*** Official eVGA 680i Thread ***

[de8212]

Originally posted by: Saldrin
I do need to check my case though, I can't recall if my power switch is a two or three pin. I've read that the board wants the three. Although finding a new switch probably won't be that hard.... And I will miss Qconnect, buts what's 5 more minutes.

It has the two pin connection for power switch. Here's a picture for reference. Text

 

[rise]

my board arrives wednesday

any good threads i can get some more info as i wait? any bugs, incompatabilitys?

6400
evga 680i
2x 1 gb gskill cl 4
zalman either 7000cu, 7700 cu. *both are kicking around here somewhere )

other-8800gts, 74gb raptor, 2x 250gb wd sata, fusion hdtv card, diamond pvr550

 

[de8212]

Originally posted by: rise
my board arrives wednesday

any good threads i can get some more info as i wait? any bugs, incompatabilitys?

6400
evga 680i
2x 1 gb gskill cl 4
zalman either 7000cu, 7700 cu. *both are kicking around here somewhere )

other-8800gts, 74gb raptor, 2x 250gb wd sata, fusion hdtv card, diamond pvr550

Have you downloaded the manual? Unlesss they've changed it, they do not list the SATA ports in the correct order. I kept having problems booting until I switched my Raptor to what they list as SATA 6, I think. That's really # 1. They have them backwards.

 

[rise]

thanks, i'll watch that. i did DL the manual last nite, looks nice. i've also checked out some xtreme threads and the evga forums i've been browsing thru.

 

[WowbaggerTIP]

I just ordered my parts last night.

eVGA 680i
c2d 6300 retail
2x 1GB Buffalo Firestix cl5
HIS Hightech Radeon X1950PRO 256MB

Also picked up a new case (Antec 900), so that's basically a whole new system for me. Hopefully everything gets here by the end of the week.

 

[ski]

I installed this board two weeks ago and love it. I previously had the Asus P5N32-SLi Deluxe and the Premium board and this board was the easiest to set up and overclock. I have a 6800 overclocked right now to 3548 mhz with no voltage adjustments and super stable. Could not do this on the other two boards. Have used N-Tune and it works well. Asus Striker looks interesting but $400 seems a little steep. Rather put the money I saved, on some new 8500 GTX cards.

 

[trake1]

New BIOS P21 Just Released ...

 

[de8212]

Originally posted by: trake1
New BIOS P21 Just Released ...

thanks.

 

[trake1]

All? Are the EVGA and the BFG and the Biostar 680i identical to the point where one BIOS will work on any of the others?

 

[WowbaggerTIP]

Here's a question for you all. Has anyone tried to install a Tuniq Tower HSF on the eVGA board? I'm looking at some coolers, but haven't seen anything about that one on this board. I'm not good at judging it from the pictures either.

 

[de8212]

Originally posted by: WowbaggerTIP
Here's a question for you all. Has anyone tried to install a Tuniq Tower HSF on the eVGA board? I'm looking at some coolers, but haven't seen anything about that one on this board. I'm not good at judging it from the pictures either.

Yes, look at the mobo review anandtech did. They used it. I am using it also. No real issues. The only problem I have is more to do wiht the case I bought. The thermaltake tsunami has a side window fan and it hits the tuniq. I have to press firmly to get the door to latch shut.
So, the only problem you might encounter is with the case you have.

 

[lupi]

Well I'm leaning more now towards a SLI board for my new build, and it looks like the evga unless anything comes out soon or asus gets real about their pricing structure.

Question about SLI though, do both cards need to be of the same manufacturer?

 

[Centurin]

No, they can be different. There are a number of reviews of the G80 where two manufacturers were used.

 

[5uperGlu3]

has anyone installed raid on this mobo using a flash drive? i just bought two new HDs and want to use them in raid, but i have no floppy and refuse to buy one. if anyone knows how to instal the raid with a flash drive, any help would be awesome. thanks

 

[de8212]

Originally posted by: 5uperGlu3
has anyone installed raid on this mobo using a flash drive? i just bought two new HDs and want to use them in raid, but i have no floppy and refuse to buy one. if anyone knows how to instal the raid with a flash drive, any help would be awesome. thanks

Not sure on the flash drive but you can always slipstream the SATA/RAID drivers into a new XP disc. Just an idea.

 

[5uperGlu3]

thats a clever idea de8212, i might try that.

also, anyone know anything about the third pci ex slot on this mobo. i know its for a physics card, and that you use a regular GPU for it. is there software for it and you just have to flash the physics into the GPU or what? if this info is in the manual, i'll feel really stupid. but i did just move and i'm still unpacking

 

[Centurin]

I find it hard to believe that the 3rd physics card will ever be useful. As it is, SLI isn't all that great. Unless you upgrade every six months or so, you're better off just buying a better single card solution rather than buying a second card for SLI.

 

[TBSN]

Originally posted by: 5uperGlu3

also, anyone know anything about the third pci ex slot on this mobo. i know its for a physics card, and that you use a regular GPU for it. is there software for it and you just have to flash the physics into the GPU or what? if this info is in the manual, i'll feel really stupid. but i did just move and i'm still unpacking

I think you have to buy a dedicated physics card, of which there are few and most likely not well supported in games. But I'm not sure, you might be able to use a video card for physics...

I've been thinking about getting an eVGA 680i, and I need advice. Are the advantages of this board, such as the great overclocking, automatic reset after failed overclock, etc. good reasons to get this MOBO if I won't be going SLi immediately? The other board I was looking at was the P5B... Would this board be more future-proof?

 

[Skott]

I believe both support quadcore so no problem there. Now which one would do better at overclocking quadcore would be the better question. Assuming you are into overclocking. I'm going to make a total guess and say the 680i has the more potential for overclocking the quadcores. But thats just a guess on my part. I'm basing this on the 680i being the newer chipset and potentially more robust for the quadcores and overclocking them. But if you take overclocking of quadcores out of the equasion then both boards are pretty good. The p5B-E is the better overclocker so far with 6300/6400 procs but if you plan on getting a E6600+ then I'd say go for a 680i mobo. If you have no intention on overclocking then it comes down to wether you want SLI or not and price. if you want SLI then 680i is your only choice. If you dont want SLI then you could fall back to the old,'buy whichever is cheapest' method but only if you have no desire for overclocking and SLI.

 

[TBSN]

O.K., thanks for the reply. I do intend on overclocking, but I won't be going SLI right away. I guess it will come down to price in the end...

 

[rise]

installed my board sunday nite/monday. still deciding which poarts i should put in each rig but as is its-

6400
evga 680i
2x 1gb gskill pc6400 cl4
7900gs (probably move my 8800gts in)
2x 320gb hdd
seasonic m12 500w

anyway, i was lazy sunday nite and didn't feel like pulling a floppy from an old rig to flash the bios (which i always do) and went directly to memtest. after failing a several times with varying timings/voltages i called it a nite and decided to just do it right in the morning.

once i flashed the bios to the new p21's everything sailed along fine. the board came from the egg so if anyone is buying there, i'd do it right and flash the bios before anything.

now to figure out what parts i want where and get to clocking

 

[TBSN]

nice computer...
I was thinking about getting that PSU, you wouldn't happen to know if it fits with an Antec P180, would you?

 

[rise]

it looks like the cables would be long enough but i can't be sure as i haven't actually used the p180, sorry

does anyone know if the xp-90 sink is compatible with the 680i? i need a low profile heatsink as my case is rather small. i only have about 3-1/2 inches height-wise. i got a zalman cnps8000 but the backplate rests on a resistor or two.

i think the xp-90 would fit but i'm not sure about the back plate mounting.

 

[imported_RedStar]

Is anyone, who has this evga board, been experiencing sata problems?

From reading the thread on their message forums --the problem seems to be isolated to anyone with ram rated faster than 800 (overclocked or otherwise)
edit:
http://www.evga.com/community/messageboard/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=21626&whichpage=8

I was pretty set on getting the board after |H| called the striker... a strikeout.

Now i am hesitant ...which is nothing new as i have delayed since september ...waiting on new boards.

 

[de8212]

Does anyone know what the default cpu voltage in the BIOS is?