O.T. Asus MB software

InterceptPoint wrote on 1/22/2009, 12:14 PM

I run Asus' PC Probe II to monitor the CPU and Motherboard temperatures. Works fine for me and it is nice to monitor these temps when you are doing a long render, particularly if you have overclocked your processor.

Former user wrote on 1/22/2009, 1:24 PM

Thanks, that looked like the most useful one.

Dave T2

darg wrote on 1/22/2009, 1:29 PM

Both are actualy crap.
Probe is reading the package temperature which is roughly 30C lower than the core temp and when you try to OC with Suite you have no access to the important values like core coltage for CPU and also voltage for RAM.
Suite is only good for doing BIOS Updates which I would recommend because there happened a lot of updates from ASUS.
Have fun with but get Core Temp to monitor the real core temperatures.

Axel

LReavis wrote on 1/22/2009, 5:00 PM

I agree 100% with Axel. I removed the Asus utilities after I discovered their limitations (for my Asus P5B).

TheHappyFriar wrote on 1/22/2009, 6:39 PM

the asus utils always matched what 3rd party tools gave me. only reason I stopped using probe was because the newer one had a horrible GUI & no logging feature.

InterceptPoint wrote on 1/22/2009, 7:18 PM

Well the GUI is nothing to get excited about but since I close everything except the CPU and MB temperatures gauges I really don't care. They are just a couple of little boxes that give me a temperature readout that I place in the lower left hand corner of my 2nd monitor.

And I would be very surprised if the temperature being reported for the CPU isn't just a data readout from the processor itself. So it seems unlikely that PC Probe II would report a different temperature than any other monitoring software. Could be but I doubt it.

In any case, at least for me, it works.

Former user wrote on 1/22/2009, 7:51 PM

HappyFriar,

Which 3rd party tools do you recommend?

Dave T2

TheHappyFriar wrote on 1/22/2009, 8:08 PM

I don't. :) the older probe is the only one that I could find that gave me a log of my CPU & MB temp, voltages & fan speeds in a nice line graph in a small footprint program that would stay in my system tray.

That's why i stopped using that kind of software all together! :)

musicvid10 wrote on 1/22/2009, 8:11 PM

See if SpeedFan will give you the temps and rpm's you want. Works fine on Vista.

GlennChan wrote on 1/22/2009, 10:48 PM

I'm skeptical about updating the BIOS from Windows.

2- If you have too much free time, Asus has an interesting utility that lets you change the BIOS picture on startup.

Otherwise I agree with the other users that you don't really need the utilities. But because it's an Asus motherboard, it will likely be supported by third party stuff like Speedfan (and if the third party tools won't do it then you can use Probe).

Former user wrote on 1/23/2009, 6:25 AM

Happyfriar, Okay thanks, I misunderstood and thought you used other software because of the GUI. They are rather tacky looking. I just need a sublte info window or overlay.

Dave T2

Former user wrote on 1/23/2009, 6:26 AM

Glennchan and Musicvid,

Thanks for the suggestions.

Dave T2

TheHappyFriar wrote on 1/23/2009, 8:42 AM

I'm skeptical about updating the BIOS from Windows.

I've never had issues, but all the driver discs from asus contain an original biod, just in case. Plus there's two bios's on asus mb's, so when one's bad the other auto-fixes.

Former user wrote on 1/23/2009, 10:04 AM

Yeah, it looks like to me Asus has made big strides in the BIOS updating area. Several ways to update including flash drive, floppy and using Windows download from the internet.

Dave T2

Former user wrote on 1/23/2009, 10:45 AM

John,

Yeah I agree with you there. I try to keep resident programs to a minimum. I was just curious if these programs were really useful or just fluff.

Dave T2

darg wrote on 1/23/2009, 2:36 PM

For temperature readings that are accurate use Temp Core. THis is reading the right thermo couples and not just the cap reading from the package. I don't know why ASUS is reading the wrong one but I would not trust the ASUS tool. Core Temp is recommended in every OC forum. The only thing is, that it does not read MB temperatures.

My last BIOS update was fixing stability issues with the RAM voltage so it was useful.

Axel

blink3times wrote on 1/23/2009, 2:57 PM

I was an asus fan for quite some time but I switched to intel this last round with the quad core. I think I like intel better.

logiquem wrote on 1/26/2009, 7:19 AM

I do not agree with the idea that Asus Probe is crap.

I also tested Core Temp and found similar values reading to Asus Probe for cpu temp. (bte, be aware that some Core temp downloadable versions do have Trojans... ).

My main usage of Asus AI utility is for Overclocking. I have a 1,86 Core 2 over clocked (on demand) to 2,66 since 18 months and the utility works beautifully. Maybe some "experts" may laught at the idea of software overclocking, but it has proven to be perfectly functionnal for me and has the big advantage to act only on demand and lower cpu unnecessary heating.

craftech wrote on 1/26/2009, 9:32 AM

A few things about temperature monitoring:

Speedfan will not regulate fan speed on all motherboards and it will not work on most if you do not first disable fan control in the BIOS if it is there. If you enable System Monitorig, Speedfan won't work either.

Core Temp and Real Temp need TJMax (temperature at which thermal protection kicks in) adjusted to be the same, then they will both be identical in their readout. This confusion fuels the battle over which is better by the pundits when in fact they are equal. You can adjust TJMax in the coretemp.ini file or Options depending upon which version you are using. Real Temp has the adjustment under "Settings" TJMax is an offset adjustment so ( - ) numbers are permitted.

There is also HWMonitor that does the same thing.

For example it is believed that the popular Intel Q6600 Quad Core in a GO stepping has a TJMax of 90-100 degrees C. Since Intel wouldnt publish the spec at first, this temperature was derived from Intel responses to letters written by enthusiasts and their own testing.
In October, Intel released the TJMax of their processors at the Intel Developer Forum in Taipei, but indicated that the error rate was greater for 45nm processors (most of their current ones) than for 65nm processors like the Q6600. To further add to the confusion, tests done by enthusiasts before Intel released this information found that the figures for the 45nm processors matched Intel's figures and the 65 nm figures did not. Go figure. Intel said that the TJMax for the Q6600 with GO stepping was 90 degrees C while enthusiasts found it to be more like 100 degrees C. 80 degrees for the B3 stepping according to Intel. In other words, Intel was under for the 65nm processors.

So if you can figure this out and you want to adjust it, a default value of 100 degrees C in Core Temp would have to be adjusted to -10 to achieve 90 degrees C. Either way, if you match the value of TJMax in these programs they will all read the same.

The real question is, does it matter? In my opinion, the answer is NO.

Overclockers use utilities like Core Temp and Real Temp to monitor overheating. For the test they use Prime 95. I have run this program and I can safely say that the temperatures it generates I absolutely cannot duplicate using any normal program including PC games. Not even close. This is supposed to tell you if the overclock will work. Pretty insane, since the abnormal specs produced by overclocking and the change in the voltage requirements make the biggest difference.

If you are doing light overclocking and the system is stable under your normal usage and you have reasonably good ventilation inside the case, forget the temperature monitoring unless you want to use it as a precaution in case the processor fan fails. Then you might be screwed.

John

JRZ wrote on 1/27/2009, 8:12 AM

I've noticed a distinct difference in the core temps reported by PC Probe, and the core temp displayed in BIOS under hardwrae monitoring...

I wonder which is actually closer to the correct temp...

I have an Antec Sonatta II cae, with an Intel CORE 2 Duo processor, usinf the original CPU heatsink and fan combimation...The Antec case has a ducting system designed to bring in ourside air to feed directly into the CPU cooler fan. Ther is an option to put an additional 92mm fan in the duct work to boost the airflow fed into the CPU cooler...I have added that fan, as well as an additional case fan to pull fresh air from the front of the case, thru the filter...

The only thing I think that is missing from the duct work assembly, is a filter for it's intake port...I may make my own...

Any ideas for software that is actually correct and compatible with the Asus P5B Deluxe - WiFI AP motherboard would be appreciated...

Thanks!
JRZ

GlennChan wrote on 1/27/2009, 8:16 PM

In my experience, prime95 doesn't catch everything. If I overclocked my computer (asus motherboard... if that means anything)... then it would just randomly shut down or reboot. Up to once/day if I pushed it all the way to just prime95 stable.

2- I don't think a filter is a good idea.

3- Some motherboard software will report a different temperature. You can do a google search and find out.

ingvarai wrote on 1/28/2009, 1:41 AM

darq:
Both are actualy crap

I used the supplied software when I needed it most - to increase the RAM voltage. When upgrading my CPU dual core --> quad core, I got countless BSODs. I tried everything, reading tons of stuff on the Internet, studied the memory dumps from each BSOD - until I came across an article where someone said that the RAM voltage sometimes has to be increased.

So I used the ASUS MB software to up the RAM voltage from 1.8 --> 2.0 and voila - all problems gone immediately. Not a single BSOD since then.
So crap - yes, maybe, but not in my case :-)

ingvarai