CL=2 or 3 for VA-503+ ?

Discussion relating to Socket 7 hardware.
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mulvihill
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CL=2 or 3 for VA-503+ ?

Post by mulvihill »

Does anyone know of some undocumented fussiness on the part of this board in respect to clock cycle delays? I know it's finicky about memory but I don't know why. I'd like to order a stick from Crucial and was wondering if anyone has noticed a preference. I might ask the same about ECC. Is it worth the extra 30%? <p></p><i></i>
georgep1
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Re: memory

Post by georgep1 »

I don't know about the 503+, but the following is from the Crucial FAQ on memory needs:<br><br><br>If you are building a PC and deciding which type to use, the following guidelines should help. If you plan to use your system as a server or a similar mission critical type machine, it is to your advantage to use ECC. If you plan to use your PC for regular home, office, or gaming applications, you are better off with non-parity.<br><br>Using ECC decreases your PC's performance by about 2%. Current technology DRAM is very stable and memory errors are rare, so unless you have a need for ECC, you are better served with non-parity SDRAM. <p></p><i></i>
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pedrogad
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CL=2 or 3 for VA-503+?

Post by pedrogad »

From an Ali 5 perspective, i used to run at CAS 2 in the bios with generic (anonymous!) memory, which was presumably rated at CAS 3, but it improved speed with no probs. I suppose it depends a lot on the quality of the memory. Since then I bought some genuine CAS 2 Crucial memory, and of course retained the CAS 2 setting in bios. If you are buying some new Crucial memory, I would go for CAS 2 and non parity, and you shouldn't go wrong. <p></p><i></i>
jonwest 01
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Crucial RAM wont work in a 503+

Post by jonwest 01 »

Don't ask me why but it doesn't. Oh yeah and I 've tried it myself. The best way I've found to get RAM that works is to go with 2 sticks of generic PC100 128 MB SDRAM, had much better luck with that. You may have to bump back to CAS 2 on the 503+ to get stability. Depending on the RAM. <p></p><i></i>
mulvihill
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Re: Crucial RAM wont work in a 503+

Post by mulvihill »

Does it matter if these two sticks are not a matched pair? <p></p><i></i>
Mr Toastz
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Re: non-matched sticks

Post by Mr Toastz »

Well, that can definitely af an effect on your chances for being able to hold stable at CAS2, but if CAS2 works with no problems then no worries. Basically you are setting the memory for more aggressive timings, which any good stick of memory should be able to handle.<br><br>If you see new instability problems after changing to CAS2, simply drop back to CAS3. <p></p><i></i>
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jsc1973
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Post by jsc1973 »

I just dropped one stick of generic 128MB PC100 and one stick of sucky 128MB Kingston ValueRAM in there, set it for CAS2 and away I went. Of course, the Kingston craps out at a 112 FSB, even when it's set at CAS3. <p></p><i></i>
FIC VA-503+, Rev. 1.2, AMD K6-III+ 450@550MHz, 80GB Seagate ATA-100, 3dfx Voodoo3 3500 TV, TB Montego II Quadzilla, Win98se, 384MB PC100

Compaq Presario 1273, AMD K6-III+ 450@400MHz 1.8v, 40GB Samsung 5400RPM, extremely hacked Win98SE, 288 (yes, 288!) MB RAM
(Also an AMD FX-8350, which does the heavy lifting these days...)
io333
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Re: ...

Post by io333 »

I had terrible luck with a VA503+ and crucial ram. It was why I sold the board. The board was fine, just, like you said, "finicky." I just decided it was easier to start with a new board than to keep shipping ram back. I've seen more reports of success with generic than name brand. Also more reports of success with PC100 rather than PC133.<br><br> <p></p><i></i>
mulvihill
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Re: ...

Post by mulvihill »

I may yet follow your lead io333. The ACZ that I want to run with the VA-503+ goes for 79.99 while the 1.33 T-bird for the reconditioned A7A that I scooped for $33, sells for $62. The 503+ boards are selling for $50 on average.<br>What time is it?<br>I can't see playing the RAM Shuffle Boogie either so I hope all goes well with that "funky PC100" that I bought at the Anandtech swapmeet. <p></p><i></i>
760MPX
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Re: ...

Post by 760MPX »

I've been using 2 Crucial CAS2 256MB modules with my FIC VA-503+. Got the modules last year when they were only about $39 each. Never had any problems. Before that, the same mainboard gave me frequent BSODs when it had an OEM 256MB module with Micron chips.<br> <p></p><i></i>
kylesb
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Re: ...

Post by kylesb »

I had troubles with a 503+ til I purchased a 128 meg stick of cas2/ecc Crucial sdram. Nary a problem since. Speed differential with ECC turned on is negligible, but is it worth 30% more? I think not. <p>Best regards,Kyle</p><i></i>
io333
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*

Post by io333 »

760MPX -- have you ever tried running memtest86 with those two crucial sticks installed? <p></p><i></i>
760MPX
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Re: *

Post by 760MPX »

io333:<br><br>Yes. Tested OK (Pass 100%) with Memtest-86 v3.0. <br><br>Setup as follows:<br>VA-503+ rev 1.2A E-O037<br>BIOS JE4333, fastest CMOS settings<br>K6-III+ 450 @ 600, 2.0V, GlobalWin FOP-38 HSF<br>modified AT case with Sunon 92mm and 80mm fans<br>Enermax 300W ATX PS<br>Panasonic 1.44MB floppy drive<br>2 x 256MB Crucial CAS2, non-ECC<br><br>Other details probably irrelevant to the test:<br>Promise Ultra100TX2 ATA100 card<br>2 x 20GB Quantum Fireball Plus AS ATA100 HD, each connected to a separate connector on the Promise card<br>Creative 52x CDROM drive, connected to the mainboard<br>generic Realtek NIC<br>Diamond Stealth III S540 video card<br><br>This machine used to run at 616MHz (2.1V) with NT 4.0, but had to be underclocked to 600MHz (2.0V) for Windows 2000 to eliminate occasional registry errors. The Stealth III video card is definitely crappy, but adequate for a server that is used mainly for SQL Server, IIS, Apache and Tomcat.<br><br>Regards.<br> <p></p><i>Edited by: <A HREF=http://pub70.ezboard.com/bk6plus67153.s ... >760MPX</A> at: 9/9/02 8:49:02 pm<br></i>
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