Abit NF7-S revision 2 information

[Lee @ SCAN]

Abit NF7-S Revision 2.0

Okay - now I'm not knocking this board as the 4 of these that I have, all have been excellent performers with great features . Alas, I have noticed a few things on this motherboard that you should duely note and take a good read of before trying to use this motherboard.

SATA issues.

Abit use the legendary Silicon Image SI 3112 controller on this motherboard. To install the SATA so you can install windows upon the drive, you need to boot via the windows CD (if applicable) or startup floppy discs and then press F6 with the sata driver disc in the floppy drive in order to load the "3rd party driver" and for windows to see the SATA drive. Early versions of this motherboard did have a tendancy to cause a little bit of corruption hence the multitude of bios updates when this board was first released.

Recently, Abit have released bioses 21 and 22 (prefix of D ) for the Abit NF7-S (2.0) and all these do have an issue with the SATA RAID configuration. You can start the install process and copy the installation files from windows across, but when you reboot and try to load the next stage, the system basically hangs. Various posts indicate that this is a SATA bios corruption on the update and installing BIOS 20 will solve this until Abit release a fixed version. For updated drivers for the SI3112 please visit www.siliconimage.com or visit windowsupdate for the latest versions. It is also a good idea to set the EXT-P2P's Discard Time in the BIOS to 1ms, and implement KB331958 from Windows update, as this too cures the SATA corruption that occurs.


MEMORY INFORMATION

To get the best out of the Abit motherboard, it is suggested that you use 2 sticks of good quality grade memory and place them in banks 1 & 3 ( or 2 & 3 ) to enable dual DDR mode. If you are having stability issues then please check the memory timings in the bios to see if they are running @ 6/6, 5/5, 4/4, 3/3 as this means the system buses are running in synchronous mode rather than asynchronous mode. many people also state and prove evidence that running timings such as 11-3-2-2.0 increase the memory bandwidth in the system and provide higher scores in such benchmarks such as sisoft SANDRA. If you are looking to increase the system speed over the certified values, then increasing the memory vcore voltage in the bios sometimes helps with pushing it a few extra Mhz.

BIOS UPDATING.

Abit have released a tool known as flashmenu. What this program does is basically updates the bios via a "one click" windows update. When doing this it is recommended that you have the system running at the most stable configuration with the CPU and memory speeds at stock speeds rather than "overclocking" as a crash while doing this can render your motherboard dead. To get the lastest updated version of the flashmenu software which supports more boards than the above NF7-S then please visit the following url ;
http://www.abit-usa.com/downloads/bios/flashmenu.php
You can also update the BIOS by the old fashioned method of using a DOS based flashing program, with the newer versions avalible from www.abit-usa.com.

If you are to use the flashmenu software, it is advisable to do the process in a "step by step" routine rather than in 1 general click and update as this doesn't leave you open to the risk of your connection dying and loosing the bios information when flashing.


OTHER MISCELLANOUS INFORMATION.

The NF7-S uses a "special" driver for the IDE bus to gain more speed on IDE devices and data throughput. This driver is known to cause a few issues with devices such as IDE ZIP discs, DVDR/RW drives and even some CD-RW drives. You can tell if you have this driver installed by going to the system information and checking the devices in device manager. If the nvidia driver is installed it will say that the IDE driver is called "NVIDIA NFORCE2 MCP2 IDE CONTROLLER". You can change the driver to a microsoft "certified" driver that comes with your operating system to see if this fixes this issue - 99% of the time it does.

If you have installed SP1 (windows XP only) and your system feels sluggish, please check that the IDE devices are not running in PIO mode. If this is the case, simply delete them from device manager and reboot the system. This usually fixes this issue and it mainly occurs with various optical drives such as DVD-R/RW drives.

If you are using an older operating system such as Windows 98/98SE and ME and have over 512 Mb of memory installed, you may sometimes get an "out of memory" notice on your system. This is not a bug on the motherboard, rather the operating system or drivers. For more information Microsoft have nicely created this page for you all to see http://support.microsoft.com/support.../Q253/9/12.ASP

If you are "overclocking" and raise the system to a speed it cannot support via the BIOS, it will hang the system once the BIOS has been saved. To remedy this press the reset button while keeping pressed the "insert" key and this will load the failsafe settings and allow you back into the bios so you can adjust them again.

USB 2 SUPPORT

USB2 support is only enabled once you have installed the XP service pack 1 and the motherboard drivers that come with the motherboard. For the lastest "nforce" drivers visit http://www.nvidia.com/content/drivers/drivers.asp and select "platform/nforce drivers". Here you can get the nvidia system utility that allows speed changes within windows. For this to function correctly you will need to visit the Abit site for an updated file that will allow this program to work with this board.

ONBOARD SOUND INFORMATION

many people have found that their sound "crackles" when using the onboard sound after a while and during intensive scenarios such as "gaming" or just using the system for a few hours. Reports suggest that this is down to the southbridge controller getting too hot and therefore causing this too occur. Please check that there is adequate cooling in the system i.e remove the side panel and test to see if this is the case. Updating the sound drivers with the lastest from nvidia can also remedy this problem, so check them out as well. While on the subject of sound, if you are using 5.1 surround sound then place the 3 plugs from the speakers into the following holes and colours.
black ---> black
Orange --->green
Green---> Orange
Asus knew about this and provided a tool to swap the plugs for their range of motherboards, but as yet Abit have yet to release a version of this software for their range of board.

While I'm on about the onboard sound. Many people ask what this soundcard would be if it was to be a PCI card. On many aspects its exactly the same as the Audigy range from creative but it uses less system resources and the drivers behave better. Speaking of drivers, if you update them via the nvidia website please do not use the detected update on windowsupdate as this is an older version and you may lose access to the "soundstorm" control panel.

BIOS BEEP CODES

For the first time builder, the beep codes will be majorly frightening. Here is a quick list of the different tones you will hear and what they mean.
One Beep :: system is operating within parameters.

One long beep then machine shuts down :: this indicates either a faulty or missing CPU. Please investigate this issue at once.

1 short(Beep) - System booting is normally

2 short(Beep) - CMOS setting error. Enter the bios and try resaving the settings again to see if this fixes the issue. If this still occurs then check the CMOS battery is seated corrected.

1 long - 1 short(Beep) - Memory Error - If this occurs then download memtest386 from www.memtest386.com and burn the ISO version to a CDROM. Once this is done boot the system and choose the first boot device as CDROM, save the bios and insert the memtest CDROM. Allow at least 7 hours for the system to test all the memory with various tests to see if it is working correctly

1 long - 2 short(Beep) - VGA problem - check that the card is seated in the AGP port correctly and that the monitor is securely fastened to the card.

1 long - 3 short(Beep) - Keyboard Error Please check that this is inserted into the correct PS/2 Connection ( or USB ) and retry.

1 long - 9 short(Beep) - ROM Error

Long Beep (continuous) - Memory isn't inserted correctly - please remove all memory modules and reseat them in the memory banks.

Short(Beep) continuous - POWER supply issue - Please check this is the case with another PSU connected to the motherboard and that all the connections are connected to the motherboard correctly

A two-tone siren(like an ambulance) - This is caused by "overclocking" the voltages to a setting that the system cannot support. Please press insert and the reset button to reboot back to factory settings. This is also caused by overheating, and if this is the case, allow suitable ventilation for the system.

For more information and advice about various topics on this motherboard, please visit the Abit website at http://www.abit-usa.com and also their forums there as they have a multitude of people who like to help solve peoples issues and any problems with the Abit motherboards. I hope this has been some use to at least 1 person out there, because if it has then its been worth while typing this up. Any other information and issues found with this board will be added to this list in the future

Lee Horan

[BUFF]

[QUOTE=WildmonkeyUK]

Abit NF7-S Revision 2.0

Recently, Abit have released bioses 21, 22 and 23 for the Abit NF7-S (2.0)


There is no BIOS 23 yet for the NF7-S V2.0.

Also BIOS for the V2.0 always have d before the version no. e.g. d21
Make sure that you have the right BIOS for your rev. of board as they are not interchangeable.

Abit have released a tool known as flashmenu. What this program does is basically updates the bios via a "one click" windows update.

I would suggest doing it "step by step" as this doesn't potentially leave you at the mercy of your internet connection mid-flash.

[Lee @ SCAN]

Originally Posted by BUFF

Abit NF7-S Revision 2.0

Recently, Abit have released bioses 21, 22 and 23 for the Abit NF7-S (2.0)


There is no BIOS 23 yet for the NF7-S V2.0.

Also BIOS for the V2.0 always have d before the version no. e.g. d21
Make sure that you have the right BIOS for your rev. of board as they are not interchangeable.

Abit have released a tool known as flashmenu. What this program does is basically updates the bios via a "one click" windows update.

I would suggest doing it "step by step" as this doesn't potentially leave you at the mercy of your internet connection mid-flash.

oops - I forgot about that, v 23 ain't released yet to the public I'll ammend that posting @ the top now

As for the comment on the "step-by-step" I'll add that as well

Thanks for that

Lee

[silent]

nice one, thanks for the tips and advice. will get the flashmenu tool.

[m0dm0]

Thanks, some really useful info there

m0.

[Zathras]

Righty, just installed my NF7S, purchased from Scan too. I can't figure out if the USB2.0 drivers were properly installed. I first installed SP1, then installed the newest drivers from Nvidia. I then followed the instructions on mobo CD to select "update drivers" after SP1 installation was complete.

Now here's my problem. When I go into device manager my listing reads "Universal Serial Bus controllers". I expand that and within the list there are six entries:

(1x) - Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller
(2x) - Standard OpenHCD USB Host Controller
(3x) - USB Root Hub

Now, with my laptop (running XP Pro SP1) my USB Device Manager settings clearly noted "2.0" somewhere in the description. Sandra would do the same thing. In my current situation I see no "2.0" notations in Device Manager, Sandra, or Belarc Advisor. Is USB2 working okay on the Abit? By changing the driver manually to use the NVIDIA driver I can get USB2 root hub to show up but then my USB1 devices stop working!

Any ideas?

[mike_w]

If I want to overclock to 200x10, do I need to flash the BIOS?

If I need to flash the BIOS, what are the benefits of doing it step-by-step? Does it mean that if there's a problem, then it is still recoverable?

Thanks

Mike

[BUFF]

Zathras, Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller is USB 2.0.
Assuming that you have it set in the BIOS to use 2.0 you should be OK (there are known incompatabilities between the nForce2 USB & some devices which nVidia claim don't meet the USB specs.)

mike_w, you shouldn't need to flash the BIOS to overclock to 10x200 as the board is 200fsb capable if your cpu, RAM etc. are up to the job too.
Step by step lets you choose which BIOS you want to use rather than the latest.
If you don't have a problem then there is no need to flash the BIOS.

[Apex]

where to get the 23 bios for this mobo ?

[Agent]

Originally Posted by Apex

where to get the 23 bios for this mobo ?

Check Abits offical forums, and doenload tictac's "3d fire" BIOS.
No, its not offical, but it fixes the 10, and 10.5 multiplier issue that Abit refuse to fix. It also highers your memory throughput a LOT.

[Apex]

What 10 and 10.5 problem ?

and where are there forums....either am blind or looking in the wrong place

edit got the forums but carn't find the bios you said anything about.....

edit

http://s6.invisionfree.com/undercloc...p?showtopic=42

that the right one ?

[schrickvr6]

You only need that modded bios if you are clocking above 225mhz fsb and 10x and 10.5 multis don't work,alternatively you can do an l12 or wire-in-socket mod to force the cpu 166 or 200mhz fsb which 'sometimes' resolves the problem

[Agent]

Originally Posted by schrickvr6

You only need that modded bios if you are clocking above 225mhz fsb and 10x and 10.5 multis don't work,alternatively you can do an l12 or wire-in-socket mod to force the cpu 166 or 200mhz fsb which 'sometimes' resolves the problem

The 10 and 10.5 havnt been working in anything after BIOS 10 when overclocking. This effects all but TB-A chips iirc (it effects most anyway).
This can be at any FSB to, not just over 225.

The l12 mod is just for changing the FSB on the chip as you said. It helps overclocking on the FSB greatly ! . It shouldnt have anything to do with the 10/10.5 multi issue though ! The issue originates from the SIP table (basicly the thing that sets the mutliper) being changed by nvidia - which then got changed by Abit on later releases.

Although now your probably going to provide a link where you have somone that has "fixed" the problem by doing a l12 mod . Ive not heard of this though, and i was one of the people over at Abits offical forum who was trying things like this ! . Interesting if the FSB l12 mod does effect the 10/10.5 issue, as it would mean it changes the SIP table on the BIOS in some way...humm....

[SilentDeath]

With my rev2 I dont have any problems using 10/10.5 multis but I do have problems getting anything over 225fsb. I think it boots at 228 but not 230. Chipset voltage is 1.7 (bios max, no vmods to it yet). Do you think changing the bios would help? or would doing the chipset vmod be best (my rev1.1 used to get to 230fsb with vmod!). What would the l12 mod do?

[Agent]

What chip ?
If its a 133 one, you'll have to mod it to a 166 one (wire in the socket is the easiest) to get over 230ish.
Chances are you'll also need to do the vdd mod.

I got it to 250mhz fsb (unstabilty) using both of the above. It was stable at about 245 though.

[schrickvr6]

i've got 2 nf7-s',both vdd pencil modded,both bh5,cpu interface = enabled,one with a dlt3c xp1700 the other a duron 1.6g(unlocked cache),for ages both were stuck on 225x11...after saving settings two or three times windows would freeze using a 10x or 10.5x above 225,neither board liked any sort of d10...gave me loads of mem errors,both boards using d18.i could get 233fsb stable (240 with lots of mem errors) on both using a low multi.

after doing the l12 the xp1700 was no change but the duron was stable @233x10.5,i've been using tictacs d22 alpha which sorted the other one and now have them both @233x10.5...now i just need to pluck up the courage to do a v-dimm mod or two