AC68U DDR Configuration Upgrade Tools

[daleqq]

Asus just releases a utility for AC68u that can upgrade the DDR clock rate from 533MHZ to 666MHZ.

It is available at asus support site.

 

[avg]

yes, have anybody try on?

 

[Kris404]

Yeah, I tried it. It works I guess.

Kinda scary that it changes the router config without any authentication prompt.

 

[dmorales023]

What's the advantage?

I mean, it actually says you have to reset the router to factory settings, so I guess you should perform a backup of the configuration before doing this, therefore it is kind of a hassle.... Is there any noticeable advantage in performance of some sort to compensate the work?

 

[waltersmith]

Did it last night. Updated to .306 first as instructed. As always, no issues with this router on any of three firmwares.

nvram get clkfreq
800,666



ASUS RT-AC68U DDR Configuration Upgrade Tool version 1.0.0.7
This tool can upgrade the RT-AC68U DDR clock rate from 533MHz to 666MHz.

WARNING!!!
Using this tool only after firmware upgraded to 3.0.0.4.374.306
Do not using this tool if you are not sure how to.
Avoid power outages during update process.
Power outage during update will cause irreversible damage to RT-AC68U.

How to use this tool.
1. Connect PC and RT-AC68U with network cable.
2. Press the reset button over 5 seconds to reset the RT-AC68U.
3. Unzip the DDR configuration upgrade tool and run it.
For more detail, please refer to the tutorial video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqNJXF4_8yE&feature=youtu.be

 

[Sky1111]

Aha! ASUS finally got the message that they are losing the performance battle by choosing underclocked CPU and seriously underclocked memory

Seriously though - why not 800MHz? R7000 is shipping with memory clocked at 800MHz...

 

[JGrana]

I'm curious. Does this "tool" simply set the nvram variable clkfreq to 667 or is there some other magic going on?

The reason I ask is that the turbo mode button tweak does indeed set the processors to 1Ghz, yet clkfreq still reports 800.

I have been running in the Turbo/1Ghz mode all day - no problems, running fine. I have no idea what the memory timing is. Getting it up to 667 would be a good thing! Memory timing has even more to do with performance then CPU clock speed (IMHO).

I don't want to change cklfreq since it seems to not be used in this Turbo mode. I could be wrong ;-)

 

[ronan_zj]

I'm curious. Does this "tool" simply set the nvram variable clkfreq to 667 or is there some other magic going on?

The reason I ask is that the turbo mode button tweak does indeed set the processors to 1Ghz, yet clkfreq still reports 800.

I have been running in the Turbo/1Ghz mode all day - no problems, running fine. I have no idea what the memory timing is. Getting it up to 667 would be a good thing! Memory timing has even more to do with performance then CPU clock speed (IMHO).

I don't want to change cklfreq since it seems to not be used in this Turbo mode. I could be wrong ;-)

Are you on Merlin FW? or stock 306?

 

[RMerlin]

I mean, it actually says you have to reset the router to factory settings, so I guess you should perform a backup of the configuration before doing this, therefore it is kind of a hassle....

Whenever you are asked to reset to factory defaults, you should never restore a saved backup afterward, as it would totally defeat the purpose of resetting to default values - you would simply reload the same old values on top of them.

 

[RMerlin]

Seriously though - why not 800MHz? R7000 is shipping with memory clocked at 800MHz...

Different chip - BCM4709 vs BCM4708. You can't compare them directly. And there's more than the CPU chip speed to it - higher clocks might require different components surrounding the memory chip, better filtering circuits, validating the pcboard layout at such frequencies (look at a PC motherboard sometime, and notice the serpentine traces on the pcboard - these are meant to reduce noise interference), and so on.

 

[RMerlin]

I'm curious. Does this "tool" simply set the nvram variable clkfreq to 667 or is there some other magic going on?

The reason I ask is that the turbo mode button tweak does indeed set the processors to 1Ghz, yet clkfreq still reports 800.

In the case of the upgrade tool, it upgrades the bootloader. This is why they say you must reset to factory defaults - the new values will then be written to nvam.

Turbo mode works differently. The bootloader checks at boot time if Turbo mode is enabled. If it is, it sets the CPU clock at 1 GHz. If not, it sets it at what's in clkfreq. This is why it's a safer way to overclock, as the bootloader relies on the state of the button, not on nvram-written values which can be hard to reset if your router crashes as early as in the bootloader.

 

[ronan_zj]

If I reset the router and clear nvram again, will DDR clock frequency drop back to 533?

 

[Kris404]

I did not reset to factory defaults. Ran the tool straight which said the operation was successful. I now need to validate if it in fact did.

 

[RMerlin]

If I reset the router and clear nvram again, will DDR clock frequency drop back to 533?

No. That's what the upgrade tool takes care of - it upgrades the bootloader, which contains all the factory default values.

That's at least my understanding of what Asus emailed me a few days ago before they released the tool - I haven't looked at the tool myself due to lack of time (and having little desire to run 306 on my development router )

 

[Kris404]

I think it worked without reset:

 

[ronan_zj]

What is the true clock frequency on this router? did Asus lower the performance on purpose?

 

[greggy101]

(and having little desire to run 306 on my development router )

...Why not?

 

[RMerlin]

...Why not?

Because I only use the router to flash and debug my code.

 

[RMerlin]

What is the true clock frequency on this router? did Asus lower the performance on purpose?

CPU clock for the BCM4708 is 800 MHz. RAM clock is whatever clock they decided to use at design time, it's up to the customer to decide when designing their board.

 

[JGrana]

Are you on Merlin FW? or stock 306?

I am on Merlins 374.34_nousbrst. It's been roughly 24 hours and running well.