Msi p35 neo ms 7360 supported processors. MSI P35 Neo3 is an inexpensive solution based on Intel P35. Introduction to the motherboard
- Page 1 P35 Neo/ G33 Neo series MS-7360 (V1.X) Mainboard G52-73601X1...
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Safety Instructions Always read the safety instructions carefully. Keep this User's Manual for future reference. Keep this equipment away from humidity. Lay this equipment on a reliable flat surface before setting it up. The openings on the enclosure are for air convection hence protects the equipment from overheating.Page 5: Weee (waste Electrical And Electronic Equipment) Statement
WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Statement...- Page 9 Clock ........................A-6 Voltage .................... ......A-7 FAN Speed ......................A-8 Temperature ............. .........A-9 User Profile ......................A-10 Appendix B Realtek ALC888 Audio ...... ........B-1 Installing the Realtek Audio Driver ..............B-2 Software Configuration ............... ...B-4 Hardware Setup ...................B-19...
Page 11: Mainboard Specifications
Processor Support ® - Intel Core 2 Extreme, Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Duo, Pentium and Celeron in the LGA775 package (For the latest information about CPU, please visit http://www.msi.com.tw/cpusupport.htm) Supported FSB - 1333/ 1066/ 800 MHz Chipset®... Page 12 Getting Started Floppy - 1 floppy port - Supports 1 FDD with 360KB, 720KB, 1.2MB, 1.44MB and 2.88MB Connectors Back panel - 1 PS/2 mouse port - 1 PS/2 keyboard port - 1 Parallel port supporting SPP/ EPP/ECP mode - 1 serial port (COM1) - 1 VGA port (for G33 Neo series only) - 1 IEEE1394 port (optional) - 4 USB 2.0 Ports... Page 13: Mainboard Layout
M S-7360 Mainboard Mainboard Layout CPUFAN1 Top: mouse Bottom: keyboard JPW1 Top: Parallel Port Bottom: COM portA VGA port (optional) Top:1394 (optional) Bottom: USB ports Int el P35/ G33 Top: LAN Jack Bottom: USB ports Line-In Line-Out T:RS-Out M:CS-Ou t...Page 15: Chapter 2 Hardware Setup
Hardware Setup Chapter 2 Hardware Setup This chapter provides you with the information about hardware setup procedures. While doing the installation, be careful in holding the components and follow the installation procedures. For some components, if you install in the wrong orientation, the components will not work properly.Page 17: Cpu (central processing unit)
Celeron processor in LGA 775 package. When you are installing the CPU, make sure to install the cooler to prevent overheating. If you do not have the CPU cooler, consult your dealer before turning on the computer. For the latest information about CPU, please visit http://www.msi.com.tw/testreport.htm Important Overheating Overheating will seriously damage the CPU and system.- Page 19 Hardware Setup 5. Lift the load lever up and open the 6. After confirming the CPU direction load plate. for correct mating, put down the CPU in the socket housing frame. Be sure to grasp on the edge of the CPU base. Note that the alignment keys are matched. Page 20 M S-7360 Mainboard 9. Press down the load lever lightly 10. Align the holes on the mainboard onto the load plate, and then se- with the heatsink. Push down the cure the lever with the hook under c ooler u nti l i ts f ou r c lip s g et retention tab.
Page 21: Memory
Hardware Setup Memory These DIMM slots are used for installing memory modules. For more information on compatible components, please visit http://www.msi.com. tw/testreport.htm DDR2 240-pin, 1.8V 56x2=112 pin 64x2=128 pin Dual-Channel mode Population Rule In Dual-Channel mode, the memory modules can transmit and receive data with two data bus lines simultaneously.Page 23: Power Supply
Hardware Setup Power Supply ATX 24-Pin Power Connector: JPWR3 This connector allows you to connect an ATX 24-pin power supply. pin 13 To connect the ATX 24-pin power supply, make sure the plug of the power supply is inserted in the proper orientation and the pins are aligned.- Page 25 Hardware Setup LAN (RJ-45) Jack The standard RJ-45 jack is for connection Activity Indicator Link Indicator to single Local Area Network (LAN). You can connect a network cable to it. Color LED State condition LAN link is not established. Left Orange On (steady state) LAN link is established.
- Hardware Setup Serial ATA Connector: SATA1/ SATA2/ SATA3/ SATA4/ SATA5/ SATA6/ SATA7 (SATA5 & SATA6 are for ICH9R only, SATA7 is controlled by Marvell 88SE6111) . Each connector can connect to one Serial ATA device. SATA7 (optional) SATA6... Page 28 M S-7360 Mainboard Fan Power Connectors: CPUFAN1, SYSFAN1, SYSFAN2 The fan power connectors support system cooling fan with +12V. W hen connecting the wire to the connectors, always note that the red wire is the positive and should be connected to the +12V; the black wire is Ground and should be connected to GND. If the mainboard has a System Hardware Monitor chipset on-board, you must use a specially designed fan with speed sensor to take advantage of the CPU fan control.
- Page 29 Hardware Setup Front Panel Audio Connector: JAUD1 This connector allows you to connect the front panel audio and is compliant with ® Intel Front Panel I/O Connectivity Design Guide. JAUD1 HD Audio Pin Definition SIGNAL DESCRIPTION MIC_L Microphone - Left channel Ground MIC_R Microphone - Right channel... This connector, compliant with Intel I/O Connectivity Design Guide, is ideal for connecting high-speed USB interface peripherals such as USB HDD, digital cameras, M P3 players, printers, modems and the like. Pin Definition SIGNAL SIGNAL...
- Page 31 Hardware Setup S/PDIF-Out Connector: JSPD1 (Optional) This connector is used to connect S/PDIF (Sony & Philips Digital Interconnect Format) interface for digital audio transmission. SPDIF-out JSPD1 S/PDIF Bracket (Optional) IEEE1394 Connector: J1394_1 (Optional) This connector allows you to connect the IEEE1394 device via an optional IEEE1394 bracket.
Page 33: Jumper
Hardware Setup Jumpers Clear CMOS Jumper: JBAT1 There is a CMOS RAM onboard that has a power supply from an external battery to keep the data of system configuration. With the CMOS RAM, the system can automatically boot OS every time it is turned on. If you want to clear the system configuration, set the jumper to clear data.Page 35: Chapter 3 Bios Setup
BIOS Setup Chapter 3 BIOS Setup This chapter provides information on the BIOS Setup program and allows you to configure the system for optimum use. You may need to run the Setup program when: ² An error message appears on the screen during the system booting up, and requests you to run SETUP.Page 37: Control Keys
BIOS Setup Control Keys< >Move to the previous item< ↓>Move to the next item< ←>Move to the item in the left hand< →>Move to the item in the right handSelect the item ... - Page 39 BIOS Setup Load Optimized Defaults Use this menu to load the default values set by the mainboard manufacturer specifi- cally for optimal performance of the mainboard. BIOS Setting Password Use this menu to set the password for BIOS. Save & Exit Setup Save changes to CMOS and exit setup.
- Page 41 BIOS Setup LBA/Large Mode This allows you to enable or disable the LBA Mode. Setting to Auto enables LBA mode if the device supports it and the devices is not already formatted with LBA mode disabled. DM A Mode Select DMA Mode.
- Page 43 BIOS Setup IOAPIC Function This field is used to enable or disable the APIC (Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller). Due to compliance with PC2001 design guide, the system is able to run in APIC mode. Enabling APIC mode will expand available IRQ resources for the system. MPS Table Version This field allows you to select which MPS (Multi-Processor Specification) version to be used for the operating system. Page 44 M S-7360 Mainboard Boot Sequence Press
Page 45: Integrated Peripherals
BIOS Setup Integrated Peripherals USB Controller This setting allows you to enable/disable the onboard USB controller. USB Device Legacy Support Select if you need to use a USB-interfaced device in the operating system. Onboard LAN Controller This item is used to enable/disable the onboard LAN controller. LAN Option ROM This item is used to decide whether to invoke the Boot ROM of the LAN controller. Page 46 M S-7360 Mainboard On-Chip ATA Devices Press Page 47: Power Management Setup
BIOS Setup Power Management Setup Important S3-related functions described in this section are available only when your BIOS supports S3 sleep mode. ACPI Function This item is to activate the ACPI (Advanced Configuration and Power Management Interface) Function. If your operating system is ACPI-aware, such as Windows 2000/XP, select . Page 48 M S-7360 Mainboard Re-Call VGA BIOS From S3 W hen ACPI Standby State is set to , users can select the options in this field. Selecting allows BIOS to call VGABIOS to initialize the VGA card when system wakes up (resumes) from S3 sleep state. The system resume time is short- ened when you disable the function, but system will need an VGA driver to initialize the VGA card. - Page 49 BIOS Setup Resume From S3 by PS/2 Mouse This setting determines whether the system will be awakened from what power saving modes when input signal of the PS/2 mouse is detected. Resume by PCI Device (PME#) W hen set to , the feature allows your system to be awakened from the power saving modes through any event on PME (Power Management Event).
- Page 51 BIOS Setup IRQ Resource Setup Press
to enter the sub-menu and the following screen appears. IRQ 3/4/5/7/9/10/11/14/15 These items specify the bus where the specified IRQ line is used. The settings determine if AMIBIOS should remove an IRQ from the pool of available IRQs passed to devices that are configurable by the system BIOS. Page 53: Frequency/voltage control
D.O.T Control D.O.T. (Dynamic Overclocking Technology) is the automatic overclocking function,'s newly developed CoreCell included in the MSI Technology. It is designed to detect the load balance of CPU while running programs, and to adjust the best CPU frequency automatically. W hen the motherboard detects CPU is running programs, it will speed up CPU automatically to make the program run smoothly and faster. Page 54 M S-7360 Mainboard 2nd level of overclocking, increasing the frequency by 3%. 3rd level of overclocking, increasing the frequency by 5%. 4th level of overclocking, increasing the frequency by 7%. 5th level of overclocking, increasing the frequency by 10%. 6th level of overclocking, increasing the frequency by 15%. - BIOS Setup DRAM RAS# to CAS# Delay This field allows you to set the number of cycles for a timing delay between the CAS and RAS strobe signals, used when DRAM is written to, read from or refreshed. Fast speed offers faster performance while slow speed offers more stable performance. Page 56 M S-7360 Mainboard VTT FSB Voltage This item allows you to set the FSB VTT voltage. Spread Spectrum Configuration CPU Spread Spectrum This setting is used to enable or disable the Spread Spectrum feature. W hen overclocking, always set it to . Important 1.
Page 57: Load Fail-Safe/ Optimized Defaults
BIOS Setup Load Fail-Safe/ Optimized Defaults The two options on the main menu allow users to restore all of the BIOS settings to the default Fail-Safe or Optimized values. The Optimized Defaults are the default values set by the mainboard manufacturer specifically for optimal performance of the mainboard.Page 59: Appendix A
Dual Core Center Dual CoreCenter, the most useful and powerful utility that MSI has spent muc h research h and ef forts to develop, helps users to monitor or configure the hardware status of MSI Mainboard & MSI Graphics card in windows, such as CPU /GPU clock, voltage, fan speed and temperature.Page 61:
Dual Core Center Main Before using this utility, we have to remind you: only when installing the MSI V044 (V044 has to install with the version 8.26 or newer driver)/ V046 or V060 graphics card can activate the full function of this utility. If you install a graphics card of other brand, only hardware status of the MSI mainboard would be available. Page 62 M S-7360 Mainboard AV/ Game/ Office/ Silence/ Cool MSI provides five common settings for different environments. The settings had been set to optimal values to reac h better performanc e in eac h environment. Click the button you need. Page 63: Dot(dynamic Over Clocking
Dynamic Overclocking Technology is an automatic overclocking function, included in ’s newly developed Dual CoreCenter Technology. It is designed to detect the MSI loading of CPU/ GPU while running programs, and to over-clock automatically. When the motherboard detects that the loading of CPU is exceed the default threshold for a time, it will speed up the CPU and fan automatically to make the system run smoother and faster.Page 65:
Dual Core Center Voltage In the Voltage sub-menu, you can see voltage status (including Vcore, memory, GPU voltage... etc.) of your system, and you can select desired value for overclocking. It will show several items to select for overclocking after you click the button.Page 67:
Dual Core Center Temperature In the Temperature sub-menu, you can see temperature status of your system. On the underside, it shows the graphs of the temperatures. Only the curves of the item which the button is lit up with red color will be shown.- Use the draw bar to set the max system temperature. W hen the system temperature exceeds the threshold you defined, the system will pop up a warning message and shut down the system. Use the draw bar to set the minimal fan speed. When the fan speed is lower than the threshold you defined, the system will pop up a warning message.
Page 71: Installing The Realtek Hd Audio Driver
M S-7360 Mainboard Installing the Realtek HD Audio Driver You need to install the driver for Realtek ALC888 codec to function properly before you can get access to 2-, 4-, 6-, 8- channel or 7.1+2 channel audio operations . Follow the procedures described below to install the drivers for different operating systems. Page 72 Realtek ALC888 Audio 3. Click Next to install the Realtek High Definition Audio Driver. Click here 4. Click Finish to restart the system. S el ec t t hi s option Click here... Page 73: Software Configuration
M S-7360 Mainboard Software Configuration After installing the audio driver, you are able to use the 2-, 4-, 6- or 8-channel audio feature now. Click the audio icon from the system tray at the lower-right corner of the screen to activate the HD Audio Configuration. It is also available to enable the audio driver by clicking the Azalia HD Sound Effect M anager from the Control Panel.- Page 75 M S-7360 Mainboard Equalizer Selection Equalizer frees users from default settings; users may create their own preferred settings by utilizing this tool. 10 bands of equalizer, ranging from 100Hz to 16KHz. Save Reset The settings are saved 10 bands of equalizer permanently for future would go back to the de- fault setting... Realtek ALC888 Audio Frequently Used Equalizer Setting Realtek recognizes the needs that you might have. By leveraging our long experience at the audio field, Realtek HD Audio Sound Manager provides you certain optimized equalizer settings that are frequently used for your quick enjoyment. Other than the buttons "Pop"...
- Page 77 M S-7360 Mainboard Mixer In the Mixer part, you may adjust the volumes of the rear and front panels individually. 1. Adjust Volume You can adjust the volume of the speakers that you pluged in the front or rear panel. Important Before set up, please make sure the playback devices are well plugged in the jacks on the rear or front panel. Page 78 Realtek ALC888 Audio When you are playing the first audio source (for example: use Windows Media Player to play DVD/VCD), the output will be played from the rear panel, which is the default setting. Then you must to select the Realtek HD Audio 2nd output from the scroll list first, and use a different program to play the second audio source (for example: use Winamp to play MP3 files).
- Page 79 M S-7360 Mainboard 3. Playback control Playback device Tool Mute This function is to let you freely decide which ports to output the sound. And this is essential when multi- streaming playback is enabled. - Realtek HD Audio Output - Realtek HD Audio 2nd Output M u te You may choose to mute single or multiple volume controls or to completely mute sound output. Page 80 Realtek ALC888 Audio 4. Recording control Recording device -Realtek HDA Primary input Tool Mute -Mic in at front panel (Green) M u te You may choose to mute single or multiple volume controls or to completely mute sound input. Tool - Show the following volume controls This is to let you freely decide which volume control items to be displayed.
- Page 81 M S-7360 Mainboard Audio I/O In this tab, you can easily configure your multi-channel audio function and speakers. You can choose a desired multi-channel operation here. a. Headphone for the common headphone b. 2CH Speaker for Stereo-Speaker Output c. 4CH Speaker for 4-Speaker Output d. Page 82 Realtek ALC888 Audio Connector Settings Click to access connector settings. Disable front panel jack detection (option) Jack detection function only works with HD audio front panel. M ute rear panel output when front headphone plugged in. Enable auto popup dialogue, when device has been plugged in Once this item is checked, the dialog “Connected device”...
- Page 83 M S-7360 Mainboard S/PDIF (optional, for HDMI graphics card only) Short for Sony/Philips Digital Interface, a standard audio file transfer format. S/PDIF allows the transfer of digital audio signals from one device to another without having to be converted first to an analog format. Maintaining the viability of a digital signal prevents the quality of the signal from degrading when it is converted to analog. You can select the speaker by clicking it to test its functionality. The one you select will light up and make testing sound. If any speaker fails to make sound, then check whether the cable is inserted firmly to the connector or replace the bad speakers with good ones.
- Page 85 M S-7360 Mainboard Microphone In this tab you may set the function of the microphone. Select the Noise Suppression to remove the possible noise during recording, or select Acoustic Echo Cancelltion to cancel the acoustic echo druing recording. Acoustic Echo Cancelltion prevents playback sound from being recorded by microphone together with your sound.
- Page 87 M S-7360 Mainboard Information In this tab it provides some information about this HD Audio Configuration utility, including Audio Driver Version, DirectX Version, Audio Controller & Audio Codec. You may also select the language of this utility by choosing from the Language list. Also there is a selection Show icon in system tray.
- Page 89 M S-7360 Mainboard n 4-Channel Mode for 4-Speaker Output 4-Channel Analog Audio Output Line In Line Out (Front channels) Line Out (Rear channels) No function No function B-20... Page 90 Realtek ALC888 Audio n 6-Channel Mode for 6-Speaker Output 6-Channel Analog Audio Output Line In Line Out (Front channels) Line Out (Rear channels) Line Out (Center and Subwoofer channel) No function B-21. ..
- Page 91 M S-7360 Mainboard n 8-Channel Mode for 8-Speaker Output 8-Channel Analog Audio Output Line In Line Out (Front channels) Line Out (Rear channels) Line Out (Center and Subwoofer channel) Line Out ( Side channels) B-22...
Page 2: Copyright Notice
If a problem arises with your system and no solution can be obtained from the user’s manual, please contact your place of purchase or local distributor. Alternatively, please try the following help resources for further guidance. Visit the MSI website for FAQ, technical guide, BIOS updates, driver updates, and other information: http://www.msi.com.tw/program/service/faq/ faq/esc_faq_list.php...Page 4: Fcc-b Radio Frequency Interference Statement
FCC-B Radio Frequency Interference Statement T h is eq uip men t h as been tested and found to c omply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation.Page 8: Table Of Contents
CONTENTS Copyright Notice ......................ii Trademarks ....................... .ii Revision History ......................ii Technical Support ..................... .ii Safety Instructions ......................iii FCC-B Radio Frequency Interference Statement ............iv W EEE ( Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Statement ........v Chapter 1 Getting Started ..................1-1 Mainboard Specifications ..... ............Page 10: Chapter 1 Getting Started
Getting Started Chapter 1 Getting Started Thank you for choosing the P35 Neo/ G33 Neo Series (MS-7360 v1.X) ATX mainboard. The P35 Neo/ G33 Neo ® Series mainboards are based on Intel P35/G33 & ICH9/ ICH9R chipsets for optimal system efficiency. Designed®...Page 14: Packing Checklist
Getting Started Packing Checklist Standard Cable for MSI Driver/Utility CD IDE Devices (Optional) MSI motherboard USB Bracket (Optional) SATA Cable Power Cable Back IO Shield 1394 Bracket (Optional) User's Guide * The pictures are for reference only and may vary from the packing contents of the...Page 16: Quick Components Guide
M S-7360 Mainboard Quick Components Guide SYSFAN2, CPU, p.2-3 DDRII DIMMs, p.2-7 p.2-14 JPW1, p.2-9 CPUFAN1, p.2-14 Back Panel I/O , p.2-10 IDE1, p.2-12 JPWR3, p.2-9 PCI Express slots, p.2-20 SYSFAN1, p.2-14 JBAT1, SATA1~7, p.2-19 p.2-13 CD_IN1, JUSB1~4, p.2-14 p.2-16 PCI Slots, p .2-20 JFP1, p.2-18...Page 18: CPU & Cooler Installation
M S-7360 Mainboard CPU & Cooler Installation W hen you are installing the CPU, make sure the CPU has a cooler attached on the top to prevent overheating. Meanwhile, do not forget to apply some thermal paste on CPU before installing the heat sink/cooler fan for better heat dispersion. Follow the steps below to install the CPU &...Page 22: Installing Memory Modules
M S-7360 Mainboard Installing Memory Modules 1. The memory module has only one notch on the center and will only fit in the right orientation. 2. Insert the memory module vertically into the DIMM slot. Then push it in until the golden finger on the memory module is deeply inserted in the DIMM slot.Page 24: Back Panel
M S-7360 Mainboard Back Panel Parallel Port (optional) Mouse 1394 Port Line-In RS-Out Line-Out CS-Out SS-Out USB Ports Keyboard VGA Port Serial Port (optional) M ouse/Keyboard Connector ® ® The standard PS/2 mouse/keyboard DIN connector is for a PS/2 mouse/keyboard.Page 26: Connectors
M S-7360 Mainboard Connectors Floppy Disk Drive Connector: FDD1 This connector supports 360KB, 720KB, 1.2MB, 1.44MB or 2.88MB floppy disk drive. FDD1 IDE Connector: IDE1 This connector supports IDE hard disk drives, optical disk drives and other IDE devices. IDE1 Important If you install two IDE devices on the same cable, you must configure the...Page 32: Front Panel Connectors: Jfp1, Jfp2
M S-7360 Mainboard Front Panel Connectors: JFP1, JFP2 These connectors are for electrical connection to the front panel switches and LEDs. ® The JFP1 is compliant with the Intel Front Panel I/O Connectivity Design Guide. Power Power Switch JFP1 Reset Switch JFP1 Pin Definition SIGNAL...Page 34:
M S-7360 Mainboard Slots PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) Express Slot The PCI Express slot supports the PCI Express interface expansion card. The PCI Express x 16 supports up to 4.0 GB/s transfer rate. The PCI Express x 8 supports up to 2.0 GB/s transfer rate. The PCI Express x 4 supports up to 1.0 GB/s transfer rate.Page 36: Entering Setup
M S-7360 Mainboard Entering Setup Power on the computer and the system will start POST (Power On Self Test) process. W hen the message below appears on the screen, pressPage 38: The Main Menu
M S-7360 Mainboard The Main Menu Standard CM OS Features Use this menu for basic system configurations, such as time, date etc. Advanced BIOS Features® Use this menu to setup the items of AMI special enhanced features. Integrated Peripherals Use this menu to specify your settings for integrated peripherals.Page 40: Standard Cmos Features
M S-7360 Mainboard Standard CMOS Features The items in Standard CMOS Features Menu includes some basic setup items. Use the arrow keys to highlight the item and then use thePage 42: Advanced Bios Features
M S-7360 Mainboard Advanced BIOS Features Boot Sector Protection This function protects the BIOS from accidental corruption by unauthorized users or computer viruses. W hen enabled, the BIOS’ data cannot be changed when attempting to update the BIOS with a Flash utility. To successfully update the BIOS, you'll need to disable this Flash BIOS Protection function.Page 50: Pnp/pci Configurations
M S-7360 Mainboard PNP/PCI Configurations This section describes configuring the PCI bus system and PnP (Plug & Play) feature. PCI, or Peripheral Component Interconnect, is a system which allows I/O devices to operate at speeds nearing the speed the CPU itself uses when communicating with its special components.Page 52: H/w Monitor
M S-7360 Mainboard H/W Monitor Chassis Intrusion The field enables or disables the feature of recording the chassis intrusion status and issuing a warning message if the chassis is once opened. To clear the warning message, set the field to . The setting of the field will automatically return to later.Page 58: Bios Setting Password
M S-7360 Mainboard BIOS Setting Password W hen you select this function, a message as below will appear on the screen: Type the password, up to six characters in length, and pressPage 60: Activating Dual Core Center
Activating Dual Core Center Once you have your Dual Core Center installed (locate the setup source file in the setup CD accompanying with your mainboard, path: Utility --> MSI Utility --> Dual Core Center), it will have an icon in the system tray, a short cut icon on the desktop, and a short cut path in your “Start-up”...Page 64:
M S-7360 Mainboard Clock In the Clock sub-menu, you can see clock status (including FSB/ CPU clock of mainboard and GPU/ memory clock of graphics card) of your system. And you can select the desired value for overclocking. There will be several items for you to select for overclocking after you click button.Page 66:
M S-7360 Mainboard FAN Speed In the FAN Speed sub-menu, you can read fan status of your system. Select higher speed for better cooling effect. There are several sections for you to change the fan speed to a section after clicking button.Page 68: User Profile
M S-7360 Mainboard User Profile In the User Profile sub-menu, click the setting button that besides the user profile bar, and the next screen will appear. Here you can define the clock/ fan speed/ voltage by your need, click the button to choose a value quickly, or click the plus / minus sign button to...Page 70: Appendix B Realtek Alc888 Audio
Realtek ALC888 Audio Appendix B Realtek ALC888 Audio The Realtek ALC888 provides 10-channel DAC that si- multaneously supports 7.1 sound playback and 2 channels of independent s tereo s sound output (multiple streaming) through the Front-Out-Left and Front- Out-Right channels.Page 74: Sound Effects
Realtek ALC888 Audio Sound Effect Here you can select a sound effect you like from the Environment list. Environment Simulation You will be able to enjoy different sound experience by pulling down the arrow, totally 23 kinds of sound effect will be shown for selection. Realtek HD Audio Sound Manager also provides five popular settings “Stone Corridor”, “Bathroom”, “Sewer pipe”, “Arena”...Page 86: D Audio Demo
Realtek ALC888 Audio 3D Audio Demo In this tab you may adjust your 3D positional audio before playing 3D audio applications like gaming. You may also select different environments to choose the most suitable environment you like. B-17...Page 88: Hardware Setup
Realtek ALC888 Audio Hardware Setup Connecting the Speakers W hen you have set the Multi-Channel Audio Function mode properly in the software utility, connect your speakers to the correct phone jacks in accordance with the setting in software utility. n 2-Channel Mode for Stereo-Speaker Output Refer to the following diagram and caption for the function of each phone jack on the back panel when 2-Channel Mode is selected.MotherboardMSIP35NEO-F
MSI's line of motherboards based on the Intel P35 chipset currently consists of five motherboards that differ in both price and functionality.
NEO series boards are positioned as solutions for economical users. The package bundle of such boards is, as a rule, an example of reasonable minimalism. The Platinum and Diamond series are designed for computer enthusiasts. For their manufacture, high-quality Japanese capacitors are used, copper radiators and heat pipes are used to cool the heating elements.
Packaging and equipment
The MSI P35 NEO-F board comes in a box made of glossy cardboard with an image of the clawed paw of an unknown monster pushing its steel claws through an obstacle towards the board:
Opening the box, you, in addition to the board itself, will find a minimal set of additional accessories:
2 discs with software and drivers for various operating systems: Windows XP and Windows Vista (information on the official website says that WinME/9x OS is not supported by the board);
user guide;
UDMA-66/100/133 cable;
SATA cable;
power cord for SATA devices (MOLEX-SATA adapter);
rear I/O panel (not shown).
This is a typical bundle for motherboards in the lower price range, and MSI could add a couple of additional brackets to the kit, especially since according to the manual this is optionally possible.
Board features, design and layout,BIOS, included software
The main features of the board are described in the table:
| Supported processors | - Intel Core 2 Extreme, Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Duo, Pentium and Celeron (LGA775) |
| Supported FSB | - 1333/ 1066/ 800 MHz |
| Chipset | - Northbridge: Intel® P35 - Southbridge: Intel® ICH9 |
| Supported Memory | - DDR2 667/800 SDRAM (240pin/non-ECC) - 4 DDR2 DIMM slots (8 GB Max) |
| Network | - Gigabit network (Realtek RTL8111B) |
| Audio | - Realtek ALC888 - 7.1 channel audio output - Compatible with Azalia |
| IDE | - 1 IDE port supported by Marvell 88SE6111 - Support for Ultra DMA 66/100/133, PIO and Bus Master modes |
| SATA | - 4 SATA ports (SATA1~4) supported by ICH9 south bridge - SATA 5 supported by Marvell 8SE6111 - Bandwidth up to 300 MB/s |
| RAID | - SATA1~6 support RAID 0/ 1/ 0+1/ 5 |
| Floppy | - 1 floppy port - Support 1 FDD (360 KB, 720 KB, 1.2 MB, 1.44 MB and 2.88 MB) |
| Back panel | - 1 PS/2 connector (mouse) - 1 PS/2 connector (keyboard) - 1 parallel port supporting SPP/EPP/ECP mode - 1 COM1 port - 4 USB port - 1 LAN connector - 6 audio outputs |
| Soldered connectors on the board | - 4 USB 2.0 - 1 Front Panel Audio - 1 CD-In - 1 SPDIF-out |
| Slots | - 1 PCI Express x 16 - 3 PCI Express x 1 - 2 PCI slots, 3.3V/ 5V PCI |
| Form factor | ATX (30.5cm X 22.0cm) |
| Number of mounting holes | 6 |
Design and layout
You can evaluate the layout of the board by looking at the following picture:
As a rule, when designing a budget-level motherboard, engineers do not have to rack their brains over the problem of placing various components due to their scarcity. Of the main disadvantages of the wiring, it should be noted that the memory slot, power connector and IDE connector are too close: if it is not difficult to assemble the system on an open bench, then in most cases this will create some problems.
The cumbersome cooling of some modern cards can block the first couple of memory slots, and by the way, this problem occurs all the time in most boards. The FDD connector is located at the very bottom of the board, but given the widespread death of floppy disks, we can safely close our eyes to this.
After evaluating the wiring, it's time to pay attention directly to the board:
Any sophisticated user will immediately understand by the bright red color of the textolite that there is an MSI board in front of him, and a budget one at that. MSI prefers to produce more expensive products on black textolite.
The Northbridge, Intel P35, is covered by a rather large passive heatsink, which, as was said in the introductory part of the review, fully complies with the recommendations of the chipset manufacturer.
The processor power module is assembled according to a three-channel scheme, which is quite enough if you use processors of the lower and middle levels. But for overclocking, especially if you want to overclock, for example, a top-end quad-core, this may simply not be enough. However, it is difficult to blame MSI engineers for this: a top-end processor is usually paired with an appropriate motherboard, and for this, MSI has Platinum or Diamond series boards in store. On the tested board, you can find both classic capacitors from various manufacturers (there are traces of savings) and modern polymer electrolytes:
The board under test supports up to 8 GB of DDR2-800 memory; for this, 4 memory slots are soldered, offset in pairs relative to each other:
The board is equipped with three PCI-E 1x slots, which, in our opinion, is somewhat redundant: we can't find the corresponding peripherals so far, so it would be better if MSI engineers unsoldered at least one more PCI slot. Judge for yourself, in the computer of a digital technology lover you can often find a TV tuner or a video capture card of high quality. sound card and that's all if the board provides only two PCI slots. You have to go to additional expenses by purchasing an external sound card or modem, but the list of common peripherals does not end there.
The Clear CMOS (JBAT1) jumper is also conveniently located - near the two lower PCI-E 1x slots, near the battery, so even in system block it will be enough to simply reset the BIOS settings in case of unsuccessful overclocking.
The southbridge is also covered with a passive radiator, but this is quite enough: according to the digital thermometer, during testing, the temperature of the radiator did not exceed 40? C. The board uses the ICH9 southbridge, so only 4 + 1 SATA connectors are soldered, support for the fifth SATA connector is provided by a chip manufactured by Marvell (Marvell 88SE6111):
The rear I/O panel also lacks functionality:
As you can see from the figure, only the most necessary things are displayed on the rear panel: PS / 2 connectors for a mouse and keyboard, four USB connectors, Serial and Parallel ports, and outputs and inputs of the audio subsystem. The user manual mentions that an optional D-SUB VGA connector can be found on the rear panel. Perhaps in the future, MSI plans to provide a budget board with an integrated video core. However, why not? Naturally, the G33 northbridge will be used in it.
On the reverse side, the board does not contain any soldered elements, so there should not be any problems with fixing some back-plates.
System monitoring is carried out thanks to the Fintek F71882FG chip:
BIOS and overclocking options
MSI is one of the few motherboard manufacturers that use AMI BIOS.
The most interesting, of course, is the Frequency/Voltage Control section, where overclocking functions are concentrated. For inexperienced users, the possibility of automatic overclocking is provided. A similar opportunity is available for boards from other manufacturers, in particular, ASUS. MSI refers to this feature as D.O.T., which stands for Dynamic Overclocking Technology. The names may be different, but the essence remains the same: the board gradually increases the system bus frequency and stops at a certain stable frequency, which is suggested to be used. Needless to say, overclocking the processor manually will bring much better results. The user can disable this function and choose one of the following options:
Everything is extremely simple: by choosing, for example, the Commander option, the board will increase the system bus frequency by 15%, thus overclocking the processor.
More experienced users can independently change the bus frequencies, as well as the operating voltage on the processor, memory and northbridge.
To the credit of MSI engineers, they did not cut down the overclocking capabilities of the board, even despite its obvious positioning in the budget segment: the maximum voltage values are very high, they are most likely typical for top overclocking solutions, judge for yourself:
So, you can increase the voltage on the processor to 1.55V, which, in the presence of a highly efficient cooler or more serious cooling, will allow you to successfully overclock most of the processors supported by the board. Only a three-channel power subsystem can become (and probably will become) a hindrance, but this is already a little off topic. From the default value for DDR2 voltage of 1.8 V, the user has the opportunity to increase it right up to 3.3 V. Considering that only the legendary BH-5 chips, which are known to comply with the DDR standard, could endure such a voltage without signs of long-term destruction, and even modern overclocker DDR2 modules are designed for an operating voltage of about 2.4 V (with a further increase in voltage, the memory will simply collapse), then 3.3 V is clearly a bit too much. The board designers could, for example, hide the increase in voltage in the range of 2.4-3.3 V from most inept experimenters, but this did not happen.
As for the voltage on the northbridge, you can increase it from 1.2 V to 1.6 V. Perhaps, in this case, passive cooling of the chipset will not be enough.
For finer tuning, the user is given the opportunity to use various FSB:DRAM dividers.
An unpleasant surprise awaited us here: the board set the values at its own discretion, and sometimes, in order to achieve memory operation at a frequency of 800 MHz, we had to set values at random - at a system bus frequency of 200 MHz, a 1:2 divider gave absolutely wrong results. Naturally, the correctness of the memory had to be checked by several information and test utilities, for example, Everest. Obviously, this is an annoying flaw in the BIOS, which should be fixed in the latest firmware versions.
The hardware monitoring section provides the ability to monitor the following parameters:
Nothing special, everything is modest, just like in GigaByte boards.
Included software
As for the corporate software, then MSI offered the Dual Core Center utility. As the name suggests, the utility provides access to monitoring and settings as parameters system board, and the video adapter. But with a small caveat: the video card must also be manufactured by MSI. The test showed that the utility often produces complete nonsense, and the usefulness of its use is very doubtful.
In the absence of overclocking, however, such bugs were not observed.
Another, the Live Update utility, which is designed to safely update the BIOS in a Windows environment, stubbornly insisted that the latest BIOS for this board was already shipped, although the update had already appeared on the site:
Thus, the utilities supplied by the manufacturer turned out to be an absolutely useless toy, and they also do not shine with design delights.
Doom 3 equalizes both boards. The MSI P35 Neo3 wins one frame at low resolution, but at 120 fps it doesn't matter. When the resolution is increased, the results are leveled. This shows that in real applications we will not see the difference between the compared boards due to the fact that they are made on the same system logic. But still, it’s worth saying thanks to the MSI engineers, who were able to “squeeze” a little more out of their offspring than competitors. Perhaps this is achieved due to the reduced delays of the memory controller, or perhaps the difference is due to different secondary memory timings that the boards set themselves.
Conclusion
The MSI P35 Neo3 model can be called a worthy representative of the middle price segment on the motherboard market. High-quality performance using long-life capacitors ensures stable operation of this model in a conventional system unit at home or in the office. Also, the board is a good option for those who are aiming for an upgrade and are faced with the choice of a new product, but at the same time want to connect all the remaining devices with a PCI interface. If desired, it is possible to install one expansion card with PCI-Express x1 interface. Support for basic RAID modes will allow you to create simple arrays of hard drives to increase the performance of the disk subsystem. The absence of external digital audio interfaces and FireWire 1394 in this model is a little disappointing, but it is fully justified by the price. In terms of connectivity for peripheral devices, the MSI P35 Neo3 is indeed slightly inferior to some other representatives on the market. Intel-based P35, but as we have seen, in terms of performance, it even outperforms more expensive competitors. For the average user, given its initial performance, this board will be a good buy.
But for the category of enthusiasts and overclockers MSI P35 Neo3 cannot offer anything outstanding. There is no cooling on the power elements of the processor power system and the 8-pin auxiliary power connector. There are few overclocking options in the BIOS, but all the main functions are present. A small heatsink on the chipset is only enough to cool the P35 at stock frequencies. Therefore, it is not recommended to get carried away with excessive overclocking on this board without additional cooling of the components, although the model has potential.
Motherboard line MSI Neo contains standard components, so you should expect the P35 Neo board to work well, but it will not have a bunch of additional features that the average user may not need. Due to the fact that the cost of production is low, the board is in the lower price range.
Inexpensive motherboards usually don't support two PCI Express x16 graphics cards, and the MSI P35 Neo is no exception. This fact should not greatly affect the decision when buying a motherboard by "budget" enthusiasts who are ready to compromise in performance, because the second video card slot on expensive motherboards still works only in x4 mode. The only PCI Express x16 slot on the P35 Neo motherboard works in full x16 mode. The board also has three PCI Express x1 slots and two older PCI slots, for a total of six expansion cards. ATX supports a maximum of seven slots, and on the P35 Neo board, the place of the uppermost "missing" slot is reserved for a fan connector.
The P35 Neo motherboard is equipped with a three-phase voltage regulator, typical for cheap boards, there are no heatsinks for cooling the voltage regulators. The two heatsinks keep the northbridge and southbridge cool enough, aided by the downdraft cooler.
The power and ATA connectors are ideal for traditional cases. A 4-pin ATX12V power socket is located at the top of the board near the rear edge, a 24-pin power socket is at the front edge of the board, and an UltraATA connector is located at the top of the board near the front edge. Users of UltraATA optical drives will love how easy it is to run a cable from here to the top bays of their cases.
The four SATA ports supported by Intel's cheap ICH9 southbridge are also positioned almost perfectly for running cables to the lower hard drive bays, but that's where the compliments end. The fifth SATA port, supported by the built-in Marvell Ultra+Serial ATA controller, is blocked by the heatsink of long video cards. The front panel audio port is inconveniently located in the farthest bottom corner, away from the front panel ports that are on the top of many modern cases. Finally, the floppy drive connector is also unfortunately located under the lowest PCI slot. Fortunately, users do not need a floppy drive to load the RAID drivers during Windows installation XP because this southbridge does not support RAID.
| MSI P35 Neo (Revision 1.0) | |
| north bridge | Intel P35 GMCH |
| south bridge | Intel ICH9 |
| Voltage regulator | three-phase |
| BIOS | 1.1B7 (05/18/2007) |
| 266.6 MHz (FSB1066) | 266.9 MHz (+0.1%) |
| Connectors and interfaces | |
| On board | 1x PCIe x16 (1x x16) 3x PCIe x1 2x PCI 4x USB 2.0 (2 ports per header) 1x IEEE-1394 FireWire 1x disk drive 1x Ultra ATA (2 drives) 5x Serial ATA 3.0Gb/s 1x for front panel audio ports 1x CD Audio input 1x digital audio output (S/P-DIF) 1x 4-pin for cooler (CPU) 2x 3-pin for fans (case) |
| On the I/O panel | 2x PS2 (keyboard + mouse) 1x parallel port 1x serial port 1x RJ-45 network 1x IEEE-1394 FireWire 4x USB 2.0 6x analog audio ports (7.1ch + mic in + line in) |
| Drive Controllers | |
| Intel ICH9 | 4x SATA 3.0Gb/s |
| Marvell 88SE6111 | 1x Ultra ATA-100 (2 drives) 1x SATA 3.0Gb/s |
| Network | |
| Realtek RTL8111B PCI-E | 1x gigabit ethernet connection |
| Sound | |
| HDA controller (Azalia) | Realtek ALC888 codec (8 channels) |
| firewire | |
| VIA VT6308P | 2x IEEE-1394a (400 Mbps) |
Adding to the attractiveness of this inexpensive motherboard is the IEEE-1394 FireWire controller.
The I/O panel of the P35 Neo motherboard is based on traditional interfaces, including legacy PS/2 keyboard and mouse ports, parallel and serial COM ports. Six analog audio ports provide 8-channel audio with simultaneous microphone and line inputs, four USB 2.0 ports and one IEEE-1394 FireWire port for high-speed devices, and a single gigabit network port for networking.
The BIOS of the MSI P35 Neo motherboard limits the bus frequency to a maximum of 500 MHz (FSB2000), which is probably the board's limit even when using "perfectly overclocked" processors. Incredibly huge CPU and memory voltages give the impression of maximum overclocking of the processor and memory, but do not forget that this inexpensive motherboard is equipped with only a three-phase voltage regulator.
| BIOS frequencies and voltages (for overclocking) | |
| FSB frequency | 100-500 MHz (1 MHz step) |
| Multiplier adjustment | Yes |
| Memory frequency | FSB x 1.0; 1.2; 1.25; 1.5; 1.66; 2.0 |
| PCIe frequency | 100-200 MHz (1 MHz step) |
| CPU Vcore | Default - +0.7875 V (0.0125 V), 1.550 V maximum |
| CPU FSB voltage | 1.20 - 1.60V (0.10V step) |
| North Bridge Voltage (MCH) | 1.25 - 1.625V (0.025V step) |
| South Bridge Voltage (ICH) | 1.05/1.15V |
| Memory Voltage | 1.50 - 2.10 - 3.30V (0.05/0.10V) |
| CAS delay range | tCAS: 3-6; tRCD: 3-6; tRP: 3-6; tRAS: 9-24 |
On the P35 Neo motherboard, we overclocked Intel processor Core 2 Duo E6700 up to 3.44 GHz, although other boards can get 3.46 GHz. Reducing the CPU multiplier to 6x only increased the bus frequency to 369 MHz (FSB1476).
The P35 Neo comes with only the essential accessories needed to build a low cost system, including one SATA cable and one Ultra ATA cable.
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