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A88X-PLUS
Motherboard
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E8563 First Edition August 2013 Copyright © 2013 ASUSTeK 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 purchaser for backup purposes, without the express written permission of ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. (“ASUS”). Product warranty or service will not be extended if: (
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Contents Safety information ...................................................................................... iv About this guide ......................................................................................... iv Package contents ....................................................................................... vi A88X-PLUS specifications summary ........................................................ vi Product introduction 1.1 Before you proceed ...........................
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Safety information Electrical safety • To 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 cables from the existing system before you add a device. • Before connecting or removing signal cables from the motherboard, ensure that all power
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Where to find 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 Your product package may include optional documentation, such as warranty flyers, that may have been added by your dealer. These documents are not part of the standard package. Conventions used in this
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Package contents Check your motherboard package for the following items. Motherboard ASUS A88X-PLUS motherboard Cables 2 x Serial ATA 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 specifications summary ® ® TM APU AMD FM2+ socket for AMD A-Series/Athlon series processors Supports CPU up to 4 cores ® AMD Turbo Core Technology 3.0 support ® • The AMD Turbo Core Techn
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A88X-PLUS specifications summary ® Storage AMD A88X FCH (Bolton D4) chipset: - 8 x Serial ATA 6 Gb/s connectors (yellow) with RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 and JBOD support ® Audio Realtek ALC887-VD 7.1-Channel High Definition Audio CODEC - Optical S/PDIF out port at back I/O - Supports Jack-Detection, Multi-Streaming, and Front Panel Jack-Retasking ® USB AMD A88X FCH (Bolton D4) chipset: - 4 x USB 3.0 ports (2 ports at the back panel [blue], 2 ports at mid-board) - 10 x USB 2.0 ports (4 ports at the back
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A88X-PLUS specifications summary 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 Out) Internal I/O 1 x USB 3.0 connector supports additional 2 USB 3.0 ports (19-pin) connectors / buttons/ 3 x USB 2.0 connectors support additional 6 USB 2.0 ports switches 1 x COM port connector 8 x SATA 6G
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Product introduction 1 1.1 Before you proceed Take 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 object or a metal object, such as the power supply case, to avoid damaging them due to static electricity. • Hold components by the edges to avoid touching the ICs on them. •
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Place this side towards the rear of the chassis A88X-PLUS 1.2.3 Motherboard layout 1 2 3 2 4 5 6 22.6cm(8.9in) GPU_Boost KBMS_USB34 CHA_FAN2 CPU_FAN GPU_LED DIGI +VRM HDMI ATX12V MemOK! 7 DRAM_LED USB3_12 8 1 LAN_USB12 AUDIO CHA_FAN1 PCIEX1_1 9 A88X-PLUS RTL 8111G PCIEX16_1 Super I/O PCIEX1_2 BATTERY ® AMD A88X PCI1 PCIEX16_2 8Mb BIOS COM PCI2 ALC 887 10 PCI3 SATA6G_4 SATA6G_5 SATA6G_6 SB_PWR SPDIF_OUT SATA6G_1 SATA6G_2 SATA6G_3 USB910 USB78 USB56 PANEL CLRTC AAFP 15 14 17 16 13 12 11 1-2 Chap
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1.2.4 Layout contents Connectors/Jumpers/Slots/LED Page 1. A TX power connectors (24-pin EATXPWR, 4-pin ATX12V) 1-15 2. CPU and chassis fan connectors (4-pin CPU_FAN, and 4-pin CHA_FAN1/2) 1-14 3. AMD FM2+ socket 1-3 4. GPU Boost switch 1-21 5. GPU Boost LED (GPU_LED) 1-22 6. DDR3 DIMM slots 1-7 7. MemOK! button 1-20 8. DRAM LED 1-22 9. USB 3.0 connector (20-1 pin USB3_34) 1-19 10. SATA 6.0 Gb/s connectors (7-pin SATA6G_1~8) 1-16 11. System panel connector (20-8 pin PANEL) 1-17 12. USB 2.0 conne
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1.3.1 APU installation 1 2 3 4 1-4 Chapter 1: Product introduction
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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. To install the APU heatsink and fan assembly 1 2 3 4 5 ASUS A88X-PLUS 1-5
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To uninstall the APU heatsink and fan assembly 1 2 3 4 5 1-6 Chapter 1: Product introduction
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1.4 System memory 1.4.1 Overview This motherboard comes with four Double Data Rate 3 (DDR3) Dual Inline Memory Modules (DIMM) sockets. A DDR3 module has the same physical dimensions as a DDR2 DIMM but is notched differently to prevent installation on a DDR2 DIMM socket. DDR3 modules are developed for better performance with less power consumption. The figure illustrates the location of the DDR3 DIMM sockets: Channel Sockets Channel A DIMM_A1 and DIMM_A2 Channel B DIMM_B1 and DIMM_B2 A88X-PL
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• 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. To operate at the vendor-marked or at a higher frequency, refer to section 2.5 Ai Tweaker menu for manual memory frequency adjustment. • For system stability, use a more efficient memory cooling system to s
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To remove a DIMM B A A 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 expansion card To install an expansion card: 1. Before installing the expansion card, read the documentation that came with it and make the ne
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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 specifications. 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 specifications. 1.5.5 PCI Express x16 slot This motherboard has two PCI Express x16 slots that support PCI Express x16 graphic cards complying with the PCI Express specifications. • In single VGA card mode, use t
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1.6 Jumpers 1. Clear RTC RAM (3-pin CLRTC) This jumper allows you to clear the Real Time Clock (RTC) RAM in CMOS. You 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 as system passwords. A88X-PLUS CLRTC 1 2 2 3 Normal Clear RTC (Default) A88X-PLUS Clear RTC RAM To erase the RTC RAM: 1. Turn OFF the computer and unplug the power cord. 2
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1.7 Connectors 1.7.1 Rear panel connectors 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 1. PS/2 keyboard/mouse combo port. This port is for a PS/2 keybaord or mouse. 2. Video 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 connection to a Local Area Network (LAN) through a network hub. LAN port LED indications ACT/LINK SPEED Activity/Link LED Speed LED LED LED Status Description Status Description Off No li
