ASRock Z68 Pro3-M User Manual

Z68 Pro3-M

User Manual

Version 1.0

Published April 2011

Copyright©2011 ASRock INC. All rights reserved.

1

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
identifi cation or explanation and to the owners’ benefi t, without intent to infringe.

Disclaimer:

Specifi cations and information contained in this manual are furnished for informa-
tional use only and subject to change without notice, and should not be constructed
as a commitment by ASRock. ASRock assumes no responsibility for any errors or
omissions that may appear in this manual.
With respect to the contents of this manual, ASRock does not provide warranty of
any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to the implied warran­ties or conditions of merchantability or fi tness for a particular purpose.
In no event shall ASRock, its directors, offi cers, employees, or agents be liable for
any indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages (including damages for
loss of profi ts, loss of business, loss of data, interruption of business and the like),
even if ASRock has been advised of the possibility of such damages arising from
any defect or error in the manual or product.

This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the fol­lowing two conditions:
(1) this device may not cause harmful interference, and
(2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that

may cause undesired operation.

CALIFORNIA, USA ONLY

The Lithium battery adopted on this motherboard contains Perchlorate, a toxic
substance controlled in Perchlorate Best Management Practices (BMP) regulations
passed by the California Legislature. When you discard the Lithium battery in Cali­fornia, USA, please follow the related regulations in advance.
“Perchlorate Material-special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlorate”

ASRock Website: http://www.asrock.com

2

Contents

1 Introduction ......................................................... 5

1.1 Package Contents ......................................................... 5

1.2 Specifi cations ................................................................. 6

1.3 Motherboard Layout ....................................................... 12

1.4 I/O

Panel ...................................................................... 13

2 Installation ........................................................... 15

2.1 Screw Holes ................................................................... 15

2.2 Pre-installation Precautions ......................................... 15

2.3 CPU Installation ............................................................. 16

2.4 Installation of Heatsink and CPU fan ............................. 18

2.5 Installation of Memory Modules (DIMM) ........................ 19

2.6 Expansion Slots

2.7 Dual Monitor and Surround Display Features ................ 22

2.8 ASRock Smart Remote Installation Guide ..................... 25

2.9 Jumpers Setup .......................................................... 26

2.10 Onboard Headers and Connectors ............................ 27

2.11 Serial ATA (SATA) / Serial ATAII (SATAII) Hard Disks

Installation .................................................................. 32

2.12 Serial ATA3 (SATA3) Hard Disks Installation ............. 32

2.13 Hot Plug and Hot Swap Functions for SATA / SATAII

HDDs ............................................................................ 33

2.14 Hot Plug and Hot Swap Functions for SATA3 HDDs .... 33

2.15 SATA / SATAII / SATA3 HDD Hot Plug Feature and

Operation Guide ........................................................ 34

2.16 Driver Installation Guide ............................................ 36

2.17 Installing Windows

64-bit / XP / XP 64-bit With RAID Functions .............. 36

2.17.1 Installing Windows® XP / XP 64-bit With RAID

Functions............................................................. 36

2.17.2 Setting Up a “RAID Ready” System ................... 37

2.17.3 Migrating a “RAID Ready” System to RAID 0,

RAID 1 or RAID 5 ................................................ 38

2.17.4 Installing Windows
Vista

2.18 Installing Windows® 7 / 7 64-bit / Vista

/ XP / XP 64-bit Without RAID Functions ................... 40

2.18.1 Installing Windows

Functions............................................................ 40

2.18.2 Installing Windows® 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM /

VistaTM 64-bit Without RAID Functions ............... 41

(PCI and PCI Express Slots)

®

7 / 7 64-bit / Vista

®

TM

64-bit With RAID Functions .................... 39

7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM /

®

XP / XP 64-bit Without RAID

.................... 21

TM

/ VistaTM

TM

/ VistaTM 64-bit

3

3 UEFI SETUP UTILITY ................................................. 42

3.1 Introduction .................................................................... 42

3.1.1 UEFI Menu Bar .................................................... 42

3.1.2 Navigation Keys ................................................... 43

3.2 Main Screen ................................................................... 43

3.3 OC Tweaker Screen ...................................................... 44

3.4 Advanced Screen ........................................................... 48

3.4.1 CPU Confi guration ............................................... 49

3.4.2 North Bridge Confi guration................................... 51

3.4.3 South Bridge Confi guration .................................. 53

3.4.4 Storage Confi guration .......................................... 54

3.4.5 Super IO Confi guration ........................................ 55

3.4.6 ACPI Confi guration............................................... 56

3.4.7 USB Confi guration ............................................... 57

3.5 Hardware Health Event Monitoring Screen ................... 58

3.6 Boot Screen ................................................................... 59

3.7 Security Screen ............................................................. 60

3.8 Exit Screen .................................................................... 61

4 Software Support ................................................. 62

4.1 Install Operating System ................................................ 62

4.2 Support CD Information ................................................. 62

4.2.1 Running Support CD ............................................ 62

4.2.2 Drivers Menu ........................................................ 62

4.2.3 Utilities Menu........................................................ 62

4.2.4 Contact Information .............................................. 62

4

Chapter 1: Introduction

Thank you for purchasing ASRock Z68 Pro3-M 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 confi guration
guide to BIOS setup and information of the Support CD.

Because the motherboard specifi cations and the BIOS software might be
updated, the content of this manual will be subject to change without no­tice. In case any modifi cations of this manual occur, the updated version
will be available on ASRock website without further notice. You may fi nd
the latest VGA cards and CPU support lists on ASRock website as well.
ASRock website http://www.asrock.com
If you require technical support related to this motherboard, please visit
our website for specifi c information about the model you are using.
www.asrock.com/support/index.asp

1.1 Package Contents

ASRock Z68 Pro3-M Motherboard
(Micro ATX Form Factor: 9.6-in x 9.6-in, 24.4 cm x 24.4 cm)
ASRock Z68 Pro3-M Quick Installation Guide
ASRock Z68 Pro3-M Support CD
2 x Serial ATA (SATA) Data Cables (Optional)
1 x I/O Panel Shield

ASRock Reminds You...

To get better performance in Windows® 7 / 7 64-bit / Vista
bit, it is recommended to set the BIOS option in Storage Confi guration to
AHCI mode. For the BIOS setup, please refer to the “User Manual” in our
support CD for details.

TM

/ VistaTM 64-

5

1.2 Specifications

Platform - Micro ATX Form Factor: 9.6-in x 9.6-in, 24.4 cm x 24.4 cm

- All Solid Capacitor design
CPU - Supports 2nd Generation Intel
LGA1155 Package

- 4 + 1 Power Phase Design

- Supports Intel

®

Turbo Boost 2.0 Technology

- Supports K-Series unlocked CPU

- Supports Hyper-Threading Technology (see CAUTION 1)
Chipset - Intel

®

Z68

Memory - Dual Channel DDR3 Memory Technology (see CAUTION 2)

- 4 x DDR3 DIMM slots

- Supports DDR3 2133(OC)/1866(OC)/1600/1333/1066
non-ECC, un-buffered memory (see CAUTION 3)

- Max. capacity of system memory: 32GB (see CAUTION 4)

- Supports Intel

®

Extreme Memory Profi le (XMP)

Expansion Slot - 1 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 slot (blue @ x16 mode)

- 2 x PCI Express 2.0 x1 slots

- 1 x PCI slot
Graphics * * Requires Processor with Intel

- Intel® HD Graphics 2000/3000

- Pixel Shader 4.1, DirectX 10.1

- Max. shared memory 1759MB (see CAUTION 5)

- Four VGA Output options: D-Sub, DVI-D, HDMI and
DisplayPort (see CAUTION 6)

- Supports HDMI 1.4a Technology with max. resolution up to
1920x1200 @ 60Hz

- Supports DVI with max. resolution up to 1920x1200 @ 60Hz

- Supports D-Sub with max. resolution up to 2048x1536 @
75Hz

- Supports DisplayPort with max. resolution up to 2560x1600
@ 60Hz

- Supports Auto Lip Sync, Deep Color (12bpc), xvYCC and
HBR (High Bit Rate Audio) with HDMI
(Compliant HDMI monitor is required) (see CAUTION 7)

- Supports Blu-ray Stereoscopic 3D with HDMI 1.4a

- Supports HDCP function with DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort
ports

- Supports Full HD 1080p Blu-ray (BD) / HD-DVD playback
with DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort ports

®

CoreTM i7 / i5 / i3 in

®

Graphics Technology

6

Audio - 7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection
(Realtek ALC892 Audio Codec)

- Premium Blu-ray audio support
LAN - PCIE x1 Gigabit LAN 10/100/1000 Mb/s

- Realtek RTL8111E

- Supports Wake-On-LAN

- Supports LAN Cable Detection

- Supports Energy Effi cient Ethernet 802.3az
Rear Panel I/O I/O Panel

- 1 x PS/2 Keyboard Port

- 1 x VGA/D-Sub Port

- 1 x VGA/DVI-D Port

- 1 x HDMI Port

- 1 x DisplayPort

- 1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port

- 4 x Ready-to-Use USB 2.0 Ports

- 1 x eSATA2 Connector

- 2 x Ready-to-Use USB 3.0 Ports

- 1 x RJ-45 LAN Port with LED (ACT/LINK LED and SPEED
LED)

- HD Audio Jack: Rear Speaker/Central/Bass/Line in/Front
Speaker/Microphone (see CAUTION 8)
SATA3 - 2 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s connectors, support RAID (RAID 0,
RAID 1, RAID 10, RAID 5, Intel Rapid Storage and Intel
Smart Response Technology), NCQ, AHCI and "Hot Plug"
functions
USB3.0 - 2 x USB 3.0 ports by Etron EJ168A, support
USB 1.0/2.0/3.0 up to 5Gb/s
Connector - 3 x SATA2 3.0 Gb/s connectors, support RAID (RAID 0,
RAID 1, RAID 10, RAID 5, Intel Rapid Storage and Intel
Smart Response Technology), NCQ, AHCI and Hot Plug
functions

- 1 x Floppy connector

- 1 x IR header

- 1 x CIR header

- 1 x Print port header

- 1 x COM port header

- 1 x HDMI_SPDIF header

- 1 x Power LED header

- CPU/Chassis/Power FAN connector

- 24 pin ATX power connector

- 2 x SATA3 6.0Gb/s connectors

7

- 8 pin 12V power connector

- Front panel audio connector

- 3 x USB 2.0 headers (support 6 USB 2.0 ports)
BIOS Feature - 64Mb AMI BIOS

- AMI UEFI Legal BIOS with GUI support

- Supports “Plug and Play”

- ACPI 1.1 Compliance Wake Up Events

- Supports jumperfree

- SMBIOS 2.3.1 Support

- CPU Core, IGPU, DRAM, PCH, CPU PLL, VTT, VCCSA
Voltage Multi-adjustment
Support CD - Drivers, Utilities, AntiVirus Software (Trial Version), ASRock
Software Suite (CyberLink DVD Suite - OEM and Trial;
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi MB - Trial)
Unique Feature - ASRock Extreme Tuning Utility (AXTU) (see CAUTION 9)

- Instant Boot

- ASRock Instant Flash (see CAUTION 10)

- ASRock APP Charger (see CAUTION 11)

- SmartView (see CAUTION 12)

- ASRock XFast USB (see CAUTION 13)

- Lucid Virtu (see CAUTION 14)

- Hybrid Booster:

- CPU Frequency Stepless Control (see CAUTION 15)

- ASRock U-COP (see CAUTION 16)

- Boot Failure Guard (B.F.G.)

- Combo Cooler Option (C.C.O.) (see CAUTION 17)

- Good Night LED
Hardware - CPU Temperature Sensing
Monitor - Chassis Temperature Sensing

- CPU/Chassis/Power Fan Tachometer

- CPU/Chassis Quiet Fan (Allow Chassis Fan Speed
Auto-Adjust by CPU Temperature)

- CPU Fan Multi-Speed Control

- Voltage Monitoring: +12V, +5V, +3.3V, CPU Vcore
OS - Microsoft

®

Windows® 7 / 7 64-bit / Vista

TM

/ VistaTM 64-bit
/ XP / XP 64-bit compliant
Certifi cations - FCC, CE, WHQL

- ErP/EuP Ready (ErP/EuP ready power supply is required)
(see CAUTION 18)

* For detailed product information, please visit our website: http://www.asrock.com

8

WARNING

Please realize that there is a certain risk involved with overclocking, including
adjusting the setting in the BIOS, applying Untied Overclocking Technology, or
using the third-party overclocking tools. Overclocking may affect your system
stability, or even cause damage to the components and devices of your system.
It should be done at your own risk and expense. We are not responsible for possible
damage caused by overclocking.

CAUTION!

1. About the setting of “Hyper Threading Technology”, please check page

49.

2. This motherboard supports Dual Channel Memory Technology. Before
you implement Dual Channel Memory Technology, make sure to read the
installation guide of memory modules on page 19 for proper installation.

3. DDR3 frequency options may depend on the processor. Only K-Series
CPU can support DDR3 overclock to 2133 and 1866.

4. Due to the operating system limitation, the actual memory size may be
less than 4GB for the reservation for system usage under Windows

TM

Vista

/ XP. For Windows® OS with 64-bit CPU, there is no such limita-

tion.

5. The maximum shared memory size is defi ned by the chipset vendor and
is subject to change. Please check Intel® website for the latest informa­tion.

6. You can choose to use two of the four monitors only. D-Sub, DVI-D,
HDMI and DisplayPort monitors cannot be enabled at the same time.
Besides, with the DVI-to-HDMI adapter, the DVI-D port can support the
same features as HDMIport.

7. xvYCC and Deep Color are only supported under Windows

7. Deep Color mode will be enabled only if the display supports 12bpc
in EDID. HBR is supported under Windows

®

7 64-bit / 7 / VistaTM 64-bit /

VistaTM.

8. For microphone input, this motherboard supports both stereo and mono
modes. For audio output, this motherboard supports 2-channel, 4-chan­nel, 6-channel, and 8-channel modes. Please check the table on page 13
for proper connection.

9. ASRock Extreme Tuning Utility (AXTU) is an all-in-one tool to fi ne-tune
different system functions in a user-friendly interface, which is including
Hardware Monitor, Fan Control, Overclocking, OC DNA and IES. In
Hardware Monitor, it shows the major readings of your system. In Fan
Control, it shows the fan speed and temperature for you to adjust. In
Overclocking, you are allowed to overclock CPU frequency for optimal
system performance. In OC DNA, you can save your OC settings as a
profi le and share with your friends. Your friends then can load the OC
profi le to their own system to get the same OC settings. In IES (Intelligent
Energy Saver), the voltage regulator can reduce the number of output

®

®

7 64-bit /

7 /

9

phases to improve efficiency when the CPU cores are idle without

sacrificing computing performance. Please visit our website for the
operation procedures of ASRock Extreme Tuning Utility (AXTU).

ASRock website: http://www.asrock.com

10. ASRock Instant Flash is a BIOS fl ash utility embedded in Flash ROM.
This convenient BIOS update tool allows you to update system BIOS
without entering operating systems fi rst like MS-DOS or Windows

®

. With
this utility, you can press <F6> key during the POST or press <F2> key to
BIOS setup menu to access ASRock Instant Flash. Just launch this tool
and save the new BIOS fi le to your USB fl ash drive, fl oppy disk or hard

drive, then you can update your BIOS only in a few clicks without prepar-

ing an additional fl oppy diskette or other complicated fl ash utility. Please
be noted that the USB fl ash drive or hard drive must use FAT32/16/12 fi le
system.

11. If you desire a faster, less restricted way of charging your Apple devices,
such as iPhone/iPod/iPad Touch, ASRock has prepared a wonderful

solution for you - ASRock APP Charger. Simply installing the APP Char-

ger driver, it makes your iPhone charged much quickly from your com­puter and up to 40% faster than before. ASRock APP Charger allows you
to quickly charge many Apple devices simultaneously and even supports
continuous charging when your PC enters into Standby mode (S1), Sus­pend to RAM (S3), hibernation mode (S4) or power off (S5). With APP
Charger driver installed, you can easily enjoy the marvelous charging
experience than ever.

ASRock website: http://www.asrock.com/Feature/AppCharger/index.asp

12.

SmartView, a new function of internet browser, is the smart start page for
IE that combines your most visited web sites, your history, your Facebook
friends and your real-time newsfeed into an enhanced view for a more
personal Internet experience. ASRock motherboards are exclusively
equipped with the SmartView utility that helps you keep in touch with
friends on-the-go. To use SmartView feature, please make sure your
OS version is Windows

®

7 / 7 64 bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64 bit, and your
browser version is IE8. ASRock website: http://www.asrock.com/Feature/

SmartView/index.asp

13. ASRock XFast USB can boost USB storage device performance. The
performance may depend on the property of the device.

14. With Lucid Virtu technology, you can enjoy benefi ts from both 3D perfor-
mance of the discrete GPU and advanced media features of Intel

®

HD

graphics.

15. Although this motherboard offers stepless control, it is not recommended
to perform over-clocking. Frequencies other than the recommended CPU
bus frequencies may cause the instability of the system or damage the
CPU.

10

16. While CPU overheat is detected, the system will automatically shutdown.
Before you resume the system, please check if the CPU fan on the
motherboard functions properly and unplug the power cord, then plug it
back again. To improve heat dissipation, remember to spray thermal

grease between the CPU and the heatsink when you install the PC sys-

tem.

17. Combo Cooler Option (C.C.O.) provides the fl exible option to adopt three
different CPU cooler types, Socket LGA 775, LGA 1155 and LGA 1156.
Please be noticed that not all the 775 and 1156 CPU Fan can be used.

18. EuP, stands for Energy Using Product, was a provision regulated by Eu­ropean Union to defi ne the power consumption for the completed system.
According to EuP, the total AC power of the completed system shall be
under 1.00W in off mode condition. To meet EuP standard, an EuP ready
motherboard and an EuP ready power supply are required. According to
Intel’s suggestion, the EuP ready power supply must meet the standard
of 5v standby power effi ciency is higher than 50% under 100 mA current
consumption. For EuP ready power supply selection, we recommend you
checking with the power supply manufacturer for more details.

11

1.3 Motherboard Layout

3

2

1

4

6

5

24.4cm (9.6in)

Keyboard

HDMI1

eSATA

34

USB3.0
T: US B4
B:USB5

Bottom:

Optical

SPDIF

Bottom:

MIC IN

33

32

31

30

29

HD_AUDIO1

1

28

PS2

USB2.0
T:USB0
B:USB1

VGA1

HDMI_DP_1

USB2.0
T:USB2
B:USB3

Center:

REAR SPK

Center:

FRONT

AUDIO

CODEC

HDMI_SPDIF1

DVI_CON1

Top:
RJ-45

Top:

CTR BASS

Top:

LINE IN

Super

I/O

1

COM1

1

27

PWR_FAN1

LAN
PHY

CPU_FAN1

Gigabit LAN

Z68 Pro3-M

DX10.1

PCIE2

PCIE3

FLOPPY1

ATX12V1

CHA_FAN2

PCIE1

PCI1

26

Designed inTaipei

CMOS
Battery

PCI Express2.0

ErP/EuP Ready

1

LPT1

25

IR1

1

24

HDMI 1.4a

USB 3.0

Intel

Z68

USB6_7

1

1

23

DDR3

24.4cm (9.6in)

7

ATXPWR1

DDR3_B2 (64bit, 240-pin module)

DDR3_A2 (64bit, 240-pin module)

DDR3_B1 (64bit, 240-pin module)

DDR3_A1 (64bit, 240-pin module)

Dual Channel

SATA3_0

SATA3 6Gb/s

RoHS

64Mb
BIOS

1

CLRCMOS1

1

PLED1

SATA2_2

1

SPEAKER1

USB10_11

1

USB8_9

CIR1

1

20

2122

SATA2_3

SATA2_4

PLEDPWRBTN

1

HDLED RESET

19

17

18

8

CHA_FAN1

SATA3_1

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

PANEL1

1 Power Fan Connector (PWR_FAN1) 19 Power LED Header (PLED1)
2 CPU Fan Connector (CPU_FAN1) 20 USB 2.0 Header (USB8_9, Blue)
3 ATX 12V Power Connector (ATX12V1) 21 USB 2.0 Header (USB10_11, Blue)
4 1155-Pin CPU Socket 22 USB 2.0 Header (USB6_7, Blue)
5 2 x 240-pin DDR3 DIMM Slots 23 Consumer Infrared Module Header
(Dual Channel: DDR3_A1, DDR3_B1, Blue) (CIR1)
6 2 x 240-pin DDR3 DIMM Slots 24 Infrared Module Header (IR1)
(Dual Channel: DDR3_A2, DDR3_B2, White) 25 Print Port Header (LPT1, White)
7 ATX Power Connector (ATXPWR1) 26 Floppy Connector (FLOPPY1)
8 Chassis Fan Connector (CHA_FAN1) 27 COM Port Header (COM1)
9 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_1, White) 28 Front Panel Audio Header
10 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_0, White) (HD_AUDIO1, White)
11 Intel Z68 Chipset 29 HDMI_SPDIF Header
12 64Mb SPI Flash (HDMI_SPDIF1, White)
13 Clear CMOS Jumper (CLRCMOS1) 30 PCI Slot (PCI1)
14 SATA2 Connector (SATA2_2, Blue) 31 PCI Express 2.0 x1 Slot (PCIE3, White)
15 SATA2 Connector (SATA2_3, Blue) 32 PCI Express 2.0 x1 Slot (PCIE2, White)
16 SATA2 Connector (SATA2_4, Blue) 33 PCI Express 2.0 x16 Slot (PCIE1, Blue)
17 System Panel Header (PANEL1, White) 34 Chassis Fan Connector (CHA_FAN2)
18 Chassis Speaker Header (SPEAKER 1, White)

12

1.4 I/O Panel

13

4

5

9

6

10

7

8

11

12

ACT/LINK
LED

SPEED
LED

1

16

1 USB 2.0 Ports (USB01) 9 Line In (Light Blue)
2 VGA/D-Sub Port ** 10 Front Speaker (Lime)
3 DisplayPort (DP1) 11 Microphone (Pink)
4 USB 2.0 Ports (USB23) 12 USB 3.0 Ports (USB45)
* 5 LAN RJ-45 Port 13 eSATA2 Port
6 Central / Bass (Orange) 14 VGA/HDMI Port
7 Rear Speaker (Black) 15 VGA/DVI-D Port
8 Optical SPDIF Out Port 16 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.

Activity/Link LED SPEED LED

Status Description Status Description

2

15

LAN Port LED Indications

3

14

Off No Link Off 10Mbps connection
Blinking Data Activity Orange 100Mbps connection
On Link Green 1Gbps connection

LAN Port

If you use 2-channel speaker, please connect the speaker’s plug into “Front Speaker Jack”.

**

See the table below for connection details in accordance with the type of speaker you use.

TABLE for Audio Output Connection

Audio Output Channels Front Speaker Rear Speaker Central / Bass Line In or
(No. 10) (No. 7) (No. 6) Side Speaker
(No. 9)

2 V -- -- -­4 V V -- -­6 V V V -­8 V V V V

13

To enable Multi-Streaming function, you need to connect a front panel audio cable to the front

panel audio header. After restarting your computer, you will fi nd “Mixer” tool on your system.
Please select “Mixer ToolBox” , click “Enable playback multi-streaming”, and click

“ok”. Choose “2CH”, “4CH”, “6CH”, or “8CH” and then you are allowed to select “Realtek HDA
Primary output” to use Rear Speaker, Central/Bass, and Front Speaker, or select “Realtek
HDA Audio 2nd output” to use front panel audio.

14

Chapter 2: Installation

This is a Micro ATX form factor (9.6" x 9.6", 24.4 x 24.4 cm) motherboard. Before
you install the motherboard, study the confi guration of your chassis to ensure that
the motherboard fi ts into it.

motherboard. Failure to do so may cause physical injuries to you and
damages to motherboard components.

Make sure to unplug the power cord before installing or removing the

2.1 Screw Holes

Place screws into the holes indicated by circles to secure the motherboard to the
chassis.

Do not over-tighten the screws! Doing so may damage the motherboard.

2.2 Pre-installation Precautions

Take note of the following precautions before you install motherboard components
or change any motherboard settings.

1. Unplug the power cord from the wall socket before touching any component.

2. To avoid damaging the motherboard components due to static electricity,
NEVER place your motherboard directly on the carpet or the like. Also
remember to use a grounded wrist strap or touch a safety grounded object
before you handle components.

3. Hold components by the edges and do not touch the ICs.

4. Whenever you uninstall any component, place it on a grounded antistatic pad or
in the bag that comes with the component.

Before you install or remove any component, ensure that the power is

switched off or the power cord is detached from the power supply.
Failure to do so may cause severe damage to the motherboard, peripherals,
and/or components.

15

2.3 CPU Installation

For the installation of Intel 1155-Pin CPU,
please follow the steps below.

LoadPlate

LoadLever

Before you insert the 1155-Pin CPU into the socket, please check if the
CPU surface is unclean or if there is any bent pin on the socket. Do not
force to insert the CPU into the socket if above situation is found. Other­wise, the CPU will be seriously damaged.

Step 1. Open the socket:

Step 1-1. Disengaging the lever by depressing

down and out on the hook to clear
retention tab.

Step 1-2. Rotate the load lever to fully open po-

sition at approximately 135 degrees.

Step 1-3. Rotate the load plate to fully open po-

sition at approximately 100 degrees.

Step 2. Remove PnP Cap (Pick and Place Cap).

ContactArray

SocketBody

1155-Pin Socket Overview

1. It is recommended to use the cap tab to handle and avoid kicking
off the PnP cap.

2. This cap must be placed if returning the motherboard for after
service.

16

Step 3. Insert the 1155-Pin CPU:

Step 3-1. Hold the CPU by the edge where is

marked with black line.

Step 3-2. Orient the CPU with IHS (Integrated

Heat Sink) up. Locate Pin1 and the
two orientation key notches.

orientation key notch

Pin1

orientation key notch

1155-Pin CPU

For proper inserting, please ensure to match the two orientation key
notches of the CPU with the two alignment keys of the socket.

Step 3-3. Carefully place the CPU into the

socket by using a purely vertical mo­tion.

Step 3-4. Verify that the CPU is within the sock-

et and properly mated to the orient
keys.

black line

alignment key

Pin1

alignment key

1155-Pin Socket

Step 4. Close the socket:

Step 4-1. Rotate the load plate onto the IHS.
Step 4-2. While pressing down lightly on load

plate, engage the load lever.

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2.4 Installation of CPU Fan and Heatsink

This motherboard is equipped with 1155-Pin socket that supports Intel 1155-Pin
CPU. Please adopt the type of heatsink and cooling fan compliant with Intel 1155­Pin CPU to dissipate heat. Before you installed the heatsink, you need to spray
thermal interface material between the CPU and the heatsink to improve heat dis­sipation. Ensure that the CPU and the heatsink are securely fastened and in good
contact with each other. Then connect the CPU fan to the CPU_FAN connector
(CPU_FAN1, see page 12, No. 2).

For proper installation, please kindly refer to the instruction manuals of your
CPU fan and heatsink.

Below is an example to illustrate the installation of the heatsink for 1155-Pin CPU.
Step 1. Apply thermal interface material onto center of

IHS on the socket surface.

Apply Thermal
Interface Material

Step 2. Place the heatsink onto the socket. Ensure

fan cables are oriented on side closest to the

Fan cableson side
closest toMB header

CPU fan connector on the motherboard (CPU_
FAN1, see page 12, No. 2).

Step 3. Align fasteners with the motherboard through-

Fastener slots
pointing straightout

holes.

Step 4. Rotate the fastener clockwise, then press

down on fastener caps with thumb to install
and lock. Repeat with remaining fasteners.

If you press down the fasteners without rotating them clockwise, the
heatsink cannot be secured on the motherboard.

Press Down
(4 Places)

Step 5. Connect fan header with the CPU fan connector on the motherboard.
Step 6. Secure excess cable with tie-wrap to ensure cable does not interfere with
fan operation or contact other components.

Please be noticed that this motherboard supports Combo Cooler
Option (C.C.O.), which provides the fl exible option to adopt three dif-
ferent CPU cooler types, Socket LGA 775, LGA 1155 and LGA 1156.
The white throughholes are for Socket LGA
1155/1156 CPU fan.

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2.5 Installation of Memory Modules (DIMM)

This motherboard provides four 240-pin DDR3 (Double Data Rate 3) DIMM
slots, and supports Dual Channel Memory Technology. For dual channel con­fi guration, you always need to install identical (the same brand, speed, size
and chip-type) DDR3 DIMM pair in the slots of the same color. In other words,
you have to install identical DDR3 DIMM pair in Dual Channel A (DDR3_
A1 and DDR3_B1; Blue slots; see p.12 No.5) or identical DDR3 DIMM pair in
Dual Channel B (DDR3_A2 and DDR3_B2; White slots; see p.12 No.6), so
that Dual Channel Memory Technology can be activated. This motherboard
also allows you to install four DDR3 DIMMs for dual channel confi guration, and
please install identical DDR3 DIMMs in all four slots. You may refer to the Dual
Channel Memory Confi guration T able below .

Dual Channel Memory Confi gurations

DDR3_A1 DDR3_A2 DDR3_B1 DDR3_B2
(Blue Slot) (White Slot) (Blue Slot) (White Slot)
(1) Populated - Populated ­(2) - Populated - Populated
(3)* Populated Populated Populated Populated

For the confi guration (3), please install identical DDR3 DIMMs in all four

*

slots.

1. If you want to install two memory modules, for optimal compatibility
and reliability, it is recommended to install them in the slots of the
same color. In other words, install them either in the set of blue
slots (DDR3_A1 and DDR3_B1), or in the set of white slots (DDR3_
A2 and DDR3_B2).

2. If only one memory module or three memory modules are installed
in the DDR3 DIMM slots on this motherboard, it is unable to activate
the Dual Channel Memory Technology.

3. If a pair of memory modules is NOT installed in the same Dual
Channel, for example, installing a pair of memory modules in
DDR3_A1 and DDR3_A2, it is unable to activate the Dual Channel
Memory T echnology .

4. It is not allowed to install a DDR or DDR2 memory module into
DDR3 slot; otherwise, this motherboard and DIMM may be dam­aged.

5. Some DDR3 1GB double-sided DIMMs with 16 chips may not work
on this motherboard. It is not recommended to install them on this
motherboard.

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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

damage to the motherboard and the DIMM if you force the DIMM into the slot
at incorrect orientation.

The DIMM only fi ts in one correct orientation. It will cause permanent

Step 3. Firmly insert the DIMM into the slot until the retaining clips at both ends
fully snap back in place and the DIMM is properly seated.

20