User Guide
Page 3
Contents Safety information iv About this guide iv Package contents vi A78M-E specifications summary vi Chapter 1: Product introduction 1.1 Before you proceed 1-1 1.2 Motherboard overview 1-2 1.3 Accelerated Processing Unit (APU 1-4 1.4 System memory 1-8 1.5 Expansion slots 1-10 1.6 Jumpers 1-12 1.7 Connectors 1-13 1.8 Software support 1-21 Chapter 2: BIOS information 2.1 Managing and ...10 2.5 Ai Tweaker menu 2-12 2.6 Advanced menu 2-16 2.7 Monitor menu 2-22 2.8 Boot menu 2-25 2.9 Tools menu 2-31 2.10 Exit menu 2-32 Appendices Notices...A-1 ASUS contact information A-3 iii
Contents Safety information iv About this guide iv Package contents vi A78M-E specifications summary vi Chapter 1: Product introduction 1.1 Before you proceed 1-1 1.2 Motherboard overview 1-2 1.3 Accelerated Processing Unit (APU 1-4 1.4 System memory 1-8 1.5 Expansion slots 1-10 1.6 Jumpers 1-12 1.7 Connectors 1-13 1.8 Software support 1-21 Chapter 2: BIOS information 2.1 Managing and ...10 2.5 Ai Tweaker menu 2-12 2.6 Advanced menu 2-16 2.7 Monitor menu 2-22 2.8 Boot menu 2-25 2.9 Tools menu 2-31 2.10 Exit menu 2-32 Appendices Notices...A-1 ASUS contact information A-3 iii
User Guide
Page 4
... settings through the BIOS Setup menus. Detailed descriptions fo the BIOS parameters are not damaged. Operation safety • Before installing the motherboard and adding components, carefully read all power cables from the existing system before you encounter technical problems with the package. • ... are also provided. If you are not sure about the voltage of the electrical outlet you need when installing and configuring the motherboard. Do not place the product in your retailer. Contact a qualified service technician or your area. Safety information Electrical safety •...
... settings through the BIOS Setup menus. Detailed descriptions fo the BIOS parameters are not damaged. Operation safety • Before installing the motherboard and adding components, carefully read all power cables from the existing system before you encounter technical problems with the package. • ... are also provided. If you are not sure about the voltage of the electrical outlet you need when installing and configuring the motherboard. Do not place the product in your retailer. Contact a qualified service technician or your area. Safety information Electrical safety •...
User Guide
Page 6
... Dual-channel memory architecture Supports AMD Memory Profile (AMP) memory • Hyper DIMM support is damaged or missing, contact your motherboard package for the following items. Motherboard Cables Accessories Application DVD Documentation ASUS A78M-E motherboard 2 x Serial ATA 6.0 Gb/s cables 1 x I/O Shield Support DVD User Guide If any of 1920x1600@60Hz - resolution of 2560x1600@60Hz - resolution of...
... Dual-channel memory architecture Supports AMD Memory Profile (AMP) memory • Hyper DIMM support is damaged or missing, contact your motherboard package for the following items. Motherboard Cables Accessories Application DVD Documentation ASUS A78M-E motherboard 2 x Serial ATA 6.0 Gb/s cables 1 x I/O Shield Support DVD User Guide If any of 1920x1600@60Hz - resolution of 2560x1600@60Hz - resolution of...
User Guide
Page 7
A78M-E specifications summary Storage LAN Audio USB ASUS unique features AMD® A78 FCH: - 6 x Serial ATA 6 Gb/s connectors with RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 10 and JBOD support Realtek® 8111GR PCIe ...Design Heat-sink solution ASUS EZ DIY - ASUS DIGI+ VRM - ASUS EZ Flash 2 - ASUS DIGI+ VRM: Digital Power Design for extended component lifespan ASUS High-Quality 5K-Hour Solid Capacitors - 2.5x Long Lifespan with excellent durability ASUS Stainless Steel Back I /O to support a 7.1-channel audio output. ASUS 3+2 Phase Power Design ASUS DRAM Fuse - ASUS motherboards safeguard your PC with...
A78M-E specifications summary Storage LAN Audio USB ASUS unique features AMD® A78 FCH: - 6 x Serial ATA 6 Gb/s connectors with RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 10 and JBOD support Realtek® 8111GR PCIe ...Design Heat-sink solution ASUS EZ DIY - ASUS DIGI+ VRM - ASUS EZ Flash 2 - ASUS DIGI+ VRM: Digital Power Design for extended component lifespan ASUS High-Quality 5K-Hour Solid Capacitors - 2.5x Long Lifespan with excellent durability ASUS Stainless Steel Back I /O to support a 7.1-channel audio output. ASUS 3+2 Phase Power Design ASUS DRAM Fuse - ASUS motherboards safeguard your PC with...
User Guide
Page 9
...of the onboard LED. The illustration below shows the location of the following precautions before you uninstall any motherboard component. SB_PWR A78M-E ON OFF Standby Power Powered Off A78M-E Onboard LED ASUS A78M-E 1-1 Failure to do so may cause severe damage to indicate that the system is ON, in ...sleep mode, or in the bag that came with a standby power LED that lights up to the motherboard, peripherals, or components. This ...
...of the onboard LED. The illustration below shows the location of the following precautions before you uninstall any motherboard component. SB_PWR A78M-E ON OFF Standby Power Powered Off A78M-E Onboard LED ASUS A78M-E 1-1 Failure to do so may cause severe damage to indicate that the system is ON, in ...sleep mode, or in the bag that came with a standby power LED that lights up to the motherboard, peripherals, or components. This ...
User Guide
Page 10
... installing or removing the motherboard. 1.2 Motherboard overview Before you physical injury and damage to ensure that the motherboard fits. Place this side... towards the rear of the chassis as indicated in the image. 1.2.2 Screw holes Place six screws into the chassis in the correct orientation. Doing so can cause you install the motherboard..., study the configuration of your chassis to motherboard components. 1.2.1 Placement direction When installing the motherboard, place it into the holes indicated by circles to secure the motherboard...
... installing or removing the motherboard. 1.2 Motherboard overview Before you physical injury and damage to ensure that the motherboard fits. Place this side... towards the rear of the chassis as indicated in the image. 1.2.2 Screw holes Place six screws into the chassis in the correct orientation. Doing so can cause you install the motherboard..., study the configuration of your chassis to motherboard components. 1.2.1 Placement direction When installing the motherboard, place it into the holes indicated by circles to secure the motherboard...
User Guide
Page 12
... series processors. ATX power connectors (24-pin EATXPWR, 4-pin ATX12V) 3. USB 2.0 connectors (10-1 pin USB34, USB56) 11. The APU fits in only one correct orientation. A78M-E A78M-E CPU socket FM2+ 1-4 Chapter 1: Product introduction Standby power LED (SB_PWR) 10. Clear RTC RAM (2-pin CLRTC) 13. Speaker connector (4-pin SPEAKER) 7. DO NOT force the... 2. Front panel audio connector (10-1 pin AAFP) Page 1-15 1-16 1-15 1-4 1-8 1-18 1-17 1-18 1-1 1-20 1-20 1-12 1-19 1-17 1-19 1.3 Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) This motherboard comes with a FM2+ socket designed for the FM2+ socket.
... series processors. ATX power connectors (24-pin EATXPWR, 4-pin ATX12V) 3. USB 2.0 connectors (10-1 pin USB34, USB56) 11. The APU fits in only one correct orientation. A78M-E A78M-E CPU socket FM2+ 1-4 Chapter 1: Product introduction Standby power LED (SB_PWR) 10. Clear RTC RAM (2-pin CLRTC) 13. Speaker connector (4-pin SPEAKER) 7. DO NOT force the... 2. Front panel audio connector (10-1 pin AAFP) Page 1-15 1-16 1-15 1-4 1-8 1-18 1-17 1-18 1-1 1-20 1-20 1-12 1-19 1-17 1-19 1.3 Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) This motherboard comes with a FM2+ socket designed for the FM2+ socket.
User Guide
Page 16
...64MB) chips or less. 1-8 Chapter 1: Product introduction For optimal compatibility, we recommend that you install 4GB or more on the motherboard. • This motherboard does not support DIMMs made up of the same version or date code (D/C) from the higher-sized channel is notched differently to...a maximum of 3GB system memory if you do any of the DDR3 DIMM sockets: DIMM_A1 DIMM_B1 Channel Channel A Channel B Sockets DIMM_A1 DIMM_B1 A78M-E A78M-E 240-pin DDR3 DIMM sockets 1.4.2 Memory configurations You may install 1GB, 2GB, 4GB, and 8GB unbuffered non-ECC DDR3 DIMMs into the ...
...64MB) chips or less. 1-8 Chapter 1: Product introduction For optimal compatibility, we recommend that you install 4GB or more on the motherboard. • This motherboard does not support DIMMs made up of the same version or date code (D/C) from the higher-sized channel is notched differently to...a maximum of 3GB system memory if you do any of the DDR3 DIMM sockets: DIMM_A1 DIMM_B1 Channel Channel A Channel B Sockets DIMM_A1 DIMM_B1 A78M-E A78M-E 240-pin DDR3 DIMM sockets 1.4.2 Memory configurations You may install 1GB, 2GB, 4GB, and 8GB unbuffered non-ECC DDR3 DIMMs into the ...
User Guide
Page 18
...they support. The following sub‑sections describe the slots and the expansion cards that came with the screw you physical injury and damage motherboard components. 1.5.1 Installing an expansion card To install an expansion card: 1. Keep the screw for information on the system and change the... necessary BIOS settings, if any. Remove the system unit cover (if your motherboard is completely seated on shared slots, ensure that the drivers support "Share IRQ" or that you may cause you removed earlier. 6. Secure...
...they support. The following sub‑sections describe the slots and the expansion cards that came with the screw you physical injury and damage motherboard components. 1.5.1 Installing an expansion card To install an expansion card: 1. Keep the screw for information on the system and change the... necessary BIOS settings, if any. Remove the system unit cover (if your motherboard is completely seated on shared slots, ensure that the drivers support "Share IRQ" or that you may cause you removed earlier. 6. Secure...
User Guide
Page 19
... comply with the PCI Express specifications. 1.5.5 PCI Express x16 slot This motherboard supports PCI Express x16 network cards, SCSI cards, and other cards that comply with the PCI Express specifications. PCI1 slot - - - - OnChip USB EHCI 1/2/3 - ASUS A78M-E 1-11 IRQ assignments for this motherboard A B C D E FG H PCIEx16_1 - - Realtek LAN controller - - shared - - - - - shared - - - - - OnChip XHCI controller1 - - shared...
... comply with the PCI Express specifications. 1.5.5 PCI Express x16 slot This motherboard supports PCI Express x16 network cards, SCSI cards, and other cards that comply with the PCI Express specifications. PCI1 slot - - - - OnChip USB EHCI 1/2/3 - ASUS A78M-E 1-11 IRQ assignments for this motherboard A B C D E FG H PCIEx16_1 - - Realtek LAN controller - - shared - - - - - shared - - - - - OnChip XHCI controller1 - - shared...
User Guide
Page 23
... digital identities, and ensures platform integrity. TPM SB_SUS_STAT GND +3VSB SMBSCL LAD0 +3V LAD3 PCIRST# FRAME PCICLK A78M-E PIN 1 RESET GPIO SERIRQ SMBSDA GND LAD1 LAD2 PWROWN GND A78M-E TPM connector The TPM module is purchased separately. These are not jumpers! CPU_FAN CPU FAN PWM CPU FAN IN...the connector. DO NOT place jumper caps on the motherboard, ensuring that the black wire of each cable matches the ground pin of maximum 2A (24W) fan power. • Only the 4-pin CPU fan and 4-pin chassis fan support the ASUS Fan Xpert feature. 2. CPU and chassis fan connectors...
... digital identities, and ensures platform integrity. TPM SB_SUS_STAT GND +3VSB SMBSCL LAD0 +3V LAD3 PCIRST# FRAME PCICLK A78M-E PIN 1 RESET GPIO SERIRQ SMBSDA GND LAD1 LAD2 PWROWN GND A78M-E TPM connector The TPM module is purchased separately. These are not jumpers! CPU_FAN CPU FAN PWM CPU FAN IN...the connector. DO NOT place jumper caps on the motherboard, ensuring that the black wire of each cable matches the ground pin of maximum 2A (24W) fan power. • Only the 4-pin CPU fan and 4-pin chassis fan support the ASUS Fan Xpert feature. 2. CPU and chassis fan connectors...
User Guide
Page 27
... module to a slot opening at the back of the motherboard high-definition audio capability. • If you want to connect a high definition front panel audio module to this connector, set the Front Panel Type item in the BIOS to [HD]. ASUS A78M-E 1-19 Front panel audio connector (10-1 pin AAFP)... This connector is purchased separately. Connect the serial port module cable to avail of the system chassis. COM RXD DTR DSR CTS PIN 1 DCD TXD GND RTS RI A78M-E A78M-E Serial port connectors The COM module...
... module to a slot opening at the back of the motherboard high-definition audio capability. • If you want to connect a high definition front panel audio module to this connector, set the Front Panel Type item in the BIOS to [HD]. ASUS A78M-E 1-19 Front panel audio connector (10-1 pin AAFP)... This connector is purchased separately. Connect the serial port module cable to avail of the system chassis. COM RXD DTR DSR CTS PIN 1 DCD TXD GND RTS RI A78M-E A78M-E Serial port connectors The COM module...
User Guide
Page 28
...+ GND IntA_P2_DIntA_P2_D+ A78M-E A78M-E USB3.0 connector You can enjoy all the benefits of USB 3.0 including faster data transfer speeds of the system chassis. USB 2.0 connectors (10-1 pin USB34, USB56) These connectors are for USB-chargeable devices, optimized power efficiency and backward compatibility with USB 2.0. Doing so will damage the motherboard! With an installed...
...+ GND IntA_P2_DIntA_P2_D+ A78M-E A78M-E USB3.0 connector You can enjoy all the benefits of USB 3.0 including faster data transfer speeds of the system chassis. USB 2.0 connectors (10-1 pin USB34, USB56) These connectors are for USB-chargeable devices, optimized power efficiency and backward compatibility with USB 2.0. Doing so will damage the motherboard! With an installed...
User Guide
Page 29
... at any time without notice. ASUS A78M-E 1-21 Refer to change at www.asus.com for updates. To run the DVD. Click Drivers, Utilities, Make Disk, Manual, and Contact tabs to avail all motherboard features. The following screen is enabled in your computer, the DVD automatically displays the Specials screen. The contents of the...
... at any time without notice. ASUS A78M-E 1-21 Refer to change at www.asus.com for updates. To run the DVD. Click Drivers, Utilities, Make Disk, Manual, and Contact tabs to avail all motherboard features. The following screen is enabled in your computer, the DVD automatically displays the Specials screen. The contents of the...
User Guide
Page 31
... goes into POST. Click to automatically update your motherboard's softwares, drivers and the BIOS version easily. ASUS A78M-E 2-1 BIOS information 2 2.1 Managing and updating your BIOS Save a copy of the original motherboard BIOS file to a USB flash disk in the future. Copy the original motherboard BIOS using the ASUS Update utility. 2.1.1 EZ Update EZ Update is a utility...
... goes into POST. Click to automatically update your motherboard's softwares, drivers and the BIOS version easily. ASUS A78M-E 2-1 BIOS information 2 2.1 Managing and updating your BIOS Save a copy of the original motherboard BIOS file to a USB flash disk in the future. Copy the original motherboard BIOS using the ASUS Update utility. 2.1.1 EZ Update EZ Update is a utility...
User Guide
Page 33
...that contains the updated BIOS file. • Before using the motherboard support DVD or a USB flash drive that contains the BIOS file to restore the BIOS file when it fails or gets corrupted during the updating process. ASUS A78M-E 2-3 Recovering the BIOS To recover the BIOS: 1. When ...found, the utility reads the BIOS file and enters ASUS EZ Flash 2 utility automatically. 4. The succeeding utility screens are for the BIOS ...
...that contains the updated BIOS file. • Before using the motherboard support DVD or a USB flash drive that contains the BIOS file to restore the BIOS file when it fails or gets corrupted during the updating process. ASUS A78M-E 2-3 Recovering the BIOS To recover the BIOS: 1. When ...found, the utility reads the BIOS file and enters ASUS EZ Flash 2 utility automatically. 4. The succeeding utility screens are for the BIOS ...
User Guide
Page 36
... failed to select the display language, system performance mode and boot device priority. The BIOS screens include navigation keys and brief online help to your motherboard if you want to use the mouse to control the BIOS setup program. • The default BIOS settings for the advanced BIOS settings. 2-6 ...section 2.10 Exit Menu. • If the system fails to boot after changing any BIOS setting, try to clear the CMOS and reset the motherboard to update the BIOS or configure its routines. EZ Mode By default, the EZ Mode screen appears when you do not press , POST continues ...
... failed to select the display language, system performance mode and boot device priority. The BIOS screens include navigation keys and brief online help to your motherboard if you want to use the mouse to control the BIOS setup program. • The default BIOS settings for the advanced BIOS settings. 2-6 ...section 2.10 Exit Menu. • If the system fails to boot after changing any BIOS setting, try to clear the CMOS and reset the motherboard to update the BIOS or configure its routines. EZ Mode By default, the EZ Mode screen appears when you do not press , POST continues ...
User Guide
Page 42
2.5 Ai Tweaker menu The Ai Tweaker menu items allow you installed on the CPU and DIMM model you to configure overclocking-related items. Be cautious when changing the settings of the Ai Tweaker menu items. Incorrect field values can cause the system to display the following items: 2-12 Chapter 2: BIOS information Scroll down to malfunction. The configuration options for this section vary depending on the motherboard.
2.5 Ai Tweaker menu The Ai Tweaker menu items allow you installed on the CPU and DIMM model you to configure overclocking-related items. Be cautious when changing the settings of the Ai Tweaker menu items. Incorrect field values can cause the system to display the following items: 2-12 Chapter 2: BIOS information Scroll down to malfunction. The configuration options for this section vary depending on the motherboard.
User Guide
Page 53
...%. The values range from 20% to 75ºC. Duty Cycle(%) [20] Use the and keys to assign detailed fan speed control parameters. ASUS A78M-E 2-23 Configuration options: [Ignore] [200 RPM] [300 RPM] [400 RPM] [500 RPM] [600 RPM] Q-Fan Profile [Standard]... control feature. 2.7.1 CPU Temperature / MB Temperature [xxxºC/xxxºF] The onboard hardware monitor automatically detects and displays the CPU and motherboard temperatures. 2.7.2 CPU / Chassis Fan Speed [xxxx RPM] / [N/A] The onboard hardware monitor automatically detects and displays the CPU / chassis fan...
...%. The values range from 20% to 75ºC. Duty Cycle(%) [20] Use the and keys to assign detailed fan speed control parameters. ASUS A78M-E 2-23 Configuration options: [Ignore] [200 RPM] [300 RPM] [400 RPM] [500 RPM] [600 RPM] Q-Fan Profile [Standard]... control feature. 2.7.1 CPU Temperature / MB Temperature [xxxºC/xxxºF] The onboard hardware monitor automatically detects and displays the CPU and motherboard temperatures. 2.7.2 CPU / Chassis Fan Speed [xxxx RPM] / [N/A] The onboard hardware monitor automatically detects and displays the CPU / chassis fan...