Warning - Gigabyte X58 UD5 F11 Bios Knobbled my CrossfireX!

[blackninja]

I re-installed Windows 7 this weekend and whilst I was at it I updated the BIOS on my Gigabyte X58 UD5 mobo from F9 to F11 and the firmware on my 128GB Crucial SSD ... as you do!

Well, after testing that my i7 4.2GHz overclock was running well on the new BIOS it was time to install the ATI drivers ... well, BSOD on install Managed to get them installed after a few tries and then various issues followed with attempts to get the 5970+5870 to play well ...

Bottom line was when starting a game/demo/benchmark instant BSOD mostly and sometimes a few frames in before a lock up and power off/on to get it back ... each card ran perfectly on its own so the cards are OK however together in crossfireX it was no go ... this was evident on default stock values so not an overclock issue with new BIOS.

I am back to F9 BIOS with 10.3 preview ATI drivers without issues so the BIOS is my nomination for the cause of the issues .. maybe able to get it running with plenty of time to waste but I aint got the time to spend on figuring it out!

This may be specific to the 5970/5870 combo ... but maybe not and remember: if it ain't broke ... don't go and bloody break it

 

[Zico]

If you strongly believe this to be a bios issue, please post your evidence on the Gigabyte Tweaktown forum so that if that is the case, this is shared with a more Gigabyte specific audience.

Gigabyte Tweaktown forums

 

[blackninja]

If you strongly believe this to be a bios issue, please post your evidence on the Gigabyte Tweaktown forum so that if that is the case, this is shared with a more Gigabyte specific audience.

Gigabyte Tweaktown forums

I have an account there since I got this mobo but for some reason I never got the 'activate' email so I still can't post ... just sent another email to ask why!???


What you say is true but the UD5 is pushed hard by OcUK and quite a few forum members (relatively speaking of course!) have one it seems ... they may well have the same issue in due course!

 

[Zico]

I have the board myself but it's not yet been fired up (still need to buy GFX + HDD/SSD).

I won't be going Crossfire straight away but it is in my plans to do so within 12 months of finishing the system.

 

[Tom|Nbk]

New mobo bios can and do break things, just stick with the one that works good for you

 

[arc@css]

I've never yet updated my mobo bios and although I am sure there are gains to be had for the experienced user in this area, when I read posts from others on here it tends to make me glad that I never tried doing it. I hope the OP manages to sort any problems out here.

 

[ejr22]

Did you overclock your system yourself from scratch or has it been done, for example, by OcUK (e.g. an overclocked bundle)? If the overclock has been provided by someone else did you just use a saved profile from the previous f9 BIOS and apply it to f11? That would be a mistake.

If, as you should have done, you manually overclocked from scratch on the new BIOS, did you make sure that you went through all of the settings relating to PCI properly? - PCI Express Frequency, PCI Express Clock Drive, Init First Display? Did you try changing any of these values to see if it helped?

Sorry if the above questions seem a bit patronising but it is usually the simple things that cause the problems. I would be surprised if the BIOS version is to blame for your BSOD woes - something like that would have been picked up in the BETA version, I'm sure.

 

[blackninja]

Did you overclock your system yourself from scratch or has it been done, for example, by OcUK (e.g. an overclocked bundle)? If the overclock has been provided by someone else did you just use a saved profile from the previous f9 BIOS and apply it to f11? That would be a mistake.

If, as you should have done, you manually overclocked from scratch on the new BIOS, did you make sure that you went through all of the settings relating to PCI properly? - PCI Express Frequency, PCI Express Clock Drive, Init First Display? Did you try changing any of these values to see if it helped?

Sorry if the above questions seem a bit patronising but it is usually the simple things that cause the problems. I would be surprised if the BIOS version is to blame for your BSOD woes - something like that would have been picked up in the BETA version, I'm sure.

The overclock is manual by my own hand .....

I do know how to flash However, I did check the default settings and even messed with the PCI bus speed on a hunch to no avail! CPU @ 4.2GHz was perfectly fine ... CrossfireX was not .. simples.

Also note that I said that the problem was evident on DEFAULT settings throughout ... and note that after reflashing to F9 again I managed to get it running OK.

 

[Zico]

Time to bump this up for 2 reasons:

1) There is the new F12 bios out for the UD5
http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Support/Motherboard/BIOS_Model.aspx?ProductID=2958

2) I've in-avertedly ended up with 2x Asus 5850 for Crossfire in my new build (purchased one card when in stock at a competitor while having another on back order from a different competitor. Back order came into stock and shipped before I even knew what had happened).

The next step for me will be to setup and install the system with the one card before adding in the second for Crossfire.

If there is a better way of setting up Crossfire then I would be interested to here how it should be done.