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First post, by haker120

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Is it possible to set this motherboard to get all 366MHz?

Last edited by haker120 on 2022-08-18, 15:47. Edited 1 time in total.

Reply 1 of 39, by snufkin

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Assuming that the BF2 jumper is connected to the BF2 pin on the CPU, then it looks like on the BF jumpers then 1-2 pulls it high and 2-3 pulls it low. I think the 366 is got from 66MHz * 5.5, and the 5.5 multiplier is BF2..0: = 011. So BF2 on 2-3 and BF1&0 on 1-2. Then set the FS jumpers to 66MHz.

Also, the clockgen looks like it has undocumented options for 75 (FS0&2 to 1-2, FS1 to 2-3) and 83MHz (FS1&2 to 1-2, FS0 to 2-3) FSB.

Reply 2 of 39, by haker120

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@snufkin thanks, the question is how to set it correctly then? 2-3 1-2 and none for FS0? I already found FSB and it is 1-2, 2-3, 1-2. 😁

EDIT: Unless K6 need FSB83 so I'll do this, and I must to remember to change voltage from 3.3 to 2.1 to not fry K6 before I'll mount it. 😀

Reply 3 of 39, by snufkin

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If think the FS jumpers for 66MHz are on the silkscreen by the jumpers, FS0&2 to 2-3 and FS1 to 1-2. Couple of lists I've looked at have the 366MHz as 66*5.5. You can try at 83MHz FSB, but you'll probably want to drop the BF multiplier down. The 4x multiplier (83*4=332MHz) should be BF2&0 to 2-3 and BF1 to 1-2 and 4.5 (83*4.5=374MHz) should be all BF to 2-3.

So, for 366MHz I think it should be:
BF2 2-3, BF1 1-2, BF0 1-2, FS2 2-3, FS1 1-2, FS0 2-3.

Reply 4 of 39, by haker120

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Thanks a lot @snufkin however I'll check that at the day after tomorrow, I just ordered it today's morning. And well, if K6 366 will work, will 450MHz one work as well since it's FSB83? Actually I'd love to put the maximum and maybe replace incoming Matrox G450 to something stronger for this build. 😀

Reply 5 of 39, by Chkcpu

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I fully agree with @snufkin's jumper settings for this K6-2/366 at 5.5x66. You can also use 5.0x75=375MHz for a small overclock.
And a K6-2/450 can run at stock speed with the 6.0x 75 setting.

Back in 2002 I worked on this board and this is what was in my notes:

For K6/-2/-III jumper settings, I've listed what I found in the manual and on-line FAQ for the TX97-XE:

CPU External (Bus) Frequency:
Note that it depends on the clockchip used if the 83MHz setting actually works.
66MHz -> FS0: 2-3, FS1: 1-2, FS2: 2-3
75MHz -> FS0: 1-2, FS1: 2-3, FS2: 1-2
83MHz -> FS0: 2-3, FS1: 1-2, FS2: 1-2

CPU to BUS Frequency Ratio:
4.0x -> BF0: 2-3, BF1: 1-2, BF2: 2-3
4.5x -> BF0: 2-3, BF1: 2-3, BF2: 2-3
5.0x -> BF0: 1-2, BF1: 2-3, BF2: 2-3
5.5x -> BF0: 1-2, BF1: 1-2, BF2: 2-3
6.0x -> BF0: 2-3, BF1: 1-2, BF2: 1-2
Note that the 6.0x setting only works on the K6-2CXT, K6-III, K6-2+, and K6-III+ CPU. Other CPUs will do 2.0x with this setting. All K6-2/400 and faster K6 CPUs have the CXT core.

CPU Vcore Voltage:
2.1V -> VID0: 1-2, VID1: open, VID2: open
2.2V -> VID0: open, VID1: 1-2, VID2: open
2.3V -> VID0: 1-2, VID1: 1-2, VID2: open
2.4V -> VID0: open, VID1: open, VID2: 1-2

For 2.0V K6+ CPUs, you can safely use the 2.1V setting.
For all K6-2 CPUs, use the 2.2V setting (except the 2.4V K6-2/450AHX).
For boards with an extra VID3 jumper, there are even settings for 1.8V and
1.9V in the manual:
1.8V -> VID0: open, VID1: open, VID2: open, VID3: 1-2
1.9V -> VID0: open, VID1: open, VID2: open, VID3: 2-3

So, for your K6-2/366AFR use the 2.2V Vcore setting.

Note that the latest (beta) BIOS for the TX97-XE is version 0112xe-1. I'm curious which BIOS version is on the board now. 😉

Cheers, Jan

CPU Identification utility
The Unofficial K6-2+ / K6-III+ page

Reply 6 of 39, by haker120

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Oh darn, thanks @Chkcpu, so what processor would you recommend for this board? And what fitting GPU as well? I guess S3 Virge 4MB + Voodoo 1 4MB is weak, I mean Voodoo will stay for Glide but I'm open to replace S3 (as I have other more proper PCs for clean DOS gaming 😁).

Reply 7 of 39, by Chkcpu

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The sweet spot for most socket 7 boards, and especially the Asus SP97 and TX97 series with 75/83MHz FSB and 2.0V/2.1V Vcore support, is the AMD K6-2+ CPU (A K6-III+ is only marginally faster, but if you can get one for a reasonable price, go for it!). If you can get a 450 MHz or faster rating, you could run it at 500MHz (6.0 x 83.3), provided FSB 83 is stable on your board. If not, FSB 75 is seldom a problem on i430TX boards and gives you a 450MHz (6.0 x 75) clockspeed.

Unlike the regular K6-2, the K6-2+ has an internal 128KB L2 cache to boost performance, and it uses less power thanks to its smaller die structures.
The Vcore regulator on the TX97-XE can supply a maximum of 12Amps and the regular K6-III uses more, so avoid those hot heads. 😉
The K6-2, K6-2+ and K6-III+ consume well below this 12A limit and won’t overload the Vcore regulator.

I know a lot about socket 3/5/7 boards and BIOSes, but my knowledge about GPUs is limited.
But there are a lot of others here on Vogons that can help you choose a videocard for this build. 😀

Jan

CPU Identification utility
The Unofficial K6-2+ / K6-III+ page

Reply 9 of 39, by Chkcpu

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Actualy any K6-2+ would do because they overclock quite well. And if you can get a faster one, just underclock it. 😉
I heard that a supply of K6-2+/570 CPUs came on the market recently. An ideal candidate for this board.

These K6-III+ CPUs are quite expensive now, so I meant to only get one if the price is right.

CPU Identification utility
The Unofficial K6-2+ / K6-III+ page

Reply 10 of 39, by haker120

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Well, I wanna this PC to be quite Win95 experience so I think K6-2+ 450/500MHz will do (I mean max that mobo supports). 😀 Thanks a lot for advices @Chkcpu, I need to hunt one down and for now set up my 366MHz one. 😉

EDIT: Will this one do?
zdZPX8L.png

Reply 11 of 39, by Chkcpu

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Hi haker120,

Yes, that K6-2+/500ACZ will be perfect!

Note that when you have the K6-2/366 running, you will need to flash the BIOS with the patched 0112XEJ2 BIOS to be able to run the K6-2+ later on.
Follow "The Unofficial K6-2+ / K6-III+ page" link in my signature below and download the patched TX97-XE BIOS (0112XEJ2.ZIP).
In the zip you will find the BIOS BIN file and a PATCH.TXT file that documents the changes I've made to this BIOS.

Flash this BIOS with the proven aflash v2.02. This flasher works on every Asus socket 7 board I've tried it on. Later aflash versions don't support these older boards anymore. You can download aflash 2.02 from my site at http://web.inter.nl.net/hcc/J.Steunebrink/aflash202.zip

One final tip: flash the 0112XEJ2 BIOS WITH bootblock when you upgrade from a 0111 or earlier BIOS. The bootblock of the 0112 version is different from earlier BIOS versions and needs to be updated too.

Jan

CPU Identification utility
The Unofficial K6-2+ / K6-III+ page

Reply 13 of 39, by Chkcpu

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Okay, you mean this page?
https://www.ultimateretro.net/en/motherboards/893#downloads

That's fine. The patched 0112xe-1 BIOS there is the same as on my page.
But be sure you flash the patched BIOS, because all previous versions don't support the K6-2+ CPU. 😉

Jan

CPU Identification utility
The Unofficial K6-2+ / K6-III+ page

Reply 14 of 39, by haker120

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What do you mean to update BIOS WITH bootblock? I don't get this one.

EDIT: I updated, win95 starts but POST is longer than usuall, I guess it's due to make 233MMX as 266MHz one. And that additional line is shown before RAM check about patched version of BIOS. 😁

Reply 15 of 39, by Chkcpu

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@haker120: Okay, you have the patched BIOS running! 😀
Just to confirm you have the correct BIOS, the line above the CPU type on the bootscreen must be:
#401A0-0112xe-1 - patch J.2 05/16/2002 –

After switching the computer on, the first part of the BIOS that is executed is called the Bootblock. So the Bootblock contains the initial start-up code, but it also checks if the checksum of all other parts of the BIOS is correct.
When there is no corruption, the rest of the BIOS is executed normally.

But when the Bootblock finds an error, it halts the bootprocess and starts reading the floppy drive for the correct BIOS file and tries to flash this BIOS. This is called the Bootblock recovery mode and can save your motherboard after a bad flash.

The Bootblock is normally not changed between BIOS versions for the same motherboard, so the flash program does not need to update the Bootblock when flashing a BIOS update. Only the rest of the BIOS is then updated and this is safer because the Bootblock won’t be corrupted when the flash goes bad.

Most flash programs will detect if the Bootblock needs updating and then asks you if you want to flash WITH or WITHOUT Bootblock. If you did not see this question, the Bootblock is fine and you’re okay.
Do you know which BIOS version was on the TX97-XE previously, or did you make a backup of the old BIOS before flashing the new version?

Jan

CPU Identification utility
The Unofficial K6-2+ / K6-III+ page

Reply 19 of 39, by Chkcpu

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Thanks for the BIOS backup file.
An interesting TX97-XE BIOS with a strange "MD2.33bP * ASUS TX97-XE" Revision string. Never seen that before.
And the 11/06/1997 BIOS date puts it somewhere between BIOS revisions 0107 and 0108. But the BIOS looks genuine. 😉

But more importantly, the Bootblock is identical to the latest 0112xe-1 BIOS so all is fine and you can forget all about my Bootblock worries. 😀

Enjoy this nice board and let us know how the K6-2+ works with it.

Jan

CPU Identification utility
The Unofficial K6-2+ / K6-III+ page