Is an upgrade from an ASRock 970 Extreme4 to a MSI 990FXA-GD65 worthwhile?

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absxiith

absxiith

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Aug 19, 2011
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Hello,

Reason why I want to upgrade:

I am running an AMD FX 8350 @ 4.0 GHz and 1.325V on an ASRock 970 Extreme4.The problem(s) I am facing is that even at these settings,my CPU throttles down to single-digit MHz readings while on 100% load within a couple of minutes,apart from random freezes and throttling to low readings even at idle.All power-saving functions are off,my RAM (G.Skill Ripjaws X) is at setting "auto" in the BIOS and the BIOS itself is updated to Version P2.60...I am at a complete loss about what is happening and wouldn't have cared (because I don't think I would need to run my CPU @ 100% load for hours) ,but for the fact that it is affecting my games as well,which start lagging/crashing after a quarter of an hour.

After reading reports all over the net that it is due to poor VRM design of the ASRock motherboard,I am thinking of going for the MSI 990FXA-GD65 mainly because -

a) It's cheap (almost equal to the ASRock).

b) It's a 990FX chipset,although I have no idea how that is supposed to help,except that I have read somewhere that 990FX motherboards have "beefier" VRM designs...

I would really welcome any suggestions/input/positives/negatives in switching over to the MSI board.
 
Solution
Onus
I think your reason is valid. If you check https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AgN1D79Joo7tdE9xMUFlMEVWeFhuckJEVF9aMmtpUFE&gid=0 you'll see that the ASRock, though not specifically tagged for problems, only has a 4+1 VRM design. The proposed MSI board has an 8+2 design.
The 990FX also offers more PCIe lanes, in case you wanted to run multiple graphics cards.
As the spreadsheet indicates, MSI's cheap 970 boards are themselves problematic, but the 990FXA-GD65 looks like a good board.
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Onus

Onus

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Jan 27, 2006
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I think your reason is valid. If you check https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AgN1D79Joo7tdE9xMUFlMEVWeFhuckJEVF9aMmtpUFE&gid=0 you'll see that the ASRock, though not specifically tagged for problems, only has a 4+1 VRM design. The proposed MSI board has an 8+2 design.
The 990FX also offers more PCIe lanes, in case you wanted to run multiple graphics cards.
As the spreadsheet indicates, MSI's cheap 970 boards are themselves problematic, but the 990FXA-GD65 looks like a good board.
 
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absxiith

absxiith

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Sorry to say this,but that's exactly what I have been doing ever since I built this PC sometime in May-June '13...I am using a Corsair H80i in push-pull and CPU temps never rise above 53-55 degrees (centigrade) (in Quiet Mode) and 45 degrees centigrade in Performance Mode....CPU Usage in almost all games never goes above 90% (except in ARMA III and Skyrim) ...My case is well ventilated (Cooler Master HAF 912-all slots except the top outlet are occupied by the largest fans they can be occupied with) and as a last resort, I even fixed a small 80mm fan on top of the VRM section for the past few days ,with no change. The back of the case where the CPU is mounted on the Motherboard does not feel warm at all,while the section near the VRMs is like someone has set fire to the whole case...I am not asking for much,just the advertised 4.0 GHz (if possible,4.2 GHz "turbo" speed) of this motherboard...(and a stable setup ;) ) :)
 
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absxiith

absxiith

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Onus- My reasons in a nutshell..thanks . :) I do not want to run Mutliple GPUs but I do want my board to be stable at at least the stock speed of this processor...That's all I ask for.

Also,if anyone did notice, 1.325 Vcore is not the stock voltage of the FX 8350...as I wrote in my original post...It's 1.350V but even that fails to provide any sort of stability ,as the CPU itself touches 60 Degrees (thermal limit is 62,supposedly) during gaming. :(

Edit : I am really uncomfortable with that sort of temperature ,just a couple of degrees shy of the absolute limit of what it's safe to operate at...
 
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