Gigabyte GA-EP45-EXTREME Living Review

[supershanks]

even with CPU GTLREF settings for both cores, the Biostar has a little more difficult time with my extreme Quad....one poster who had a Q9450 has very little problem in overclocking his puppy!

Yers I've not got a quad to check , but i reckon the lack of CPU gtlref , is a big weakness, as it usually helps quad stability , and tends to vary with CPU , I can't understand why it's omitted on what's an "Exreme" board, whenn the ddr2 version has it.

[some1]

Hi, i am using GA-EP45-DQ6, Q6600 G0 and OCZ FlexXLC 9200, I am finding it impossible to even make the first steps in overclocking, on my GA-P35-DQ6 its easy to reach 3.15Ghz, 2 bumps on Vcore is all thats required, everything else at default gets me to 350x9... but on this board, seems impossible

I am using the latest F10o beta bios, same cooling, all components the same, but the BIOS has so many options are there any obvious settings i am missing?

[supershanks]

Hi some1,
Welcome to the forum
too tight a tRD is the usual culprit see Static tRead value on channel s A & B.
Easiest way to help you is if you copy the bios template (see link post #1) into a post & add your current settings.

cheers

[some1]

Originally Posted by supershanks

Hi some1,
Welcome to the forum
too tight a tRD is the usual culprit see Static tRead value on channel s A & B.
Easiest way to help you is if you copy the bios template (see link post #1) into a post & add your current settings.

cheers

Everything is at auto except for the cpu vcore.... I have taken note of anything different to your results for 45nm cpu as its a 65nm cpu, so you have the info if you didn't already, and of coarse all TRD information

 
GIGABYTE GA-EP45_EXTREME 
[u]MB Intelligent Tweaker(M.I.T.) 
Robust Graphics Booster ...............:  
CPU Clock Ratio ..........................:  
Fine CPU Clock Ratio.....................:. 
CPU Frequency ...........................: Mhz 
Clock Chip Control  
Standard Clock Control 
CPU Host Clock Control..................: [Enabled] [Disabled] 
CPU Host Frequency (Mhz) ............:Mhz 
PCI Express Frequency (Mhz) .........:Mhz 
C.I.A. 2 
Advanced Clock Control [Press Enter] 
CPU Clock Drive...........................: mv 
PCI Express Clock Drive.................: mv 
CPU Clock Skew (ps)....................: ps 
MCH Clock Skew (ps)...................: ps 
DRAM Performance Control 
Performance Enhance...................: [Turbo] 
Extreme Memory Profile (X.M.P.).....:  
(G)MCH Frequency Latch...............: [Auto] 
System Memory Multiplier ..............:Auto 
Memory Frequency (Mhz) ..............: 1066Mhz 
DRAM Timing Selectable ................: [Manual] [Auto] 
Standard Timing Control 
CAS Latency Time........................:5 
tRCD .........................................:5  
tRP'...........................................:5   
tRAS..........................................:14 
Advanced Timing Control [Press Enter] 
tRRD...........................................: 
tWTR..........................................: 
tWR............................................: 
tRFC...........................................: 
tRTP...........................................: 
Command Rate (CMD) ....................:2
Channel A 
Static tRead Value.........................:4 Auto 
 tRD Phase0 Adjustmen...................:0 Auto 
tRD Phase1 Adjustment...................:0 Auto 
 tRD Phase2 Adjustment .................:1 Auto 
 tRD Phase3 Adjustment..................:1 Auto 
Trd2rd(Different Rank)....................:8 Auto  
Twr2wr(Different Rank)...................:8 Auto  
Twr2rd(Different Rank)...................:7 Auto  
Trd2wr(Same/Diff Rank)..................:9 Auto  
Dimm1 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto  ps 
Dimm2 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto  ps 

Channel B 
Static tRead Value.........................:4 Auto 
  tRD Phase0 Adjustmen...................:0 Auto 
tRD Phase1 Adjustment...................:0 Auto 
 tRD Phase2 Adjustment .................:1 Auto 
 tRD Phase3 Adjustment..................:1 Auto 
Trd2rd(Different Rank)....................:8 Auto  
Twr2wr(Different Rank)...................:8 Auto  
Twr2rd(Different Rank)...................:7 Auto  
Trd2wr(Same/Diff Rank)..................:9 Auto  
Dimm1 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto  ps 
Dimm2 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto  ps 

{U]Motherboard Voltage Control{/U] 
Voltage Type.………... Normal  
CPU 
CPU Vcore….……….........................:1.2875v 
CPU Termination…..... 1.200V*.......: v 
CPU PLL…………………....1.500V*.......: v 
CPU Referen.…………....0.760V*.......: v 
CPU Reference2………,,0.800v*.......:v 
MCH/ICH 
MCH Core…………….....1.100V...........: v 
MCH Reference….…….0.760V...........; v 
MCH/DRAM Ref.…......0.900V...........: v 
ICH I/O……………….....1.500V............: v 
ICH Core…………...……1.100V............: v 
DRAM 
DRAM Voltage ……....2.100V............: v 
DRAM Termination .…0.900V............: v 
Channel A Reference 0.900V............: v 
Channel B Reference 0.900V............: v 
[b]{U]Advanced Settings[b]{U] 
Limit CPUID Max. to 3.....................: [Disabled] 
No-Execute Memory Protect............: [Enabled] 
CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E)................: [Disabled] 
C2/C2E State Support....................: [Disabled] 
x C4/C4E State Support..................: [Disabled] 
CPU Thermal Monitor 2(TM2) ...........: [Disabled] 
CPU EIST Function.........................: [Disabled] 
Virtualization Technology................: [Enabled] 
Note: * refers to 65nm CPU

thanks in advance

[supershanks]

so try increasing

Channel A
Static tRead Value.........................:4 Auto

&

Channel B
Static tRead Value.........................:4 Auto

also manually set
DRAM Voltage ……....2.100V............: v
to whatever your flex is rated at > 2.00v I would guess

[some1]

Static Tread of between 6-11, 8 gets my machine through the post process the most, but its not enough

I have raised mch core to 1.2v which seems to have helped too, any increase on vdimm doesn't help

Flashed to the latest F11 bios

I noticed that the SPD is not read correctly, my ram should do 5-5-5-18 at 571mhz, but for some reason its convinced it does 5-5-5-14...

[supershanks]

Static Tread of between 6-11, 8 gets my machine through the post process the most, but its not enough

needs raising with ram speed. The P45 chipset needs a slightly higher setting than X48 for example. Cgeck out the benches & bios settings from post#1 to get the idea.

I noticed that the SPD is not read correctly, my ram should do 5-5-5-18 at 571mhz, but for some reason its convinced it does 5-5-5-14...

Do you have EPP Enabled ?? EPP is similar to spd , but the timimgs are a little tighter so the 14 tras may well come from there.

[some1]

EPP is disabled, i will check what you mean about the static tread, but any setting above 12 wil just not work at all

[supershanks]

at stock fsb & 4.00B giving ram of 1066 tread od 9 or 10 should be stable maybe 11 if needed.
You are changing the value in both channel A & B ??

[some1]

Yep, of coarse, change A and B together makes sense!

I will give this anotehr go later, will look into other settings too, GTLREF etc...

I wonder if this board is undervolting the cpu vcore at all too...

You are corect on the EPP, if i disable it, then i get tref of 24, which is more reasonable, but still no joy so far, tomorrow mornign i will give this another stab, but its very disappointing so far, i just don't know where i need to make adjustments