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Problem with P5N32-E & SLI

T

Tokey

Guest
This could just be down to me being an idiot but Im having real problems with getting the SLI function to work with my new Asus P5N32-E motherboard

Ive bought 2 XFX 7600 GT Fatal1ty graphics cards an Asus P5N32-E motherboard, Intel Core 2 Duo 6400 and an Antec True Power Trio 550w would should all happily work together

The machine boots fine with a single graphics card installed but as soon as I place the second card into the second PCI-E slot as instructed in the manual the mahine refuses to boot.

I am in the middle of building 2 mahiones at the same time with the other machines sprtoing the same kit with the exception of a 650w true power trio and bother are experienceing the same problems.

Any thoughts?
 
Update to Problem
_______________

After spending 30 mins in an international call from UK to US with a wonderfully helpful Asus technician the best solution that they can come up with is call XFX.

I enquired about BIOS settings or anything else and was told that there was nothing he could support and hung up on me.

Asus Tech support = toilet!

Cant contact XFX directly but have an open ticket, so its just a matter of them telling me to contact Asus now :mad:

Has anybody else had problems like this with this board?
 
No idea, did you try each card seperately in the first PCI-E x16 slot to make sure they both worked? Also silly but needed question, did you flip the single/dual card selector chip thing around?
 
All the cards work individually.

Seen mention of this single/dual card selector before but i dont believe this board has one. I asked Asus if there was anything on the board I needed to do and he said it was set up for SLI. To be honest though he was a moron so im not sure if to trust that advice.

Can anybody confirm if this board has a selector switch? I couldnt find one...
 
Yeah my fault. I misread P5N32-E as P5N-E, little 32 got me there :p
No idea whats up, did you update the BIOS to the latest version? or at least read the bios update revision notes.
Kinda an odd problem since all that stuff should work nice together.
 
I know! I was really looking forward to my SLI setup :(

I am running the latest released bios but not the BETA. Thought about updating to beta but don't have a floppy drive and no nero to create a bootable cd.

I'm only hoping that XFX have something useful to suggest because Asus were rubbish!

The only other alternative I can see is buying 2 new graphics cards and seeing if they work.
 
Finally a slightly more helpful response from Asus China!

For your probloem, please help me to check if you insert two graphic cards in the two blue PCI-E slots. If yes, please change CPU<->MCP61 speed to 4X in BIOS to have a test. Please refer to he manual 2-23.

If the above steps can not solve your problem, you could test it with our latest beta BIOS. Please refer to the attached file. Maybe it's helpful.

Anyway if you still have any problem or the problem still exists, please feel free to contact me. Thank you for the support!

Problem - Ive checked the manual I cant find reference to the "please change CPU<->MCP61 speed to 4X in BIOS"

Im in the process of updating the BIOS though... more news if progress is made.

Please keep the suggestions coming, i really want my machine up and running today :(
 
It might be called HT Link speed in the BIOS. Although I don't really see what that would do...
 
man! you need to put the second 7600GT in the 3rd PCIe slot! (the second slot is for a specia l Nvidia Psyhix card)
 
The manual says to use the 2 blue PCI-E slots which I have done.

There is a 3rd white slot which i believe is for something like a PhysX card.

I have tried all combinations anyway and nothing works.

To be honest I couldnt find anything relating to the processor in the BIOS at all...
 
Latest update.

I have now upgraded the BIOS to version 0702 which is the BETA version but the problem remains. Have passed back to Asus for analysis.
 
Interesting....Both card's work ? (separatly) ? test them realy good maby try a bios update/downgrade. my board(same) will arive next week
 
all 4 cards work (Im building 2 machines)

and both motherboards do the same thing.

As for BIOS the board comes boxed with 0602 which is the latest released version and I have now patched one of the boards to 0702 which is the BETA release.

Still no go.

The only part of the BIOS that I could find which was similar to "change CPU<->MCP61 speed to 4X in BIOS" was the LDT Frequency option which I changed to 4x from 5x. But this had not made a difference either.
 
nobody else any ideas?

Still nothing more from either XFX or Asus :(
 
Can anybody confirm whether the P5N32-E motherboard requires a power connector specifically for the SLI?

I couldnt find this on the board.
 
Tokey, A few questions about power:
1. Your PSU is rated for 550? The P5N32-E SLI manual (e2929) says a 550w is the bare minimum. If your PSU is older, has a lower efficiency rating, or is of lesser quality your board might not be getting the minimum it needs to boot.
2. OK, stupid question but I'm trying to cover all bases and perhaps missed it being mentioned, but... have you connected the "4pin/8pin EATX 12V power plug" situated behind the PS2 headers in the upper corner (pg 57-58 of the pdf manual)?
If you have, then I'd try to borrow a 600w or higher rated PSU and switch them out to see if it boots.
 
I am using a 550w Antec True Power Trio which should do the trick from what ive been told.

However to cover all bases I have also tried a 650w Antec True Power Trio which also experiences the same problems.

2) Yes I have connected the 4pin/8pin EATX 12V power plug using the 8 pin connector from the PSU.

I have just had an update from XFX who have said:

"As far as we know there is no compatibility issue with these cards and board. Just for the record, there are a number of ongoing issues with some asus boards (including yours unfortunately) so you might want to check that the board is saving the settings it gets in bios. One issue was applying wrong voltages, e.g. When choosing a voltage, the board was applying a lesser voltage than what was chosen.You can check this out for yourself at http://www.benchzone.com/page.php?al=asustek_evaluationandpg=2 That was just to let you know that there could be a problem with your board, but of course the board could be fine, and well go on that assumption for the moment. Have you tried running SLI without the bridge?"

I have already tried the SLI without the bridge however I am going to have to look into this voltage situation.
 
Tokey, what RAM are you using? I read a customer comment on this MB at Newegg that suggests others have been having problems booting this board whilst using Corsair TWIN2X2048-6400C4. I haven't had time to run that down though. One thing is for sure; with two mb's, four graphics cards and two PSU's and you're still having the same problem, then there's a commonality here causing the problem, and with a system build, that common factor causing the issue is usually the builder himself. Line up all your ducks and count them, then start again. Write down every step from beginning until you can't boot.
 
The RAM I purchased can be found here

Its 2x Corsair 1024 PC5400 DDR2 667Mhz Value Select.

Machine boots fine with RAM and single graphics card.

Im fairly certain that its me that has done something wrong. Especially as I have never built an SLI system before. I just cant spot what Im missing...
 
Tokey, I've been following up the RAM lead, and it sounds as if this board (Asus P5N32-E SLI) isn't playing nice with different varieties of RAM, I've seen several comments involving Corsair, boot issues and RAM speeds. Now you gave me the link and sure enough, it's Corsair Value select DDR2-667 (VS2GBKIT667D2, for later reference). That might be the issue. Do you have access to RAM modules of another brand?

You might want to check out the Corsair help forums at www.houseofhelp.com
 
Funny you should mention that.

I have actually started a thread on that very site already here

Ill post something in it regarding your comments.

Seeing as the motherboard boots fine with both Dimms and a single graphics card that would suggest to me that the RAM is fine?
 
Tokey my friend,
the more I read on the net, the uglier it sounds: a variety of issues, they're all over the place... vdroop, vdimm defaulting way too high, RAM incompatibilities. It's a shame, as I was eyeballing this board myself. Sticking in a second video card WILL increase the load and may be the factor throwing things off, but this board shouldn't have any such problems. Were it me, I'd disassemble everything, take the board out of the case and go over it with a flashlight, especially around key areas like the CPU socket and RAM sockets looking for foreign matter like thermal grease spilled onto a tracing (happened to me once: just the smallest gossamer ribbon of thermal grease fell across a trace, but enough to keep the board from booting. I didn't see it until I pulled the board and put it up to my nose with a flashlight. Luckily, some careful cleaning got things up and running again). If you don't find anything untoward, I'd say send it back based on your and other's experiences, and select a different board. Good luck, mate!
 
THAT is an interesting idea! If you get the 8800GTS and still have problems, then it confirms it's the board. If it works, you're set to go. But even in that eventuality, there'd be no guarantee against other board issues (power regulation) people have been reporting. I'd give it a whirl, myself.
 
Wow I'm surprised you even considered SLI two 7600, especially the Fatality ones, you're really paying extra for the name.

Yup the 8800 GTS will be such a better choice in many ways.

Raw speed it's a lot faster, allows for further upgrading in the future, and the 8800 series of cards proved to be much better SLI performers.

DirectX 10 compatible, will play the latest and greatest games .. when they get released that is.
 
The Fatal1ty cards looked good spec wise and were a good price when i bought them. But the prices have all changed now
 
Somebody has told me that I need SLI compatible memory to be able to run SLI.

I am unsure if mine is SLI compatible as I didnt realise that this could cause a problem.

As Pepsiennis confirmed earlier I am using Corsair Value Select PC5400 DDR2 667mhz (VS2GBKIT667D2)

Can anybody validate this claim?
 
Nope, that is untrue.
You don't need SLI Ready ( sigh ) memory to run SLI. [ SLI Ready Memory = EPP Memory ] { EPP = nVIDIA Enhanced Performance Profiles }
 
You don't need SLI compatible memory to run SLI.

Just that SLI compatible memory will overclock itself accordingly, as you tweak other settings in your system.

But correct me if I'm wrong. I really never bought into the "SLI/Crossfire Certified" stuff.

Honestly you could do those tweaks yourself. I think they also call them EPP (enhanced performance profiles).
 
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