Phenom II X4 920 and Gigabyte GA-M57SLI-S4 REV 2

[KTVStriker]

Will a Phenom II X4 920 processor work with my Gigabyte GA-M57SLI-S4 REV 2 motherboard. I have downloaded the latest motherboard BIOS (FHD). Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[jitpublisher]

Yes, with the FHD bios this board will support the new Phenom II processors, however the hyper transport buss speed will be downgraded.

Which simply means you are not going to get the full memory bandwidth that you would on a AM2+ motherboard.

From the Gigabyte website under the product listing for this board.

"*Note: If you install AMD AM2+ CPU on AM2 motherbord, the system bus speed will downgrade from HT3.0(5200MHz) to HT1.0(2000 MT/s) spec; however, the frequency of AM2+ CPU will not be impacted. Please refer "CPU Support List" for more information. "

 

[thaifood]

how much would that effect performance?

 

[wdmso]

Will a Phenom II X4 920 processor work with my Gigabyte GA-M57SLI-S4 REV 2 motherboard. I have downloaded the latest motherboard BIOS (FHD). Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I have the same motherboard i did the bio's update drop in the 940 had some early issues any help or question please let me know

 

[sighQ2]

The HT speed is affected. Not the memory bandwidth. and Not the cpu Freq.

This only matters a lot if you are using onboard video, because if you use onboard vid, the cpu accessing memory to feed the grafx demand has less bandwidth available for that. BUT if you use discrete grafx, like a real vid card, this does not happen and there is more than adequate bandwidth available for other purposes. It's almost a non issue. Refer this link at bottom re Older AM2 socket =
http://www.amdzone.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=52&t=135850&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=25#p148985
(sorry to link to other website, but this is a particular question.)

 

[jitpublisher]

^ So you say the memory bandwidth is not affected, reputing what I just told the guy.
But in the very next sentence you state that there WILL be limited bandwidth if you are running a descrete video card.
Are you on drugs or something?

And there is quite a difference between Hypertransport 1 and 3.
If you browse the web, and use microsoft office, you won't ever notice the difference.
If you use applications that are memory intensive, like Photo Shop, Indesign, Gaming, or run a lot of multiple apps (which I would assume you do if you need a quad core processor in the first place) then you may wish to upgrade the motherboard as well. I would recommend it.

 

[KTVStriker]

I have the same motherboard i did the bio's update drop in the 940 had some early issues any help or question please let me know

WDMSO,

Have you benched marked your upgrade yet? I would really like to know if it was worth the upgrade? How big of a performance increase did you see? If the 940 worked I might just go with that instead of the 920. Any info would really help. Thanks!

 

[wdmso]

WDMSO,

Have you benched marked your upgrade yet? I would really like to know if it was worth the upgrade? How big of a performance increase did you see? If the 940 worked I might just go with that instead of the 920. Any info would really help. Thanks!

No i have tried to oc it yet messed with my memory timmings did not want to post unless they were auto settings?
for some other reason if i lock the heat sink down it wont post , have it locked down 3\4 with a pen cap and runs fine idles 30c with my frezzer pro temp from easy tune 5
My unreal and COD frame rates jumped from low 60's to mid 80's to 100s thats at 1900x1200 iam not a big mutli tasker
but i have played and ran antivirus and noticed no lag . I did feel my virus or spybot scans were a little faster and burning DVD's but there was no WOW factor I got my 940 on ebay for 209 free shipping but overall it was worth it i banged my head over getting a new motherboard and 1066 memory save the money and get the chip and a high end vid card or mid SLI cards. the 920 is still very good at 189.00 hell iam getting 50 buck for my BE 5000 on ebay and going to get a cool it water cooler for 60 bucks , another consideration with new motherboard you my need a clean install of your OS that was big on my list well please let me know how you make out sorry to ramble if i oc and or you do lets share BIO's setting thanks wayne

 

[KTVStriker]

No i have tried to oc it yet messed with my memory timmings did not want to post unless they were auto settings?
for some other reason if i lock the heat sink down it wont post , have it locked down 3\4 with a pen cap and runs fine idles 30c with my frezzer pro temp from easy tune 5
My unreal and COD frame rates jumped from low 60's to mid 80's to 100s thats at 1900x1200 iam not a big mutli tasker
but i have played and ran antivirus and noticed no lag . I did feel my virus or spybot scans were a little faster and burning DVD's but there was no WOW factor I got my 940 on ebay for 209 free shipping but overall it was worth it i banged my head over getting a new motherboard and 1066 memory save the money and get the chip and a high end vid card or mid SLI cards. the 920 is still very good at 189.00 hell iam getting 50 buck for my BE 5000 on ebay and going to get a cool it water cooler for 60 bucks , another consideration with new motherboard you my need a clean install of your OS that was big on my list well please let me know how you make out sorry to ramble if i oc and or you do lets share BIO's setting thanks wayne

LOL,

We think the same brother as far as buying upgrades. I spent all day debating if to by a new Phenom II motherboard with high speed DDR3 and the Phenom II 710 or save the money stick with my Giga and buy the Phenom II 940. I too have a a good video card EVGA GTX 260 216 and right now am bottle necking because of my CPU, thus the requirment for a new CPU upgrade. I will probably go with the PII 920 and see how that works with my GIGA. I will keep you posted. Thanks again for your help and support.

 

[thaifood]

please keep me posted too thinking about upgrading from a x2 6000

 

[danieldasilva]

I just spotted this thread, and even though there hasn't been activity for a week, I wanted to ask you who have this board and upgraded to a Phenom II a question. I also have this board (Rev. 02) and upgraded to a Phenom II X4 940. Everything worked fine with it except the onboard Ethernet adapter won't work properly. Even though Windows sees it and installs the driver for it, it will not connect to the network by no means. I've tried everything I can think of (updating drivers, doing a fresh install of the OS, changing from Windows Vista to XP) but nothing helped. After long trial and error and contact with Gigabyte tech support I found out that the problem was Bios version FHD (the one that supports the new Phenom II processors). I rolled the BIOS back to FG and all of the sudden the network adapter works again, however the board will not properly recognize the CPU (it is not very stable, Cool n Quiet doesn't work).

So my question is, do any of you with this same board and BIOS version FHD had any problems with the onboard network adapter after upgrading to the Phenom II processor?

 

[madness 3d]

Hiya, I'm recieving my 940 Black edition tommorow and have already updated to the FHd Bios. Ethernet adaptor working fine. I'll keep this thread updated

I'm working with a 90nm 6000+ the ga-m57sli-s4 an XFX GTX 260 XXX

 

[danieldasilva]

Hiya, I'm recieving my 940 Black edition tommorow and have already updated to the FHd Bios. Ethernet adaptor working fine. I'll keep this thread updated

I'm working with a 90nm 6000+ the ga-m57sli-s4 an XFX GTX 260 XXX

Well, I actually only started having Ethernet problems after I upgraded to the Phenom II X4 940 BE. It worked right with Bios FHd and my old Athlon X2 processor. But Gigabyte has since released BIOS version FHe and they finally fixed that problem, so it's all good.

 

[madness 3d]

I was hesitant about updating to the FHe as they've removed the 940 from the support list gonna be getting the chip this evening so I'll flash the bios over again and hope for the best. Gonna be doing some benchmarking before I do the switchover. Brought my 6000+ back down from 3.18 stock to 3 and ran the custom of benchmark and tonight I'm gonn run 3dmark 06 twice. Once with gfx at stock once with some serious overclockage. I'll post those results on here and retest with the 940 at 3.00 so you can see the architecture gain from Athlon 64 to Phenom 2
Gonna also try pushing up the voltage and seeing if I can get a tasty 3.6 out of it tonight. I know my board has a very interesting habit which could come in useful. If I set the CPU vcore in the bios to 1.55 it overvolts my 6000+ to 1.72v.
Scared the crap out of me the first time I saw it. I used to have a ga-m55s-s3 which don't do this but I killed it with a bad bios image flash. Won't do
That again. I'll keep updated with whatever oc I tweak out of the chip. Hoping 3.6 for 24/7 with 3.75 for benching. I'm cooling with a scythe infinity with two 120mm fans attached to it. Also got two psu controlled 80mm fans at the back and two at the front of the case also got my psu (bequiet dark power pro 650w) sucking air over it

 

[danieldasilva]

I was hesitant about updating to the FHe as they've removed the 940 from the support list gonna be getting the chip this evening so I'll flash the bios over again and hope for the best. Gonna be doing some benchmarking before I do the switchover. Brought my 6000+ back down from 3.18 stock to 3 and ran the custom of benchmark and tonight I'm gonn run 3dmark 06 twice. Once with gfx at stock once with some serious overclockage. I'll post those results on here and retest with the 940 at 3.00 so you can see the architecture gain from Athlon 64 to Phenom 2
Gonna also try pushing up the voltage and seeing if I can get a tasty 3.6 out of it tonight. I know my board has a very interesting habit which could come in useful. If I set the CPU vcore in the bios to 1.55 it overvolts my 6000+ to 1.72v.
Scared the crap out of me the first time I saw it. I used to have a ga-m55s-s3 which don't do this but I killed it with a bad bios image flash. Won't do
That again. I'll keep updated with whatever oc I tweak out of the chip. Hoping 3.6 for 24/7 with 3.75 for benching. I'm cooling with a scythe infinity with two 120mm fans attached to it. Also got two psu controlled 80mm fans at the back and two at the front of the case also got my psu (bequiet dark power pro 650w) sucking air over it

I'm pretty sure they removed the Phenom II 920 and 940 from the compatibility list temporarily because of me. Like I said, my ethernet adapter wound not work right by any means with the Phenom X4 940 and bios FHd. I was in touch with Gigabyte tech support about the issue for a while. Even though their tech support wasn't very helpful at all, they managed to fix it. They released BIOS FHe and returned the 920 and 940 to the compatibility list, and everything works like a charm with FHe.

As for overclocking, I have not had much success overclocking the 940 past 3.5 GHz with this board. As you said, it has a strange habit of overvolting the CPU that scares me from trying to go further.

I had set my mind on replacing this board and get an AM2+ one but ever since Gigabyte released Bios FHe and fixed the issue I decided to settle for this. I haven't been able to get a straight answer from experts yet, but as I hear it the HyperTransport limitation of 1.0 of this board is not a considerable bottleneck for this processor.

 

[madness 3d]

I see, I'll pump the FHe in now and hope for the best when I make the change over.
Going to pick up the chip from the shop i work saturdays at (Rl supplies) at aboot half 5
I'm looking forward to it.

Edit, just booted on fhd and got limited or no connectivity, then went to gigabyte page and it said latest bios was fhd managed to find it through google in the end so just successfully flashed to it, just booted and network adaptor is working fine

 

[mudfrog]

I hate to revive an old post but I'm actually looking at upgrading to a Phenom II with this mobo. Those who have done it are you happy with the performance increase? I would eventually get an AM3 motherboard but I'm looking for a budget upgrade atm.

 

[madness 3d]

Hiya. Never did pump down the changes in perfromance etc on this board.

I have the Phenom II 940 BE in this board. Upgraded from a Windsor 90nm 6000+ 3.0Ghz
So to start some benchmarks.



--------------------------
X3 - Terran Conflict
--------------------------

Video Settings During Benchmark:
Screen Resolution: 1680 x 1050 * [32], fullscreen
Using Shader Profile: 3.0
Antialias Mode: 4x
Anisotropic Mode: 8x

6000+ @ 3.0GHz
Scene "Trade" 25.9 average fps 8.0 minimum fps 55.0 maximum fps
Scene "Fight" 54.5 average fps 20.0 minimum fps 121.0 maximum fps
Scene "Build" 77.0 average fps 44.0 minimum fps 147.0 maximum fps
Scene "Think" 37.0 average fps 19.0 minimum fps 68.0 maximum fps

Overall average framerate: 48.6 fps

940 @ 3.0GHz
Scene "Trade" 32.6 average fps 9.0 minimum fps 75.0 maximum fps
Scene "Fight" 71.2 average fps 25.0 minimum fps 170.0 maximum fps
Scene "Build" 97.4 average fps 56.0 minimum fps 148.0 maximum fps
Scene "Think" 43.1 average fps 24.0 minimum fps 72.0 maximum fps

Overall average framerate: 61.1 fps

940 @ 3.6GHz
Scene "Trade" 38.7 average fps 12.0 minimum fps 89.0 maximum fps
Scene "Fight" 83.6 average fps 29.0 minimum fps 204.0 maximum fps
Scene "Build" 105.8 average fps 66.0 minimum fps 145.0 maximum fps
Scene "Think" 48.5 average fps 28.0 minimum fps 80.0 maximum fps

Overall average framerate: 69.2 fps

Thats an Average 25.7% better performance at the same Clock Speed!

--------------------------
Far Cry 2
--------------------------

6000+ @ 3.0GHz
Average Framerate: 21.69
Max. Framerate: 27.41
Min. Framerate: 18.20

940 @ 3.0GHz
Average Framerate: 25.87
Max. Framerate: 32.47
Min. Framerate: 22.31

Again here we see another 19% Gain in performance, although here the test game is multithreaded so its possible this boost is due to greater utilisation of multiple cores.


I currently have it running at 3.6ghz @ 1.5v with 240*15 set in the bios (benched at 3.75 (link at end))
Im currently on Beta Bios. FHe and when i have more time i'll update to FHE and see if that fixes any of the following problem.I have (so far) not seen Cool&Quiet function on this board. IT sits at full speed (according to CPU-Z)
I have also been unable to use the unlocked multiplier, so have resorted to htt oc'ing. adjusting the multiplier (or even setting it away from auto) causes windows to display a black screen upon boot with just one white box (that you can move with your mouse)
The more concerning thing is the voltage CPU-Z & HWMonitor report the chip as recieving 1.71v when the BIOS is set to 1.5v. However A) the reported temperatues are not consistant with this voltage and B) im not sure those values are accurate anyway. (in BIOS reports other temps idle.) The temps its reporting in HWMonitor are 45 idle, 63 Load. But in the bios it says 31 idle. so the jury is out on that one. Really wanna try out the FHE bios (although Gigabyte are now adamant that the board does not support the chip) I emailed them and had a string of discussions about whether my chip was usable. They gave me a blank NO. odd since i was typing this message using the chip but oh well.
When overcloking i found that any voltage under 1.5v was unstable under prime. I also found that increasing htt anymore became prime unstable. However i have 3dmark06'd the machine @3.75 w 1.525v and got 18564 points XD

http://service.futuremark.com/compare?3dm06=10369738

In summary yes it works and yes its very good. theres some OC'ing issues that need to be ironed out but appart from that fire away.
I'll update once flashed to FHE bios to let you know if any of the above issues are resolved.

 

[madness 3d]

Discovered the fault in the board that limits the overclocking potential.

The AMD Cool&Quiet function does not co-operate with this chip propperly, if you disable it in the bios. Black screen in windows. If you have it on with normal voltage (my VID is 1.35v) I get 1.38v idle, 1.46v Full load. under my scythe infinity I get 37C idle, 51 load.

Thing is, as you step up the voltage that max voltage creeps up too. at 1.5v it maxes at about 1.72v, not healthy.
Also obviously changing the multiplier to anything other than stock disables cool and quiet immediately causing them machine to black screen.
so basically if you have this board and want to upgrade get a 920 or a 720 and dont raise the voltage. Not much point having a 940 as you cant touch that multi. Would advise to change to a new board.

I'm personally changing to an Asus Crosshair II Formula as Gigabyte's refusal to fix the BIOS has annoyed me somewhat.
And btw FHE and FHe are the same.

 

[mudfrog]

Discovered the fault in the board that limits the overclocking potential.

The AMD Cool&Quiet function does not co-operate with this chip propperly, if you disable it in the bios. Black screen in windows. If you have it on with normal voltage (my VID is 1.35v) I get 1.38v idle, 1.46v Full load. under my scythe infinity I get 37C idle, 51 load.

Thing is, as you step up the voltage that max voltage creeps up too. at 1.5v it maxes at about 1.72v, not healthy.
Also obviously changing the multiplier to anything other than stock disables cool and quiet immediately causing them machine to black screen.
so basically if you have this board and want to upgrade get a 920 or a 720 and dont raise the voltage. Not much point having a 940 as you cant touch that multi. Would advise to change to a new board.

I'm personally changing to an Asus Crosshair II Formula as Gigabyte's refusal to fix the BIOS has annoyed me somewhat.
And btw FHE and FHe are the same.

I'm having a completely different problem. I upgraded to the FHE (I have rev 2.0) and suddenly I have insufficient power from my PSU. Using the 920 and 4890 gpu. I threw my old 8800GT back in and it boots fine. I downgraded the BIOS back to FF and now it boots fine using the 4890 again, it just doesn't recognize the cpu now.

My PSU is a Coolmax 600w w/ 32A on the 12v rail which should be enough (so I'm told). I would upgrade to a new PSU but I don't know if that will fix it, nor do I know if a new motherboard and my current PSU will fix it.

Gigabyte is telling me this cpu is not supported even though it is in the list of supported processors.

 

[madness 3d]

I'm having a completely different problem. I upgraded to the FHE (I have rev 2.0) and suddenly I have insufficient power from my PSU. Using the 920 and 4890 gpu. I threw my old 8800GT back in and it boots fine. I downgraded the BIOS back to FF and now it boots fine using the 4890 again, it just doesn't recognize the cpu now.

My PSU is a Coolmax 600w w/ 32A on the 12v rail which should be enough (so I'm told). I would upgrade to a new PSU but I don't know if that will fix it, nor do I know if a new motherboard and my current PSU will fix it.

Gigabyte is telling me this cpu is not supported even though it is in the list of supported processors.

I could probably tell you why, the GA-M57SLI-S4 massively overvolts phenom II's with the newer BIOS versions, so draws massively more 12v current. Not good for the life of the board, or the Chip. I would advise changing the motherboard really. I have also contacted GIGABYTE and they tell me they have no intention of fixing the above issues

 

[madness 3d]

I'm having a completely different problem. I upgraded to the FHE (I have rev 2.0) and suddenly I have insufficient power from my PSU. Using the 920 and 4890 gpu. I threw my old 8800GT back in and it boots fine. I downgraded the BIOS back to FF and now it boots fine using the 4890 again, it just doesn't recognize the cpu now.

My PSU is a Coolmax 600w w/ 32A on the 12v rail which should be enough (so I'm told). I would upgrade to a new PSU but I don't know if that will fix it, nor do I know if a new motherboard and my current PSU will fix it.

Gigabyte is telling me this cpu is not supported even though it is in the list of supported processors.

I could probably tell you why, the GA-M57SLI-S4 massively overvolts phenom II's with the newer BIOS versions, so draws massively more 12v current. Not good for the life of the board, or the Chip. I would advise changing the motherboard really. I have also contacted GIGABYTE and they tell me they have no intention of fixing the above issues

 

[mudfrog]

Yea I imagine that is what it was doing. I ended up swapping the 4890 back in and I'm running the PII 920 as "Unknown CPU" but oddly enough it has the correct settings for this processor. Still shows 4 cores @ 2.8GHz. I'm still going to order a new motherboard, I'm just using this as a band aid until it comes in.

 

[madness 3d]

BTW if anyone reads this. FHH breaks the network adapter again
You now cant get FHE off the gigabyte website, if anyone needs it feel free to PM me

 

[milo766]

I had the same problem with Fhh. i had to downgrade to FG... now i'm ok. Now I need to know how many people can put a 940 cpu in this motherboard?? in gigabyte's page this model is "N/A" and this wanna say that this isn't supported