the Abit IN9 32X-MAX thread

Well I'm going to try ruling out the heat issue, got a nice 12" room fan that's going to get blasted into the side as I don't have a 40 fan to strap onto the NB.
 
Wow.. I read this article: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mainboards/display/abit-in932x-max_10.html ..That is a pretty informative piece of information. I really paid attention to the part where it mentions that the best performance was measured around 400 FSB. If you haven't read this article, and you own a 680i board, take a minute to read thru it.. As for my current 680i board, I am sitting exactly at a 400 FSB. I will also mention that Everest is a VERY handy tool to measure your CPU and RAM. I'm going strong and still have yet to experience any problems with the 680i LT board.

That being said, I am pretty much locked out of a few things that my IN9 board had.. No e-sata, no rear cmos switch, no 3rd pci-e slot, limited vcore settings.. I can live with those "limitations".
 
officermartinez said:
Wow.. I read this article: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mainboards/display/abit-in932x-max_10.html ..That is a pretty informative piece of information. I really paid attention to the part where it mentions that the best performance was measured around 400 FSB. If you haven't read this article, and you own a 680i board, take a minute to read thru it.. As for my current 680i board, I am sitting exactly at a 400 FSB. I will also mention that Everest is a VERY handy tool to measure your CPU and RAM. I'm going strong and still have yet to experience any problems with the 680i LT board.

That being said, I am pretty much locked out of a few things that my IN9 board had.. No e-sata, no rear cmos switch, no 3rd pci-e slot, limited vcore settings.. I can live with those "limitations".
Click to expand...


You know after reading that article, I think I am going to cancel my preorder for my DFI 680i.

I think I am going to pick up a P35 MB.
 
Well, I'm not finding the holes and dips exactly where X-bit Labs found them in their review of the IN9-32X Max, however, I'm beginning to think we're all going to get in the mode of removing our NB HS and getting the etched data off the 680i's to see if we can get manufacturing lot and date info like we do with revision processors. I wish someone like X-bit or Anandtech would do this and compare OC'ing across different 680i, 680i LT main boards (holding fixed the CPU and PSU, Memory, etc.). Because of the variation I've seen within populations of the same models of Asus, Abit, Gigabyte, etc. main boards, I'm wondering if NB OC'ability will be something we have to pay attention too as well.:eek:
It would be interesting to chart this data and see if there is any significant manufacturing variability for this chip that indicates predisposition to performance. These are TMSC produced, right?
 
Missile Maker said:
@Violater, et al. Well I can't figure the main board either. Check this in my specs - when I'm OC'd to 3.2 GHz on this E6600, the memory switches to 1T Timing...even though I have 2T set
Click to expand...

When I was using 2GB at 3.2GHZ on my 6600 I had the exact opposite problem, it would never set 1T even though it was selected, so I wound up using Memset. And of course, now that I have 4GB it works just fine, and is completely useless to me:confused:

I made it 13hours and 45 minutes last night with no errors at 1.95vdimm and the voltages from my previous post. Still don't trust it enough to let it run when I'm not there. Keeping my fingers crossed that it will run again tonight when I get home.
 
Slammin said:
Yes, definitely give dropping VTT a shot. Also, not sure if I was clear on this, but I cannot go above 333fsb unless I run my memory 1:1 (Linked and Synced), stable up to 340fsb, benching at 360fsb until BSOD :)

For you and your multi, I can see where you'd want to try a diff mobo, but in my case, it's really just all in my head, and of course synthetic benches. The real-world performance gains I'd see if I had a mobo that could run 400+fsb wouldn't really justify the cost, especially since I'm really just a big gamer for the most part :D
Click to expand...

333x9 is a no go on my motherboard. I even dropped the multi to 7 to eliminate the CPU. That is running linked/synched.

It will boot to windows, but as soon as all 4 cores are loaded it reboots. No BSOD just a hard reboot. I know it is not a power issue, as the power supply that is running it is pretty much the best you can buy.
 
A special mention to the following (no particular order)

officermartinez
Missile Maker
Tnoggin
Spazilton

Thanks guys, I think I'm due y'all a pint or two :)

I've been running a 12" room fan at low power blowing direct into the side of my case for the last couple of hours.

So far, I've managed to get the CPU up to 3.6Ghz, 1800 (450FSB) stable @ 1.45v, now running 3.4Ghz 1700 (425FSB) 1.44v as I'm more comfortable with this. All orthos tested and fine, completely unheard of before.

So it looks like active cooling is needed on the NB. I'll have to rotate it probably to fit it round the Tuniq, but I'm hoping that should be sufficient.

Nice one! ;)
 
I think I'm going to have to take it apart and pull the blankity-blank heatpipe and get out the Arctic Silver. I'm so wishing I'd took the time to mod my radiator onto a bigger case, it's like 10lbs of meat in a 5lb bag. It ran almost 14 hours last night without a hitch, had my girl run blend when she got home, less than 2 hours. Has to be heat of some sort and that's the only thing I can think of, warmer days, it took a long time to get the voltages right so it would run 400. It's got a ton of airflow, and 60mm on NB, 80mm on the ram. And the temps in Uguru are good.

Glad to hear that worked out for you Violator.
 
@violator
SilenX makes a 40x40x10 that should fit, otherwise I believe Thermalright or Swiftech makes a canted (about 30 degrees) mini panel/tower like NB or SB cooler that you can clip a 40x40x10mm on and it would angle away from the tuniq

@Tnoggin
Yeah, know what you mean, I got all my stuff in a Lian-LiV1100 which is a mid-size, and even though I'm on air, cabling it and making it fit in a reverse main board case was some work.
 
Well it has been decided.

I am done with this board. I put my Q6600 in my backup BX2 and wouldn't you know 3.4Ghz and climbing.

I am stepping back at what I really use my computer for now, and really, honestly, I do more CPU intensive tasks. Games I run, run just fine with the Q6600 at [email protected] the 8800GTX. BX2 does have some quirks (JMicron cant be used as a straight SATA adapter) etc.. But its rock stable.

Do have to redo the Apogee GT with the thicker gasket, temps are running way high 67c on all 4 cores.

Other than that, I think I am happy..

The biggest mistakes made by board makers today IMO, is the new Heatpipe craze. Abit used to use active sinks in the 478 days when everyone else was passive. Now it seems DFI is the only manufaturer that gets this. Honestly their 680i is a very impressive board. Very well thought out cooling solution,,

Other problems with this board I don't believe to be ABITs fault. I blame it on a marginal chipset produced by Nvidia. After their damn near perfect Nforce 4 chipset, I was willing to try them again with no hesitation. Won't make that mistake again.


Overall this board needs active cooling, and marketing as a Dual Core overclocking only board. It does well with dual cores now, just still sucks with Quads.. Not abits fault, but still enough to turn me off of the board.


Expect to see my Abit for sale very soon. Hopefully I can recoup some of the $350 I dropped on this board.
 
Violator said:
A special mention to the following (no particular order)

officermartinez
Missile Maker
Tnoggin
Spazilton

Thanks guys, I think I'm due y'all a pint or two :)

I've been running a 12" room fan at low power blowing direct into the side of my case for the last couple of hours.

So far, I've managed to get the CPU up to 3.6Ghz, 1800 (450FSB) stable @ 1.45v, now running 3.4Ghz 1700 (425FSB) 1.44v as I'm more comfortable with this. All orthos tested and fine, completely unheard of before.

So it looks like active cooling is needed on the NB. I'll have to rotate it probably to fit it round the Tuniq, but I'm hoping that should be sufficient.

Nice one! ;)
Click to expand...

And thank you for being one of the most well informed, polite new members of the board. Well thought out questions, Thanking people for advice. Feedback on that advice.

Haven't seen that in a long time. Very Refreshing!

:)
 
@ Spazilton
Well bro, if you do get the DFI main board, let me know how it works out. Have always been a big DFI fan, and I'm eyeing their 680i LT. Yeah, performance on the Abit IN9-32X Max seems to be inconsistent, especially for QUAD Core owners. Interesting that their real QUAD , the QUAD GT is based on the Intel reference design.
 
Missile Maker said:
@ Spazilton
Well bro, if you do get the DFI main board, let me know how it works out. Have always been a big DFI fan, and I'm eyeing their 680i LT. Yeah, performance on the Abit IN9-32X Max seems to be inconsistent, especially for QUAD Core owners. Interesting that their real QUAD , the QUAD GT is based on the Intel reference design.
Click to expand...

I am getting it, It will be here Thursday. I am going to test it out with both my E6600 and my Q6600. I am no stranger to DFI boards, I own 3 SLI-DR Experts that I still will argue was one of the best boards ever made.

However its hard to argue that my Quad went right to 3.4 with really no adjustments other than NB voltage and Vcore on the BX2. Sure I lose some memory bandwidth, and the extra PCI-E lanes, but at this point I'm almost willing to trade those for stability.

I will give the 680LT a good run through when it gets here Thursday, and start a new thread on it.

I know this processor has more, just have to get the temps under control.
 
I also wanted to say thanks.. BTW, with two small active stock chipset fans on my XFX 680i are about to go bye bye.. I purchased two Swiftech MCP30 (the revised hard mount ones) today.. They will be watercooled. I have been trying to find a mosfet cooler for my board but havent found any for the reference nvidia boards.

I will be watercooling my NB, SB and GPUs.. I will NOT be watercooling my QX6700. Now that I have a vapochill, my quadcore is in for a bit of chilly weather.. LOL.
 
Got home late last night, but found time to take it apart and pull the heatpipe. I think it would be a stretch to call what I found underneath it "thermal interface material". It reminds me much more of a rubber insulator. I'm going the Ceramique route tonight, and will try folding the pwm tape as recommended by others, although my temps on that end were already good. I hope this will add some stability, that brown rubber couldn't of worked very well. I'm quickly running out of days to get my money back, I'm not feeling confident because I found quite a few posts over at Xtreme Systems after the third time through where others were finding stable overclocks that disappeared after rebooting. Strange, and there is a response in the review section at Newegg where the company is promising a new Bios soon, I'm not holding my breath. The Abit USA site and forum have been down for days now.
 
Tnoggin said:
Got home late last night, but found time to take it apart and pull the heatpipe. I think it would be a stretch to call what I found underneath it "thermal interface material". It reminds me much more of a rubber insulator. I'm going the Ceramique route tonight, and will try folding the pwm tape as recommended by others, although my temps on that end were already good. I hope this will add some stability, that brown rubber couldn't of worked very well. I'm quickly running out of days to get my money back, I'm not feeling confident because I found quite a few posts over at Xtreme Systems after the third time through where others were finding stable overclocks that disappeared after rebooting. Strange, and there is a response in the review section at Newegg where the company is promising a new Bios soon, I'm not holding my breath. The Abit USA site and forum have been down for days now.
Click to expand...

Bios update have been painfully slow. At this point, it looks like I am not going be able to recover that much that I paid for this board. If they can just get dual cores stable, I will run it as a Media PC. Since I have my Quad now, and just ordered a 4GB DDR2-800 kit for $269, I have some spare parts to use up.
 
So far so good on replacing the rubber insulators under the NB and SB. Haven't had a whole lot of time running Orthos due the wild weather here. But it at least has ran a few hours two days/boots in a row which is a record. Gonna let it run tonight to see what happens.
 
Replacing the rubber pads under the NB and SB with Ceramique has solved all my problems so far. Once you see the rubber pads (not TIM despite what anyone says to the contrary) you'll be amazed that it ever worked at all. Two consecutive boots both completed 15 hours in Orthos blend at 8x400 with 4GB 4-4-4-12-2T. Going to install my OS's, backup, and then get a 24 hour pull over the weekend.
 
So far so good, mostly. Got XP and Vista dual booting, backed everything up, and then tested my overclock which came up stable. I'm having one problem though. I've installed XP twice now and Vista once. Everytime the HD LED blinks once every second when the computer is idle overclocked or not in both OS's. After running Orthos overclocked last night I noticed the LED was going a little more frequently and I could hear the hard drive working after shutting down the program. Checks and diagnostics a few days ago turned up nothing. So I've got some more things to try tonight, disabling Autoplay and indexing hasn't helped at all. Anyone else see anything like this with the IN9 or 680i.
 
I believe its Vista running the indexing service. I've noticed it too, annoying but not a problem with respect to operation.
 
I shut off the indexing in Vista and I still get intermittent periods of it running the hard drive full tilt while it's not doing anything. I'm getting used to it, haven't been turning up any errors, and the board seems to have settled down nicely at 3.2ghz. Threw in Deskcapes and Objectdock Plus and I'm in gadget heaven. I'm still in the progess of migrating all my stuff into XP and Vista, but after a few weeks of pulling out my hair, I'm now quite content.:)
 
I've RMA'd the board 3 times.

so, I'm expecting this board to be the 4th, when it arrives.

here's my isssues.

overheating like mad. The case is a lian-li PCV-1200B+

CPU: Intel D 930
RAM: corsair 4x512 PC2-5400C4
PSU: seasonic s12
GPU: evga 8800GTS
4x sataII drives
1x sataII DVD burner.
1x creative sound card.
1x wintv card.

I also have a 40mm 9000RPM sunon fan on the northbus. Which direction should it be pointed, I have tried both with no real difference.

When I install those components (which I'm using now on my AW8-MAX and work rock solid stable) everything overheats and I get serious instability.

my pwms idle at 170F
cpu idles at 140F
system idles at 140F

everything just runs unstable. I get lockups and freezes.

I AM NOT OVERCLOCKING AT ALL!

I can't plug in the pcie aux power because on the second board, I did that and it wouldn't post, then it smoked. (I have the pcie power on my gpu plugged in) I assumed I wouldn't need the aux power.

The first board overheated and was unstable and had the incorrect voltages on the hypertrans and cpuvtt on v1.2.
The second board suffered the battery CMOS clear problem, overheated and was unstable and smoked up and had the voltage problems on v1.2.
The third board was damaged in shipping to me.
This fourth board I hope will be the charm.

What temps do you guys get?
What can I do to improve my temps? Should I mess with the thermal interface materials?
is it my components?

I have a spare 1GB RAM kit from ocz. it's pc2-6400. 800MHz

when I install that, CPU temps go down to about 112F idle.
and system temps drop to about 116F idle.
under load, the PWMs go above 212F. and the CPU approaches 150F.

What am I doing wrong?
 
iirc the 930 is known to idle ~60C?

the nVidia 680i (650i too) northbridge runs very hot on all mobos but using 4 DIMMs probably makes it worse over 2 DIMMs.

The digital PWM on the IN9 32X again is known to run very hot but it's rated to something like 125C (257F) so what you consider overheating may well in fact not be.

I suggest that you go somewhere like the abit USA forums where you'll get a higher no. of people who run & know that board.
I would also check what BIOS version is on your new board (it should be the latest if coming from abit RMA).
 
on my AW8 Max, the 930 idles at 38C.

I've checked in the Abit forums. They have no explanation for why my boards don't work.
If it's not overheating, then what is causing the instability?
I was under the impression that 180F was overheating.
even if it runs at 212F, how do I wick that much heat off the board?

Everyone that I've talked to at the abit forums says that 170F is really high for the PWMs to run. They have told me they are all getting below 140F on their PWMs.

I believe you are right about 4 DIMMS, it can only serve to double the heat.

I would wonder though, since I'm using a stock cooler on the CPU and AS5, and NOT overclocking, why isn't the system stable at stock speeds?

I hope when I get the board next week, you guys will help me to trouble shoot it.

BTW, what do you think about the pcie aux power connector? do I need it?
 
dragonthc said:
on my AW8 Max, the 930 idles at 38C.
Click to expand...
I've never run 1 but a quick Google suggested that upper 50s to 60C was normal idle for the D 930.

I've checked in the Abit forums. They have no explanation for why my boards don't work.
If it's not overheating, then what is causing the instability?
Click to expand...
BIOS configuration or other hardware perhaps?
Your system temp is certainly high though so how's your airflow?
If the V1200 has the mobo inverted then it's probably the CPU & nb heat rising & bathing the sensor in hot air.

I was under the impression that 180F was overheating.
even if it runs at 212F, how do I wick that much heat off the board?
Click to expand...
I'm reasonably certain that the warning temp in uGuru on that board is 125C as it uses the same digital PWM as the AB9 QuadGT afaik.
Case airflow, checking contact of the PWM heatsink etc.

BTW, what do you think about the pcie aux power connector? do I need it?
Click to expand...
It shouldn't be necessary with a single 8800GTS & a decent PSU.
Which exact S12 do you have?
 
BIOS configuration or other hardware perhaps?
Your system temp is certainly high though so how's your airflow?
If the V1200 has the mobo inverted then it's probably the CPU & nb heat rising & bathing the sensor in hot air.
Click to expand...

the mobo is inverted. Airflow is great at the front of the case, back is a bit cramped, though I have vents installed at the main 120, and the PSU. I never thought about the inverted mobo having the heat rising. That's a good point. I also have a shroud over the cpu cooler. I might have to install a bay fan to bring cool air into that space. The drives and PSU are in a separate space beneath the main case. There are vent holes all over the place like the mac case.

Which exact S12 do you have?
Click to expand...
S12-550. It's SLI certified.

I will have to replace the thermal interface materials on the NB/SB and PWMs. I have some thick bubblegum material for the PWMs. It should be a bit better than that thin stuff they have. I'll put AS5 on the NB and SB.

Thanks for the ideas.
 
a couple of points,

it's brand spanking new. It is obviously a new board they grabbed from a box.
It was tested before shipping to me.
ABIT replaced the NB/SB materials with AS5 themselves!
I know this because I found one of the grey gumpads stuck to the bottom of the static bag.
I'm going to install it tonight and we'll see what happens.
 
I installed the board. I am very pleased with these results. :D I had to make a few adjustments however.
My solutions!

as you can see, I'm not using a 40MM fan on the Northbus. I am using a 9000 RPM delta 26.4CFM fan! It's loud as all hell. I have the fanEQ set to it's lowest speed on 6.0V

the PWMs now idle at 134F.

I am using the 40MM fan on the PWM heatsink. I created a clip from two paperclips.
PWM Fan
 
dragonthc said:
it's brand spanking new. It is obviously a new board they grabbed from a box.
It was tested before shipping to me.
ABIT replaced the NB/SB materials with AS5 themselves!
I know this because I found one of the grey gumpads stuck to the bottom of the static bag.
Click to expand...
I would be surprised as RMA stock is usually previously returned & refurbished, possibly done by a previous owner?
If they did though it shows what lengths that they were going to with regard to your specific problem so I would say well done abit support.
 
I had this problem and solved it, and I want to post my solution in a topic area where internet search engine indexing bots can find it in case others have this problem.

If your ABIT IN9 32X MAX hangs on Post Code A0 (which ABIT assures me has something to do with memory), then you might try this......

System Config: ABIT MB., Intel Q6600 2.4 GHz, 1,2,3, or 4 GB Wintec PC8500 (3AXT8500C5) RAM in any slot (being detected as 800 MHz, not 1066 MHz), MSI 8800GT Video, Rosewill 950W PS, WD Raptor 150GB, and WD 500GB

To cause the problem:
Unplug PS
Reset CMOS using the switch on the I/O plate in back or use the MB jumper
Plug PS
Power on (watch POST codes count up thru A0 to C1 on up to 75 or 7F)
Hit Reset Switch
MB will hang at A0 (looping occasionally from 62 (I think) up to A0) forever.

To fix problem:
Unplug PS
Reset CMOS
Plug PS
Power on
Enter Setup (Watch POST go to 52 and hit Delete Key.....or just let it boot up to where you see "Hit F1 to continue or Delete for Setup")
Select "Advanced BIOS Features" -> "CPU Feature" ->"CPU Core Unlock" (and change from Disabled to Enabled)
Hit F10 to save

Should boot fine now. I don't know what unlocking the CPU core has to do with fixing this problem, but it worked for me. I built two identical machines, and had the same problem on both and fixed it the same way on both, so this is not just a fluke solution for my particular MB/hardware.

I was also able to "Load Optimized Defaults" or Load Fail-Safe Defaults" after this (which resets the CPU Core Unlock to Disabled) and both machines continued to boot fine. However, if I ever reset the CMOS, and then hit the soft reset switch (or had a SW app reboot the machine) it locked at A0 again. Strange.

I hope this is able to help a few people. This issue cause me 3-4 solid days of research before I stumbled on this.

Andy
 
Okay, I've also had that A0 code. I found that is I reset the BIOS and CMOS is doesn't help anything. I found that if I unplug the mobo battery, and leave it out for about a minute. Plug it back in, and it fixes it, without any problem. It's worked several times for me.

Oh, for those people that say this board isn't any good for OC'ing quad core CPU's. I have mine at 3.33GHz rock stable. Chumly (maximumpc.com forums) has his at 3.6GHz.
 
NukeULater said:
Oh, for those people that say this board isn't any good for OC'ing quad core CPU's. I have mine at 3.33GHz rock stable. Chumly (maximumpc.com forums) has his at 3.6GHz.
Click to expand...
it's not good for fsb overclocking quads - typically all you will get is mid 300s.

btw there is a new beta BIOS out (you can get it from the abit forums beta BIOS sticky) that is getting some praise.
 
Hey guys, I think I'm crazy because I've never overclocked anything in my life before, but I wanted this motherboard for my new Q6700 build. So far, surprisingly so good! This might not be the best beginner overclocker's board, but I'm liking it so far. Let me post what I've been able to do with my less than 2 cents worth of know-how. First my system specs:
Case: Antec 900
Processor: Q6700
RAM: A-Data 2x2GB (4GB total) at 800MHz with CAS 5
Video card: 7600 GT OC (until I can afford the 8800GT)
CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro
HD: Western Digital Caviar 160GB AAJS SATA
Optical: (some noisy no-name out of my dad's old sony vaio until my new Samsung SATA model comes in!
NB cooler: 40mm Scythe
OS: Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit.
BIOS: (Don't remember ver. but it's the latest one from Oct.)
PSU: Silverstone ST75F 750w SLI modular (clicks, so I'm replacing with a different Antec modular which will match my case better anyhow.)

I've got the processor and RAM linked, processor OC'd to 3.15 (so far Orthos stable) and RAM at 945MHz. Will post more as I get more time. I want to let it break in itself a little though.

OCScreen01.jpg


Let me know how I'm doing. ;)
 
Hey, Dragon,
Would you please repost the links to those pics of your solutions and how you mounted the 40mm fan to the PWM? That would be great! I would like to mount a fan on my PWM if possible, as the temps are in the 90's (c), not uncommon from what I've read, but I'd still like to cool it some more.
Thanks.
 
Here are some pictures of my current build. Right no the power supply is the Silverstone 750W modular. I'm replacing it with an Antec 650w with a matching blue LED 120mm inside fan. It will match the rest of my fans better, and 650w will be plenty for my build... I wish you could see the blue light projected by the LEDs on the bottom of the motherboard. It's flipping intense! You can change the lighting pattern, or shut them off if you want, but it looks dead sexy with an open window case.

NewBuild01.jpg


NewBuild02.jpg


I like it. I just wish two of the power cables were a bit longer so I could tie them in with the rest of the cables. :confused: Maybe they'll be longer on the Antec?? (I doubt it...) Note the Arctic Freezer 7 Pro fits nicely...
 
Nice work. One of my friends said that clock speed is actually a tad more important than FSB speed in real world application, and that FSB simply effects the synthetic benchmarks more drastically for higher scores, etc. I'll be happy with a mid 300's FSB if I can get my overclock stable to 3.33GHz. I'm shooting for more than that, but I will be happy with that if that's all I get with air! What are your temps? I'm at 3.15 and I never go over 41c even at load!

By the way, I LOVE those incredible blue accent LEDs around the edges of the bottom of the motherboard. The chasing sequence they do is sooooo impressive in my open window case, especially since it matches all the blue LED 120mm fans I have (and the Antec PSU I'm getting with a blue LED 120mm cooling fan to replace my clickety-clacking Silverstone...).

Keep up the good work, and let me know about those temps.
 
My OC specs...

FSB @ 333Mhz
Vcore @ 1.3735V
Northbridge @ 1.45V
Hypertransport @ 1.25V
Southbridge @ 1.25V
CPU Temp @ 56C under full load
RAM @ 1:1 with the FSB
NB:CPU strap @ 1333MHz
SLI memory disabled

I'm going to lap the CPU, SB and NB coolers. Should drop the temps a bit. You should be able to get higher with that CPU and motherboard. My goal is around 3.6GHz.

Those LEDs are nice. I have a solid case thought, and I can't really see them. :mad:

What Abit BIOS are you using? Personally I'm using V1.3, V1.0 is a piece of shit. My board was very unstable with the staock BIOS. V1.3 fixed that for me.:)
 
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