New Cpu

[lynx]

I have been unable to verify from the information given that the board is indeed an AK31, and even if it is which version of that board. This information should be printed on the board in quite large lettering, and will say something like AK31 V1, you need to confirm what this information actually says. There are 3 different versions of this board, and each has a different bios.

If you are right about the motherboard type (ak31) it is unlikely it will support the thoroughbred chip, and in any case it will not support the 333fsb XP2600+. The V1 board will support up to XP2000+, V2 and V3 will support up to XP2100+, all palomino.

If the motherboard is the next model up (ak32) then it will support the thoroughbred chip, although not the chip you have got. It only supports the 266FSB chips and according to the documentation only up to XP2400+. However, once again there are several versions of this board, each with a different bios.

Even if you have a board which supports the thoroughbred chip, the chipset on the board (vt8233/8366) will not support 333fsb, and may not support the lower core voltage required in this chip, but if you can unlock the chip (there is a way of doing this on the board, not on the chip) you may be able to get it to run at 16x130, but I think this is not the way to go.

It is essential that you find out the model and version of your motherboard before you proceed any further.

[dwightfry]

Oy...this is getting complicated....

My computer seems to be running fine.

I have no idea what the version number is, the BIOS that came with my computer was AK31S2EF. I haven't been able to find what version number it is.

.........should I be worried?

[_John_Lennon_]

Originally posted by dwightfry@19 September 2003 - 15:42
I haven't been able to find what version number it is.

.........should I be worried?

The version of the board, might be on the Motherboard itself somewhere.

[dwightfry]

I didn't see it anywhere.

I even tracked down the reciept and it still just said AK31. So....I am running a CPU that shouldn't be running on my computer. Is this going to be problem? Should I put the old one back in?

[lynx]

If the original bios was AK31S2EF, that is for the AK31 V3 board, or the AK31A board. As you suggest, the latest bios is AK31S2EI.exe. Make sure you get this bios update before going any further. The manual for that board is ak31v2xen.zip, although that doesn't cover the bios upgrades.

Once you have the latest bios, there are two things you can adjust in the bios to modify performance, these are both in the section Frequency/Voltage Control. One of these is the multiplier, also known as CPU Ratio Select, but to do this you need to unlock the cpu core, so leave this at default for the moment.

The other is the cpu frequency. I would suggest that you set the frequency to 133MHz, then examine what speed the processor is running at. Remember, the frequency also affects pci and dram speed, but the system may automatically adjust these downward if the fsb is too high. If that is the case, you should be able to raise the cpu frequency as high as 166MHz, which is the design frequency of the chip, but it may cause problems if the core voltage it too high. However, if the cpu voltage (top of the same page) is about 1.5 to 1.6 volts, this should be ok.

[Somebody1234]

Now that you have that CPU, my opinion would be to replace the motherboard with one that supports the 333 Mhz Front Side Bus.

[dwightfry]

The CPU is an Athlon Xp 2600/266 FSB. I just checked the Reciept.

I have upgraded the BIOS already.

If I set the CPU Clock (CPU Frequency) to anything over 119, the computer won't start. (My original problem), if I set it to 110 - 119, I can't get into windows, at 105 to 110, I would occasionally have troubles starting. I put it back to 100 MHz, I am having no problems.

In the BIOS I can see that the FSB is running at 200MHz. I can't change it, it is greyed out.

The CPU voltage is at 1.6v

[Somebody1234]

Ok, If the CPU is 266 FSB then get a board that supports 266 or higher.

That's what you need to do to run the CPU as it was intended to be run.

[adamp2p]

You should be able to find a motherboard that supports that chip for very cheap; fry's in LA sells a combo with the 2000+ and the motherboard for less than 100 dollars US.

something like this

[dwightfry]

My motherboard supports 266 FSB(DDR)