dual mobo showdown...

[robertm]

Well just to put my hat in the ring. I just built a dual system around the A7M266-D its been very stable for me todate. I have a few Tyan boards for intel chips and I have liked them as well.

I figure ether board would server someone well. But be sure to check around differant forums for any problems with the board you are looking at for problems with other devices. When I orderd the parts I order a Radeon 8500 because of the issues poeple seem to have with GEForce3 cards on the A7M266-D. So take your time do some reseach before you buy. In the end you will safe you much time and effort!

This is not directed at your problem SteenkyBastage just as a note to anyone looking at a dual board

And I love to show this system rather than fill up skips HD with more then one pic of my system here is a link

 

[SteenkyBastage]

hey skip,

There was a page in the BIOS that let you adjust the fsb. However, it was only in increments of 3mhz. I didn't attempt to raise the FSB, as it was for my work and not my home play computer.

As I no longer have the tyan board to look at... I'm running on memory at the moment. I do know that I flashed the bios to the newest version on tyan's website (it was a pain). I do not recall if I saw that on the initial bios or only on the updated bios.

The biggest thing I wish I could keep from the tyan system (or just add to my asus one) was the extra PCI slot... I'm hurting over here on the pci end. Looks like my work computer's gonna have to use the onboard audio from the asus.

 

[diehrd]

That seems silly to me to discard a product because you run into a tech who knows little.

If we all depended on the Knowledg of a tech person the Computer age would still be at 75mhz...It is simply the end users that find the issues that Manufactures then correct.Does this mean the Techs have all this info I doubt it...{Usually a site like this has way more info than the maker of the product}

I am also betting you did not specificly state your use of the Unregestered ram , And did not Disclose the exact brand to the tech..However I am not shocked the Tech did not ask the question !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Look here
THIS STATES NO BEEP CODE AT ALL LMAO..
http://forums.2cpu.com/showthread.php?threadid=14778&highlight=Memory+errors+MPX

It also surprises me that as a forum user you are not taking info from people like me who know the answer and applying it to your problem..Rather you just trash the Board ??? This confuses me because a forum is a place we go to solve problems that may be beyond a tech on a phone line right ??Or even a tech Document .

Mushkin is not a LISTED SUPPORTED TYPE .Look here
http://www.tyan.com/support/html/pc2100_tg_mpx.html

Now to confuse items more that link shows no Mushkin !! But the Mushkin page states it works in the TYAN....LMAO But it misstates that 3 slots can be used with unregestered ram he he ..EVEN WORSE IS THAT MUSHKIN STATES THE S2460 WORKS WITH UNREGESTERED AND TYAN STATES REGESTERED RAM ONLY ON THE S2460 ..hERE IS TYAN LINK
http://www.tyan.com/support/html/pc2100_tg_mp.html


mUSHKIN LINK THAT SAYS UNREGESTERED RAM IN s2460
Here is that link
http://www.mushkin.com/cgi-bin/Mush...2741c0a8010206aa+EN/products/990889#tyans2460

Now here Mushkin is the fool saying you can use 3 slots and Tyan saying you can only use 2 slots ..Tyan says NO unreg in S2460 yet Mushkin says YES !!!
Does this mean you will stop using Mushkin because the tech document is written wrong ?? Like I said before Tech people on the phone or in a document are confused but building systems depends on the builder and his resourcefullness not on techs !!!Or tech documents alot of the Time...

Personally no computer main board would defete me,I would no matter what get that system running and try everything to achive it. Remember you started a thread DUAL MotherBoard Show Down
It will be SAD if you forsake the Tyan because of a tech and a simply correctable problem !!!

 

[skip]

hey skip,

There was a page in the BIOS that let you adjust the fsb. However, it was only in increments of 3mhz. I didn't attempt to raise the FSB, as it was for my work and not my home play computer.

As I no longer have the tyan board to look at... I'm running on memory at the moment. I do know that I flashed the bios to the newest version on tyan's website (it was a pain). I do not recall if I saw that on the initial bios or only on the updated bios.

The biggest thing I wish I could keep from the tyan system (or just add to my asus one) was the extra PCI slot... I'm hurting over here on the pci end. Looks like my work computer's gonna have to use the onboard audio from the asus.

I have the same board here. Mine is as stable and reliable as you can get. I also had 0 trouble setting it up. However, with all 3 Bios versions. I do not have that page.

Funny how boards can be so different. I once had an Asus board that everyone thought was great and mine was a pice of crap.

 

[diehrd]

I agree wit skip No TYAN has a FSB adjustment ..Unless you use CPU FSB

 

[skip]

I agree wit skip No TYAN has a FSB adjustment ..Unless you use CPU FSB

Do you know which PLL these boards use?

 

[diehrd]

Yes it is Tyan 9248-153

I hate to refer you to a different site but there are some serious memory tweaks for the tyan as well ..

Here ya go big GUY

http://forums.2cpu.com/showthread.php?threadid=10587

Good luck !

Also Skip here is a pic of my insides I call it the IDE HIDE Trick lol.
I ran Ide cables under mother board and have all the drives up top . If you are using box for a server you might not want to do this cause I had to use 32 inch Ide cables . I have no problems at all and bench mark well on the drives but I am told 19 inch is the spec max on Ide cables,and any longer may cause data corruption .{I haveny had any no matter what I do fold,Encode,burn ect} GL..

PS I ducted this box with 2 sk6 and quiet 30cfm heat sink fans and run at 41c MAX Load..And she is pleasent to sit with without screamer fans.

 

[skip]

Thanks, been there already and created an account.

 

[SteenkyBastage]

yes, I agree that the tech/manual should be more clear. If I had not already sent back both tyan boards and ordered the asus board, I ::MIGHT:: consider looking into registered ram. However, I did state my problems here in this thread and also checked our forums and another briefly to see about resolving the problem, but didn't find any definite answers like you gave me (after I already sent back and re-ordered).

Granted, I didnt dig and search the remote corners of the internet, because I believed the tech who said it was either the Mobo or CPU. After verifying that EVERY component worked in other systems, as well as putting in verified working components for EVERYTHING in the tyan system, I was fairly confident that it was in fact the mobo like the tech said.

The second board I got, with the same symptoms (and rechecked everything AGAIN) was sent back the next day as I had no motivation after all the computer building/tweaking I had done in the past month.

However, this being a work computer that is now a few weeks out of service, I dont have the time and/or motivation to keep screwing with the thing. ::IF:: the tyan tech would have suggested this when I specifically asked if there could be any other cause for the problem, I would quite possibly be posting now about my slight problems with the Tyan system. However, my intent had been to purchase and setup a relatively troublefree system that would run stable for me at work, with minimal effort/tweaking required on my part.

That system failed in that manner. The asus has actually been more user-friendly and not had any major headaches involved. And to be quite honest, other than the 1 less PCI slot, I am overall more pleased with the Asus product (comparing both when they were up and running).

Skip:

I may have been thinking of another system (I built too many at once) when thinking of the 3mhz increase. But I could have SWORN it was the tyan one, as that was the first one I setup, and I was fairly surprised (having been expecting no oc'ing ability at all). However, I may be thinking of a biostar board. Forgive me if I mistakenly put that in there. If I had the opportunity to re-check it (aka, a working tyan system) I would gladly go see if I was mistaken.

BTW, the Tyan board was a rev 1.4 (once again, I am going on memory) and I could not find a pll setting to use CPUFSB with it.

 

[SteenkyBastage]

well, after just rebooting the Biostar system (which has been filling in for the tyan dualie setup for the past week or so) and checking the BIOS out, It did not have the 3mhz increment FSB adjustments.

The KT7A-R system I rebuilt I am 100% positive doesn't have 3mhz fsb adjustments.

The A7M266-D system I am 100% sure doesn't have 3mhz increments.

That leaves the tyan setup to have the 3mhz increments that I am 99% sure I saw when setting up these systems. Now, I could have been hallucinating, or dreaming after all those long hours of building. But dreaming/tripping aside... I am relatively sure that the tyan system did have that 3mhz FSB adjustment.

also note:
This is the Tyan Tiger MPX, not the Thunder or the Tiger MP. Also, I am not sure if the different board revesions may be different or not...

And also note, (looking back at when I posted that, and what I was doing at that time) I posted the original 3mhz stepping before I got into the biostar or rebuilding the abit setup, so I'm pretty sure it's something I saw and noted at that time (tyan/asus time).

 

[roguenroll]

hey, hows you guys doin'.

Well I need two new comps, one film & 3D, and one audio for digital recording of my band.

I posted once earlier in this thread.

Looks like i'm goin' with twin dual-Asus comps, probably 1900+ Athlon MPs.

I'll let you know how it goes.



I might have a couple of questions, on a few tech. specs


Rogue

 

[skip]

I have the Tyan MPX S2466 also. Just loked and it's not there. Wasn't with the original Bios or all of the later ones. Hmmmm. I also thought I saw a reviewer that said they were there. Another Mystery

well, after just rebooting the Biostar system (which has been filling in for the tyan dualie setup for the past week or so) and checking the BIOS out, It did not have the 3mhz increment FSB adjustments.

The KT7A-R system I rebuilt I am 100% positive doesn't have 3mhz fsb adjustments.

The A7M266-D system I am 100% sure doesn't have 3mhz increments.

That leaves the tyan setup to have the 3mhz increments that I am 99% sure I saw when setting up these systems. Now, I could have been hallucinating, or dreaming after all those long hours of building. But dreaming/tripping aside... I am relatively sure that the tyan system did have that 3mhz FSB adjustment.

also note:
This is the Tyan Tiger MPX, not the Thunder or the Tiger MP. Also, I am not sure if the different board revesions may be different or not...

And also note, (looking back at when I posted that, and what I was doing at that time) I posted the original 3mhz stepping before I got into the biostar or rebuilding the abit setup, so I'm pretty sure it's something I saw and noted at that time (tyan/asus time).

 

[robertm]

A7M266-D has +-1 Mhz steps up to 150Mhz I think it is in the BIOS
The Iwill KA266-R board I have has +3Mhz jumps in the BIOS you might want to check that MSI board again I think I read it has +3 Mhz jumps to 149 Mhz

well, after just rebooting the Biostar system (which has been filling in for the tyan dualie setup for the past week or so) and checking the BIOS out, It did not have the 3mhz increment FSB adjustments.

The KT7A-R system I rebuilt I am 100% positive doesn't have 3mhz fsb adjustments.

The A7M266-D system I am 100% sure doesn't have 3mhz increments.

That leaves the tyan setup to have the 3mhz increments that I am 99% sure I saw when setting up these systems. Now, I could have been hallucinating, or dreaming after all those long hours of building. But dreaming/tripping aside... I am relatively sure that the tyan system did have that 3mhz FSB adjustment.

also note:
This is the Tyan Tiger MPX, not the Thunder or the Tiger MP. Also, I am not sure if the different board revesions may be different or not...

And also note, (looking back at when I posted that, and what I was doing at that time) I posted the original 3mhz stepping before I got into the biostar or rebuilding the abit setup, so I'm pretty sure it's something I saw and noted at that time (tyan/asus time).

 

[roguenroll]

1024MB(1GB) ECC REGISTERED DDR 266MHZ PC2100 184PIN (128X72) Our Price: $379.00

http://www.accessmicro.com/

You guys are doing the overclocking and that. Could this work if I just want to put a standard sys together. nothing fancy. Looking for best bang $ the bucks.

or does brand really matter with this memory or this board (asus)


Rogue

 

[SteenkyBastage]

A7M266-D has +-1 Mhz steps up to 150Mhz I think it is in the BIOS
The Iwill KA266-R board I have has +3Mhz jumps in the BIOS you might want to check that MSI board again I think I read it has +3 Mhz jumps to 149 Mhz

I didn't have a MSI board. Only put together:

Abit KT7A-Raid
Biostar (not positive of the model, but I'm typing on it right now)
Asus A7M266-D
Tyan Tiger MPX

Of those 4... I am positive that the first three dont have the 3mhz increments.

Also, my a7m266-d can go beyong 150mhz in +/- 1 Mhz steppings... I've actually made it into windows at 155mhz, but got a BSOD as soon as I tried to open any program.

 

[SteenkyBastage]

1024MB(1GB) ECC REGISTERED DDR 266MHZ PC2100 184PIN (128X72) Our Price: $379.00

http://www.accessmicro.com/

You guys are doing the overclocking and that. Could this work if I just want to put a standard sys together. nothing fancy. Looking for best bang $ the bucks.

or does brand really matter with this memory or this board (asus)


Rogue

Hey roguenroll,

The only two types of DDR I have tested with the asus are the corsair 2400H and the Mushkin pc2100. They both seemed fine, but I haven't tried registered or any other type. I would probably suggest asking over at 2cpu.com or checking around other places if it's not a big-name brand.

In general I feel comfortable with Corsair, Crucial, etc... especially since where I order from (newegg) will usually rma and replace items that aren't working without much of a hassle.

 

[robertm]

I didn't have a MSI board. Only put together:

Abit KT7A-Raid
Biostar (not positive of the model, but I'm typing on it right now)
Asus A7M266-D
Tyan Tiger MPX

Of those 4... I am positive that the first three dont have the 3mhz increments.

Also, my a7m266-d can go beyong 150mhz in +/- 1 Mhz steppings... I've actually made it into windows at 155mhz, but got a BSOD as soon as I tried to open any program.

Well I knew it could do up to 150 was not sure how hight it might go didnt have my book with me. I havent tried OC mine yet am waiting for my water cooling parts to make it in.

 

[SteenkyBastage]

you'll have fun oc'ing it with watercooling.

I have mine set up with dual DD maze2's, a DD supercube radiator, and a danner mag7 (700gph) pump. at default speed and voltages, my case/cpu temps usually sit around 30/38.

Splitting the flow and seing a larger temp increase over my single setup makes me glad I got a decent speed pump. I can see a big flowrate difference between the old and new setup.

Also, I have my single 120mm fan on the radiator turned down really low so that it's quieter than the hard drives and cdroms. When I crank the fan up to default speed, temps drop down to around 30/35.

Not really a huge difference, but I notice that after an hour or so of intense CPU useage, the reservoir water gets slightly warm. That is with the fan turned down all the way...which gives me the higher temps.

I haven't tested the res temp when the fan is at full blast, but I assume that since my temps stay consistent after an hour of intense cpu useage, that the increased fanrate can adequately remove the heat. With the fan turned down, the temps start off at 30/35 and then after a while creep up to 30/38.

30/38 is the highest I've seen the cput's get at default speed/voltage so far. I did oc it a bit just to see how it worked, but didn't do any major stress tests and temp tests with it oc'ed. But I do know that I hit at least 31/42 with the initial cpu heavy usage. My guess is after an hour or so, that would move up into the mid 40's or even high 40's, unless I turned the radiator fan up.

 

[SteenkyBastage]

well, after quite a while with two dual xp systems, I'll drop my final thoughts/comments.

The tyan (and it's replacement rma board) was sent back to newegg. The first tyan I have 100% confirmation that it didnt work properly, but the second board I believe may have been the victim of a faulty reset switch.

The first tyan board, I checked every component, including disconnecting all the case wires, and also removing it and running it w/o a case. It wouldn't boot for anything.

The second Tyan board I got (the RMA) also would not boot, but I didn't do a super extensive like I did with the first Tyan board. I dont THINK that I disconnected all the case wires (namely the reset). I did check all the major components again, as well as another PSU (again). In my haste, I assumed the second board had the same problem... so I purchased another Asus board for work.

The asus board came in, and guess what... no boot. after trying the same thing as I went thru with the tyans, I found that the reset button was stuck on. This caused the fans/drives to start up, but not the board. Now, I assume that the second tyan probably had the same proble, altho I can only speculate. However, i'm positive that wasn't the first tyan's problem.

That having been said... The first Tyan setup, while it was working for me, performed flawlessly. Both Asus setups have also performed without a hitch as well. The home asus did have an evian.sys BSOD after I exited an old version of sandra (tracked down to a promise raid controller file), and also when I oc'ed the home cpu's up to 150FSB, when I would exit the folding client, I would get a "kernel mode trap" BSOD. This was solved by moving down to 148FSB. (for some reason, the 149FSB setting in the bios actually boots to 154FSB... assume that's a bios glitch)

at 148FSB and lower, I can leave both the asus systems (have only used the work asus system at 133fsb) running 24/7 and only reboot when I install/remove software, or want to change bios settings, etc.

A note on temps...

Both computers are in full tower cases. At work, the room temp stays at an almost constant 65F (it's a TV room, has a TON of equipment that doesn't work well with heat). My home room temp stays around 72F (this fluctuates slightly). At work, I am using the default HSF from AMD... while at home I am using a watercooling setup (previously posted somewhere in this thread).

The work computer (dual 1700's) with 2x 80mm fans and one PSU fan will get to 50C and higher if both cpu's are stressed for long. If left to idle overnite, they sit closer to high 30c/low 40C.

At home, not overclocked (dual 1800's) and with the 120mm radiator fan turned down to nearly silent, cpu's top out temp wise at around 38C. When I overclock to 1701mhz (148fsb), I turn the radiator fan back up to default speed, and temps top out at 40C.

In my opinion, I am uncomfortable with the work computer's temps... especially considering the chilly temp of the room to begin with. It will soon be getting another pair of 80mm fans to help circulate the case air more.

I still would rather have the Tyan's additional PCI slot, and the Tyan's onboard NIC. but that is just wishful thinking for me... but something you may want to consider before deciding on a board.

All in all, if I had it to do all over again... I would stick by my guns and go again with the tyan for a work computer (altho I'd be seriously hoping for one that WORKED for longer than a week) and the asus one for my home/play computer.

I cant say that I'd recommend dualxp cooling (especially if you plan on oc'ing) for aircoolers, unless you dont mind noise.

I think this will do it for my comparison of the two boards. I'll check this thread to answer comments/questions in the future. Or to post if I do encounter any problems with the asus setups.

All in all, it's been a fun experiment (moreso with the home one, cause I had less headaches, and more fun overclocking it). And (watercooling not included) the price definitely justified the additional $250 or so I spent over a single cpu system.

hope this has helped shed a little light...

 

[roguenroll]

cool, its been very interesting.

But, for my busy schedule I would have already put mine together. I am however slowly assembling the components.

Your post has help clear a few questions.

As mentioned, this is my first AMD and the whole RAM thing took a little research.



Rogue