Motherboard Products: Intel Performance
We cannot disclose performance results yet for the Bearlake motherboards nor give general indications on how it compares to the P965 but all will be revealed on May 21st. Let's just say we were surprised with our test results over the last few weeks. (You'll have to wait to find out if we were surprised in a good or a bad way.) In the meantime we have three boards from ASUS, Gigabyte, and MSI to show you today with more coming shortly.
The spiritual successor to Gigabyte's highly acclaimed GA-965P-DS3 series is the new GA-P35-DS3R. The board features a single x16 PCI Express slot, two x1 PCI Express slots, and three PCI 2.2 slots. The new ICH9R chipset is also included with six SATA 3Gb/s ports, and two additional SATA 3Gb/s ports come from the now standard JMicron JMB363 chipset that also provides IDE functionality. Audio is provided by the new Realtek ALC889A chipset and the board features Gigabyte's Ultra Durable 2 technology. This technology is a combination of ferrite core choke coils, low RDS MOSFETs, and solid aluminum polymer capacitors on the board.
The ASUS P5K Deluxe is based on the P35 and ICH9R chipsets. The board features two x16 PCI Express slots (x16 electrical and x4 electrical for CrossFire), two x1 PCI Express slots, and three PCI 2.2 slots. The ICH9R Southbridge features six Serial ATA 3Gb/s ports with RAID 0, 1, 5, and 10 support. ASUS also supplies the JMicron JMB363 SATA controller that provides two e-SATA ports and the single IDE connector. The board is equipped with an ADI 1988B 8-channel HD audio codec and features dual Gigabit LAN. The ASUS WiFi-AP Solo IEEE 802.11g wireless card is included as is IEEE 1394a support from the Agere FW322 chipset.
The MSI P35 Platinum is also based on the P35 and ICH9R chipsets. The board features two x16 PCI Express slots (x16 electrical and x4 electrical for CrossFire), two x1 PCI Express slots, and two PCI 2.2 slots. The ICH9R Southbridge features six Serial ATA 3Gb/s ports with MSI utilizing two for e-SATA duties. MSI utilizes the Marvell 88SE6111 chipset that provides a single 3Gb/s SATA and IDE ATA133 port on the board. The board is equipped with the new Realtek ALC888T 8-channel HD audio codec that features support for VoIP. The board features a single Gigabit LAN port and IEEE 1394a support from the VIA VT6308 chipset.
AMD uATX
We have several uATX boards featuring the AM2 processor series that we will present in our upcoming roundup that can only be described at this time as an editor killing review. The products we will briefly cover today are just a few examples of the boards that will be included. While most of our boards are based on the AMD 690G and NVIDIA 6150 technology we do have a couple of AMD/ATI RS485 boards along with a VIA K8M890 based board. We will also include results from the new NVIDIA 7050 chipset.
The Sapphire PI-AM2RS690MHD board is based on the AMD690G chipset that offers very good onboard video performance via the ATI X1250 with the ability to upgrade to the latest graphics card technology via the x16 PCI Express slot. The board supports 8GB of DDR2 memory, single x1 PCI Express slot, two PCI 2.2 slots, HD audio via the Realtek ALC882D, and IEEE 1394a from the VIA VT6306 chipset. The board also features HDMI, VGA, and DVI output along with four 3Gb/s SATA ports and a single IDE connector via the tried and true SB600 Southbridge. With the latest BIOS we are now over 300HTT in our overclocking tests along with the board performing superbly overall.
The Biostar TF7050-M2 board is based upon the new NVIDIA GeForce 7050PV and nForce 630A chipsets that offer very good system performance in a uATX form factor. The board has one x16 PCI Express slot, one x1 PCI Express slot, and two PCI slots. The board supports 4GB of DDR2 memory, HD audio via the Realtek ALC888, Gigabit LAN via the Realtek RTL-8111B Fast Ethernet, and four Serial ATA 3Gb/s ports along with a single ATA133 IDE connector. The board also features VGA and HDMI outputs. Additional details about this chipset will be available on May 15th.
We cannot disclose performance results yet for the Bearlake motherboards nor give general indications on how it compares to the P965 but all will be revealed on May 21st. Let's just say we were surprised with our test results over the last few weeks. (You'll have to wait to find out if we were surprised in a good or a bad way.) In the meantime we have three boards from ASUS, Gigabyte, and MSI to show you today with more coming shortly.
The spiritual successor to Gigabyte's highly acclaimed GA-965P-DS3 series is the new GA-P35-DS3R. The board features a single x16 PCI Express slot, two x1 PCI Express slots, and three PCI 2.2 slots. The new ICH9R chipset is also included with six SATA 3Gb/s ports, and two additional SATA 3Gb/s ports come from the now standard JMicron JMB363 chipset that also provides IDE functionality. Audio is provided by the new Realtek ALC889A chipset and the board features Gigabyte's Ultra Durable 2 technology. This technology is a combination of ferrite core choke coils, low RDS MOSFETs, and solid aluminum polymer capacitors on the board.
The ASUS P5K Deluxe is based on the P35 and ICH9R chipsets. The board features two x16 PCI Express slots (x16 electrical and x4 electrical for CrossFire), two x1 PCI Express slots, and three PCI 2.2 slots. The ICH9R Southbridge features six Serial ATA 3Gb/s ports with RAID 0, 1, 5, and 10 support. ASUS also supplies the JMicron JMB363 SATA controller that provides two e-SATA ports and the single IDE connector. The board is equipped with an ADI 1988B 8-channel HD audio codec and features dual Gigabit LAN. The ASUS WiFi-AP Solo IEEE 802.11g wireless card is included as is IEEE 1394a support from the Agere FW322 chipset.
The MSI P35 Platinum is also based on the P35 and ICH9R chipsets. The board features two x16 PCI Express slots (x16 electrical and x4 electrical for CrossFire), two x1 PCI Express slots, and two PCI 2.2 slots. The ICH9R Southbridge features six Serial ATA 3Gb/s ports with MSI utilizing two for e-SATA duties. MSI utilizes the Marvell 88SE6111 chipset that provides a single 3Gb/s SATA and IDE ATA133 port on the board. The board is equipped with the new Realtek ALC888T 8-channel HD audio codec that features support for VoIP. The board features a single Gigabit LAN port and IEEE 1394a support from the VIA VT6308 chipset.
AMD uATX
We have several uATX boards featuring the AM2 processor series that we will present in our upcoming roundup that can only be described at this time as an editor killing review. The products we will briefly cover today are just a few examples of the boards that will be included. While most of our boards are based on the AMD 690G and NVIDIA 6150 technology we do have a couple of AMD/ATI RS485 boards along with a VIA K8M890 based board. We will also include results from the new NVIDIA 7050 chipset.
The Sapphire PI-AM2RS690MHD board is based on the AMD690G chipset that offers very good onboard video performance via the ATI X1250 with the ability to upgrade to the latest graphics card technology via the x16 PCI Express slot. The board supports 8GB of DDR2 memory, single x1 PCI Express slot, two PCI 2.2 slots, HD audio via the Realtek ALC882D, and IEEE 1394a from the VIA VT6306 chipset. The board also features HDMI, VGA, and DVI output along with four 3Gb/s SATA ports and a single IDE connector via the tried and true SB600 Southbridge. With the latest BIOS we are now over 300HTT in our overclocking tests along with the board performing superbly overall.
The Biostar TF7050-M2 board is based upon the new NVIDIA GeForce 7050PV and nForce 630A chipsets that offer very good system performance in a uATX form factor. The board has one x16 PCI Express slot, one x1 PCI Express slot, and two PCI slots. The board supports 4GB of DDR2 memory, HD audio via the Realtek ALC888, Gigabit LAN via the Realtek RTL-8111B Fast Ethernet, and four Serial ATA 3Gb/s ports along with a single ATA133 IDE connector. The board also features VGA and HDMI outputs. Additional details about this chipset will be available on May 15th.
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DigitalFreak - Friday, May 4, 2007 - link
Where was the board with the Via chipset? I needed a good laugh.danielackerman - Friday, May 4, 2007 - link
I dont understan why anand hasnt done any good reviews on amd based mobos. I dont own intel, ive never owned intel, i will never own intel. there are many like me. there are many who love this website.PLEASE BE A BIT MORE FAIR AND BALANCED. less monopoly of intel board reviews and more skinny on amd based boards please.
thnax
strikeback03 - Friday, May 4, 2007 - link
umm, not much has happened on that front since the launch of AM2. They had a review of the new AMD integrated graphics, I'd expect more with the uATX review whenever it comes. Otherwise I'd expect more motherboard tests after the Barcelona launch.kilkennycat - Thursday, May 3, 2007 - link
As for many others not wishing to upgrade to a new motherboard every year - in spite of the money that activity makes for the MB manufacturers and the chip-set suppliers, grrrr... --- compatibility with upcoming processor-families becomes a most important decision-making parameter. In the case of the Intel motherboards, the obvious candidate is the desktop version of Penryn. Considering the motherboard voltage-regulator fiasco with the move from P4 to Conroe, it seems that there could be a repeat of that fiasco, or a chip-set incompatibility fiasco (as with the 715/725 and dual-cores) with the move to Penryn.For example, I expect to build a new PC in the Fall this year. I would like to buy a motherboard with a few months of production and BIOS-updates "under its belt". I will probably initally invest in a fast dual-core Intel Conroe system ( if AMD does not pull a rabbit out of the hat in a month or two ) and potentially later upgrade to a Penyrn quad-core when the "price is right". Replacement of my just-purchased motherboard to address that latter contingency is just "not on the cards"..... However, for me, a BIOS update to an existing MB is perfectly acceptable in the case of a Penryn upgrade.
I'm sure that Anandtech has sufficient clout to spring free a beta-phase quad-core Penryn or two and some MB Alpha-BIOS updates to verify Penryn-compatibility in your formal reviews of the Intel-compatible versions of these new-generation motherboards.
Of course, if you could also spring loose some desktop K10 AMD CPUs to verify AMD motherboard compatibility for their upcoming desktop-CPU family, I am sure that you will make some more of your readers eternally grateful.
kilkennycat - Thursday, May 3, 2007 - link
... sorry line #4, 915/925, not 715/725....mattt79 - Thursday, May 3, 2007 - link
Finally! Could you also mention possible compatability problems... such as the JMicron EIDE controller issues that almost all of the 965 boards have?
Thanks,
Matt
strikeback03 - Thursday, May 3, 2007 - link
the JMicron controller is supposed to work with Linux kernel 2.6.18 and up. I can't give any firsthand experience though, as Ubuntu 7.04 does not like my card reader or wireless card and I have not gotten time to actually install and try the JMicron.Any tests on whether those heatpipe chipset coolers have issues when using a good CPU cooler, such as an Ultra-120 or Tuniq, that move some airflow away from right at board level?
yacoub - Thursday, May 3, 2007 - link
The cooling on the MSi P35 board looks like a friggin' rollercoaster! :Dsprockkets - Thursday, May 3, 2007 - link
That Albatron board has been replaced by a newer version, but good luck finding it.Also, someone made a point elsewhere that again, Intel just made the current chipset obsolete in 6 months, again. Not a big deal for the end user though.
That Sapphire board? Uses Teapo caps and like 2 mosfets per a channel, that's absurd for a near $100 board. Take a look at the abit nview and see how it has Rubycon caps all over the board, bearing much higher quality.
yyrkoon - Friday, May 4, 2007 - link
Yeah, I was about to write a post saying that the Saphire board looks to be a knockoff of the MF-M2 nView, which we have two here on premisis (I own one, and I love it)Good looking out on the caps/mosfets, I did not notice that myself :/
On a side note, someone needs to inform mini-ITX makers, that socket 754 is pretty dated, and time to move to more availible/inexpencive CPUs . . .