Problems and Questions after flashing UEFI BIOS

[genegold]

GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 (1.3) and Win 8/7 dual boot. Flashing the UEFI went fine and Win 8 started well a couple of times, with the BIOS still set on Optimized Defaults. Then I tried to change some settings per the previous versions and my memory's specs. That's when some problems started and Windows 8 wouldn't fully boot. Eventually, I had to reset optimized settings, let Windows restore and then it booted (though now hanging on the Welcome/User Acct screen for 25 secons).

First, here's what I changed:

- BIOS Features: changed HDD BBS Priorites - the order of second and third choices

- Peripherals: - changed SATA mode Selector from IDE to ACHI (this was a mistake and likely what caused the problem - the OS drive is an SSD and GSATA is on a different screen- Marvell ATA Controller Configuration)
- disabled Legacy USB support

- Power Management: changed Power on by Mouse from Disabled to Double Click

Note: UEFI BIOS screens are very different than the previous versions and there's no manual update to help.


Here's what I wanted to change and coudn't:

- M.I.T.\Advanced Frequency Settings: couldn't change memory multiplier from 1.60 to 1.88 (the setting for the G.Skill Ares in 12 and earlier)
\Advanced Memory Settings: couldn't change memory multiplier (same)

RAM is in alternating slots is 2x4GB of G.Skill Sniper DDR3-2133 (slot 1-3) and 2x4GB of G.Skill Ares DDR-2133 (slot 2-4) - see screenshot
Sniper: G.SKILL- World leading DDR3 computer memory and SSD manufacturer -Products
Ares: G.SKILL- World leading DDR3 computer memory and SSD manufacturer -Products

- In general, these and many other settings are highlighted and look changeable but were not; i.e., I got no response via tab or mouse

Gigabyte Splash Screen on start up: I didn't see a timer setting, but on cold boot, it sits there for about five seconds (good), but on reboots there is no splash screen; it goes straight to Windows 8 (not good).

Any thoughts about the memory settings and splash screen on reboot? Thanks,

[profJim]

Mixing two different memory kits? Oh joy!
Try changing memory settings with only one kit installed at a time.
It will help if you post both full SPD screen-shots where all of the memory timings and voltages are displayed for each kit's memory speed .

[genegold]

I was asked for a cropped CPU-Z shot, which I wrongly assumed meant a partial shot. The voltages look identical. When you say one at a time, do you mean set one pair, pull and set the other pair, then put all back in and see what happens? thanks,

[profJim]

When I said to post cropped screen-shots, I meant to NOT include the full desktop as many do.
Yes, try making changes with only one kit installed at a time.
It's possible that one kit is faulty, or that you'll need to tweak memory settings with both kits installed.

Have you done any stress testing with Memtest86+ from a bootable usb or optical disk?
Have you run Prime95 in windows to insure that each kit is stable?
If yes to either question, how long did you run the test(s)?
With your new UEFI bios, you might need some additional tweaks to get your memory working.

Send a PM to Matt (G.Skill Tech Support) in the G.Skill forum, include a link to this thread, and see if he has any other suggestions.

[genegold]

Thanks for your advice; I'll look into it further and I did pm the admin at the GSkill forum. Something that I didn't state clearly is that I'd been using the Ares version set at 1.88 for many months without problem with F11 and then F12 BIOS versions. Then, after setting up Win 8 over the weekend, I received and installed the Sniper pair Monday and didn't experience any problems. The memory multiplier was still set at 1.88. It was only after flashing UEFI that I ran into the inability to change the multiplier. And I should emphasize that the multiplier settings are far from the only ones that are highlighted, as if they can be changed, but don't respond (some do, of course). There is the possibility that the problem has nothing to do with the memory, but with the UEFI BIOS module itself.

[wazza300]

you cant flash back to previous working bios?

[genegold]

I haven't tried, but let's keep this in perspective. I'm not a gamer, so the difference between 1.60 and 1.88 is not a big deal. What caught my attention more was that the ability to adjust those, along with others, is not there. That doesn't seem right. The memory multiplier is just the one that stood out to me.

[genegold]

I posed the problem about settings over on the Gigabyte Community forum and the mod had the answer: use Page Up/Page Down. Who would have known that? This and other UEFI BIOS setting are documented in the Z77 manual.