Z68A-GD80 (B3) + Corsair Vengeance: Which HSF will fit?

Greetings,
I just migrated from Q6600 + DFI INF 975X to i7 2600K + Z68A-GD80 (B3). This is my new motherboard with all of its technologies after not updating my knowledge since 2006. I know nothing about DrMosfet and why do they heatsink-ed. But, I just realized that that heatpipe and other heatsink would (or wouldn't) be my problem after I simply push the "OC Genie" button on my motherboard.
My i7 2600K can run up to 4.1GHz by simply pushing the OC Genie button. But then I realized that with stock HSF, my processor's temp was 71C when Prime95 was running. On an idle state, its temp is around 28-30C with 29C of temperature room (non-AC). My casing is Enlight (somewhat series I don't know) that has side fan for intake air flow to on top of Intel Stock HSF.
I'm thinking to give an adequate cooling accessories. My candidates are:
1. Noctua NH-D14
2. Noctua NH-U12P
3. Corsair H70
I put Corsair H70 as my last option, since the price is doubled from Noctua NH-U12P. The Corsair local dealer said that the liquid inside H70 will only last for 2-3 years in my country. So, I should also spare another $$$ to buy another HSF 3 years from now. Hence, I'm still thinking "conventional" HSF Aluminum would be my first priority over liquid cooling solution.
My questions are:
1. Will Noctua NH-D14 will fit to my mainboard? I'm affraid that the heatsink and heatpipe around processor will block the installation. Please also note that my Corsair Vengeance has passive heatsink and 50mm height.
2. What about Noctua NH-U12P? the performance based on review in overclocker forum only differs 1-2C above NH-D14.
Thanks.
MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3)
Intel Core i7 2600K
Zotac GTS 450 AMP Edition 1GB DDR5
Corsair Vengeance 2x4GB (9-9-9-24)
Corsair CX-600 power supply
WD Raptor 300GB 10k RPM
WD Green 2TB 5900RPM

Quote from: Bernhard on 01-June-11, 17:17:43
OCGenie pushes voltages higher than what is really needed. Thus part of your temps are probably a direct cause of this.
I'm totally newbie on over clocking. On Q6600 I just raising up the FSB without increasing up the voltage. Maybe I should learn in an advance way to over clocking 2600K. Thanks for OCGenie Info
Quote
Keep it that way. Mine is in the cupboard. I have The Noctua NH-C14 and it performs as well as the H70 on CPU core temps but has the added advantage of cooling the CPU surrounds. My 2600K goes to about 64-68C core at 25-30C ambient under fullload at 4,5GHz.
Is it Normal to have 68C on that speed? I thought any noctua could cooling it down to 53C based on review. Maybe I missed something in the review didn't stated whether it was conducted on winter or summer... I'll find that on local store.
Quote
It will be a tight fit, and you may have to install the RAM before the cooler.
Nice tips. I'll consider it if NH-D14 is my best option. Some said that I can put the fan little bit higher, since RAM Heatsink will touch the fan not touch the aluminum fin if it is installed on the right orientation.
Quote
Consider the Zalman 9900 as well, testing also only shows minor temp differences and HU16E has had excellent results on allhis builds with this cooler. I used one on a X58 before and it was really good. The advantage is the good clearance that allows easy RAM installation even with these oversized heatsinks on some RAM modules.
never heard of those series before, but I'll google it. I know Zalman as the brand of my 5.1 headphone gaming series thanks for recommendation. I'll find the availabilities of those recommended brand and type.

Similar Messages

MOVED: Z68A-GD80 (B3) + Corsair Vengeance: Which HSF will fit?

This topic has been moved to Overclockers & Undervolting & Modding Corner.
https://forum-en.msi.com/index.php?topic=149179.0

Quote from: Bernhard on 01-June-11, 17:17:43
OCGenie pushes voltages higher than what is really needed. Thus part of your temps are probably a direct cause of this.
I'm totally newbie on over clocking. On Q6600 I just raising up the FSB without increasing up the voltage. Maybe I should learn in an advance way to over clocking 2600K. Thanks for OCGenie Info
Quote
Keep it that way. Mine is in the cupboard. I have The Noctua NH-C14 and it performs as well as the H70 on CPU core temps but has the added advantage of cooling the CPU surrounds. My 2600K goes to about 64-68C core at 25-30C ambient under fullload at 4,5GHz.
Is it Normal to have 68C on that speed? I thought any noctua could cooling it down to 53C based on review. Maybe I missed something in the review didn't stated whether it was conducted on winter or summer... I'll find that on local store.
Quote
It will be a tight fit, and you may have to install the RAM before the cooler.
Nice tips. I'll consider it if NH-D14 is my best option. Some said that I can put the fan little bit higher, since RAM Heatsink will touch the fan not touch the aluminum fin if it is installed on the right orientation.
Quote
Consider the Zalman 9900 as well, testing also only shows minor temp differences and HU16E has had excellent results on allhis builds with this cooler. I used one on a X58 before and it was really good. The advantage is the good clearance that allows easy RAM installation even with these oversized heatsinks on some RAM modules.
never heard of those series before, but I'll google it. I know Zalman as the brand of my 5.1 headphone gaming series thanks for recommendation. I'll find the availabilities of those recommended brand and type.

I have a 13 inch macbook pro 2010 I want to switch the hard drive wat hard drive can i use i know i need a 2.5" but i dont know the dimensions of which one will fit?

Can someone tell me if anyone of these will fit with my 13 inch macbook pro 2010 model
http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX33160(ME).aspx
http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX31974(ME).aspx
Thanks everyone

The only thing is someone told me the max height for a hard drive for the macbook pro is 9.5mm and some other people tell me is 9mm but both drives are over 9 but the seagate one is 9.5 do you happen to know the max height thats my only concern really?

Which Card Will Fit My G5 Power Mac?

I have a Power Mac G5, But my Graphics card is no longer working.
this is my spec on the the side panel:
G5DP2.0/512MB400/160/SD/R9600/PCI-X/56K
Can Anyone tell me with a list of Graphics cards that i can put in this machine?
Thanks guys you would really be helping me out.
Chris

Hi-
Your G5 is 8x AGP Pro graphics (can't use the PCI express X1900).
The ATI Radeon X800XT, or the Geforce 6800 are good performance upgrades. For simply a graphics card, the ATI Radeon 9600 PC and Mac version could be an option, though there are reports of incompatibility in some G5's.
Discontinued Radeon 9800 SE and 9800 Pro models are also a possibility, though one needs to watch eBay (or such) for those. 9800XT or the 9600XT are also possibilities.
Benchmarks

Satellite P10: Which Wifi card will fit?

HI
Im looking to fit a mini pci wifi card to my P10
model PSP10E-0RCJM-EN trouble is I don,t know which type will fit I seen several cards offerd that involve doing away with the wifi on off switch I would prefer to keep this feature so need to know what cards support it prefer a 54g card if poss.

Hi
I have found that wireless card with part number PA3212U-3MPCR is the right one for your notebook. The problem is that this card is IEEE 802.11b with 11Mbps data transfer rate.
I don`t know which one with standard g will fit to your notebook. The best solution is to contact service partner. I am pretty sure that they have this kind of information.

Z68A-GD80 (G3) - Win7 x64 clean install - which drivers as minimum?

hi guys, have just bought this board and would like to do a clean install. have checked the driver website (http://www.msi.com/product/mb/Z68A-GD80--G3-.html#/?div=Driver&os=Win7%2064) and wanted to check a) if there is any particular order I should be installing these drivers in (from the old days i remember this to be chipset drivers first, restart, then anything else - still correct or irrelevant now?) and b) which ones are indispensable? please see my comments below, would be grateful for input.
Intel Management Engine Driver for P67/H67
do i still need this if it's a z68 board?
Intel SandyBridge Chipset Driver
guess i'll have to install - using i7-2600k processor
Renesas USB3.0 Drivers
guess i'll have to install
Intel TPM Device Driver
heard this is security related - do i really need if disabled in bios?
Realtek PCI-E Ethernet Drivers
guess i'll have to install
Realtek High Definition Audio Driver
guess i'll have to install
Intel Rapid Storage Technology Floppy Driver (F6)
needed if i want to install win7 on SSD in ahci mode (but not raid) - correct?
Intel Rapid Storage Technology Driver
needed
Lucid Virtu Driver
have a separate graphics card - do i really need if disabled in bios?
Intel SandyBridge VGA Driver
have a separate graphics card - do i really need if disabled in bios?

Intel Management Engine Driver for P67/H67
do i still need this if it's a z68 board? This is a must have
Intel SandyBridge Chipset Driver
guess i'll have to install - using i7-2600k processor This is a must have
Renesas USB3.0 Drivers
guess i'll have to install This is a must have
Intel TPM Device Driver
heard this is security related - do i really need if disabled in bios? Don't need unless planning on using this device someday
Realtek PCI-E Ethernet Drivers
guess i'll have to install This is a must have
Realtek High Definition Audio Driver
guess i'll have to install Optional. Depends if using the onboard sound or an add-in sound card
Intel Rapid Storage Technology Floppy Driver (F6)
needed if i want to install win7 on SSD in ahci mode (but not raid) - correct? Not this one. Use the other one below
Intel Rapid Storage Technology Driver
needed Yes. Use this one
Not needed Lucid Virtu Driverhave a separate graphics card - do i really need if disabled in bios? Not needed
Intel SandyBridge VGA Driver
have a separate graphics card - do i really need if disabled in bios? Not needed

Z68A-GD80(G3) Can no longer read external hd dock after flashing beta bios

I flashed E7672IMS.J31 Beta Bios because I was on a very old bios that was not compatible with my GTX 970 card I just bought. Flashing the bios fixed my 970 compatibility but in the process made it so my 2 external hd docks no longer worked (at this time on windows 7). self powered usb harddrives still worked though. At this time my sata mode was IDE which I thought might have had to do with it since it doesnt have hotswap. I assumed it was an issue with some drivers I installed after flashing the beta bios and I was due for upgrading/reformatting anyways so I enabled AHCI and hot swap then did a clean install of windows 8.1. The external hard drives still don't read!! I've used multiple different hard drives and different usb ports including usb 2.0. The docks are usb 3.0 and I use them daily to edit photos from my work. Any ideas of things I could try?
My pc:
intel 2500k
16gb Corsair vengeance ram
MSI 970 GTX GPU
Corsair 750w power supply
Z68A-GD80(G3) motherboard
E7672IMS.J31 Beta Bios

Could the issue be that I didn't download the Intel Management Driver after installing the beta bios I flashed? Maybe I could try that first, which one from this list do I use with my pc setup?
thanks for the help!
Quote from: flobelix on 20-October-14, 00:38:02
Try going back to E7672IMS.J20 OFFICIAL. Use the recommended flashing method with provided archive only: https://forum-en.msi.com/index.php?topic=163870.msg1215101#msg1215101

MSI Z68A-GD80(B3) random freeze problems

Hi,
This newbie around here has a problem:
The following system freezes randomly without warning:
MB: MSI Z68A-GD80(B3)
CPU: 2600K
Cooling: Corsair H60 (temps idle mid 20's, under load <60C)
IGP: Integrated, using DVI
RAM: Corsair vengeance 1600 , 4x4 16GB (9-9-9-27)
HD: Corsair M4 SSD 256 GB
OS: Win7 x64
PSU: Chieftec, 80+, 650W modular
No other components/peripherals installed/attached
When BIOS /UEFI is set to all defaults: system will run normally with no freezes, as soon as I hit the OC genie button, the system starts up normally into windows, but will suddenly freeze at any given time under full load but also under idle.
I've read all relevant threads about this "behavior" and I know I'm not alone, but after really trying every conceivable idea as suggested by many knowledgeable persons on this forum I'm completely stuck.
Things tried so far:
Manual adjustments in UEFI withou using OC genie button
Use one ram stick in slot one, (incl running at default 1333Mhz)
Use various Dram voltages (default 1.5 V and tried all possibilities up till 1,65 Volt)
Use various Vcore voltages till 1,45 Volts
Between all those various scenarios CMOS has been reset and cleared
Does any of you have any suggestions of where to proceed from here in order to get a stable OC'ed system?
Thanks in advance.

There are two things to consider.
1. The individual CPU speciman you have may just be one that does not allow much in terms of overclocking. This is the part that is the hardest to accept but the fact is that testing has provided the following results.
Quote
The results below are based on the range of the CPU turbo multiplier when overclocking.
Results are representative of 100 D2 CPUs that were binned and tested for stability under load; these results will most likely represent retail CPUs.
1. Approximately 50% of CPUs can go up to 4.4~4.5 GHz
2. Approximately 40% of CPUs can go up to 4.6~4.7 GHz
3. Approximately 10% of CPUs can go up to 4.8~5 GHz (50+ multipliers are about 2% of this group)
So the luck of the draw is always present, unfortunately
2. You are using the IGP. This will affect the overclockability of the CPU to some extent. By how much, I don't know, but on my 1156 socket i3 it had quite a large effect. If you know someone with a low end GPU that you can test with, then disable your IGP and retest to see if the results are any different.
A couple of things to check. What BIOS version do you have, and if there are any later BIOS' that address this ?
Reseat your CPU, inspect the CPU pad indentations at the the same time and check for any bent pins on the socket or any foreign matter in between the pins.
Recheck all your power connectors, especially the CPU power connector for proper seating.

Z68A-GD80(G3) Virtu Won't Fully Activate Features

Z68A-GD80(G3) UEFI/BIOS 'As shipped' = E7672IMSI30, UEFI/BIOS Currently Installed = IMS.I62
Corsair AX850
GTX 480
Corsair Vengeance LV/LP 2X4GB 'Rated' 1600 @ 1.35v's
Lite-On iHAS424-98
WD SATA III 600 V.Raptor
Zalman 9900 NT
After trying with every UEFI/BIOS version, fresh OS installs, full proper clearing of CMOS, rebooting after each driver install, etc., & following the Software Application User Guide to the letter, Lucid Virtu will not activate the full version on this (G3). This is contrary to the results when following the exact same install procedure with a Z68A-GD80(B3). It operated the full Virtu function 100% from day one with the 'as shipped' original UEFI/BIOS release.
Support ticket has been submitted to MSI Tech Support @ http://support.msi.com

Turns out if the original release UEFI/BIOS is downloaded from the MSI Global Website, the forum's USB Flashing Tool & Method 1 is used, the Lucid Virtu was enabled fully functional. MSI has noted, confirmed, & duplicated the problem when flashing to newer releases, & both the GD80(G3) & the GD55(G3) are going to be provided with a fix in the near future.
Future details on this may be found in Kona's thread; https://forum-en.msi.com/index.php?topic=152883.0

BIOS troubleshooting Z68A-GD80 (G3)

Just flashed the Beta again and although the computer hasn't frozen yet, everything is (for lack of a better description) very jerky. Any ideas why?

So, after giving up with the last beta bios I decided to give the latest one with the exciting Lucid fix.
However the same problem occurs with this one, freezing/stuttering in the OS followed by complete system freeze. My relevant hardware setup is:
Mobo - MSI Z68A-GD80 (G3)
HDD - Corsair Force GT 60GB
RAM - 16GB Corsair Vengeance
CPU - i7 2600K
Power - Silverstone Strider 850W Gold
OS - Windows 7 64Bit (UEFI)
On a whim I ran the Windows installer disc and there was no stuttering/freezing which leads me to believe the problem might be to do with the Windows install.
So the question is, what might be changed in the Bios between 18.3/4/5 and 18.6+ that would cause problems in windows?
As soon as the Bios is reverted to a stable release the issue disappears and its not my bios settings as all have been tried with full bios reset, cmos clear, default settings etc (aside from changing the sata to AHCI).
Would the fact its a UEFI install be an issue? If I reinstall should I do a standard install or a UEFI?
Any help is appreciated.

Z68A-GD80 Memory Choices

I've got an MSI Z68A-GD80 board and an i7 2600k that I plan on running but I'd also like to run 16GB of RAM and I'm having trouble finding it in a kit. I did find this Corsair Vengeance Blu 16 GB PC3-12800 1600mHz DDR3 240-Pin SDRAM Dual Channel Memory Kit for Intel and AMD Platforms CMZ16GX3M4A1600C9B and was wondering if anyone has used this particular kit or is there another option?

Another update that's not so good. Everything was running fine until yesterday late in the afternoon. I had been messing around with an RC Flight training program for about an hour. Everything was still humming right along so I was scrounging around the web when I got the hated BSOD and it shut down my entire system. I figured okay no problem just power it back up and things would be fine. It didn't work that way, now it was trying to start but like many it just kept shutting down and coming back on, all it would do is just loop. Having limited use of my hands I had to wait until I could get someone to help me get into the case. I cleared the CMOS but that didn't work, still looping. I had my aide pull a couple pieces of the Corsair Vengeance out dropping it down to 8GB and tried starting it, well that worked it fired right up and went straight to the desktop. The RAM had dropped back to the default settings so I went back and enabled the XMP profile and with just the two 4GB sticks it started up without any trouble. I then went and added a third stick to see if it would boot and it did but I had stayed away from the dimm slot number 2. As soon as I placed the last stick in and hit the power it went right back to the looping without getting anything at all to show up on my display. So I pulled dimm 2 and dimm 4 out and it booted right up. Then I spent a couple of hours trying each stick in each dimm since I had help to change them. Everytime I put a stick into dimm 2 even by itself it would just go back to the looping. I ended up just using dimm 1 and dimm 3 and it is running now since I'm using it to post this. I have no idea which direction to turn now. I did manage to save the error message that Windows presented me with when I got it running the first time with just dimm 1 and 3 populated.
Here is what it was telling me:
Problem signature:
Problem Event Name: BlueScreen
OS Version: 6.1.7601.2.1.0.256.1
Locale ID: 1033
Additional information about the problem:
BCCode: 50
BCP1: FFFFF900C6A965E8
BCP2: 0000000000000000
BCP3: FFFFF9600016325F
BCP4: 0000000000000002
OS Version: 6_1_7601
Service Pack: 1_0
Product: 256_1
Files that help describe the problem:
C:\Windows\Minidump\071711-12292-01.dmp
C:\Users\Burnard\AppData\Local\Temp\WER-51651-0.sysdata.xml
I'm not sure what it all means and searching for the files wasn't much help. I did notice one thing, when there are just two sticks installed and the XMP enabled the voltage is running at 1.5 compared to the 1.64 it was at when all the dimms were populated and working normally. Now I'm left scratching my head, is the board bad, or my PSU an 850w Corsair unit not getting me enough juice, or my CPU an i7 2600k messed up in some way or bad memory.

PCIE 3.0 test with MSI Z68A-GD80 G3 :)

The Z68A-GD80 G3 is MSI’s first motherboard with PCIE 3.0 connectivity. Currently there are no PCIE 3 devices available yet but later on we can test its performance by using a PCIE SSD. Aside from this, the board has also a new UEFI Bios named “Click Bios II” which for me is way better than the previous version.
Before we take a closer look on the board, let’s check out the package first.
Box design is a bit the same as the GD80 B3 version before. Once you open it up, all main features of the said board are enumerated
Extreme Power Design, Military Class II Components (SFC, Hi-C Caps, Multi Bios), 3 PCIEx16 Slots, Super Charger and OC Genie II
For the bundled accessories, you have the same old story – Manual, Software Disc, four SATA cables, two Molex to SATA power connectors & SLI Bridge. Then for some extras - PCI USB 3.0 two ports bracket, guide headers for faster and easy connectivity and lastly voltage check points.
Next, the “Mainboard”. By physically looking at it and by comparing it side by side against the Z68A-GD80 B3 motherboard. You won’t find any difference except for the PCIE X16 locks. It has also the same black and blue color theme, two vrm heatsinks connected by a flat heatpipe and V-Check points.
Moving closer to the board you have 8 Power Pins to power up the processor, 2 PCI slots, 2 PCIE x1 slots for devices such as TV Tuners or Audio Cards. 2 PCIE Gen3 & 1 PCIE Gen2 x16 Slots. With one VC connected at the top most slot, speed will be @ x16. If both top and middle are used, it will be @ x8/x8. Lastly, by using the 3rd PCIEx16 Gen2 slot. You have x8/x8/x4. It would also disable certain onboard devices such as eSATA Port, Sata 7, one onboard front USB 3.0, two PCI Slots and firewire. So if possible avoid using the last VC slot.
At the top most PCIE x1 area. You will find a 6-pin power connector. This will provide more juice/power for multi-GPU setups.
Next, at the bottom part of the board. You have the Easy Buttons (Power and Reset) and the popular one button “OC Genie”. The red colored USB header is for the Super Charger while the blue is a regular USB 3.0. For the SATA Connectors you have a total of 7. 4 regular SATA 3GB/s, 2 SATA 6GB/s controlled by Intel chipset and another SATA 6GB/s by Marvell.
Wrapping things up, we have now the IO terminal ports. Starting from the left we have combo PS2 port and SPDIF Optical Out. Clear CMOS Button, e-SATA port running under Marvell, 2 USB 2.0 and Firewire ports controlled by Via. Moving across, 2 Gigabit Lan by Realtek 8111E, 2 USB 2.0 and 2 USB 3.0 run under NEC D720200 controller. Next, we have DVI and HDMI output connections and 6 analog audio ports by Realtek ALC892.
Once you are into the bios, you will find the new and improved Click Bios. Nice and professional looking, faster navigation and easier to use.
To test the performance of the new PCIE Gen3 technology, we will be using this Photofast PCIE SSD device http://www.photofast.tw/comboproducts.asp?pid=1.
We will be connecting the PCIE SSD device on the GD80’s Gen3 and Gen2 slots and compare the results using the disk benchmark software ATTO. I ran the benchmark 9 times for the two set of tests.
System Configuration as follows:
Processor: Intel Core i7 2600K at default stock speed
Memory: Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 2x2GB DDR3 2133MHz
SSD: OCZ Vertex 2
Motherboard: MSI Z68A-GD80 G3
Softwares: CPU-Z 1.58, Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit with SP1, Latest Atto Software 1.47 I think.
First test, Photofast running on Gen2 (third VC slot). One screenshot from the 9 tests made
Second, using the Gen 3 connectivity. One screenshot from the 9 tests made
Below is the summary of all the tests done on the board with the Photofast SSD PCIE.
That’s probably it. More forum posts to come 

Quote
I have a eSata hdd Seagate Freeagent Xtreme 1,5tb which cannot be recognized by win7
Did you have your previous board's BIOS set to AHCI or IDE ? You need to set this BIOS the same.
Firstly only insert one RAM module in the slot closest to the CPU. Remove the rest. Then do full CMOS clear >>Clear CMOS Guide<< also remove the MB battery.
What BIOS do you currently have ? The initial BIOS releases were plagued by CPU throttling which have been fixed in the cyrrent beta BIOS releases.

MSI z68A-GD80 (g3) "B2" error with ned gtx 970

Hey.
Hardware info:
MSI z68A-GD80 (g3) - Bios version. V18.8
Intel i5 2500k
4x4GB kingston hyperX 1600mhz
MSI 970 gaming g4
PSU : Seasonic SS-500GB
My problem is that when I'm trying to install the new GPU i get the error "b2" when i boot. If i chance back to my old gpu (560 ti) or the gpu on the CPU there is no problem. Also i have tested the gtx 970 in another PC and it works.
After some reseach i found out that i need a bios update. I have tried this but with no luck, cant upgrade bios. I have use "MSI Forum HQ USB Flashing" tools with bios from MSI hp (I choose the (g3) bios) . I can get the bios on the USP stick but when I'm trying to install the new bios i got the error "Bios corruption detected !!" and stopped. I don't know what to do now, i hope that you can help me
The usp stick is fat32

I had the exact same problem as the original poster - same motherboard, same old graphics card (560ti) and same new graphics card (970 gaming) and got the same B2 error code and the PC not going beyond that.
I flashed the bios and that fixed the problem - the exact version I used was on this page:
Ok, this forum isn't allowing me to post a link to it, but just go to the official page for the motherboard on MSI's website - then click on Support and Service Location, which should open up the list of BIOS upgrades...
The top one as of writing this is version 19.2
To do the flashing of the BIOS you must load the downloaded exe file onto a flash drive and run it from there. Don't worry if it seems like your PC is hanging, it just takes a while (while still in Windows). It then reboots and will finish up flashing the BIOS (you'll see a red bar with the warning on a black background with white text).
After doing that, my GTX970 GAMING works like an absolute charm! I can now finally enjoy Minecraft like it was meant to be played haha (kidding, I played GTA 5 the whole weekend with EVERYTHING to the absolute MAX!)
Hope this helps if you are experiencing this extremely annoying error.

MSI X48C Platinum and DDR3 corsair 2x4 GB @ 1600mhz WILL IT WORK??

Hi , I truly appreciate the mere existence of this forum .
my system is :
PSU : Corsair 650HX
CPU : Intel Core2Duo E6750
GPU : Geforce GTX 260
RAM : (currently 2x1gig DDR2 @ 667 Mhz)
and
i just bought 2x4gb dims of DDR3 ram (corsair vengeance)
it doesn't work ( i believe it's because it maxes out at 8 gigs so it won't support 4gig dims?? just a guess)
my question is this :
if i change the memory for four 2gig dims , at the same frequency (1600 mhz , ddr3 ) will it work without the need for tweaking ,
or at least a minimal quantity of the whole tweaking-ness?
i'm only asking because time is of the essense ( i really need the pc working )
and if there is no chance of this combination working, would 4x2 gigs at 1333 Mhz work ??
also , since i don't believe i have ever updated the mobo's bios , should i do that? ( and which is the safest way to do it??)
and just out of curiosity , what is the fastest memory that this mobo can support at 8 gigs without any stability problems whatsoever ??

Your board and the chipset do support DDR3-1600. The memory you are mentioning is not on the support list.
The board's support states Quote
Supports four unbuffered DIMM of 1.5 Volt DDR3 800/1066/1333/1600 DRAM, 8GB Max
Thus you need 2GB modules to get to 8GB if that is what you need/want.
See here for the supported memory modules http://eu.msi.com/file/test_report/TR10_1393.pdf
You will see that no DDR-1600 2gb module is even on that list. Only 1GB 1600 modules were tested.
If you want to use 2GB modules then get yourself 1333 modules. The performance difference is minimal and you should have good stability with these modules.

Z68A-GD80 B3 Boot Loop and Failed BIOS LED Flashing

I've been having "boot loop" issues with my system since it was built in June. Basically, when the system is powered on the lights/fans come on for around 3 seconds then it shuts itself off for another 3 seconds and repeats the loop infinitely. Meanwhile there are no POST code beeps and nothing shows up on screen. I also noticed today that the Dual BIOS control LED is flashing during boot loops indicating that the primary BIOS has failed.
As this was my first build in quite a while I didn't initially worry about it too much, figuring that it was probably just a BIOS setting or improperly seated hardware issue. Shortly there after my son was born and needless to say there wasn't a whole lot of time to trouble shoot a PC for a couple of months. Fast forward four months later to today and the boot looping is driving me nuts. It seems to occur when the system has been powered down overnight and more frequently if the reset button is used. I've read a lot of stuff saying that the Gigabyte boards are prone to this issue, but can't find anyone else with the same issue on a MSI z68 board. I've check/done the following to try and trouble shoot the issue.
1. Flash to BIOS 17.3 (twice)
2. Installed system speaker to hear post codes. Got a whole lot of nothing.
3. Installed one stick of RAM in slot one. Tried all four sticks. Nothing works.
4. Set BIOS values to default.
5. Tried disabling and enabling XMP profiles for the RAM.
6. Upped the voltage on the RAM to 1.5V, since the board reports an under-volt around 1.48 on auto. No effect.
7. Disabled PLL overvolt.
8. Enabled VDroop (still not clear on what this is).
9. Removed both video cards and used the on chip video. No effect.
10. Unplugged all USB devices.
11. Tried XMP enabled and disabled for the memory.
12. Hard drive plugged in and removed makes no difference.
13. Bare system with only one stick of RAM installed, no difference.
11. Lots of other crap that I can't think of right now.
Any help would be great as I'm at a loss here.
System specs are as follows;
Intel 2600K
Corsair H50 Cooler
MSI z68a-gd80 B3 with BIOS v 17.3
PNY Geforce GTX 560 Ti (2x in SLI)
Linksys Wireless G PCI card
Crucial Ballistix Sport RAM (4x2GB at 1600 MHz XMP enabled)
Segate Barracuda 7200 RPM Drive 500GB (2x in RAID0)
OCZ Vertex2 64 GB SSD as system cache
Corsair TX750 Power Supply
Corsair 600t case

More wierd stuff.
I couldn't get the board to boot without looping last night, tried the usual unplugging and clearing the CMOS nothing. Boot loops at every turn.
I wonder if maybe I've got some bad pins or a poor connection on my RAM slots. I removed the RAM and began testing one by one. First stick gave a boot loop. Second stick worked. On restart the BIOS LED wasn't flashing anymore, which is odd since I hadn't yet set the BIOS fix feature to enabled. I powered down again and put my RAM back in, set my BIOS settings as suggested, and then clocked the RAM to 1333MHz. Seemed stable last night through a number of restarts.
As for the backup BIOS reporting v 17.3. Yeah, that is odd. The manual says it can't be flashed either. Maybe BIOS just reports what the primary version number is no matter which chip (primary or secondary) is actually active and being booted from?
I'd like to think this is over, but I'm sure when I go home and power up I'll get another boot loop. I'd rather not be without a PC for a couple weeks, but I may just have to RMA so I don't have to deal with this anymore. It's quite frustrating to have fiddle around for 10+ minutes to get your PC up and running, plus with a RAID0 setup and SSD cache I'm just asking for a system failure with all these power on/off cycles.

Z68A-GD80 (B3) + Corsair Vengeance: Which HSF will fit?

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