Asus A88XPLUS manual

Motherboard A88X-PLUS[...]

ii E8563 First Edition August 2013 Copyright © 2013 ASUST eK COMPUTER INC. All Rights Reserved. No part of this manual, including the products and software described in it, may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language in any form or by any means, except documentation kept by the purchas[...]

iii Contents Safety information ...................................................................................... iv About this guide ......................................................................................... iv Package contents ....................................................................................... vi A88X-PLUS [...]

iv Safety information Electrical safety T o prevent electrical shock hazard, disconnect the power cable from the electrical outlet before relocating the system. When adding or removing devices to or from the system, ensure that the power cables for the devices are unplugged before the signal cables are connected. If possible, disconnect all power c[...]

v Where to nd more information Refer to the following sources for additional information and for product and software updates. 1. ASUS websites The ASUS website provides updated information on ASUS hardware and software products. Refer to the ASUS contact information. 2. Optional documentation Y our product package may include optional documenta[...]

vi (continued on the next page) Package contents Check your motherboard package for the following items. Motherboard ASUS A88X-PLUS motherboard Cables 2 x S erial A T A 6.0 Gb/ s cables Accessories 1 x I/O Shield Application DVD Support DVD Documentation User Guide If any of the above items is damaged or missing, contact your retailer . A88X-PLUS s[...]

vii (continued on the next page) Storage AMD ® A88X FCH (Bolton D4) chipset: - 8 x Serial A T A 6 Gb/s connectors (yellow) with RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 and JBOD support Audio Realtek ® ALC887-VD 7.1-Channel High Denition Audio CODEC - Optical S/PDIF out port at back I/O - Supports Jack-Detection, Multi-Streaming, and Front Panel Jack-Retasking USB AM[...]

viii A88X-PLUS specications summary Specications are subject to change without notice. Back panel I/O ports 1 x PS/2 keyboard/mouse combo port 1 x HDMI port 1 x DVI port 1 x D-Sub output port 1 x LAN (RJ-45) port 4 x USB 2.0/1.1 ports 2 x USB 3.0 ports (blue) 5 x Audio jacks (Line in, Front Speaker Out, Mic in, Center/Subwoofer, Rear Speaker [...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-1 Product introduction 1 1.1 Before you proceed T ake note of the following precautions before you install motherboard components or change any motherboard settings. • Unplug the power cord from the wall socket before touching any component. • Before handling components, use a grounded wrist strap or touch a safely grounded obj[...]

1-2 Chapter 1: Product introduction A88X-PLUS Place this side towards the rear of the chassis 1.2.3 Motherboard layout A88X-PLUS PCIEX16_1 PCIEX16_2 PCIEX1_1 PCIEX1_2 PCI1 PCI2 PCI3 USB910 USB78 USB56 AAFP EATXPWR CHA_FAN2 CPU_FAN GPU_LED GPU_Boost BATTERY Super I/O ALC 887 RTL 8111G KBMS_USB34 HDMI DVI_VGA 8Mb BIOS SB_PWR CLRTC 22.6cm(8.9in) AMD ?[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-3 1.2.4 Layout contents A88X-PLUS A88X-PLUS CPU socket FM2+ 1.3 Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) This motherboard comes with a FM2+ socket designed for AMD ® A-series and Athlon™ processors. Ensure that you use an APU designed for the FM2+ socket. The APU ts in only one correct orientation. DO NOT force the APU into the sock[...]

1-4 Chapter 1: Product introduction 1.3.1 APU installation 1 4 3 2[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-5 1 2 5 3 4 1.3.2 APU heatsink and fan assembly installation Apply the Thermal Interface Material to the APU heatsink and APU before you install the heatsink and fan if necessary . T o install the APU heatsink and fan assembly[...]

1-6 Chapter 1: Product introduction T o uninstall the APU heatsink and fan assembly 5 3 1 4 2[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-7 1.4.2 Memory congurations Y ou may install 1GB, 2GB, 4GB, and 8GB unbuffered non-ECC DDR3 DIMMs into the DIMM sockets. • Y ou may install varying memory sizes in Channel A and Channel B. The system maps the total size of the lower-sized channel for the dual-channel conguration. Any excess memory from the higher-sized chan[...]

1-8 Chapter 1: Product introduction • The default memory operation frequency is dependent on its Serial Presence Detect (SPD), which is the standard way of accessing information from a memory module. Under the default state, some memory modules for overclocking may operate at a lower frequency than the vendor-marked value. T o operate at the vend[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-9 1.5 Expansion slots In the future, you may need to install expansion cards. The following sub-sections describe the slots and the expansion cards that they support. Unplug the power cord before adding or removing expansion cards. Failure to do so may cause you physical injury and damage motherboard components. 1.5.1 Installing an[...]

1-10 Chapter 1: Product introduction 1.5.3 PCI slot The PCI slot supports cards such as a LAN card, SCSI card, USB card, and other cards that comply with PCI specications. 1.5.4 PCI Express 2.0 x1 slot This motherboard supports PCI Express x1 network cards, SCSI cards, and other cards that comply with the PCI Express specications. 1.5.5 PCI E[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-1 1 1.6 Jumpers 1. Clear RTC RAM (3-pin CLRTC) This jumper allows you to clear the Real T ime Clock (RTC) RAM in CMOS. Y ou can clear the CMOS memory of date, time, and system setup parameters by erasing the CMOS RTC RAM data. The onboard button cell battery powers the RAM data in CMOS, which include system setup information such a[...]

1-12 Chapter 1: Product introduction 1.7 Connectors 1.7.1 Rear panel connectors 3 11 10 2 12 1 14 13 4 5 6 7 8 9 1. PS/2 keyboard/mouse combo port. This port is for a PS/2 keybaord or mouse. 2. V ideo Graphics Adapter (VGA) port. This 15-pin port is for a VGA monitor or other VGA-compatible devices. 3. LAN (RJ-45) port. This port allows Gigabit con[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-13 9. Optical S/PDIF Out port. This port connects an external audio output device via an optical S/PDIF cable. 10. USB 2.0 ports 1 and 2. These two 4-pin Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports are for USB 2.0/1.1 devices. 1 1. USB 3.0 ports 1 and 2 . These two 9-pin Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports are for USB 3.0/2.0 devices. • DO NOT[...]

1-14 Chapter 1: Product introduction 1.7.2 Internal connectors 1. CPU and chassis fan connectors (4-pin CPU_F AN, and 4-pin CHA_F AN) Conn ect th e fan c ables to the fan co nnecto rs o n the motherb oard, ensuring tha t the blac k wire of eac h cabl e match es the groun d pi n of t he conn ector. • The CPU_F AN connector supports a CPU fan of ma[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-15 3. A TX power connectors (24-pin EA TXPWR, 4-pin A TX12V) These connectors are for an A TX power supply . The plugs from the power supply are designed to t these connectors in only one orientation. Find the proper orientation and push down rmly until the connectors completely t. • We recommend that you use an A TX 12V[...]

1-16 Chapter 1: Product introduction 3. Serial A T A 6.0 Gb/s connectors (7-pin SA T A6G 1~8) These connectors are for the Serial A T A 6.0 Gb/s signal cables for Serial A T A hard disk drives and optical disc drives. If you installed Serial A T A hard disk drives, you can create a RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 10 and JBOD conguration through the[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-17 4. System panel connector (20-8 pin P ANEL) This connector supports several chassis-mounted functions. A88X-PLUS PIN 1 * Requires an ATX power supply PWR_LED SPEAKER PWR_LED+ PWR_LED- +5V Ground Ground Speaker HDD_LED+ HDD_LED- PWR Ground Reset Ground PANEL HDD_LED PWRSW RESET A88X-PLUS System panel connector • System power LE[...]

1-18 Chapter 1: Product introduction • W e recommend that you connect a high-denition front panel audio module to this connector to avail of the motherboard high-denition audio capability . • If you want to connect a high denition front panel audio module to this connector , set the Front Panel T ype item in the BIOS to [HD] . See sect[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-19 7. USB 2.0 connectors (10-1 pin USB56, USB78, USB910) These connectors are for USB 2.0 ports. Connect the USB module cable to any of these connectors, then install the module to a slot opening at the back of the system chassis. These USB connectors comply with USB 2.0 specication that supports up to 480Mbps connection speed. [...]

1-20 Chapter 1: Product introduction 1. MemOK! switch Installing DIMMs that are incompatible with the motherboard may cause system boot failure, and the DRAM_LED near the MemOK! switch lights continuously . Press and hold the MemOK! switch until the DRAM_LED starts blinking to begin automatic memory compatibility tuning for successful boot. • Ref[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-21 SB_PWR ON Standby Power Powered Off OFF A88X-PLUS A88X-PLUS Onboard LED 2. GPU Boost switch This switch allows you to enable or disable the GPU Boost function. A88X-PLUS A88X-PLUS GPU Boost switch GPU Boost 1.10 Onboard LEDs 1. Standby Power LED The motherboard comes with a standby power LED that lights up to indicate that the s[...]

1-22 Chapter 1: Product introduction 2. DRAM LED DRAM LED checks the DRAM in sequence during motherboard booting process. If an error is found , the LED next to the error device will continue lighting until the problem is solved. This user-friendly design provides an intuitional way to locate the root problem within a second. A88X-PLUS A88X-PLUS DR[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-23 1.1 1 Software support 1.1 1.1 Installing an operating system This motherboard supports Windows ® XP / Windows ® 7 / 64-bit Windows ® 7 / Windows ® 8 / 64-bit Windows ® 8 Operating Systems (OS). Always install the latest OS version and corresponding updates to maximize the features of your hardware. • Motherboard settings[...]

1-24 Chapter 1: Product introduction[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-1 BIOS information 2 2.1 Managing and updating your BIOS Save a copy of the original motherboard BIOS le to a USB ash disk in case you need to restore the BIOS in the future. Copy the original motherboard BIOS using the ASUS Update utility . 2.1.1 EZ Update EZ Update is a utility that allows you to automatically update your m[...]

2-2 Chapter 2: BIOS information 2.1.2 ASUS EZ Flash 2 The ASUS EZ Flash 2 feature allows you to update the BIOS without using an OS-based utility . Before you start using this utility , download the latest BIOS le from the ASUS website at www .asus.com. T o update the BIOS using EZ Flash 2: 1. Insert the USB ash disk that contains the latest [...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-3 2.1.3 ASUS CrashFree BIOS 3 utility The ASUS CrashFree BIOS 3 is an auto recovery tool that allows you to restore the BIOS le when it fails or gets corrupted during the updating process. Y ou can restore a corrupted BIOS le using the motherboard support DVD or a USB ash drive that contains the updated BIOS le. • Bef[...]

2-4 Chapter 2: BIOS information Booting the system to a DOS environment 1. Insert the USB ash drive with the latest BIOS le and BIOS Updater to the USB port. 2. Boot your computer . When the ASUS Logo appears, press <F8> to show the BIOS Boot Device Select Menu . Insert the support DVD into the optical drive and select the optical drive[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-5 3. Press <T ab> to switch between screen elds and use the <Up/Down/Home/End> keys to select the BIOS le and press <Enter>. BIOS Updater checks the selected BIOS le and prompts you to conrm BIOS update. 4. Select Y es and press <Enter>. When BIOS update is done, press <ESC> to exit BIOS Up[...]

2-6 Chapter 2: BIOS information Using the power button , reset button , or the <Ctrl>+<Alt>+<Del> keys to force reset from a running operating system can cause damage to your data or system. We recommend to always shut down the system properly from the operating system. 2.2 BIOS setup program Use the BIOS Setup program to update t[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-7 • The boot device options vary depending on the devices you installed to the system. • The Boot Menu(F8) button is available only when the boot device is installed to the system. Advanced Mode The Advanced Mode provides advanced options for experienced end-users to congure the BIOS settings. The gure below shows an exam[...]

2-8 Chapter 2: BIOS information Menu bar The menu bar on top of the screen has the following main items: My Favorites For saving the frequently-used system settings and conguration Main For changing the basic system conguration Ai T weaker For changing the overclocking settings Advanced For changing the advanced system settings Monitor For di[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-9 Pop-up window Select a menu item and press <Enter> to display a pop-up window with the conguration options for that item. Scroll bar A scroll bar appears on the right side of a menu screen when there are items that do not t on the screen. Press the Up/Down arrow keys or <Page Up> / <Page Down> keys to disp[...]

2-10 Chapter 2: BIOS information Adding items to My Favorites T o add frequently-used BIOS items to My Favorites: 1. Use the arrow keys to select an item that you want to add. When using a mouse, hover the pointer to the item. 2. Press <F4> on your keyboard or right-click on your mouse to add the item to My Favorites page. Y ou cannot add the[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-1 1 2.4 Main menu The Main menu screen appears when you enter the Advanced Mode of the BIOS Setup program. The Main menu provides you an overview of the basic system information, and allows you to set the system date, time, language, and security settings. 2.4.1 System Language [English] Allows you to choose the BIOS language versi[...]

2-12 Chapter 2: BIOS information 3. Conrm the password when prompted. T o change an administrator password: 1. Select the Administrator Password item and press <Enter>. 2. From the Enter Current Password box, key in the current password, then press <Enter>. 3. From the Create New Password box, key in a new password, then press <En[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-13 2.5 Ai T weaker menu The Ai T weaker menu items allow you to congure overclocking-related items. Be cautious when changing the settings of the Ai T weaker menu items. Incorrect eld values can cause the system to malfunction. The conguration options for this section vary depending on the CPU and DIMM model you installed [...]

2-14 Chapter 2: BIOS information T arget CPU Speed : xxxxMHz Displays the current CPU speed. T arget DRAM Speed : xxxxMHz Displays the current DRAM speed. 2.5.1 Ai Overclock T uner [Auto] Allows you to select the CPU overclocking options to achieve the desired CPU internal frequency . Select any of these preset overclocking conguration options: [...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-15 2.5.6 GPU Boost [Auto] Allows you to enable the GPU Boost to accelerate the integrated GPU for extreme graphics performance. Conguration options: [Auto] [T urbo Mode] [Extreme Mode] [Manual Mode]. GPU Engine Frequency [Auto] This item appears only when the GPU Boost is set to [Manual Mode] and allows you to set the GPU Engine[...]

2-16 Chapter 2: BIOS information 2.5.10 DRAM V oltage [Auto] Allows you to set the DRAM voltage. The values range from 1.35V to 1.70V with a 0.005V interval. 2.5.1 1 SB 1.1V V oltage [Auto] Allows you to set the Southbridge 1.1V voltage. The values range from 1.10V to 1.20V with a 0.01V interval. 2.4.12 1.1VSB V oltage [Auto] Allows you to set the [...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-17 CPU/NB Current Capability [100%] This item provides wider total power range for overclocking. A higher value brings a wider total power range and extends the overclocking frequency range simultaneously . Conguration options: [100%] [1 10%] [120%] [130%] CPU Power Phase Control [Standard] Phase number is the number of working [...]

2-18 Chapter 2: BIOS information Be cautious when changing the settings of the Advanced menu items. Incorrect eld values can cause the system to malfunction. 2.6 Advanced menu The Advanced menu items allow you to change the settings for the CPU and other system devices. 2.6.1 CPU Conguration The items in this menu show the CPU-related informa[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-19 Bank Interleaving [Enabled] Enables or disables the bank memory interleaving. Conguration options: [Enabled] [Disabled] Channel Interleaving [Enabled] Enables or disables the channel memory interleaving. Conguration options: [Enabled] [Disabled] Core Leveling Mode [Automatic mode] Allows you to change the number of working[...]

2-20 Chapter 2: BIOS information S.M.A.R.T . Status Check [Enabled] S.M.A.R.T . (Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting T echnology) is a monitor system. When read/write of your hard disk errors occur , this feature allows the hard disk to report warning messages during the POST . Conguration options: [Enabled] [Disabled] 2.6.3 USB Congurati[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-21 Primary Video Device [PCIE / PCI V ideo] Selects the primary display device. Conguration options: [IGFX Video] [PCIE / PCI V ideo] Integrated Graphics [Auto] Enables the integrated graphics controller . Conguration options: [Auto] [Force] UMA Frame Buffer Size [Auto] This item appears only when you set the previous item to[...]

2-22 Chapter 2: BIOS information 2.6.6 APM Deep S4 [Disabled] Allows you to enable or disable entering deep S4 sleep mode. The system in deep S4 state can be woken up via power button, devices in LAN, or other ways except the USB and PS/2 devices. Conguration options: [Enabled] [Disabled] Restore AC Power Loss [Power Off] [Power On] The system g[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-23 2.6.7 Network Stack Network Stack [Disabled] This item allows user to disable or enable the UEFI network stack. Conguration options: [Disabled] [Enabled] The following two items appear only when you set the previous item to [Enabled]. Ipv4 PXE Support [Enabled] This item allows user to disable or enable the Ipv4 PXE Boot supp[...]

2-24 Chapter 2: BIOS information 2.7.1 CPU T emperature / MB T emperature [xxxºC/xxxºF] The onboard hardware monitor automatically detects and displays the CPU and motherboard temperatures. Select Ignore if you do not wish to display the detected temperatures. 2.7.2 CPU / Chassis Fan 1/2 Speed [xxxx RPM] or [Ignore] / [N/A] The onboard hardware m[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-25 Q-Fan Lower T emperature [20] Use the <+> and <-> keys to adjust the lower limit of the CPU temperature. The values range from 20ºC to 75ºC. Q-Fan Min. Duty Cycle(%) [20] Use the <+> and <-> keys to adjust the minimum CPU fan duty cycle. The values range from 0% to 100%. When the CPU temperature is unde[...]

2-26 Chapter 2: BIOS information 2.7.6 Anti Surge Support [Auto] This item allows you to enable or disable the Anti Surge function. Conguration options: [Auto] [Disabled] [Enabled] 2.8 Boot menu The Boot menu items allow you to change the system boot options. Scroll down to display the following items:[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-27 2.8.1 Fast Boot [Enabled] [Enabled] Select to accelerate the boot speed. [Disabled] Select to go back to normal boot. The following four items appear when you set Fast Boot to [Enabled]. SA T A Support [All Devices] [All Devices] All devices connected to SA T A ports will be available during POST . This process will extend the P[...]

2-28 Chapter 2: BIOS information 2.8.2 Boot Logo Display [Auto] [Auto] Adjust automatically for Windows® requrement. [Full Screen] Maximize the boot logo size. [Disabled] Hide the logo during POST . POST Delay Time [3 sec] This item appears only when you set Full Screen Logo to [Enabled]. This item allows you to select the desired additional POST [...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-29 [Enabled] For better compatibility , enable the CSM to fully support the non-UEFI driver add-on devices or the Windows ® UEFI mode. [Disabled] Disable the CSM to fully support the Windows ® Security Update and Security Boot. The following four items appear when you set Launch CSM to [Enabled]. Boot Device Control [UEFI and Leg[...]

2-30 Chapter 2: BIOS information Install Default Secure Boot keys Allows you to immediately load the default Security Boot keys, Platform key (PK), Key-exchange Key (KEK), Signature database (db), and Revoked Signatures (dbx). When the default Secure boot keys are loaded, the PK state will change from Unloaded mode to loaded mode. Clear Secure Boot[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-31 Allows you to delete the db le from your system. Conguration options: [Y es] [No] Load db from File Allows you to load the downloaded db from a USB storage device. Append db from le Allows you to load the additional db from a storage device so that more images can be loaded securely . The DB le must be formatted as a[...]

2-32 Chapter 2: BIOS information 2.9 T ools menu The T ools menu items allow you to congure options for special functions. Select an item then press <Enter> to display the submenu. 2.9.1 ASUS EZ Flash 2 Utility Allows you to run ASUS EZ Flash 2. Press [Enter] to launch the ASUS EZ Flash 2 screen. For more details, see section 2.1.2 ASUS EZ[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS 2-33 2.10 Exit menu The Exit menu items allow you to load the optimal default values for the BIOS items, and save or discard your changes to the BIOS items. Y ou can access the EZ Mode from the Exit menu. Load Optimized Defaults This option allows you to load the default values for each of the parameters on the Setup menus. When you [...]

2-34 Chapter 2: BIOS information[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS A-1 Appendices Notices Federal Communications Commission Statement This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: This device may not cause harmful interference. This device must accept any interference received including interference that may cause undesired operation. This [...]

A-2 Appendices REACH Complying with the REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation, and Restriction of Chemicals) regulatory framework, we published the chemical substances in our products at ASUS REACH website at http://csr .asus.com/english/REACH.htm. DO NOT throw the motherboard in municipal waste. This product has been designed to enable pr[...]

ASUS A88X-PLUS A-3 ASUS contact information ASUST eK COMPUTER INC. Address 15 Li-T e Road, Peitou, T aipei, T aiwan 1 1259 T elephone +886-2-2894-3447 Fax +886-2-2890-7798 E-mail info@asus.com.tw Web site www .asus.com.tw T echnical Support T elephone +86-21-3842991 1 Online support support.asus.com ASUS COMPUTER INTERNA TIONAL (America) Address 80[...]

A-4 Appendices EC Declaration of Conformity We, the undersigned, Manufacturer: ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. Address, City: 4F, No. 150, LI-TE Rd., PEITOU, TAIPEI 112, TAIWAN Country: TAIWAN Authorized repre sentative in Europe: ASUS COMPUTER GmbH Address, City: HARKORT STR. 21-23, 40880 RATINGEN Country: GERMANY declare the following apparatus: Product na[...]