide to get it send me a PM and ill tell you how it works out.

Other Specs
AMD Phen II x6
ATI 6870
3x 1TB HD
Cool-it ECO is a great fir for the MOBO

you can not go wrong with the Asus CHIV, i am running it with an x6 1055T, ocz 180gb revodrive, 16gb ddr3 and a msi golden edition gtx470. i have just found some time to tinker over the holidays after installing the revodrive. once i get back into the overclock scene i am sure i will be very happy w this running 3.6ghz. the chiv is an excellent board, i am hoping the board and chip and video card can last me till late fall.
 
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