1st look on asus P5K-VM: G33 matx board

Is the DRAM Voltage limited because of the BIOS programming or is limited because of hardware limitation?

Theoretically, can ASUS increase the voltage capacity if they update the BIOS? Or do they have to produce another revision of the board to increase the voltage for the DRAM?

I like this board but i already have RAM that's rated 2.2volts and i don't know if it will be stable with the limited 2.1v of this board. Thanks.
 
dandrop said:
Is the DRAM Voltage limited because of the BIOS programming or is limited because of hardware limitation?

Theoretically, can ASUS increase the voltage capacity if they update the BIOS? Or do they have to produce another revision of the board to increase the voltage for the DRAM?

I like this board but i already have RAM that's rated 2.2volts and i don't know if it will be stable with the limited 2.1v of this board. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Don't worry! my ballistix 5300 are rated @2.2v and work without a glitch on it!
Don't think a bios will add more vddr voltage...
 
Ah silly me, I was sure it was 2.2V. I stand corrected. Hmm, another nail in the P5k-VM coffin.

Still, a volt mod should be doable :)
 
Thanks for the super duper quick reply.

I have the crucial ballistix 1066 on order and i'm hoping that it will run stable just like yours. I am currently using an E4300.

With my future build, would i benefit more if i bought a 1066fsb C2D cpu with this board (waiting for the Intel price cuts)? Or can i just keep my E4300 and get a similar result when i overclock?

Thanks again!
 
dandrop said:
Thanks for the super duper quick reply.

I have the crucial ballistix 1066 on order and i'm hoping that it will run stable just like yours. I am currently using an E4300.

With my future build, would i benefit more if i bought a 1066fsb C2D cpu with this board (waiting for the Intel price cuts)? Or can i just keep my E4300 and get a similar result when i overclock?

Thanks again!
Click to expand...
This mb allows to hit high fsb but if you choose a c2d fsb800, you will not be limited by the mb or the rams but by those cpu:
Those c2d hit a fsb wall before fsb400! If you managed to reach 400, it will be by chance!
The c2d fsb1066 on the contrary hit easily an fsb@400 & more....
 
After reading through all these threads, I STILL don't know which one to go for.

the asus or the giga?

I'm looking at the prices at NCIX and Anitec.
Gigabyte
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=24780&vpn=GA-G33M-DS2R&manufacture=Gigabyte
for $171.80

or

Asus
http://www.anitec.ca/product/9266/asus_p5k_vm_intel_g33_quad_coreorcore_2_duo_pci_e_socket_775_motherboard/
for $139.95

That 30 buck difference...is it worth getting?

I'm planning to OC an e2160 in a lanbox lite along with Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X2048-5400C4

Anyone with suggestions?
I still haven't decided on a graphics card yet....but it'll probably be a x1950/7900 range...

Thanks in advance
HTML:
 
ryero said:
After reading through all these threads, I STILL don't know which one to go for.

the asus or the giga?

I'm looking at the prices at NCIX and Anitec.
Gigabyte
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=24780&vpn=GA-G33M-DS2R&manufacture=Gigabyte
for $171.80

or

Asus
http://www.anitec.ca/product/9266/asus_p5k_vm_intel_g33_quad_coreorcore_2_duo_pci_e_socket_775_motherboard/
for $139.95

That 30 buck difference...is it worth getting?

I'm planning to OC an e2160 in a lanbox lite along with Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X2048-5400C4

Anyone with suggestions?
I still haven't decided on a graphics card yet....but it'll probably be a x1950/7900 range...

Thanks in advance
HTML:
Click to expand...

Compare the features of each and decide which one has the features you want the most.
 
If I have a 1066MHz FSB C2D and some high quality RAM (i.e. the G.Skill Micron D9GMH in my signature)

Would this be a better board than the Gigabyte?

Feature set is exactly the same, except Gigabyte offers more memory voltage and I don't need more than 2.1v (G.Skill recommends 2.0-2.1, I've always ran it at 2.1 in my P5B with no problems)

I plan on taking a 200MHz hit on my overclock (moving into SFF case) to account for the heat so I just want to run 1:1 at 3200MHz // 800MHz DDR2
 
ryero said:
After reading through all these threads, I STILL don't know which one to go for.

the asus or the giga?

I'm looking at the prices at NCIX and Anitec.
Gigabyte
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=24780&vpn=GA-G33M-DS2R&manufacture=Gigabyte
for $171.80

or

Asus
http://www.anitec.ca/product/9266/asus_p5k_vm_intel_g33_quad_coreorcore_2_duo_pci_e_socket_775_motherboard/
for $139.95

That 30 buck difference...is it worth getting?

I'm planning to OC an e2160 in a lanbox lite along with Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X2048-5400C4

Anyone with suggestions?
I still haven't decided on a graphics card yet....but it'll probably be a x1950/7900 range...

Thanks in advance
HTML:
Click to expand...
You won't be able to overclock an e2160 on the Gigabyte. :rolleyes: You probably won't get very far on the ASUS either with PC5400 RAM.
 
sleepeeg3 said:
You probably won't get very far on the ASUS either with PC5400 RAM.
Click to expand...

PC2 5400 memory runs at 667Mhz, so I don't see what the problem would be if the motherboard has a 1:1 multiplier. For instance, I have an MSI P6N SLI Platinum, an E4300, and 8GB of 667Mhz memory. By running the FSB at 1333 and just bringing up the voltage to the E4300, it runs at 3Ghz with the RAM at 667Mhz just fine.
 
Ryero, here is your answer:

nray said:
PC2 5400 memory runs at 667Mhz, so I don't see what the problem would be if the motherboard has a 1:1 multiplier. For instance, I have an MSI P6N SLI Platinum, an E4300, and 8GB of 667Mhz memory. By running the FSB at 1333 and just bringing up the voltage to the E4300, it runs at 3Ghz with the RAM at 667Mhz just fine.
Click to expand...

Since you have an E2xx CPU (800MHz bus) and 667MHz memory. You need a 1:1 multiplier to (better) OC, which only the ASUS board has. The Gigabyte board may include it in the future, but it does not have it at the moment. Your best bet is to post in the OC forum for guidance.
 
ryero said:
After reading through all these threads, I STILL don't know which one to go for.

the asus or the giga?

I'm looking at the prices at NCIX and Anitec.
Gigabyte
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=24780&vpn=GA-G33M-DS2R&manufacture=Gigabyte
for $171.80

or

Asus
http://www.anitec.ca/product/9266/asus_p5k_vm_intel_g33_quad_coreorcore_2_duo_pci_e_socket_775_motherboard/
for $139.95

That 30 buck difference...is it worth getting?

I'm planning to OC an e2160 in a lanbox lite along with Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X2048-5400C4

Anyone with suggestions?
I still haven't decided on a graphics card yet....but it'll probably be a x1950/7900 range...

Thanks in advance
HTML:
Click to expand...

I would save the 30 and go with the ASUS and put that 30 towards getting a 4300 that will overclock much better then a 2160, even if it puts out a little more heat. Just my .02
 
renixinq said:
I would save the 30 and go with the ASUS and put that 30 towards getting a 4300 that will overclock much better then a 2160, even if it puts out a little more heat. Just my .02
Click to expand...

Why are you recommending the E4300 over the E2160? They run at the same bus speed (800Mhz), have the same multiplier (9x), and are based on the same core (Allendale). The only difference is the E2160 has half the cache disabled during manufacturing, so it won't perform to the same level the E4300 will, but should have very similar overclocking properties. The only thing that might impact overclocking the E2160 vs. E4300 is if you use stock heatsinks (the E2160 is all aluminum, whereas the E4300 has a copper core).
 
Ozone77 said:
Ryero, here is your answer:



Since you have an E2xx CPU (800MHz bus) and 667MHz memory. You need a 1:1 multiplier to (better) OC, which only the ASUS board has. The Gigabyte board may include it in the future, but it does not have it at the moment. Your best bet is to post in the OC forum for guidance.
Click to expand...

UPDATE: Gigabyte HAS 1:1 divider !!! You can download from their website a new BIOS with unblocked option !!! :)

TAKE GIGABYTE !!! :)
 
anyway, it won't work on his chip...the beta bios only supports 1066 processors.
 
For anyone who has this board, how are your northbridge temperatures with the stock heatsink? What does the sensor say? Also, physically, is it hot to the touch?

I've been reading the reviews on newegg, and a couple of people on this forum have stated the gigabyte DS2R northbridge tends to run a bit hot. On the other hand, someone on Asus forums as well as those on this forum have stated the P5K-VM northbridge runs relatively cool. Both motherboards are using same g33 northbridge chip, and both are sporting aluminum heatsinks which appear to be about the same mass, I am just curious why there would be any discrepency in temperature between the two boards at all.

edit: people are saying intel motherboards with g33 run hot too
 
if anyone has a p5k-vm and is interested in finding a pencil vdimm mod, and owns a dmm to be able to do some testing, i can help possibly find it
 
pvhk, I have an this P5K-VM but I am able to swap it to a G33M-DS2R for free if needed.
At this point it seems these are the following advantages/disadvantages of each:

P5K-VM:
+NB runs cooler?
+Native 1:1

-Big VDroop?
-2.1v VDIMM Max
-PCB Color is ugly:p

G33M-DS2R:
+Now has 1:1 like the ASUS from Beta BIOS (works well right?)
+Has higher VDIMM
+Less VDroop then the Asus?
+More SATA ports etc.

In your opinion is it worth swapping my Asus for the Gigabyte?
 
test with a new stick of ballistix 5300 using ratio 4:5, [email protected] to show that 2.1v is quite sufficient (my "old" ballistix 5300 perform similarly...):

 
Sh4h said:
pvhk, I have an this P5K-VM but I am able to swap it to a G33M-DS2R for free if needed.
At this point it seems these are the following advantages/disadvantages of each:

P5K-VM:
+NB runs cooler?
+Native 1:1

-Big VDroop?
-2.1v VDIMM Max
-PCB Color is ugly:p

G33M-DS2R:
+Now has 1:1 like the ASUS from Beta BIOS (works well right?)
+Has higher VDIMM
+Less VDroop then the Asus?
+More SATA ports etc.

In your opinion is it worth swapping my Asus for the Gigabyte?
Click to expand...
There seems to be a misconception on what Vdroop is. What you set in bios has no relation. Vdroop is the difference between what the VCORE runs at idle vs what it runs at under load and the DS2R has a huge amount of Vdroop. It idles at 1.54v and drops to as low as 1.47v at load! That's a .07v difference, which is the most I have ever seen on a board I have used (.05v was the max before this).

I am currently running my DDR1000 RAM at DDR 1095 @ 2.1v. Most RAM can do the same and if you need to underclock it, you have that ability to set the dividers lower on the P5K-VM. Plus, some RAM has been dying at 2.2v.

+The P5K-VM has more USB ports, which you are more likely to actually use.
+It has S/PDIF out.
+It overclocks at least 25MHz higher, maybe more
 
hi everyone !
don't think this has been mentioned before, but this board is not suitable for PCI compatible PCI-X cards. There is a heatsink plus a capacitor which get in the way....
 
As long as I can fit a 8800GTS video card and a X-Fi sound card on it it'll meet my requirements. I haven't decided wether to get the DS2R or the P5K-VM. Waiting for July 22nd Intel price drop and the P5K-VM mobo to become available before i decide. I'd like to see some more testing before I make my final decision. Both mobos look good so far though. I think it'll come down to which has the features I want the most. Luckily my requirements aren't all that high. :D
 
Pvhk,
Can you give the part number for your Ballistix 5300 RAM? Trying to find a price on them and I need a part number to find the same exact type you are using. Thanks. :)
 
Thanks Pvhk! That what was what I wanted to know. I think I'm going to try these modules in my build with the P5K-VM mobo. Just waiting for the July price drop now. :)
 
improved cooling results switching from my xp90c + noctua 120 to the zalman CNPS8700
g7052copierah1.jpg
 
How much of a improvement? I'll be using a Zalman 9500 but I'm sure others will want to know how much better the 8700 is than what you were previously getting.
 
Hey all, I'm looking to get this board very soon and I have some questions.

As I can't afford a C2D quite yet, I'm using a Pentium D 820 *coughEScough* as a placeholder. Will I encounter any problems using this proc?

Also, I'm getting this RAM but it says the voltage is 2.2. Will I be ok with this mobos locked 2.1?

Thanks ahead of time.
 
CHAoS_NiNJA said:
Hey all, I'm looking to get this board very soon and I have some questions.

As I can't afford a C2D quite yet, I'm using a Pentium D 820 *coughEScough* as a placeholder. Will I encounter any problems using this proc?

Also, I'm getting this RAM but it says the voltage is 2.2. Will I be ok with this mobos locked 2.1?

Thanks ahead of time.
Click to expand...

You shouldn't have any problems with that processor, except for the fact that it runs kinda hot.

You should be fine at 2.1v. That 2.2v spec isn't a requirement, it's just the suggested voltage. If anything, I'd try and run my RAM with as little voltage as possible to reduce the risk of frying it.
 
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