Gigabyte GA-F2A55-DS3 User manual
GA-F2A55-DS3
User's Manual
Rev. 3001
12ME-F255DS3-3001R
Motherboard
GA-F2A55-DS3
Sept. 6, 2013
Sept. 6, 2013
Motherboard
GA-F2A55-DS3
Copyright
©2013 GIGA-BYTE TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD. All rights reserved.
The trademarks mentioned in this manual are legally registered to their respective owners.
Disclaimer
Information in this manual is protected by copyright laws and is the property of GIGABYTE.
No part of this manual may be reproduced, copied, translated, transmitted, or published in any form or by
any means without GIGABYTE's prior written permission.
In order to assist in the use of this product, carefully read the User's Manual.
For product-related information, check on our website at: http://www.gigabyte.com
Identifying Your Motherboard Revision
The revision number on your motherboard looks like this: "REV: X.X." For example, "REV: 1.0" means the
revision of the motherboard is 1.0. Check your motherboard revision before updating motherboard BIOS,
drivers, or when looking for technical information.
Example:
- 3 -
Table of Contents
GA-F2A55-DS3 Motherboard Layout ..............................................................................4
GA-F2A55-DS3 Motherboard Block Diagram..................................................................5
Chapter 1 Hardware Installation .....................................................................................6
1-1 Installation Precautions.................................................................................... 6
...................................................................................... 7
1-3 Installing the APU............................................................................................. 9
1-4 Installing the Memory....................................................................................... 9
1-5 Installing an Expansion Card ......................................................................... 10
............................................. 10
1-7 Back Panel Connectors.................................................................................. 11
1-8 Internal Connectors........................................................................................ 13
Chapter 2 BIOS Setup ..................................................................................................18
2-1 Startup Screen ............................................................................................... 19
2-2 M.I.T. .............................................................................................................. 19
2-3 System Information ........................................................................................ 23
2-4 BIOS Features ............................................................................................... 24
2-5 Peripherals..................................................................................................... 26
2-6 Power Management....................................................................................... 28
2-7 Save & Exit..................................................................................................... 30
Chapter 3 Appendix ......................................................................................................31
..................................................................... 31
3-2 Drivers Installation.......................................................................................... 33
Regulatory Statements.............................................................................................. 35
Contact Us ................................................................................................................ 36
- 4 -
GA-F2A55-DS3 Motherboard Layout
KB_MS
SYS_FAN1
Socket FM2+
ATX
GA-F2A55-DS3
F_AUDIO
AUDIO
PCIEX1_4
DDR3_2
DDR3_1
BAT
F_USB3TPMSPDIF_O
ATX_12V
AMD A55
SATA2
PCI1
PCI2
HDMI
R_USB2
R_USB1
CODEC
SYS_FAN3
PCIEX1_2
PCIEX1_3
PCIEX1_1
COM
USB_LAN
PCIEX16
F_USB2 F_USB1 F_PANEL
M_BIOS
B_BIOS
CLR_CMOS
Realtek®
GbE LAN
2 1
Box Contents
5GA-F2A55-DS3 motherboard
5Motherboard driver disk 5Two SATA cables
5User's Manual 5I/O Shield
iTE®
Super I/O
F_USB4
0
3
5 4
SYS_FAN2
CPU_FAN
* The box contents above are for reference only and the actual items shall depend on the product package you obtain.
- 5 -
GA-F2A55-DS3 Motherboard Block Diagram
UMI
AMD A55
PCI Bus
AMD APU
2 PCI
PCI CLK
COM
LPC
Bus
PS/2 KB/Mouse
Dual BIOS
14 USB 2.0/1.1
6 SATA 3Gb/s
PCI Express Bus
PCI Express Bus
PCIe CLK
PCIe CLK
3 PCI Express x1
x1
x1
LAN
RJ45
Realtek®
GbE LAN
Dual Channel Memory
HDMI
x16
1 PCI Express x16
1 PCI Express x1
iTE®
Super I/O
S/PDIF Out
CODEC
x1 x1 x1
- 6 -
Chapter 1 Hardware Installation
1-1 Installation Precautions
The motherboard contains numerous delicate electronic circuits and components which can become
manual and follow these procedures:
•Prior to installation, make sure the chassis is suitable for the motherboard.
•
warranty sticker provided by your dealer. These stickers are required for warranty validation.
•Always remove the AC power by unplugging the power cord from the power outlet before
installing or removing the motherboard or other hardware components.
•When connecting hardware components to the internal connectors on the motherboard, make
sure they are connected tightly and securely.
•When handling the motherboard, avoid touching any metal leads or connectors.
•
components such as a motherboard, CPU or memory. If you do not have an ESD wrist strap,
•Prior to installing the motherboard, please have it on top of an antistatic pad or within an
electrostatic shielding container.
•Before unplugging the power supply cable from the motherboard, make sure the power supply
has been turned off.
•Before turning on the power, make sure the power supply voltage has been set according to
the local voltage standard.
•Before using the product, please verify that all cables and power connectors of your hardware
components are connected.
•To prevent damage to the motherboard, do not allow screws to come in contact with the
motherboard circuit or its components.
•Make sure there are no leftover screws or metal components placed on the motherboard or
within the computer casing.
•Do not place the computer system on an uneven surface.
•Do not place the computer system in a high-temperature environment.
•Turning on the computer power during the installation process can lead to damage to system
components as well as physical harm to the user.
•If you are uncertain about any installation steps or have a problem related to the use of the
- 7 -
APU FM2+ Socket:
- AMD A series processors
- AMD Athlon™series processors
Chipset AMD A55
Memory 2 x 1.5V DDR3 DIMM sockets supporting up to 64 GB of system memory
* Due to a Windows 32-bit operating system limitation, when more than 4 GB of physical
the physical memory installed.
website when the memory modules are available on the market.
Dual channel memory architecture
modules
Onboard
Graphics
APU with integrated AMD Radeon™HD 8000/7000 series graphics:
* To use the onboard graphics ports, you must install an AMD APU with integrated
graphics.
- 1 x HDMI port, supporting a maximum resolution of 4096x2160
* The resolution of 4096x2160 can be supported when using an FM2+ APU; the
maximum resolution supported is 1920x1200 when using an FM2 APU.
* Support for HDMI 1.4a version.
- Maximum shared memory of 2 GB
Audio Realtek®ALC887 codec
2/4/5.1/7.1-channel
and enable the multi-channel audio feature through the audio driver.
Support for S/PDIF Out
LAN Realtek®
Expansion Slots 1 x PCI Express x16 slot, running at x16
* To support PCI Express 3.0, you must install an FM2+ APU.
4 x PCI Express x1 slots
2 x PCI slots
Multi-Graphics
Technology
Support for AMD Dual Graphics technology
* Only A series APUs support AMD Dual Graphics.
Storage Interface Chipset:
- 6 x SATA 3Gb/s connectors
- Support for RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 10, and JBOD
USB Chipset:
- 8 -
Internal
Connectors
1 x 24-pin ATX main power connector
1 x 8-pin ATX 12V power connector
6 x SATA 3Gb/s connectors
1 x APU fan header
3 x system fan headers
1 x front panel header
1 x front panel audio header
1 x S/PDIF Out header
4 x USB 2.0/1.1 headers
Back Panel
Connectors
1 x PS/2 keyboard port
1 x PS/2 mouse port
1 x serial port
1 x HDMI port
6 x USB 2.0/1.1 ports
1 x RJ-45 port
I/O Controller iTE®I/O Controller Chip
Hardware
Monitor
System voltage detection
APU/System temperature detection
APU/System fan speed detection
APU overheating warning
APU/System fan fail warning
APU/System fan speed control
* Whether the fan speed control function is supported will depend on the cooler you
install.
BIOS
Use of licensed AMI EFI BIOS
Support for DualBIOS™
PnP 1.0a, DMI 2.0, SM BIOS 2.6, ACPI 2.0a
Unique Features Support for @BIOS
Support for Q-Flash
Support for Xpress Install
Support for EasyTune
* Available functions in EasyTune may differ by motherboard model.
Support for Smart Recovery2
Support for ON/OFF Charge
Bundled
Software Norton®
Operating
System
Support for Windows 8.1/8/7 32-bit/64-bit
* If you plan to install Windows 8.1, please download the latest drivers from GIGABYTE's
website.
Support for Windows Vista/XP 32-bit
* To support Windows Vista/XP 32-bit, you must install an AMD FM2 Trinity APU.
- 9 -
Form Factor ATX Form Factor; 30.5cm x 19.0cm
prior notice.
* Please visit the Support & Downloads\Utility
for the software listed in the "Unique Features" and "Bundled Software" columns.
1-3 Installing the APU
Read the following guidelines before you begin to install the APU:
•Make sure that the motherboard supports the APU.
•Always turn off the computer and unplug the power cord from the power outlet before installing the
APU to prevent hardware damage.
•Locate the pin one of the APU. The APU cannot be inserted if oriented incorrectly.
•Apply an even and thin layer of thermal grease on the surface of the APU.
•Do not turn on the computer if the APU cooler is not installed, otherwise overheating and damage
of the APU may occur.
•
standard requirements for the peripherals. If you wish to set the frequency beyond the standard
card, memory, hard drive, etc.
APU
A Small Triangle
Marking Denotes Pin
One of the Socket
Installing the APU
FM2+ Socket A Small Triangle
Marking Denotes
APU Pin One
Read the following guidelines before you begin to install the memory:
•Make sure that the motherboard supports the memory. It is recommended that memory of the
same capacity, brand, speed, and chips be used.
•Always turn off the computer and unplug the power cord from the power outlet before installing the
memory to prevent hardware damage.
•Memory modules have a foolproof design. A memory module can be installed in only one direction.
If you are unable to insert the memory, switch the direction.
1-4 Installing the Memory
- 10 -
This motherboard provides two DDR3 memory sockets and supports Dual Channel Technology. After the memory
Channel memory mode will double the original memory bandwidth.
The two DDR3 memory sockets are divided into two channels and each channel has one memory socket as
following:
Channel A: DDR3_2
Channel B: DDR3_1
Due to APU limitations, read the following guidelines before installing the memory in Dual Channel mode.
1. Dual Channel mode cannot be enabled if only one DDR3 memory module is installed.
2. When enabling Dual Channel mode with two memory modules, it is recommended that memory of
the same capacity, brand, speed, and chips be used for optimum performance.
1-5 Installing an Expansion Card
Read the following guidelines before you begin to install an expansion card:
•Make sure the motherboard supports the expansion card. Carefully read the manual that came
with your expansion card.
•Always turn off the computer and unplug the power cord from the power outlet before installing an
expansion card to prevent hardware damage.
A. System Requirements
-AMD A series processor
-Windows 8/7 operating system
-
-An AMD Radeon™
Step 1:
Observe the steps in "1-5 Installing an Expansion Card" and install an AMD Dual Graphics technology-supported
graphics card on the PCIEX16 slot. Plug the monitor cable into the graphics card and start up your computer.
Step 2:
Enter BIOS Setup to set the following items under the menu:
-Set Integrated Graphics to Force.
-Set UMA Frame Buffer Size to 512M or above.
Save the settings and exit BIOS Setup. Restart your computer.
After installing the graphics card driver in the operating system, go to the .
Browse to Performance\AMD Radeon™Dual Graphics and ensure the Enable AMD Radeon Dual Graphics
check box is selected.
installed.
- 11 -
1-7 Back Panel Connectors
PS/2 Keyboard and PS/2 Mouse Port
Serial Port
Use the serial port to connect devices such as a mouse, modem or other peripherals.
HDMI Port
The HDMI port is HDCP compliant and supports Dolby True HD and DTS HD
output. You can use this port to connect your HDMI-supported monitor. The
maximum supported resolution is 4096x2160, but the actual resolutions supported are dependent on
the monitor being used.
After installing the HDMI device, make sure to set the default sound playback device to HDMI.
Playback of a Blu-ray Disc™:
In order to get better playback quality, when playing a Blu-ray Disc™, refer to the recommended system
•AMD A series processors
•
•
•
is enabled. Whether Hardware Acceleration can be enabled for 3D Blu-ray discs is dependent on the
•
USB 2.0/1.1 Port
The Gigabit Ethernet LAN port provides Internet connection at up to 1 Gbps data rate. The following
describes the states of the LAN port LEDs.
Activity LED:
State Description
Blinking Data transmission or receiving is occurring
Off No data transmission or receiving is occurring
Connection/Speed LED:
State Description
Orange 1 Gbps data rate
Green 100 Mbps data rate
Off 10 Mbps data rate
Activity LED
Connection/
Speed LED
LAN Port
supported is 1920x1200 when using an FM2 APU.
- 12 -
Line In Jack (Blue)
Mic In Jack (Pink)
•
device and then remove it from the motherboard.
•When removing the cable, pull it straight out from the connector. Do not rock it side to side to prevent
an electrical short inside the cable connector.
multi-channel audio feature through the audio driver.
- 13 -
Read the following guidelines before connecting external devices:
•First make sure your devices are compliant with the connectors you wish to connect.
•Before installing the devices, be sure to turn off the devices and your computer. Unplug the power
cord from the power outlet to prevent damage to the devices.
•After installing the device and before turning on the computer, make sure the device cable has
been securely attached to the connector on the motherboard.
1-8 Internal Connectors
1
2
4
3
6
5
1210
9
11 8
1) ATX_12V
2) ATX
3)
4)
5)
6) SATA2 0/1/2/3/4/5
7) BAT
8)
9)
10)
11) F_USB1/F_USB2/F_USB3/F_USB4
12) TPM
4
7
- 14 -
1/2) ATX_12V/ATX (2x4 12V Power Connector and 2x12 Main Power Connector)
With the use of the power connector, the power supply can supply enough stable power to all the components
off and all devices are properly installed. The power connector possesses a foolproof design. Connect the
power supply cable to the power connector in the correct orientation.
The 12V power connector mainly supplies power to the APU. If the 12V power connector is not connected,
the computer will not start.
The speed control function requires the use of a fan with fan speed control design. For optimum heat
dissipation, it is recommended that a system fan be installed inside the chassis.
To meet expansion requirements, it is recommended that a power supply that can withstand high power consumption
lead to an unstable or unbootable system.
ATX_12V:
G.QBOFM
131
2412
ATX
ATX:
Pin No. Pin No.
1 3.3V 13 3.3V
2 3.3V 14 -12V
3 GND 15 GND
4 +5V 16
5 GND 17 GND
6 +5V 18 GND
7 GND 19 GND
8 Power Good 20 -5V
9 21 +5V
10 +12V 22 +5V
11
23
12
24
Pin No. Pin No.
1 5
2 6
3 GND 7 +12V
4 GND 8 +12V
SYS_FAN1/2:
Pin No.
1 GND
2 Speed Control
3 Sense
4 Reserve
CPU_FAN:
Pin No.
1 GND
2 +12V
3 Sense
4 Speed Control
ATX_12V
G.QBOFM
5
8
1
4
CPU_FAN
G.QBOFM
1
SYS_FAN1/2
G.QBOFM
1
- 15 -
•Be sure to connect fan cables to the fan headers to prevent yourAPU and system from overheating. Overheating
may result in damage to the APU or the system may hang.
•
•Always turn off your computer before clearing the CMOS values.
•
Open: Normal
Short: Clear CMOS Values
6) SATA2 0/1/2/3/4/5 (SATA 3Gb/s Connectors)
The SATA connectors conform to SATA 3Gb/s standard and are compatible with SATA 1.5Gb/s standard.
Each SATA connector supports a single SATA device. The AMD A55 Chipset supports RAID 0, RAID 1,
a RAID array.
Pin No.
1 GND
2 TXP
3 TXN
4 GND
5 RXN
6 RXP
7 GND
•
are to be used, the total number of hard drives must be an even number.
•
7
7
7
1
1
1
G.QBOFM
G.QBOFM
G.QBOFM
G.QBOFM
G.QBOFM
G.QBOFM
0 3
1 4
2 5 SATA2
1
SYS_FAN3
SYS_FAN3
Pin No.
1 GND
2 +12V
3 N/A
- 16 -
The front panel design may differ by chassis.A front panel module mainly consists of power switch, reset
switch, power LED, hard drive activity LED, speaker and etc. When connecting your chassis front panel
module to this header, make sure the wire assignments and the pin assignments are matched correctly.
Connect the power switch, reset switch, speaker, chassis intrusion switch/sensor and system status indicator
on the chassis to this header according to the pin assignments below. Note the positive and negative pins
before connecting the cables.
7) BAT (Battery)
in the CMOS when the computer is turned off. Replace the battery when the battery voltage drops to a low
level, or the CMOS values may not be accurate or may be lost.
You may clear the CMOS values by removing the battery:
1. Turn off your computer and unplug the power cord.
2.
3. Replace the battery.
4. Plug in the power cord and restart your computer.
•Always turn off your computer before clearing the CMOS values.
•Replace the battery with an equivalent one. Danger of explosion if the battery is replaced with an incorrect model.
•Contact the place of purchase or local dealer if you are not able to replace the battery by yourself or uncertain
about the battery model.
•
•Used batteries must be handled in accordance with local environmental regulations.
Power LED
G.QBOFM
1
2
19
20
CI-
CI+
PWR_LED-
PWR_LED+
PLED-
PW-
SPEAK+
SPEAK-
PLED+
PW+
Power LED
HD-
RES+
HD+
RES-
Hard Drive
Activity LED
Reset
Switch Chassis Intrusion
Header
Power Switch Speaker
PWR_LED-
•PW
Connects to the power switch on the chassis front panel. You may
•PLED/PWR_LED
Connects to the power status indicator
on the chassis front panel. The LED is on
when the system is operating. The LED is
off when the system is in S3/S4 sleep state
System Status LED
S0 On
S3/S4/S5 Off
•SPEAK
Connects to the speaker on the chassis front panel. The system reports system startup status by issuing a
beep code. One single short beep will be heard if no problem is detected at system startup. If a problem is
detected, the BIOS may issue beeps in different patterns to indicate the problem.
•HD
Connects to the hard drive activity LED on the chassis front panel. The LED is on when the hard drive is
reading or writing data.
•RES
Connects to the reset switch on the chassis front panel. Press the reset switch to restart the computer if the
•CI
Connects to the chassis intrusion switch/sensor on the chassis that can detect if the chassis cover has been
removed. This function requires a chassis with a chassis intrusion switch/sensor.
- 17 -
your chassis front panel audio module to this header. Make sure the wire assignments of the module
connector match the pin assignments of the motherboard header. Incorrect connection between the module
connector and the motherboard header will make the device unable to work or even damage it.
For HD Front Panel Audio: ForAC'97 Front PanelAudio:
Pin No.
1 MIC2_L
2 GND
3 MIC2_R
4 -ACZ_DET
5 LINE2_R
6 GND
7 FAUDIO_JD
8 No Pin
9 LINE2_L
10 GND
Pin No.
1 MIC
2 GND
3 MIC Power
4 NC
5
6 NC
7 NC
8 No Pin
9
10 NC
•The front panel audio header supports HD audio by default.
•Audio signals will be present on both of the front and back panel audio connections simultaneously.
•Some chassis provide a front panel audio module that has separated connectors on each wire instead of a
single plug. For information about connecting the front panel audio module that has different wire assignments,
please contact the chassis manufacturer.
sound cards. For example, some graphics cards may require you to use a S/PDIF digital audio cable for
digital audio output from your motherboard to your graphics card if you wish to connect an HDMI display
to the graphics card and have digital audio output from the HDMI display at the same time.
For information about connecting the S/PDIF digital audio cable, carefully read the manual for your
expansion card.
Pin No.
1 SPDIFO
2 GND
1
9 1
10 2
11) F_USB1/F_USB2/F_USB3/F_USB4 (USB 2.0/1.1 Headers)
optional USB bracket. For purchasing the optional USB bracket, please contact the local dealer.
Pin No. Pin No.
1 6 USB DY+
2 7 GND
3 USB DX- 8 GND
4 USB DY- 9 No Pin
5 USB DX+ 10 NC
•
•Prior to installing the USB bracket, be sure to turn off your computer and unplug the power cord from the power
outlet to prevent damage to the USB bracket.
G.QBOFM
10
9
2
1
- 18 -
12) TPM (Trusted Platform Module Header)
Pin No. Pin No. Pin No.
1 LCLK 8 LAD2 15 SB3V
2 GND 9 VCC3 16 SERIRQ
3 LFRAME 10 LAD1 17 GND
4 No Pin 11 LAD0 18 NC
5 LRESET 12 GND 19 NC
6 NC 13 NC 20 SUSCLK
7 LAD3 14 ID
20
19
2
1
•
may result in system malfunction.
•
unexpected results. Inadequately altering the settings may result in system's failure to boot. If this occurs, try to
saving system parameters and loading operating system, etc. BIOS includes a BIOS Setup program that allows
When the power is turned off, the battery on the motherboard supplies the necessary power to the CMOS to
To access the BIOS Setup program, press the <Delete> key during the POST when the power is turned on.
To upgrade the BIOS, use either the GIGABYTE Q-Flash or @BIOS utility.
•Q-Flash allows the user to quickly and easily upgrade or back up BIOS without entering the operating system.
•@BIOS is a Windows-based utility that searches and downloads the latest version of BIOS from the Internet
and updates the BIOS.
- 19 -
•When the system is not stable as usual, select the item to set your system to its defaults.
•The BIOS Setup menus described in this chapter are for reference only and may differ by BIOS version.
2-1 Startup Screen
The following startup Logo screen will appear when the computer boots.
Function Keys
On the main menu of the BIOS Setup program, press arrow keys to move among the items and press <Enter>
to accept or enter a sub-menu. Or you can use your mouse to select the item you want.
2-2 M.I.T.
Whether the system will work stably with the overclock/overvoltage settings you made is dependent on your overall
and reduce the useful life of these components. This page is for advanced users only and we recommend you not to
This section provides information on the BIOS version, CPU base clock, CPU frequency, memory frequency,
- 20 -
`M.I.T. Current Status
This screen provides information on CPU/memory frequencies/parameters.
`Advanced Frequency Settings
&BCLK/PCIe Clock Control
Important: It is highly recommended that the CPU frequency be set in accordance with the CPU
&
&Processor Graphics Clock
&CPU Clock Ratio
being installed.
&CPU Frequency
Displays the current operating CPU frequency.
`Advanced CPU Core Features
&CPU Clock Ratio, CPU Frequency
The settings above are synchronous to those under the same items on the Advanced Frequency Settings
menu.
&Core Performance Boost
&Turbo CPB
&CPB Ratio
&Cool&Quiet
Disabled Disables this function.
&SVM Mode
&C6 Mode
Allows you to determine whether to let the CPU enter C6 mode in system halt state. When enabled, the
CPU core frequency will be reduced during system halt state to decrease power consumption. The C6
&CPU core Control
Allows you to determine whether to manually enable/disable CPU cores. Automatic mode allows the BIOS
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