Dual-core Athlon / Asus A8N SLi Deluxe / BIOS flashing

[Kaizen]

I'm planning on building a new PC from scratch based on an Asus A8N SLi Deluxe motherboard and an Athlon 64 X2 4200+.

I've read, though, that the BIOS needs to be updated, which leaves me with some questions:

Will I be able to get the PC up and running without flashing the BIOS first (i.e. will the X2 run on one core long enough for me to install Windows, download the update and flash the BIOS)?

Or will the PC just not work at all?

If it won't work at all, and since I don't have a spare single core Athlon to initially build the PC with, is it possible to flash the BIOS some other way?

Thanks for any info.

[davidstone28]

Yes

[Kaizen]

Yes

Thanks for the reply, David.

I presume you mean 'Yes' to the original question of whether it's possible to run the X2 on one core without flashing the BIOS, rather than to all three questions.

I've since read a review of the ASUS A8N SLi Deluxe, which said it was up to 10% slower than a rival board when playing some games, so I think, after all that, I'll pass on this board.

So, does anyone have any recommendations on a decent X2-compatible SLi motherboard and where in the UK I can actually get one? I've seen a few mentioned on various US sites, but I can't find them in any of the UK stores that I know about.

I've looked on Scan, Aria, XtsIt, ebuyer, overclockers and overclock (the last two of which seem to be consistently more expensive than the rest), but are there any other UK stores that are worth looking at?

TIA

[Kaizen]

Well, having checked out a number of reviews and benchmarks, I've now ordered the ASUS A8N SLI Premium, which only costs another £15 or so more than the Deluxe version and seems to hold its own in the benchmarks. You can also switch between Single and SLI mode from Windows (with a reboot), instead of having to open the case and do it manually.

And as for the X2 running on a single core with the original BIOS, someone at Aria agreed that that would be the case, so that's handy.

Now all I need is to find a store that has a 256MB XFX 7800GT "Extreme LED" (or "Extreme Edition") card in stock, as Scan are out of stock and the next batch is already 22 days overdue.

So, has anyone seen any currently available in the UK, as without a graphics card, I'm gonna end up with a pretty nice doorstop...

[ultimate]

Dont know if this is the exact card you want as there are so many specifications out there, but worth a look

http://www.girotech.co.uk/info.asp?R...XFX/PVT70GUDF7
and this one
http://www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.asp?sku=310704&cks=ACC

[Kaizen]

Dont know if this is the exact card you want as there are so many specifications out there, but worth a look

http://www.girotech.co.uk/info.asp?R...XFX/PVT70GUDF7
and this one
http://www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.asp?sku=310704&cks=ACC

Thanks for those, ultimate. They're not quite the ones, as the Extreme editions are clocked a bit higher, but I phoned Overclockers this morning and they were expecting a delivery of 250 sometime today, so I ordered one and it's now been despatched for delivery tomorrow.

[ultimate]

No probs! so you are now sorted.

[davidstone28]

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread....&highlight=a8n
and
http://www.hardforum.com/showthread....&highlight=a8n