Hardware Installation AX45-8X Max Drivers & Utilities AWARD BIOS Setup Glossary DOC. NO.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual What’s in this manual AX45-8X Max...............................................................................................................................................1 What’s in this manual................................................................................................................................................................ 2 You Must Notice...........................................................................................................
AX45-8X Max Online Manual DDR 266(PC2100) and DDR 333(PC2700) ............................................................................................................................ 34 JP29 DDR Voltage Jumper ..................................................................................................................................................... 35 Front Panel Connector..........................................................................................................................
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Onboard IEEE 1394 Connectors............................................................................................................................................. 54 Chassis Intrusion Connector ................................................................................................................................................... 55 CD Audio Connector .................................................................................................................
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Driver and Utility ....................................................................................................................................75 Auto-run Menu from Bonus CD ............................................................................................................................................... 76 Install IDE Driver.........................................................................................................................................
AX45-8X Max Online Manual AC97 .................................................................................................................................................................................... 102 ACPI (Advanced Configuration & Power Interface) ............................................................................................................... 102 AGP (Accelerated Graphic Port) ...................................................................................................
AX45-8X Max Online Manual EEPROM (Electronic Erasable Programmable ROM) ........................................................................................................... 106 EPROM (Erasable Programmable ROM) .............................................................................................................................. 106 EV6 Bus..........................................................................................................................................................
AX45-8X Max Online Manual RIMM (Rambus Inline Memory Module) .................................................................................................................................111 SDRAM (Synchronous DRAM) ..............................................................................................................................................111 Shadow E2PROM ...................................................................................................................................
AX45-8X Max Online Manual You Must Notice Adobe, the Adobe logo, Acrobat is trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated. AMD, the AMD logo, Athlon and Duron are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Intel, the Intel logo, Intel Celeron, Pentium II, Pentium III and Pentium 4 are trademarks of Intel Corporation. Microsoft, Windows, and Windows logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Before You Start This Online Manual will introduce to the user how this product is installed. All useful information will be described in later chapters. Please keep this manual carefully for future upgrades or system configuration changes. This Online Manual is saved in PDF format, we recommend using Adobe Acrobat Reader 4.0 for online viewing, it is included in Bonus CD or you can get free download from Adobe web site.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Overview Thank you for choosing AOpen AX45-8X Max motherboard. AX45-8X Max is Intel® Socket 478 motherboard (M/B) based on the ATX form factor featuring the SIS 648 chipset. As high performance chipset built in the M/B, AX45-8X Max motherboard can support Intel® Socket 478 Pentium® 4 (Willamette / Northwood) and 533 MHz Front Side Bus (FSB) clock.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Feature Highlight CPU Supports Intel® Socket 478 Pentium® 4 (Willamette / Northwood) 1.4GHz~2.4GHz+ with 533MHz Front Side Bus (FSB) designed for Socket 478 technology. Chipset The motherboard is equipped with SIS 648 chipset. SIS 648 Host & Memory & AGP Controller integrates a high performance host interface for Intel Pentium 4 processor, a high performance memory controller, a AGP interface.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Expansion Slots Including six 32-bit/33MHz PCI, one CNR and one AGP 4X/8X slots. The PCI local bus throughput can be up to 132MB/s. The Communication & Nectworking Riser (CNR) slot provided from AX45-8X Max can support CNR interface for a Modem/Audio card. The Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) specification provides a new level of video display sophistication and speed. The AGP video cards support data transfer rate up to 2112MB/s.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual LAN Port On the strength of Realtek 8100BL LAN controller on board, which is a highly-integrated Platform LAN Connect device, it provides 10/100 Mbps Ethernet for office and home use. Ultra DMA 33/66/100/133 Bus Mater IDE Comes with an on-board PCI Bus Master IDE controller with two connectors that support four IDE devices in two channels, supports Ultra DMA 33/66/100/133, PIO Modes 3 and 4 and Bus Master IDE DMA Mode 5, and supports Enhanced IDE devices.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual AGP Protection Technology With AGP Protection Technology implemented, this motherboard will automatically detect the voltage of AGP card and prevent your chipsets from being burnt out. Dr. Voice Dr. Voice provides 4 language versions (English, Chinese, Japanese and German) that can easily tell you the problem you may encounter. You can also adjust the volume of Dr. Voice through speakers.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Power Management/Plug and Play Supports the power management function that confirms to the power-saving standards of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Energy Star program. It also offers Plug-and-Play, which helps save users from configuration problems, thus making the system much user-friendlier. Hardware Monitoring Management Supports CPU or system fans status, temperature and voltage monitoring and alert, through the on-board hardware monitor module.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Quick Installation Procedure This page gives you a quick procedure on how to install your system. Follow each step accordingly. 1. Installing CPU and Fan 2. Installing System Memory (DIMM) 3. Connecting Front Panel Cable 4. Connecting IDE and Floppy Cable 5. Connecting ATX Power Cable 6. Connecting Back Panel Cable 7. Power-on and Load BIOS Setup Default 8. Setting CPU Frequency 9. Reboot 10. Installing Operating System (such as Windows XP) 11.
AX45-8X Max JP27 USBLAN Wakeup Jumper ALC650 AC’97 CODEC Front Audio Connector AUX-IN Connector JP1 Buzzer Jumper JP15/16 Dr. Voice Language Select Jumper JST-MIDI Connector JP2 Speaker Jumper CD-IN Connector S/PDIF Connector Online Manual Motherboard Map PC99 Colored Back Panel JP28 Keyboard/Mouse Wakeup Jumper SYS-FAN2 Connector 4-pin 12V. ATX Power Connector CNR Expansion Slot 3300μF Low ESR Capacitors AGP 8x/4x Expansion Slot(1.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Block Diagram DDR266/DDR333 SDRAM Up to 3GB/2GB 32-bit PCI Slot x6 DIMM Socket x3 Socket 478 Intel Pentium 4 CPU(Willamette /Northwood) 533MHz System Bus PCI Bus SIS 648 ATA 66/100/133 Primary Channel IDE Drive x4 Secondary Channel AGP 8X Slot SIS 963 RealTek AC97 CODEC Realtek RTL8100BL LAN connect Component AC Link USB2.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Hardware Installation This chapter describes jumpers, connectors and hardware devices of this motherboard. Note: Electrostatic discharge (ESD) can damage your processor, disk drives, expansion boards, and other components. Always observe the following precautions before you install a system component. 1. Do not remove a component from its protective packaging until you are ready to install it. 2.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual About “User Upgrade Optional” and “Manufacture Upgrade Optional”… When you read this online manual and start to assemble your computer system, you may notice that some of the functions are marked as “User Upgrade Optional” or “Manufacture Upgrade Optional”. Although all of AOpen’s motherboards have included many amazing and powerful features, sometimes not every user is familiar with these powerful features.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual JP14 Clear CMOS Data You can clear CMOS to restore system default setting. To clear CMOS, follow the procedure below. 1. Turn off the system and unplug the AC power. 2. Remove ATX power cable from connector PWR2. 3. Locate JP14 and short pins 2-3 for a few seconds. 4. Return JP14 to its normal setting by shorting pin 1 & pin 2. 5. Connect ATX power cable back to connector PWR2. Pin 1 1 1 Tip: When should I Clear CMOS? 1.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual CPU Installation This motherboard supports Intel® Pentium 4 Socket 478 series CPU (Willamette / Northwood). Be careful of CPU orientation when you plug it into CPU socket. 1. Pull up the CPU socket lever and up to 90-degree angle. 2. Locate Pin 1 in the socket and look for mark on the CPU upper interface. Match Pin 1 and cut edge, then insert the CPU into the socket.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual 3. Press down the CPU socket lever and finish CPU installation. CPU cut edge Note: If you do not match the CPU socket Pin 1 and CPU cut edge well, you may damage the CPU. Note: This socket supports Micro-FC-PGA2 package CPU, which is the latest CPU package developed by Intel. Other forms of CPU package are impossible to be fitted in. Note: This picture is for example only; it may not look the same with the motherboard you purchased.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual CPU Fan Installation This motherboard comes with a retention module attached on the CPU socket when shipped, we strongly recommend you to install AOpen special designed CPU Fan as shown below on the retention module for better heat dissipation. Please install the CPU Fan correctly as the following pictures shown. 2. Pressing down the four clips with force one by one on the retention module. 1.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual CPU Jumper-less Design CPU VID signal and SMbus clock generator provide CPU voltage auto-detection and allows the user to set the CPU frequency through the BIOS setup, therefore no jumpers or switches are used. The disadvantages of the Pentium based jumper-less designs are eliminated. There will be no worry of wrong CPU voltage detection. Clock Generator Socket 478 Pentium 4 Controlled CPU Freq.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual AOpen “Watch Dog Timer” AOpen provides a special and useful feature on this motherboard for overclockers. When you power-on the system, the BIOS will check last system POST status. If it succeeded, the BIOS will enable “Watch Dog Timer” function immediately, and set the CPU FSB frequency according to user’s settings stored in the BIOS. If system failed in BIOS POST, the “Watch Dog Timer” will reset the system to reboot in five seconds.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Full-range Adjustable CPU Core Voltage This function is dedicated to overclockers and supports Adjustable CPU Core Voltage from 1.10V to 1.85V. However, this motherboard can also automatically detects CPU VID signal and generates proper CPU core voltage. Setting CPU Frequency BIOS Setup > Frequency/Voltage Control > CPU Clock Setting This motherboard is CPU jumper-less design, you can set CPU frequency through the BIOS setup, and no jumpers or switches are needed.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual CPU Core Frequency FSB Clock System Bus Ratio Pentium 4 1.5G 1500MHz 100MHz 400MHz 15x 12x Pentium 4 1.6G 1600MHz 100MHz 400MHz 16x 533MHz 13x Pentium 4 1.7G 1700MHz 100MHz 400MHz 17x 100MHz 400MHz 18x Pentium 4 1.8G 1800MHz 100MHz 400MHz 18x 2000MHz 100MHz 400MHz 20x Pentium 4 1.9G 1900MHz 100MHz 400MHz 19x Pentium 4 2.2G 2200MHz 100MHz 400MHz 22x Pentium 4 2.0G 2000MHz 100MHz 400MHz 20x Pentium 4 2.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual CPU and System Fan Connector (with H/W Monitoring) Plug in the CPU fan cable to the 3-pin CPU FAN connector. If you have chassis fan, you can also plug it on SYS-FAN2 or SYS-FAN3 connector. SYS-FAN2 Connector GND +12V SENSOR CPU FAN Connector Note: Some CPU fans do not have sensor pin, so that they cannot support hardware monitoring function.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual JP27 / JP28 Keyboard/Mouse Wake-up Jumper This motherboard provides USB and PS2 keyboard / mouse wake-up function. You can use JP27 / JP28 to enable or disable the resuming of your system from suspend mode with any USB keyboard or mouse connected. JP28 controls 1st USB channel, and JP27 controls 2nd USB channel. The factory default setting is set to “Disable”(1-2), and you may enable this function by setting the jumper to 2-3.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual DIMM Sockets This motherboard has three 184-pin DDR DIMM sockets that allow you to install PC2100 (DDR266) memory up to 3GB or PC2700 (DDR333) memory up to 2GB. Please note that when you install PC1600 or PC2100 DDR SDRAM, you can install them fully into 3 sockets; however, when you install PC2700 DDR SDRAM, we suggest you to install DIMM1 and DIMM2 ONLY.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual How to Install Memory Modules Please follow the procedure as shown below to finish memory installation. 1. Make sure the DIMM module’s pin face down and match the socket’s size as depicted below. Pin 1 52 pins 2. 40 pins Insert the module straight down to the DIMM slot with both hands and press down firmly until the DIMM module is securely in place. Tab Key 3. Pin 1 Repeat step 2 to finish additional DIMM modules installation.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual DDR 266(PC2100) and DDR 333(PC2700) DDR SDRAM utilizes the existing SDRAM infrastructure and technology while doubling the nominal bandwidth available to systems. To put it in a simple way, DDR SDRAM is like data going along a two lane highway, while at the same time data in traditional SDRAM go along a one way street. Therefore, it is a more advanced technology that provides a great overall improvement in system performance.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual JP29 DDR Voltage Jumper This motherboard supports all DDR200/266/333 DDR SDRAM in the market, therefore you don’t need to adjust this JP29 memory voltage jumper from its default setting at 2.5V. However, if you wish to use DDR400 SDRAM which requires higher voltage on this motherboard, you may have to adjust the jumper to set a suitable voltage supply from 2.5V to 2.65V. 1 1 1 2.5V 2.55V 1 2.6V 2.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Front Panel Connector Attach the power LED, Keylock, speaker, power and reset switch connectors to the corresponding pins. If you enable “Suspend Mode” item in BIOS Setup, the ACPI & Power LED will keep flashing while the system is in suspend mode. Locate the power switch cable from your ATX housing. It is 2-pin female connector from the housing front panel. Plug this connector to the soft-power switch connector marked SPWR.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual ATX Power Connector This motherboard comes with a 20-pin and 4-pin ATX power connector. Make sure you plug in the right direction. We strongly recommend you to connect the 4-pin 12V ATX connector before connecting the 20-pin ATX power connector and use standard power supply specially designed for Pentium 4 system. Ground 12V 12V Ground COM COM -5V +5V +5V AC Power Auto Recovery +12V 5VSB PO-OK COM +5V COM PS-ON COM -12V +3.3V +3.3V +3.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual STBY LED STBY LED is AOpen’s considerate design that we aim at providing you friendly system information. The STBY LED will light up when power is provided to the motherboard. This is a convenient indication for you to check the system power status in many circumstances such as power on/off, stand-by mode and RAM power status during Suspend to RAM mode. System Power LED Warning: Do not install or remove the DIMM module or others devices when the STBY LED lights on.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual IDE and Floppy Connector Connect 34-pin floppy cable and 40-pin IDE cable to floppy connector FDD and IDE connector. Be careful of the pin1 orientation. Wrong orientation may cause system damage.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual IDE1 is also known as the primary channel and IDE2 as the secondary channel. Each channel supports two IDE devices that make a total of four devices. In order to work together, the two devices on each channel must be set differently to Master and Slave mode. Either one can be the hard disk or the CDROM. The setting as master or slave mode depends on the jumper on your IDE device, so please refer to your hard disk and CDROM manual accordingly. Tip: 1.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual ATA/133 Supported This motherboard supports ATA66, ATA100 or ATA133 IDE devices. Following table lists the transfer rate of IDE PIO and DMA modes. The IDE bus is 16-bit, which means every transfer is two bytes. As the hard drive industry introduces faster and higher capacity hard drives, the current Ultra ATA/100 interface causes a data bottleneck between the drive and the host computer.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual IrDA Connector The IrDA connector can be configured to support wireless infrared module, with this module and application software such as Laplink or Windows 95 Direct Cable Connection, the user can transfer files to or from laptops, notebooks, PDA devices and printers. This connector supports HPSIR (115.2Kbps, 2 meters) and ASK-IR (56Kbps).
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Support AGP 8X (Accelerated Graphic Port) Expansion Slot AX45-8X Max provides an AGP 8x slot which is the latest AGP specification. The AGP 8x calls for the bus to operate at the basic AGP 66-MHz clock frequency and the bandwidth is 2.1Gbytes/s. It is a great improvement on the performance of 3D graphic. AGP supports only memory read/write operation and single-master single-slave one-to-one only.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual AGP Protection Technology and AGP LED With the outstanding R&D ability of AOpen and its specially developed circuit, this model implements a blend new technology to protect your motherboard from being damaged by over-voltaging of AGP card. When AGP Protection Technology is implemented, this motherboard will automatically detect the voltage of AGP card and prevent your chipsets from being burnt out. Please note that if you install a AGP card with 3.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual WOM (Zero Voltage Wake on Modem) Connector This motherboard implements special circuit to support Wake On Modem; both Internal modem card and external box modem are supported. Since Internal modem card consumes no power when system power is off, it is recommended to use an internal modem. To use internal modem, connect 4-pin cable from RING connector of modem card to WOM connector on the motherboard.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual WOM by External BOX Modem Traditional Green PC suspend mode does not really turn off the system power supply, it uses external box modem to trigger MB COM port and resume back to active. Serial Port (Modem Side) Pin 1 Serial Port (Motherboard Side) Note: This picture is for example only; it may not look exactly the same as the motherboard you purchased.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual WOM by Internal Modem Card With the help of the ATX soft power On/Off, it is possible to have a system totally power off, and wakeup to automatically answer a phone call as an answering machine or to send/receive a fax. You may identify whether or not your system is in true power off mode by checking to see if the fan of your power supply is off.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual WOL (Wake on LAN) Connector To use Wake On LAN function, you must have a network card with chipset that supports this feature, and connect a cable from LAN card to motherboard WOL connector. The system identification information (probably IP address) is stored on network card and because there is a lot of traffic on the Ethernet, you need to install network management software, such as ADM, for the checking of how to wake up the system.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual WOL Connector (Ethernet Card Side) WOL Connector (Motherboard Side) Note: This picture is for example only; it may not exactly look the same with the motherboard you purchased.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Support 10/100 Mbps LAN onboard The South Bridge SIS963 includes a fast Ethernet controller on chip. On the strength of Realtek 8100BL LAN controller on board, which is a highly-integrated Platform LAN Connect device, it provides 10/100M bps Ethernet for office and home use, the Ethernet RJ45 connector is located on top of USB connectors. The green LED indicates the link mode, it lights when linking to network and blinking when transferring data.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual CNR (Communication and Network Riser) Expansion Slot CNR is a riser card specification to replace the AMR (Audio/Modem Riser) that supports V.90 analog modem, multi-channel audio, and phone-line based networking. Owing to CPU computing power getting stronger, the digital processing job can be implemented in main chipset and share CPU power. The analogy conversion (CODEC) circuit requires a different and separate circuit design, which is put on CNR card.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Colored Back Panel The onboard I/O devices are PS/2 Keyboard, PS/2 Mouse, RJ-45 LAN Connector, COM1 and COM2, Printer, USB, and AC97 sound. The view angle of the drawing shown here is from the back panel of the housing. SPP/EPP/ECP Parallel Port PS/2 Mouse Connector RJ-45 LAN Connector USB Ports LINE-IN SPEAKER OUT MIC-IN PS/2 Keyboard Connector PS/2 Keyboard: PS/2 Mouse: USB2.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Support 2nd USB 2.0 Port This motherboard provides six USB ports to connect USB devices such as mouse, keyboard, modem, printer, etc. There are four connectors on the back panel. You can use proper cables to connect USB devices from back panel or connect USB2 header to the front panel of chassis. Compared to traditional USB 1.0/1.1 with the speed of 12Mbps, USB 2.0 has a fancy speed up to 480 Mbps which is 40 times faster than the traditional one.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Onboard IEEE 1394 Connectors This motherboard has two IEEE 1394 connectors onboard. The IEEE 1394 provides data transfer rate up to 400Mb/s. Therefore the IEEE 1394 interface can connect with the devices that need high data transferring performance, such as digital camera, scanner or others IEEE 1394 devices. Please use the proper cable to connect with devices.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Chassis Intrusion Connector The “CASE OPEN” header provides chassis intrusion-monitoring function. To make this function works, you have to enable it in the system BIOS, connect this header to a sensor somewhere on the chassis. So, whenever the sensor is triggered by lights or by the opening of the chassis, the system will beep to inform you.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual CD Audio Connector This connector is used to connect CD Audio cable from CDROM or DVD drive to onboard sound.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual AUX-IN Connector This GREEN connector is used to connect MPEG Audio cable from MPEG card to onboard sound.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Game Port Bracket Supported This motherboard comes with a game port (Joystick-Midi) for you to connect any midi devices or joysticks. To use this function you have to have a joystick module and connect it with a game port cable to this port on the motherboard.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Front Audio Connector If the housing has been designed with an audio port on the front panel, you’ll be able to connect onboard audio to front panel through this connector. By the way, please remove the jumper cap from the Front Audio Connector before you connect the cable. Do not remove this yellow jumper cap if your housing doesn’t have an audio port on the front panel.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual S/PDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interface) Connector S/PDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interface) is a latest audio transfer file format that provides impressive quality through optical fiber and allows you to enjoy digital audio instead of analog. Normally there are two S/PDIF outputs as shown, one for RCA connector, the most common one used for consumer audio products, and the other for optical connector with a even better audio quality.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Super 5.1 Channel Audio Effect This motherboard comes with an ALC650 Codec which supports high quality of 5.1 Channel audio effect, bringing you a brand new audio experience. On the strength of the innovative design of ALC650, you're able to use standard line-jacks for surround audio output without connecting any external module. To apply this function, you have to install the audio driver in the Bonus Pack CD as well as an audio application supporting 5.1 Channel.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Dr. LED Connector (User Upgrade Optional) Connecting Dr. LED you can easily find the system problems that may occur while assembling. It can clearly indicate whether the problem is caused from components or improper installation through the 8 LED lights of Dr. LED on the front panel. That is to say you can diagnose your system status quickly. Pin 1 1 2 3.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Dr. LED is a CD disc storage box with 8 LEDs on its front panel, the size of Dr. LED is exactly the same as 5.25 in floppy drive, so that it can be mount into normal 5.25 in drive bay of any housing. 7 6 5 Boot O.K. KB HDD 4 Floppy 3 2 1 0 PCI Video Memory CPU The total 8 LEDs light up alternatively if the system fails in one of eight stages. Once the LED7 (latest LED) is lit, this indicates that the system has completed its boot-up procedure.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual JP15/JP16 Dr. Voice Language Select Jumpers Dr. Voice is a great feature of AX45-8X Max, which can identify the problems you may encounter in the operating system. It can clearly “tell you” whether the problem is caused from components or improper installation such as CPU, memory module, VGA, PCI add-on card, FDD, HDD or keyboard. Dr. Voice provides four language versions: English, German, Japanese and Chinese. You can select your preferred language by JP15 & JP16 jumpers.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual JP1 Buzzer and JP2 Speaker Enable/Disable Jumpers This motherboard comes with another considerate option that allows you to turn off the voice from buzzer and speaker. You can choose not to be bothered by the warning made from Dr. Voice when it detects any error in operating system. To disable this function, set JP1 and JP2 to pin 2-3 to stop both the buzzer and speaker from sending out voices.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Battery-less and Long Life Design This Motherboard implements a Flash ROM and a special circuit that provide you no batter power consumption of current CPU and CMOS Setup configurations. The RTC (real time clock) can also keep running as long as the power cord is plugged. If you lose your CMOS data by accident, you can just reload the CMOS configurations from Flash ROM and the system will recover as usual.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Over-current Protection The Over Current Protection is a popular implementation on ATX 3.3V/5V/12V switching power supply. However, the new generation CPU uses different voltage with a regulator to transfer 12V to CPU voltage (for example, 2.0V), and thus makes 5V over current protection useless. This motherboard is with switching regulator onboard supporting CPU over-current protection; in conjunction with 3.3V/5V/12V power supply provide the full line over-current protection.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Hardware Monitoring This motherboard implements a hardware monitoring system. As you turn on your system, this smart design will monitor your system’s working voltage, fan status and CPU temperature. If any of those systems’ status goes wrong, there will be an alarm through the chassis external speaker or buzzer of motherboard (if having this function and enabled) to warn the user.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Resettable Fuse Traditional motherboard uses fuses to prevent Keyboard and USB port from over-current or shortage. These fuses are soldered onboard that when it is broken (function to protect motherboard), user cannot replace them and result in malfunction of motherboard. With expensive Resettable Fuse, the motherboard can be resumed back to normal function even after the fuse had done its protection job.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual 3300μF Low ESR Capacitor The quality of low ESR capacitor (Low Equivalent Series Resistance) during high frequency operation is very important for the stability of CPU power. The idea of where to put these capacitors is another know-how that requires experience and detail calculation. Not only that, AX45-8X Max implements 3300μF capacitors, which is much larger than normal capacitor (1000 & 1500μf) and it provides better stability for CPU power.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual The power circuit of the CPU core voltage must be checked to ensure system stability for high speed CPUs (such as the new Pentium III, or when overclocking). A typical CPU core voltage is 2.0V, so a good design should control voltage between 1.860V and 2.140V. That is, the transient must be below 280mV. Below is a timing diagram captured by a Digital Storage Scope, it shows the voltage transient is only 143mv even when maximum 60A current is applied.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Layout (Frequency Isolation Wall) For high frequency operation, especially when overclocking, layout is the most important factor to make sure both chipset and CPU are working in stable condition. The layout of this motherboard implements AOpen’s unique design called “Frequency Isolation Wall”.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Enlarged Aluminum Heatsink Cool down CPU and Chipset are important for system reliability. Enlarged aluminum heat sink provides better heat consumption especially when you are trying to over-clock the CPU.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Vivid BIOS technology Have you been fed up with the conservative and immutable POST screen? Let’s rule out the tradition idea that POST screen are stiff and frigid, and let AOpen show you the newly developed VividBIOS to experience the lively vivid colorful POST screen! Unlike earlier graphic POST screen which could occupy the whole screen and mask text information during POST, AOpen VividBIOS deals with graphics and texts separately, and makes them running simultaneously during
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Driver and Utility There are motherboard drivers and utilities in AOpen Bonus CD. You don’t need to install all of them to boot your system. But after you finish the hardware installation, you have to install your operation system first (such as Windows 98) before you install any drivers or utilities. Please refer to your operation system’s installation guide. Note: Please follow recommended procedure to install Windows 2000 and Windows XP.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Auto-run Menu from Bonus CD You can use the auto-run menu of Bonus CD. Choose the utility and driver and select model name.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Install IDE Driver To use IDE devices you have to install IDE driver from Bonus Pack CD.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Install USB2.0 Driver In Bonus Pack CD, you can install USB2.0 driver from the following screen.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Installing LAN Driver You can download LAN Driver from the Bonus Pack CD and install it under Windows 95 (Golden version), Win95A, OSR2, Windows 98/98 SE, Windows 2000, Windows ME, Windows NT v4.0 driver for Realtek RTL8139 PCI Fast Ethernet adapter. [Windows 95 (Golden version), Win95A and OSR2] Installing driver procedure on Microsoft Windows 95 : ----------------------------------------------------1.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual [CD-ROM]:Driver\LAN\RTL8100\Windows\WIN2000 (for Windows 2000) or [CD-ROM]:Driver\LAN\RTL8100\Windows\WINME (for Windows ME) or [CD-ROM]:Driver\LAN\RTL8100\Windows\WinXP (for Windows XP) 3. Win98/Win98 SE/Windows2000/Windows ME will appear some messages to insert Win98/Win98 SE/Windows2000/Windows ME system disk to complete setup step. 4. Win98/Win98 SE/Windows2000/Windows ME will finish the other installation procedure automatically, then you restart the system.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual RTL8139 PCI Fast Ethernet adapter and its driver RTL8139.SYS will auto-detect the line speed, 10 Mb or 100Mb, while the RTL8139.SYS is loading. The other values, "10" or "100", are only used when you want to forced RTL8139 PCI Fast Ethernet adapter to 10Mb or 100Mb. 7. The screen will appear "Input EthernetID" dialog box which is provide by RTL8139.SYS driver. This option is only required when you have more than one Realtek RTL8139 PCI Fast Ethernet adapters on this computer.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Installing Onboard Sound Driver This motherboard comes with RealTek ALC650 AC97 CODEC. This audio driver supports Windows 98SE and upper Windows OS; you can find the audio driver from the Bonus Pack CD auto-run menu.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Installing AGP Driver You can find AGP driver from the Bonus Pack CD auto-run menu.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual AOConfig Utility AOpen always dedicated to provide users a much friendly computer environment. We now bring you a comprehensive system detection utility. AOConfig is a Windows based utility with user-friendly interface that allows users to obtain information of the operation system and hardware such as motherboard, CPU, memory, PCI devices and IDE devices. The powerful utility also displays the version of BIOS and firmware for your convenience of maintenance.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual 3. This page presents the IDE device information, such as serial number, manufacturer, firmware version, and capacity. 4. From this page, users can obtain the technical support information of AOpen. Moreover, detailed information could be saved in .bmp or .txt format. NOTE: AOConfig can be used under Windows 98SE/ME, NT4.0/2000, or even the latest Windows XP. Please also note that AOConfig can only be operated in a system equipped with an AOpen motherboard.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Installing Hardware Monitoring Utility You can install Hardware Monitoring Utility to monitor CPU temperature, fans and system voltage. The hardware monitoring function is automatically implemented by BIOS and utility software. No hardware installation is needed.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual ACPI Suspend to Hard Drive ACPI Suspend to Hard Drive is basically controlled by Windows operation system. It saves your current work (system status, memory and screen image) into hard disk, and then the system can be totally power off. Next time, when power is on, you can resume your original work directly from hard disk within few seconds without go through the Windows booting process and run your application again.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual System Requirement 1. AOZVHDD.EXE 1.30b or later. 2. Delete config.sys and autoexec.bat. Fresh installation of Windows 98 on a new system 1. Execute "Setup.exe /p j" to install Windows 98 2. After Windows 98's installation is complete, go to the Control Panel > Power Management. a. Set Power Schemes > System Standby to "Never". b. Click on "Hibernate" and select "Enable Hibernate Support" then "Apply". c. Click on the "Advanced" tab, you'll see "Hibernate" on "Power Buttons".
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Changing from APM to ACPI (Windows 98 only) 1. Run "Regedit.exe" a. Go through the following path HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SOFTWARE MICROSOFT WINDOWS CURRENT VERSION DETECT b. Select "ADD Binary" and name it as "ACPIOPTION". c. Right click and select Modify, add "01" after "0000" to make it "0000 01". d. Save changes. 2. Select "Add New Hardware" under Control Panel. Allow Windows 98 to detect new hardware. (It will find "ACPI BIOS" and remove "Plug and Play BIOS") 3. Reboot system. 4.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SOFTWARE MICROSOFT WINDOWS CURRENT VERSION DETECT ACPI OPTION b. Right click and select "Modify, change "01" to "02" to make it "0000 02". Tip: "02" means Windows 98 is ACPI acknowledged but the ACPI function is disabled. c. Save changes. 2. Select "Add New Hardware" under Control Panel. Allow Windows 98 to detect new hardware. (It will find "Plug and Play BIOS" and remove "ACPI BIOS") 3. Reboot system. 4.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual ACPI Suspend to RAM (STR) This motherboard supports ACPI Suspend to RAM function. With this function, you can resume your original work directly from DRAM without going through the Windows 98 booting process and run your application again. Suspend to DRAM saves your current work in the system memory, it is faster than Suspend to Hard Drive but requires power supplied to DRAM, while Suspend to Hard Drive requires no power.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual To implement ACPI Suspend to DRAM, please follow the procedures as below: System Requirement An ACPI OS is required. Currently, except Windows 95 and Windows NT, all other Windows Systems support ACPI. Procedures 1. Changed the following BIOS settings. BIOS Setup > Power Management Setup > ACPI Function: Enabled BIOS Setup > Power Management Setup > ACPI Suspend Type: S3. 2. Go to Control Panel > Power Management. Set “Power Buttons” to “Standby”. 3.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual AWARD BIOS System parameters can be modified by going into BIOS Setup menu, this menu allows you to configure the system parameters and save the configuration into the 128 bytes CMOS area, (normally in the RTC chip or in the main chipset). AwardBIOS™ installed in the Flash ROM of the motherboard is a custom version of an industry standard BIOS. The BIOS provides critical low-level support for standard devices such as hard disk drives, serial and parallel ports.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual About BIOS Function Description… AOpen always dedicates to give user a more friendly computer system. Now, we include all function descriptions of BIOS setup program into the BIOS Flash ROM. When you select one function of BIOS setup program, the function description will appear at the right side of screen. Therefore, you don’t need to read this manual while you change BIOS settings.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual How To Use Award™ BIOS Setup Program Generally, you can use arrow keys to highlight items that you want to choose, then press key to select, and use the and key to change setting values. You can also press key for help and press key to quit Award™ BIOS setup program. The following table provides details about how to use keyboard in the Award™ BIOS setup program.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Key Description F6 Load fail-save setting value from CMOS. F7 Load turbo setting value from CMOS. F10 Save changed setting and exit setup program.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual How To Enter BIOS Setup After you finish jumper settings and connect correct cables, power on and enter the BIOS Setup. Press during POST (Power-On Self Test) and choose "Load Setup Defaults" for recommended optimal performance. Del Warning: Please avoid of using "Load Turbo Defaults", unless you are sure your system components (CPU, DRAM, HDD, etc.) are good enough for turbo setting.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual BIOS Upgrade under Windows environment With outstanding R&D ability of AOpen, we now bring you a whole new BIOS Flash wizard ---EzWinFlash. With an eye to users convenience, EzWinFlash combines the BIOS binary code and flash module together, so the only thing you have to do is just clicking on the utility you downloaded from web and let it helps you complete the flash process automatically.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual You may accomplish BIOS upgrade procedure with EzWinFlash by the following steps, and it’s STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to close all the applications before you start the upgrading. 1. Download the new version of BIOS package zip file from AOpen official web site. (ex: http://www.aopen.com) 2. Unzip the download BIOS package (ex: WAX458XM102.ZIP) with WinZip (http://www.winzip.com) in Windows environment. 3. Save the unzipped files into a folder, for example, WAX458XM102.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Overclocking As a leading manufacturer in motherboard industry, AOpen always listens to what customers want and develop products to fit different user's requirements. Reliability, compatibility, leading technology and friendly features are our basic goals when designing motherboards. Other than above mentioned design criteria, there are power users who are always seeking to push the limitation of the system performance by overclocking which we call them "Overclocker".
AX45-8X Max Online Manual VGA Card & Hard Disk VGA and HDD is key components for overclocking, for your reference, the following list are what have been successful overclocked in our lab. Please note that AOpen can not guaranty they can be successful overclocked again. Please check the Available Vendor List (AVL) by link to our official website. VGA: http://www.aopen.com.tw/tech/report/overclk/mb/vga-oc.htm HDD: http://www.aopen.com.tw/tech/report/overclk/mb/hdd-oc.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Glossary AC97 Basically, AC97 specification separates sound/modem circuit to two parts, digital processor and a CODEC for analogy I/O they are linked by AC97 link bus. Since digital processor can be put into motherboard main chipset, the cost of sound/modem onboard solution can be reduced. ACPI (Advanced Configuration & Power Interface) ACPI is the power management specification of PC97 (1997).
AX45-8X Max Online Manual AMR (Audio/Modem Riser) The CODEC circuit of AC97 sound/modem solution can be put on motherboard or put on a riser card (AMR card) that connects to motherboard through AMR connector. AOpen Bonus Pack CD A disc bundled with AOpen motherboard product; there are motherboard drivers, Acrobat Reader for PDF online manual and other useful utilities. APM (Advanced Power Management) Unlike ACPI, BIOS controls most APM power management functions.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual ATA/100 ATA/100 is a new IDE specification under developing. ATA/100 uses both rising edge and falling edge as ATA/66 but clock cycle time is reduced to 40ns. The data transfer rate is (1/40ns) x 2 bytes x 2 = 100MB/s. To use ATA/100, you need special 80-wire IDE cable, the same as ATA/66. ATA/133 Compared to traditional ATA/100, ATA/133 has been up to 33 percent increase in interface speed with transfer rate of 133MB/s.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual CNR (Communication and Networking Riser) The CNR specification provides the PC industry the opportunity to deliver a flexible and cost reduced method of implementing LAN, home networking, DSL, USB, wireless, audio and modem subsystems widely used in today's "connected PCs". The CNR specification is an open industry specification and is supported by OEMs, IHV card manufacturers, silicon supplier and Microsoft.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual DMA (Direct Memory Access) Channel for communications between the memory and surrounding devices. ECC (Error Checking and Correction) The ECC mode needs 8 ECC bits for 64-bit data. Each time memory is accessed; ECC bits are updated and checked by a special algorithm. The ECC algorithm has the ability to detect double-bit error and automatically correct single-bit error while parity mode can only detect single-bit error.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual EV6 Bus EV6 Bus in the technology of Alpha processor from Digital Equipment Corporation. EV6 bus uses both rising and falling clock edge to transfer data, similar as DDR SDRAM or ATA/66 IDE bus. EV6 Bus Speed = CPU external bus clock x 2. For example, 200 MHz EV6 bus is actually using 100 MHz external bus clock, but the equivalent speed is 200 MHz. FCC DoC (Declaration of Conformity) The DoC is component certification standard of FCC EMI regulations.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual FSB (Front Side Bus) Clock FSB Clock means CPU external bus clock. CPU internal clock = CPU FSB Clock x CPU Clock Ratio I2C Bus See SMBus. IEEE 1394 IEEE 1394 is a low-cost digital interface originated by Apple Computer as a desktop LAN and developed by the IEEE 1394 working group. The IEEE 1394 can transport data at 100, 200 or 400 Mbps. One of the solutions to connect digital television devices together at 200 Mbps.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Parity Bit The parity mode uses 1 parity bit for each byte, normally it is even parity mode, that is, each time the memory data is updated, parity bit will be adjusted to have even count "1" for each byte. When next time, if memory is read with odd number of "1", the parity error is occurred and this is called single bit error detection. PBSRAM (Pipelined Burst SRAM) For Socket 7 CPU, one burst data read requires four QWord (Quad-word, 4x16 = 64 bits).
AX45-8X Max Online Manual PC-1600, PC-2100 or PC-2700 DDR DRAM Based on FSB frequency, the DDR DRAM has 200MHz, 266MHz and 333MHz three types of working frequency. Because DDR DRAM data bus is 64-bit, it provides data transfer bandwidth up to 200x64/8=1600MB/s, 266x64/8=2100MB/s and 333x64/8=2700MB/s in these current three DDR DRAM. Therefore, the PC-1600 DDR DRAM is working with 100MHz, PC-2100 DDR DRAM is working with 133MHz and PC-2700 with 166MHz FSB frequency.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual POST (Power-On Self Test) The BIOS self-test procedure after power-on, sometimes, it is the first or the second screen shown on your monitor during system boot. RDRAM (Rambus DRAM) Rambus is a memory technology that uses large burst mode data transfer. Theoretically, the data transfer should be high than SDRAM. RDRAM is cascaded in channel operation.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual SIMM (Single In Line Memory Module) SIMM socket is only 72-pin, and is only single side. The golden finger signals on each side of PCB are identical. That is why it was called Single In Line. SIMM is made by FPM or EDO DRAM and supports 32-bit data. SIMM had been phased out on current motherboard design. SMBus (System Management Bus) SMBus is also called I2C bus. It is a two-wire bus developed for component communication (especially for semiconductor IC).
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Ultra DMA Ultra DMA (or, more accurately, Ultra DMA/33) is a protocol for transferring data between a hard disk drive through the computer’s data path (or bus) to the computer’s random access memory (RAM). The Ultra DMA/33 protocol transfers data in burst mode at a rate of 33.3MB/s, twice as fast as the previous Direct Access Memory (DMA) interface.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual VCM (Virtual Channel Memory) NEC’s Virtual Channel Memory (VCM) is a new DRAM core architecture that dramatically improves the memory system’s ability to service multimedia requirements. VCM increases memory bus efficiency and performance of any DRAM technology by providing a set of fast static registers between the memory core and I/O pins. Using VCM technology results in reduced data access latency and reduced power consumption.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Troubleshooting If you encounter any trouble to boot you system, follow the procedures accordingly to resolve the problem. Start Turn off the power and unplug the AC power cable, then remove all of the add-on cards and cables, including VGA, IDE, FDD, COM1, COM2 and printer. Make sure if all jumper settings are correct.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Continue Install the VGA card. Then connect your monitor and keyboard. Turn on the power Yes and check if the power supply and CPU fan work properly. No The problem is probably caused by power supply or motherboard failure. Please contact your reseller or local distributor for repairing.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Continue No Check if there is display? Perhaps your VGA card or monitor is defective. Yes Press and key at the same time, hold them and then press to reboot the system. No Check if the system reboots? Yes Next 117 It is very possible that your keyboard is defective.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Continue During system rebooting, press to enter BIOS setup. Choose “Load Setup Default”. Turn off the system and re-connect IDE cable. Check if the system can No reboot successfully? Yes Re-install the operating system such as Windows 98. End 118 The problem should be caused by the IDE cable or HDD itself.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Technical Support Dear Customer, Thanks for choosing AOpen products. To provide the best and fastest service to our customer is our first priority. However, we receive numerous emails and phone-calls worldwide everyday, it is very hard for us to serve everyone on time. We recommend you follow the procedures below and seek help before contact us. With your help, we can then continue to provide the best quality service to more customers.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual 5 News Group: Your problem probably had been answered by our support engineer or professional users on the news group. http://english.aopen.com.tw/tech/newsgrp/default.htm 6 7 Contact Distributors/Resellers: We sell our products through resellers and integrators. They should know your system configuration very well and should be able to solve your problem efficiently and provide important reference for you if next time you want to buy something else from them.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Model name and BIOS version Model name and BIOS version can be found on upper left corner of first boot screen (POST screen). For example: AX45-8X Max R1.20 Jun.01.2002 AOpen Inc. Award Plug and Play BIOS Extension v1.0A Copyright © 2002, Award Software, Inc. AX45-8X Max is model name of motherboard; R1.20 is BIOS version.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual Product Registration Thank you for choosing AOpen product. AOpen encourages you to spend few minutes in completing the following product registration. To register your product will ensure the high quality of services from AOpen. After the registration, you will: • Have opportunities to play online slot machine and win a prize from AOpen by accumulating your bonuses for later prize exchange. • Be upgraded to gold membership of Club AOpen program.
AX45-8X Max Online Manual How to Contact Us Please do not hesitate contact us if you have any problem about our products. Any opinion will be appreciated. Pacific Rim Europe America AOpen Inc. AOpen Computer b.v. AOpen America Inc. Tel: 886-2-3789-5888 Tel: 31-73-645-9516 Tel: 1-510-489-8928 Fax: 886-2-3789-5899 Fax: 31-73-645-9604 Fax: 1-510-489-1998 China Germany Japan 艾爾鵬國際貿易(上海)有限公司 AOpen Computer GmbH. AOpen Japan Inc.