960GC-GS FX User Manual Version 1.0 Published June 2013 Copyright©2013 ASRock INC. All rights reserved.
Copyright Notice: No part of this manual may be reproduced, transcribed, transmitted, or translated in any language, in any form or by any means, except duplication of documentation by the purchaser for backup purpose, without written consent of ASRock Inc. Products and corporate names appearing in this manual may or may not be registered trademarks or copyrights of their respective companies, and are used only for identification or explanation and to the owners’ benefit, without intent to infringe.
Contents 1. Introduction................................................................. 5 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Package Contents...................................................................... Specifications.............................................................................. Unique Features......................................................................... Motherboard Layout ................................................................. I/O Panel . ................
3. BIOS SETUP UTILITY.................................................. 32 3.1 Introduction................................................................................. 32 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.1.1 BIOS Menu Bar................................................................ 3.1.2 Navigation Keys................................................................ Main Screen................................................................
1. Introduction Thank you for purchasing ASRock 960GC-GS FX motherboard, a reliable motherboard produced under ASRock’s consistently stringent quality control. It delivers excellent performance with robust design conforming to ASRock’s commitment to quality and endurance. In this manual, chapter 1 and 2 contain introduction of the motherboard and stepby-step guide to the hardware installation. Chapter 3 and 4 contain the configuration guide to BIOS setup and information of the Support CD.
1.
- Supports LAN Cable Detection - Supports Energy Efficient Ethernet 802.3az - Supports PXE I/O Panel - 1 x PS/2 Mouse Port - 1 x PS/2 Keyboard Port - 1 x Serial Port: COM1 - 1 x D-Sub Port - 4 x USB 2.0 Ports - 1 x RJ-45 LAN Port with LED (ACT/LINK LED and SPEED LED) - HD Audio Jack: Line in / Front Speaker / Microphone - 6 x SATA2 3.
OS Certifications - CASE OPEN detection - Voltage Monitoring: +12V, +5V, +3.3V, Vcore - Microsoft® Windows® 8 / 8 64-bit / 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64-bit / XP / XP Media Center / XP 64-bit compliant - FCC, CE, WHQL - ErP/EuP Ready (ErP/EuP ready power supply is required) * For detailed product information, please visit our website: http://www.asrock.
1.3 Unique Features ASRock OC Tuner ASRock OC Tuner is a user-friendly overclocking tool which allows you to surveil your system by hardware monitor function and overclock your hardware devices to get the best system performance under Windows® environment. Please visit our website for the operation procedures of ASRock OC Tuner.
complicated flash utility. Please be noted that the USB flash drive or hard drive must use FAT32/16/12 file system. ASRock OC DNA The software name itself – OC DNA literally tells you what it is capable of. OC DNA, an exclusive utility developed by ASRock, provides a convenient way for the user to record the OC settings and share with others. It helps you to save your overclocking record under the operating system and simplifies the complicated recording process of overclocking settings.
simultaneously. Real-Time Analysis of Your Data: With the status window, you can easily recognize which data streams you are transferring currently. ASRock XFast RAM ASRock XFast RAM fully utilizes the memory space that cannot be used under Windows® OS 32-bit CPU. ASRock XFast RAM shortens the loading time of previously visited websites, making web surfing faster than ever. And it also boosts the speed of Adobe Photoshop 5 times faster.
1.4 Motherboard Layout 2 1 4 3 PS2 Mouse PS2 Keyboard COM1 ATXPWR1 CPU_FAN1 Top: RJ-45 FSB800 DDR3_B1 (64 bit, 240-pin module) USB 2.0 T: USB0 B: USB1 DDRII_2 (64 bit, 240-pin module) DDRII_1 (64 bit, 240-pin module) FSB800 AM2/AM3/AM3+ VGA1 USB 2.
1.5 I/O Panel 2 1 3 4 5 10 1 * 2 3 ** 4 5 9 7 8 PS/2 Mouse Port (Green) LAN RJ-45 Port Line In (Light Blue) Front Speaker (Lime) Microphone (Pink) 6 7 8 9 10 6 USB 2.0 Ports (USB01) USB 2.0 Ports (USB23) D-Sub Port COM Port PS/2 Keyboard Port (Purple) * There are two LED next to the LAN port. Please refer to the table below for the LAN port LED indications.
2. Installation This is a Micro ATX form factor motherboard. Before you install the motherboard, study the configuration of your chassis to ensure that the motherboard fits into it. Pre-installation Precautions Take note of the following precautions before you install motherboard components or change any motherboard settings. Before you install or remove any component, ensure that the power is switched off or the power cord is detached from the power supply.
2.1 CPU Installation o Step 1. Unlock the socket by lifting the lever up to a 90 angle. Step 2. Position the CPU directly above the socket such that the CPU corner with the golden triangle matches the socket corner with a small triangle. Step 3. Carefully insert the CPU into the socket until it fits in place. The CPU fits only in one correct orientation. DO NOT force the CPU into the socket to avoid bending of the pins. Step 4.
2.3 Installation of Memory Modules (DIMM) This motherboard provides two 240-pin DDR2 (Double Data Rate 2) DIMM slots and two 240-pin DDR3 (Double Data Rate 3) DIMM slots, and supports Dual Channel Memory Technology. For dual channel configuration, you always need to install identical (the same brand, speed, size and chip-type) DDR2/ DDR3 DIMM pair in the slots of the same color. In other words, you have to install identical DDR2 DIMM pair in Dual Channel (DDRII_1 and DDRII_2; Yellow slots; see p.12 No.
Installing a DIMM Please make sure to disconnect power supply before adding or removing DIMMs or the system components. Step 1. Unlock a DIMM slot by pressing the retaining clips outward. Step 2. Align a DIMM on the slot such that the notch on the DIMM matches the break on the slot. notch break notch break The DIMM only fits in one correct orientation. It will cause permanent damage to the motherboard and the DIMM if you force the DIMM into the slot at incorrect orientation. Step 3.
2.4 Expansion Slots (PCI and PCI Express Slots) There are 2 PCI slots and 2 PCI Express slots on this motherboard. PCI Slots: PCI slots are used to install expansion cards that have the 32-bit PCI interface. PCIE Slots: PCIE1 (PCIE x1 slot) is used for PCI Express x1 lane width graphics cards. PCIE2 (PCIE x16 slot) is used for PCI Express x16 lane width graphics cards. Installing an expansion card Step 1. Step 2. Step 3. Step 4. Step 5. Step 6.
2.5 Multi Monitor Feature This motherboard supports multi monitor feature. With the internal VGA output support and the external add-on PCI Express VGA card, you can easily enjoy the benefits of multi monitor feature. Please refer to the following steps to set up a surround display environment: 1. Install the PCI Express VGA cards on PCIE2 slot. Please refer to page 18 for proper expansion card installation procedures for details. 2. Connect D-Sub monitor cable to VGA port on the I/O panel.
D. Click “Extend my Windows desktop onto this monitor”. E. Right-click the display icon and select “Attached”, if necessary. F. Set the “Screen Resolution” and “Color Quality” as appropriate for the second monitor. Click “Apply” or “OK” to apply these new values. G. Repeat steps C through E for the diaplay icon identified by the number one, two and three.
2.6 Jumpers Setup The illustration shows how jumpers are setup. When the jumper cap is placed on pins, the jumper is “Short”. If no jumper cap is placed on pins, the jumper is “Open”. The illustration shows a 3-pin jumper whose pin1 and pin2 are “Short” when jumper cap is placed on these 2 pins. Jumper Setting Clear CMOS Jumper Description (CLRCMOS1) (see p.12, No. 7) Default Clear CMOS Note: CLRCMOS1 allows you to clear the data in CMOS.
2.7 Onboard Headers and Connectors Onboard headers and connectors are NOT jumpers. Do NOT place jumper caps over these headers and connectors. Placing jumper caps over the headers and connectors will cause permanent damage of the motherboard! Floppy Connector (33-pin FLOPPY1) (see p.12 No. 20) the red-striped side to Pin1 Note: Make sure the red-striped side of the cable is plugged into Pin1 side of the connector. Primary IDE connector (39-pin IDE1, see p.12 No.
Serial ATA (SATA) Data Cable Either end of the SATA data cable can be connected to the (Optional) SATA2 hard disk or the SATA2 connector on this motherboard. USB 2.0 Headers (9-pin USB4_5) (see p.12 No. 18) USB_PWR P-4 P+4 GND DUMMY 1 GND P+5 P-5 USB_PWR Besides four default USB 2.0 ports on the I/O panel, there are three USB 2.0 headers on this motherboard. Each USB 2.0 header can support two USB 2.0 ports. (9-pin USB6_7) (see p.12 No. 17) (9-pin USB8_9) (see p.12 No.
For Windows® 8 / 8 64-bit / 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64-bit OS: Go to the "FrontMic" Tab in the Realtek Control panel. Adjust “Recording Volume”. SPDIF Out Connector (2-pin SPDIF_OUT1) (see p.12 No. 24) Please connect the SPDIF_OUT connector of a HDMI VGA card to this header with a cable. 1 GND SPDIFOUT System Panel Header (9-pin PANEL1) (see p.12 No. 19) This header accommodates several system front panel functions.
Chassis Speaker Header (4-pin SPEAKER 1) Please connect the chassis speaker to this header. (see p.12, No. 13) Infrared Module Header (5-pin IR1) (see p.12, No. 21) Print Port Header (25-pin LPT1) (see p.12 No. 23) This header supports an optional wireless transmitting and receiving infrared module. AFD# ERROR# PINIT# SLIN# GND 1 SPD7 SPD6 ACK# SPD5 BUSY SPD4 PE SPD3 SLCT SPD2 SPD1 SPD0 STB# Chassis Intrusion Header (2-pin CI1) (see p.12 No.
CPU Fan Connector FAN_SPEED_CONTROL (4-pin CPU_FAN1) CPU_FAN_SPEED Please connect the CPU fan cable to the connector and (see p.12 No. 4) match the black wire to the ground pin. +12V GND 1 2 3 4 Though this motherboard provides 4-Pin CPU fan (Quiet Fan) support, the 3-Pin CPU fan still can work successfully even without the fan speed control function. If you plan to connect the 3-Pin CPU fan to the CPU fan connector on this motherboard, please connect it to Pin 1-3.
2.8 Serial ATA2 (SATA2) Hard Disks Installation This motherboard adopts AMD SB710 chipset that supports Serial ATA2 (SATA2) hard disks and RAID (RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 10 and JBOD) functions. You may install SATA2 hard disks on this motherboard for internal storage devices. This section will guide you to install the SATA2 hard disks. STEP 1: Install the SATA2 hard disks into the drive bays of your chassis. STEP 2: Connect the SATA power cable to the SATA2 hard disk.
2.10 Driver Installation Guide To install the drivers to your system, please insert the support CD to your optical drive first. Then, the drivers compatible to your system can be auto-detected and listed on the support CD driver page. Please follow the order from up to bottom side to install those required drivers. Therefore, the drivers you install can work properly. 2.
STEP 3: Use “RAID Installation Guide” to set RAID configuration. Before you start to configure RAID function, you need to check the RAID installation guide in the Support CD for proper configuration. Please refer to the BIOS RAID installation guide part of the document in the following path in the Support CD: .. \ RAID Installation Guide STEP 4: Install Windows® XP / XP 64-bit OS on your system. After step 1, 2, 3, you can start to install Windows® XP / XP 64-bit OS on your system.
2.12 Installing Windows® 8 / 8 64-bit / 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64-bit / XP / XP 64-bit Without RAID Functions If you want to install Windows® 8 / 8 64-bit / 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64-bit / XP / XP 64-bit OS on your SATA / SATA2 HDDs without RAID functions, please follow below procedures according to the OS you install. 2.12.
2.12.2 Installing Windows® 8 / 8 64-bit / 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64-bit Without RAID Functions If you want to install Windows® 8 / 8 64-bit / 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64-bit on your SATA / SATA2 HDDs without RAID functions, please follow below steps. Using SATA / SATA2 HDDs with NCQ and Hot Plug functions (AHCI mode) STEP 1: Set up BIOS. A. Enter BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced screen Storage Configuration. B. Set the “SATA Operation Mode” option to [AHCI].
3. BIOS SETUP UTILITY 3.1 Introduction This section explains how to use the BIOS SETUP UTILITY to configure your system. The SPI Memory on the motherboard stores the BIOS SETUP UTILITY. You may run the BIOS SETUP UTILITY when you start up the computer. Please press or during the Power-On-Self-Test (POST) to enter the BIOS SETUP UTILITY, otherwise, POST will continue with its test routines.
3.1.2 Navigation Keys Please check the following table for the function description of each navigation key.
3.3 OC Tweaker Screen In the OC Tweaker screen, you can set up overclocking features. Main OC Tweaker BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced H/W Monitor Boot CPU Configuration Overclock Mode CPU Frequency (MHz) PCIE Frequency (MHz) Spread Spectrum Boot Failure Guard Boot Failure Guard Count Advanced Clock Calibration Processor Maximum Frequency North Bridge Maximum Frequency Processor Maximum Voltage Multiplier/Voltage Change HT Bus Speed HT Bus Width [Auto] [400] [100] [Auto] [Enabled] [3] [Disabled] x31.
North Bridge Maximum Frequency It will display North Bridge Maximum Frequency for reference. Processor Maximum Voltage It will display Processor Maximum Voltage for reference. Multiplier/Voltage Change This item is set to [Auto] by default. If it is set to [Manual], you may adjust the value of Processor Frequency and Processor Voltage. However, it is recommended to keep the default value for system stability.
You can set one of the standard values as listed for DDR3 memory modules: [400MHz DDR3_800], [533MHz DDR3_1066], [667MHz DDR3_1333] and [800MHz DDR3_1600]. DRAM Voltage Use this to select DRAM voltage. The default value is [Auto].
TRC Use this to adjust TRC values. The default value is [Auto]. TWR Use this to adjust TWR values. The default value is [Auto]. TRFC Use this to adjust TRFC values. The default value is [Auto]. TRRD Use this to adjust TRRD values. The default value is [Auto]. TWTR Use this to adjust TWTR values. The default value is [Auto]. TRTP Use this to adjust TRTP values. The default value is [Auto]. Chipset Settings NB Voltage Use this to select NB voltage. The default value is [Auto].
3.4 Advanced Screen In this section, you may set the configurations for the following items: CPU Configuration, Chipset Configuration, ACPI Configuration, Storage Configuration, PCIPnP Configuration, Floppy Configuration, Super IO Configuration and USB Configuration. Main BIOS SETUP UTILITY Boot OC Tweaker Advanced H/W Monitor Advanced Settings Security Exit Options for CPU WARNING : Setting wrong values in below sections may cause system to malfunction.
3.4.1 CPU Configuration BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced CPU Configuration Cool' n' Quiet Secure Virtual Machine Enhanced Halt State(C1E) CPU HTC CPU Thermal Throttle [Enabled] [Enabled] [Disabled] [Enabled] [Auto] +F1 F9 F10 ESC Select Screen Select Item Change Option General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit v02.54 (C) Copyright 1985-2003, American Megatrends, Inc. Cool ‘n’ Quiet Use this item to enable or disable AMD’s Cool ‘n’ QuietTM technology. The default value is [Enabled].
3.4.2 Chipset Configuration BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced Chipset Settings Onboard HD Audio Front Panel Onboard Lan Primary Graphics Adapter [Auto] [Auto] [Enabled] [PCI] +F1 F9 F10 ESC Select Screen Select Item Change Option General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit v02.54 (C) Copyright 1985-2003, American Megatrends, Inc. Onboard HD Audio Select [Auto], [Enabled] or [Disabled] for the onboard HD Audio feature.
3.4.3 ACPI Configuration BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced ACPI Settings Suspend To RAM Check Ready Bit Away Mode Support [Auto] [Auto] [Disabled] Restore on AC / Power Loss Ring-In Power On PCI Devices Power On PS / 2 Keyboard Power On RTC Alarm Power On [Power Off] [Disabled] [Disabled] [Disabled] [By OS] ACPI HPET Table [Enabled] Select auto-detect or disable the STR feature. +F1 F9 F10 ESC Select Screen Select Item Change Option General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit v02.
ACPI HPET table Use this item to enable or disable ACPI HPET Table. The default value is [Enabled]. Please set this option to [Enabled] if you plan to use this motherboard to submit Windows® certification.
3.4.4 Storage Configuration BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced Configure onboard serial ATA controller. Storage Configuration Onboard SATA Controller SATA Operation Mode SATA IDE Combined Mode IDE1 Master IDE1 Slave SATAII_1 SATAII_2 SATAII_3 SATAII_4 SATAII_5 SATAII_6 [Enabled] [AHCI] [Enabled] [Hard Disk] [Not Detected] [Not Detected] [Not Detected] +F1 F9 F10 ESC Select Screen Select Item Change Option General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit v02.54 (C) Copyright 1985-2003, American Megatrends, Inc.
3.4.5 PCIPnP Configuration BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced Value in units of PCI clocks for PCI device latency timer register. Advanced PCI / PnP Settings PCI Latency Timer PCI IDE BusMaster [32] [Enabled] +F1 F9 F10 ESC Select Screen Select Item Change Option General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit v02.54 (C) Copyright 1985-2003, American Megatrends, Inc. Setting wrong values in this section may cause the system to malfunction. PCI Latency Timer The default value is 32.
3.4.6 Floppy Configuration In this section, you may configure the type of your floppy drive. BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced Floppy Configuration Floppy A Select the type of floppy drive connected to the system. [Disabled] +F1 F9 F10 ESC Select Screen Select Item Change Option General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit v02.54 (C) Copyright 1985-2003, American Megatrends, Inc.
3.4.7 Super IO Configuration BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced Configure Super IO Chipset OnBoard Floppy Controller Serial Port Address Infrared Port Address Allow BIOS to Enable or Disable Floppy Controller. [Disabled] [3F8/IRQ4] [Disabled] +F1 F9 F10 ESC Select Screen Select Item Change Option General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit v02.54 (C) Copyright 1985-2003, American Megatrends, Inc. OnBoard Floppy Controller Use this item to enable or disable floppy drive controller.
3.4.8 USB Configuration BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced USB Configuration USB 2.0 Controller USB 2.0 Support Legacy USB Support [Enabled] [Enabled] [Enabled] USB Keyboard/Remote Power On USB Mouse Power On [Disabled] [Disabled] To enable or disable the onboard USB controllers. +F1 F9 F10 ESC Select Screen Select Item Change Option General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit v02.54 (C) Copyright 1985-2005, American Megatrends, Inc. USB 2.
3.5 Hardware Health Event Monitoring Screen In this section, it allows you to monitor the status of the hardware on your system, including the parameters of the CPU temperature, motherboard temperature, CPU fan speed, chassis fan speed, and the critical voltage. Main OC Tweaker BIOS SETUP UTILITY Boot Advanced H/W Monitor Hardware Health Event Monitoring CPU Temperature M / B Temperature : 37 C / 98 F : 27 C / 80 F CPU Fan Speed Chassis Fan Speed Power Fan Speed : 4722 RPM : N/A Vcore + 3.30V + 5.
3.6 Boot Screen In this section, it will display the available devices on your system for you to configure the boot settings and the boot priority. Main OC Tweaker BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced H/W Monitor Boot Boot Settings Exit Configure Settings during System Boot.
3.7 Security Screen In this section, you may set or change the supervisor/user password for the system. For the user password, you may also clear it. Main OC Tweaker BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced H/W Monitor Boot Security Settings Supervisor Password User Password Security Exit Install or Change the password. : Not Installed : Not Installed Change Supervisor Password Change User Password Enter F1 F9 F10 ESC Select Screen Select Item Change General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit v02.
3.8 Exit Screen Main OC Tweaker BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced H/W Monitor Boot Exit Options Security Exit Exit system setup after saving the changes. Save Changes and Exit Discard Changes and Exit Discard Changes F10 key can be used for this operation. Load BIOS Defaults Load Performance Setup Default Load Power Saving Setup Default Enter F1 F9 F10 ESC Select Screen Select Item Go to Sub Screen General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit v02.54 (C) Copyright 1985-2005, American Megatrends, Inc.
4. Software Support 4.1 Install Operating System This motherboard supports various Microsoft® Windows® operating systems: 8 / 8 64-bit / 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64-bit / XP / XP Media Center / XP 64-bit. Because motherboard settings and hardware options vary, use the setup procedures in this chapter for general reference only. Refer to your OS documentation for more information. 4.
