IP35 Pro + E8400 on BIOS 10

[ezri]

I have an IP35 Pro and I've just bought a E8400 OEM. I am currently on BIOS 10 which is the first version (or at least I think I am, what's a better way to check than CPU-Z?). They didn't add support for 45mn until about BIOS 14. I know some boards work with 45nm prior to their official supported BIOS version, can anyone kindly confirm if it's possible for me to install this CPU on BIOS 10 and flash it afterwards, or will I need to flash it prior to installation?

Thanks.

[BUFF]

BIOS10 is the original release BIOS from late Spring/early Summer last year.
if you have a V1.1 Pro earliest it will have is 14.

watch the POST & at the bottom of the page you will see a long alphanumeric string ending -xx where xx is the abit BIOS version.
FlashMenu will show you the BIOS version.
Everest, CPU-Z etc. will show you the date of the BIOS which you can cross-reference against abit's BIOS release page.

if you have it running already with another CPU (seeing as you mention CPU-Z) I would suggest flashing (preferrably via DOS & a floppy or USB memory stick) with that CPU before installing the E8400.

[hokiealumnus]

Also, if your POST screen goes by too quickly, you can go into BIOS and the same string of numbers should be in the bottom right-hand side of the screen.

Ooo...5 posts, editing to give some linkage. Here are good BIOS flash instructions if you choose to go that route. If you don't have a floppy, here's how to use a USB flash drive.

[ezri]

Great, thanks a lot guys.

My BIOS is 11, I thought I remembered flashing it to a newer revision when attempting to get my ATI Crossfire RAM to work properly (and failed epically). I'll try to get this BIOS flashed asap, as I've sold my original CPU and have bought another so have to get it sent and will have it sent before I receive my new one - hence wondering if I could just plug in the E8400 on an older BIOS revision.

Also a few questions in general on this board to save making a new post:

1. How is the new BIOS 17? Is there any troubles with this, i.e. should I stick with an older version? (newer doesn't always necessarily mean better).
2. How do I go about undervolting a CPU on this board? The minimum I can see to select in the uGuru Utility in BIOS is the VID
3. When I shut down the machine from Vista, it turns off but automatically turns on about 3 seconds later even though I have no "Wake on" stuff enabled in BIOS... ?

Ta

[hokiealumnus]

Originally Posted by ezri

1. How is the new BIOS 17? Is there any troubles with this, i.e. should I stick with an older version? (newer doesn't always necessarily mean better).

With a 45nm CPU, v.16 or later is best for the Pro. If it were mine, v.17 would be it. You are quite correct though, newer isn't always better. I run a beta from two versions ago on my -E. (v.16beta01)

Originally Posted by ezri

2. How do I go about undervolting a CPU on this board? The minimum I can see to select in the uGuru Utility in BIOS is the VID

Unfortunately you've discovered the one thing this board (and all abit boards AFAIK) cannot do. They all set the lowest selectable Vcore as your chip's VID. I guess they figure their market is more for overclockers, who mostly don't know the meaning of low Vcore.

Originally Posted by ezri

3. When I shut down the machine from Vista, it turns off but automatically turns on about 3 seconds later even though I have no "Wake on" stuff enabled in BIOS... ?

TBH, this sounds like a PSU issue. I've seen it before but with Antecs that are about to bite it and/or were incompatible with the board's circuitry. This isn't to say it's necessarily your problem, it's just where I've seen that symptom pop up in the past.

[ezri]

Originally Posted by hokiealumnus

With a 45nm CPU, v.16 or later is best for the Pro. If it were mine, v.17 would be it. You are quite correct though, newer isn't always better. I run a beta from two versions ago on my -E. (v.16beta01)

Thanks mate, I'll give v17 a whirl later on.

Unfortunately you've discovered the one thing this board (and all abit boards AFAIK) cannot do. They all set the lowest selectable Vcore as your chip's VID. I guess they figure their market is more for overclockers, who mostly don't know the meaning of low Vcore.

Ack that's unfortunate. I'm running a HTPC myself so I was hoping to undervolt since I don't overclock to reduce power and heat. I guess I can just use Speedstep which lowers the Vcore as a way to get around it.

TBH, this sounds like a PSU issue. I've seen it before but with Antecs that are about to bite it and/or were incompatible with the board's circuitry. This isn't to say it's necessarily your problem, it's just where I've seen that symptom pop up in the past.

Hope not! Just got this PSU from an RMA about 2 weeks ago

[Betty_Swallocks]

Not wishing to derail your tthread but I am going to buy an IP35 Pro EX in the next few weeks to use with an E8500. Will a new board come with a recent bios or will I need to upgrade it myself to support the Wolfdale?

[hokiealumnus]

Originally Posted by Betty_Swallocks

Not wishing to derail your tthread but I am going to buy an IP35 Pro EX in the next few weeks to use with an E8500. Will a new board come with a recent bios or will I need to upgrade it myself to support the Wolfdale?

Depends on your suppliers' stock really. If relatively new (manufactured after 5/26/08), it'll be the newest. If not, it will need updating. The board should run your E8500 out of the box, but there was an updated BIOS to add half multipliers (which you'll need to take advantage of that 9.5x multi of course). Here's the BIOS page. See the post above for detailed flashing instructions.

[BUFF]

Originally Posted by ezri

Ack that's unfortunate. I'm running a HTPC myself so I was hoping to undervolt since I don't overclock to reduce power and heat. I guess I can just use Speedstep which lowers the Vcore as a way to get around it.

you can also run other software for this but C1E & EIST will probably do it fine.

[format]

I have a IP35PRO running bios 10 for months stable... should I bother upgrading the bios?

[BUFF]

if it ain't broke don't fix it ...

Flash only if there is a fix for a problem that you have.