by Doors4ever
06/15/2007 | 03:29 PM
Before we move on to discussing the mainboard based on Intel P35 Express chipset let’s take a quick look at its main competitors.
<%BANNER[article]%>Intel X38 chipset is a flagship solution in the line-up, and that is its main disadvantage. The mainboards based on it will evidently feature a bunch of useful and not very useful additional functions, be equipped with numerous onboard controllers, be shipped in luxurious packages with rich accessories bundles, which will obviously result in high price. A few years ago we could hope that some second-tier maker would design a mainboard on the top-of-the-line chipset that wouldn’t be overloaded with excessive features and would sell at reasonable price. Now we can certainly hope for that but cannot really count on it anymore. Smaller mainboard makers prefer not to deal with flagship core logic sets. Moreover, we haven’t seen anything truly remarkable from smaller mainboard makers for a while now. As for the advantages of Intel X38 over P35, the former will support two full-speed PCI Express x16 slots from PCI Express 2.0 revision. Advanced users will obviously be pleased with it, but these advantages will hardly mean anything for the mainstream majority.
Intel G33, Intel Q35 and Intel G35 chipsets feature integrated graphics cores with different potential. They are more than enough for office type of work, but will not cope with contemporary gaming. Those users who are not into games of any kind but care more about the computational power of the system will also be disappointed. Mainboards like that are usually designed in microATX form-factor and feature minimal options for overclocking and system fine tuning. You will be able to overclock your CPU on a mainboard like that, but you shouldn’t hope to get maximum performance.
As a result, it looks like P35 Express chipset appears the best overclocker’s choice out of the entire new Intel line-up. The chipset will fully support Intel processors with 333 (1333) MHz bus that are due this summer. Moreover, it will support efficient CPU and memory overclocking and will ensure that you get the most for your buck. Of course, if the mainboard allows it.
Although Intel P35 chipset was announced just recently, Asus managed to roll out the entire family of mainboards based on it. This is another piece of evidence proving how important this chipset actually is for the market. Let’s take a closer look at the entire Asus mainboard series built around Intel P35 Express chipset and single out the distinguishing features of different models.
Asus P5K WS and Asus P5K64 WS are the professional models. The first solution supports “server” PCI-X slots, while the second one is equipped with four PCI Express x16 slots, just like ASUS P5W64 WS Professional that we have reviewed earlier in our article called ASUS P5W64 WS Professional: A Mainboard with Four PCI Express x16 Slots. Of course, both mainboards will find their customers, but they are nevertheless pretty niche products, not the mass ones.
The flagship member of the family is the Asus P5K3 Deluxe/WiFi-AP that we all recognize thanks to the original design of the heat-pipe cooling system.
At first, you may get the impression that this is more of an image product intended for computer shows and for those who used to go for RDRAM systems even though there were much faster and better value alternatives available. Yes, this board is for the users who prefer expensive solutions, but it has another very important advantage: this board is ideal for comparative analysis. And you will compare it with none other but Asus P5K Deluxe/WiFi-AP – absolutely identical mainboard with the same features except for memory support: DDR2 instead of DDR3 by P5K3 Deluxe/WiFi-AP.
This mainboard is not for crazy enthusiasts but for pretty sane and reasonable ones. It will deliver everything you may think of if you are ready to pay the price. We are currently working on a detailed review of the Asus P5K Deluxe/WiFi-AP and it will be posted on our site shortly.
However, I believe that the most interesting product in the family is Asus P5K-E/WiFi-AP.
Look, it has exactly the same PCB layout as the top mainboards in the family, which means that its performance will also be up to the mark. As for the features, they are mostly the same, but without some excessive things. The absence of the second network adapter that most users do not need anyway is no drawbacks, but will definitely lower the price. From this standpoint, different cooling systems and accessories bundle are an advantage as well. Namely, we don’t lose anything important and still get a flagship product at a very justified price – if this is not an ideal, then it is really close to it.
The next solution, ASUS P5K-C mainboard, stands out. It supports both memory types: DDR2 and DDR3.
As a rule, solutions like that are targeted for economical users who prefer to upgrade their systems component by component and not all at once. In my humble opinion, the benefit of this approach is pretty doubtful, considering how rapidly the situation in the contemporary computer market changes.
If you already have a system with an LGA775 processor and DDR2 memory, then you can replace your mainboard with the new Asus P5K-C, because this way you will be able to upgrade to some new 45nm processor and DDR3 memory later on. But would you really need P5K-C mainboard in this case? What special features does it have other than dual-memory support? In the future, when DDR3 memory sells at affordable prices, there will be more products to choose from already. Besides, the CPUs may shift to new type of socket by then, or there will be a better solution from AMD that you decide on. Anyway, it is totally up to you to decide whether you would like to migrate to P5K-C now or wait for something else later.
If you think that everything is so clear about the Asus mainboard family on Intel P35 Express chipset, try to get to know Asus P5K SE. I get the impression that this mainboard is designed for spies or special bureau agents. There is hardly any info about it anywhere: no picture, no description on Asus website, no user’s manual you could download. All we know about it is the name and the fact that it will feature Realtek ALC883 sound solution. “SE” index gives us to understand that it will hardly boast any remarkable outstanding features. And hopefully this will check out, if we are among the lucky ones who will ever actually see it.
So, Asus offers a broad variety of mainboards for those who would like to build a platform around Intel P35 Express chipset. Different mainboard models are targeted for different market segments and different user groups. Today we are going to introduce to you a board with a simple name of Asus P5K without any indexes, suffixes or prefixes.
This is the simplest model in the family that is why it will likely become the most mass product and will enjoy the biggest demand. Its layout is similar to that of the top models in the family that is why it would be especially interesting to figure out the differences.
Asus P5K mainboard is shipped in a simple box, without any carry-handles, transparent windows or foldable covers.
The supported technologies are listed on the bottom side of the box together with the mainboard photo and brief description of the mainboard features. Everything is pretty common, although the information on the front of the box was a bit surprising. Namely, they claim that Asus provides 75% faster memory speed than any other mainboard maker due to ASUS Super Memspeed Technology proving DDR2 1066 support. It strikes as too big of an advantage to be true, actually. However, there is proof on Asus web-site: they describe their testbed featuring Asus P5K mainboard, GeIL PC2-6400 DDR2-800 (GX21GB6400PDC) memory and Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 engineering sample working with 1333MHz bus and share the test results.
If you check out the results screenshot here, everything becomes clear. Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 CPU worked almost at its nominal frequency of 3GHz, while the memory was pushed to 1372MHz due to the 1:2 divider. This is truly an achievement, far not every memory kit can do that. But don’t let the impressive marketing moves trick you with these high numbers. Our article called PC2-9200 and PC2-10000 SDRAM: Ultra High-Speed Memory from Corsair and OCZ shows very clearly that low-latency memory can perform at a competitive level with high-frequency memory that features relatively high latency. We performed out tests on an Nvidia nForce 680i SLI based mainboard with a CPU running at 266x400MHz FSB. It is possible that the use of Intel P35 Express chipset may speed things up a little bit, but still we should understand that 75% advantage may only be achieved in artificially created conditions, such as slowing down the low-frequency memory or at least preventing it from working at its full power.
From the overclocker standpoint, the reducing memory dividers would have been more interesting than the increasing ones. Low nominal frequency of the memory cannot discourage us: during overclocking it will increase proportionally with the FSB increase. However, weak memory wouldn’t be a limiting factor and it would have been much easier to overclock the CPU in the end. Unfortunately, as we will see in later in the part devoted to BIOS Setup features, Asus P5K mainboard doesn’t have any reducing memory dividers: the minimal one would be the synchronous 1:1.
As for the accessories that come bundled with Asus P5K mainboard, there is nothing unusual about them:
This is the list of additional software on the included CD disk:
It is very pleasing that they resumed the good old tradition of including the whole bunch of useful and not very useful software with their products. Over the past few years all we have seen bundled with Asus mainboards were video editing tools and programs.
Although Asus P5K uses simplified design compared with the high-end products within the same family, we can’t really find any drawbacks at first glance.
The installed graphics card doesn’t block the clips of the memory slots, the gap between two PCI-E x16 slots has been increased (Asus exclusive two-slot thermal design), the three PCI slots will be just enough for all your needs and the power supply connectors are all very conveniently located.
You can see some empty spots for capacitors, but they all are polymeric, which makes the board slightly more expensive but promises longer and more stable life. Asus P5K is equipped with four fan connectors, which is more than enough for a mainstream board that doesn’t claim any enthusiast titles.
There are no electronic components beneath the processor socket on the reverse side of the mainboard PCB that could potentially hinder installation of cooling backplates.
Three-phase processor voltage regulator circuitry is not an advantage, but not a drawback at the same time. A definite plus is fanless, i.e. noiseless, chipset cooling system using a heat-pipe.
A heatsink installed on some MOSFET transistors that get in the way of the processor cooler airflow helps lower the North Bridge temperature thanks to the heatpipe between the MOSFET and the North Bridge heatsink.
The chipset South Bridge also heats up quite tangibly during work that is why it is topped with a small heatsink, too. Although Asus P5K mainboard is one of the youngest models in the line-up, it accommodated an additional VIA VT6308P controller providing two IEEE1394a ports. Since Intel now only supports Serial ATA devices, Asus had to install and additional JMicron JMB363 controller. It supports one external SATA-port (SATA On-the-Go), one internal port that is not very conveniently located (right next to the controller itself, in front of the top two PCI slots), and one Parallel ATA connector supporting up to two devices.
The inconvenient location of the internal SATA connector is not a critical drawback. Although a graphics card with a dual-slot cooling system will block it almost completely, the available four chipset SATA connectors will be enough for most. However, the PATA connector in the lower left corner of the PCB beneath the expansion card slots is the first serious drawback of the Asus P5K PCB layout design. If you are still using an old HDD, it shouldn’t be an issue, but in case of an old optical drive with PATA interface (a more probable situation), the problems are inevitable. You will have to use a non-standard longer cable that will run through the entire case.
As for the rear panel connectors, we have already talked about the external SATA and IEEE1394a. The ones I still have to mention are six audio-jacks and a coaxial SPDIF provided by the eight-channel Realtek ALC883. The RJ45 network connector is also a must for contemporary mainboards. However thanks to the missing PS/2 mouse connector, Asus engineers managed to squeeze in 6 USB ports.
I doubt that replacing PS/2 with a USB port is really a justified move. Again Intel seems to be extremely aggressive trying to push us further down the path of technical progress even against our will. What for? Why can’t they let everything take its natural course and let the obsolete interfaces to leave the market on their own?
USB keyboards and mice have become very widely spread. I also use a USB keyboard on my testbed: it is cordless, portable and very convenient to use. But as for USB mouse, I usually prefer to connect it to the PS/2 port with an adapter. We use a lot of different mainboards on our testbeds and sometimes there is no need to reinstall Windows even if the chipsets are different. Not to mention, if the chipsets are the same, of course. The operating system will recognize all new devices and may ask you to update the driver for the networking card or sound codec if they are different, and that’s it.
However things are that simple only if you are using a PS/2 mouse that is recognized immediately. USB keyboard and mouse won’t let you do anything until they have been recognized. So, when the OS asks you to point the location of the network, audio or video card driver, you won’t be able to browse or type in anything. In this case all you can do is shut down and power up the system three times until OS reaches USB and recognizes your keyboard and mouse. Then you can actually work normally.
And my home system features a genius PS/2 keyboard from HP. They don’t make them anymore these days. The keys feel great and are located in convenient order. Moreover, the Scroll Lock, Caps Lock and Num Lock status indicators are not in the upper part of the keyboard but on the actual keys. Each key has a small LED built into it that lights up when the mode is on. I don’t even have to look at the keyboard to check the status: my side vision lets me notice if the light is on or off and I make no typos. And what should I do when the next generation of Intel chipsets has up to 16 or 18 USB ports? Although I don’t use even half of them, there won’t be any room for PS/2 ports left. Of course, I can get used to it, but what’s the purpose of creating additional difficulties?
It is also too early to give up PS/2 connectors because only Asus mainboards can give them up completely at this time. Only the BIOS Setup of Asus boards has USB keyboard and mouse support enabled by default. All other mainboard makers have it disabled, which creates additional problems. Suppose that you didn’t forget to enable USB keyboard and mouse support when you first accessed the BIOS Setup. But you will most likely forget to enable it again when the board resets all parameters to default values in case of over-overclocking or after successful BIOS update.
All in all, I personally don’t like to be pushed to the “radiant future”. I prefer to walk at my own pace. But on my way I am very often stumbling upon Intel’s numerous initiatives: transition to NetBurst architecture, new socket types, attempted shift to RDRAM, elimination of AGP and PATA, incompatibility of the CPUs and chipsets, now the elimination of PS/2… Of course, there are also god things happening, such as Core micro-architecture. So, I wonder what will be the next change Intel is preparing for us: a good or a bad one?
Returning to our discussion of the Asus P5K mainboard we would like to sum up the main differences between the new Intel P35 Express chipset and the well-known Intel P965 Express chipset:
In other words, these are good useful changes, but there is nothing serious enough that could push you to give up the “old” P965 based mainboard.
For your convenience here is a summary of all Asus P5K specifications:
The BIOS of Asus P5K mainboard is based on AMI code and looks very familiar to those who have worked with Asus boards before. However, there are a few things that are different even from the Intel P965 based mainboards with similar functionality.
From now on almost all the overclocking friendly functions are gathered together in JumperFree Configuration section of the BIOS Setup. This is where we are going to start our discussion. The first page of this section looks very modest, but we were really pleased to see the CPU multiplier setting move here from the CPU Configuration section.
The automatic system overclocking by a few percent with the help of N.O.S. – Non-delay Overclocking System - remained there alright. However, this is not the primary feature for us, so let’s change the Ai Overclocking parameter from Auto to manual, so that we could really see what the JumperFree Configuration section has to offer.
To change any of the parameters you can use “+” or “-“ keys to go through the list of available values and select the right one. However, this approach is convenient only if there are 2-3 values in the list, for example: Transaction Booster: Auto, Enabled, Disabled. If there are more values to choose from, then it is easier to pick the desired parameter and hit Enter. You will get a drop-down list and you can use arrow keys to pick the desired value. This rule works for all parameters except FSB frequency. There is no list of supported values for the FSB Frequency parameter. You can either use “+” or “-“ keys or type in the frequency using numeric keyboard.
These are the supported parameter ranges:
If we compare the BIOS Setup features of Asus P5K mainboard with the higher-end Asus P5K Deluxe, the list is identical (except for the missing Command Rate adjustment option by the P5K model). However, the supported intervals will be lower by our today’s hero. You will not be able to reflash the Asus P5K Deluxe BIOS onto the P5K board, because they use chips of different capacity.
DRAM Frequency for the CPU with the nominal 266MHz FSB allows setting the memory to DDR2 667, 800, 889 or 1067. These dividers are supported up to 292MHz FSB, and starting with 293MHz FSB it also takes the following value: DDR2 586, 703, 733, 789, 938, 977, 1172.
As for the memory timings, here is the list of supported values that you can access by setting DRAM Timing Control to Manual:
When I checked out the CPU Configuration section I was very surprised to find out that the processor multiplier adjustment hasn’t disappeared anywhere, although it is now also available in the JumperFree Configuration section.
Of course, I decided to check what would happen if I set the processor frequency multiplier to x6 in one section and to x7 in another. What multiplier will actually be active? However, it turned out that both parameters are interconnected, and when you change one of them, the other one will get changed automatically.
The Chipset section contains North Bridge parameters, such as memory and graphics adapter operation:
Onboard Devices Configuration section allows adjusting operation of the COM port and integrated controllers:
Hardware Monitor section is not very rich, but has everything necessary. We can control the CPU and mainboard temperatures, major voltages and fan rotation speeds.
If the processor fan is connected to the four-pin connector, there are only three preset profiles we can choose from: Optimal, Silent Mode and Performance Mode, and its rotation speed will be controlled automatically. As for the case fans, there are much more options available for their rotation speed control. We can lock their speed at 90, 80, 70 or 60% of the nominal, or let the mainboard adjust the speed by setting the desired temperature mode.
Tools section contains the EZ Flash 2 utility for BIOS updating that boasts very convenient graphical interface. It supports not only floppy disks but also USB storage devices.
Another interesting option from the Tools section is the possibility to save and load BIOS settings profiles. We can save maximum two profiles: it is not much, but enough in most cases. However, you will not be able to rename them, which is probably the biggest inconvenience.
The picture above shows two saved profiles, but what they are and how they differ, is impossible to tell. So, if you know what the difference between the profiles is at the time you create them, then a few weeks or months down the road you may not be able to remember. It would be much better if we could rename the user created profiles or even make a detailed note, just like on mainboards from some other manufacturers.
Start O.C. Profile launches the utility that is very similar to EZ Flash 2 in terms of features and interface looks. It allows saving the profiles to external storage media and even exchanging them with other users.
This way you can save your current settings and then load them on another mainboard like that. O.C. Profile utility is Asus’ unique feature, nothing like that is available on the mainboards from any other makers.
We tested the mainboards ability to overclock CPUs on an open testbed with the following configuration:
Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 processor we used in our test session could work stably at 490MHz FSB if the voltage was increased to 1.45V in the BIOS. This has been proven on numerous mainboards in our previous test sessions. It would start with these settings on Asus P5K as well, but wouldn’t finish any tests, such as TAT, OCCT or Prime95.
At first we didn’t change the FSB Termination Voltage or North Bridge Voltage, however even their increase didn’t improve the system stability during overclocking. Although I noticed that if the Vcore was set to 1.45V in the BIOS the mainboard would lower it too much: down to 1.37V. Asus Commando, for instance, also lowers the voltage setting, to about 1.408V. We checked out different settings and experimentally found that 1.408V Vcore can be achieved if we set it to 1.487V in the BIOS. After that the overclocked system passed all tests successfully almost all the time.
Now I would like to share some of the observations I made during this test session: the mainboard seemed to be working fine, but them some errors would pop up and I couldn’t find a reasonable explanation for them.
So, the mainboard was working fine when the FSB Termination Voltage or North Bridge Voltage weren’t increased at all, and then it would refuse to boot when we raised them to 1.4-1.55V. The board would pass the tests and then would fail them; it would either reboot alright or freeze on restart. Sometimes, when we changed the BIOS settings just a little bit, such as increased the voltage slightly, the board wouldn’t start, but after we shut it down and powered it up again – it would work perfectly fine with the adjusted settings.
In fact, everything is not as scary as it may seem at first sight. If it had been happening all the time, then we could state that the board couldn’t overclock our CPU to its maximum. But the thing is that we encountered quite a few issues, but they never repeated. The errors occurred not too often, in a spontaneous manner and alternated all the time, but overall the board worked fine.
However, I have to admit that these coming and going errors do not allow me to claim the mainboard was stable, and no overclocking is possible without operational stability. All problems vanished once and for all when we set the FSB frequency only 5MHz lower. And we didn’t have to raise the FSB Termination Voltage or North Bridge Voltage: nominal 2.1V were enough for Corsair Dominator TWIN2X2048-9136C5D. And the CPU required only a slight increase to 1.475V Vcore. According to the monitoring tool, the processor voltage setting in the BIOS varied between 1.392V and 1.4V.
So, Asus P5K mainboard couldn’t overclock our test CPU to its maximum. It is drawback, but not a very serious one, I believe. 3.395GHz instead of 3.43GHz leaves us with 35MHz difference, which is too small of a difference to notice in performance benchmarks. 485MHz FSB is a pretty strong result, there are quite a few mainboards out there that cannot hit this frequency at all. Besides, we can’t say that Asus P5K mainboard cannot work at this frequency: it can, but it is not quite stable. We all know what wonders new BIOS updates may sometimes work, so Asus engineers really need to make a tiny little step to fix the issue. Although we definitely cannot say that falling 5MHz behind is an advantage.
As for Corsair Dominator TWIN2X2048-9136C5D memory, when we overclocked the system to 485MHz it worked in synchronous mode at 970MHz frequency with the default timings of 5-5-5-18 set by the board. It is not bad, but it is lower than its actual nominal, and every attempt to lower the timings to 4-4-4-12 failed, even if we tried to push the memory voltage to 2.2V. The system loaded Windows, but Prime95 utility reported an error very soon after that. We could also raise the memory frequency to 1164MHz with a higher divider. And even at its nominal frequency of 1142MHz and nominal voltage of 2.1V this memory refused to work on Asus P5K mainboard. We couldn’t get it to work neither at 476MHz FSB overclocking (in this case the memory frequency was 1142MHz), nor at 286MHz FSB (in this case its frequency was 1144MHz). The operating system loaded every time, but we just couldn’t pass any tests. So what does ASUS Super Memspeed Technology do and why doesn’t it work with Corsair Dominator TWIN2X2048-9136C5D? by the way, this memory is actually certified for Asus P5K as DDR2 1066.
It is pretty hard to put together our final verdict about Asus P5K mainboard. It actually has only one serious drawback: inconvenient location of the PATA connector. All other remarks we made throughout this review are not so simple. We have already mentioned the three-phase CPU voltage regulator circuitry – not quite a drawback, but also not an advantage. Or the absence of the COM-port on the rear panel – it is not really a disadvantage these days, but also hardly a plus. However, the COM port is laid out on the PCB, next to the power supply and FDD connectors, so it is an advantage, isn’t it? But the board comes with no rear panel bracket carrying a COM port, so it is a drawback in the end. And what if you don’t really need this port, then you wouldn’t want to pay for additional components in the bundle that you will never use – so it is still a plus. Or a minus?
I hope you understand me here. I can’t say that Asus P5K is a bad board, but at the same time I cannot claim that it is an excellent one. It is a good normal board. And I would definitely recommend it as a good option. But not now.
The first mainboards to start selling cost about $190. Now the prices have dropped down a little bit, but not too much. The new mainboards cannot boast any significant advantages over the Intel P965 Express based solutions. It is still too early to think about CPUs with 333MHz bus support as Core 2 Duo E6x50 processors will be announced only in mid summer. It makes even less sense to buy new boards for the sake of 45nm processors support. These CPUs will only come out in early 2008 and it will definitely take a while before they get widely spread and become affordable. Mainboards on Intel P35 Express core logic, and of course, Asus P5K, can replace their predecessors, but I would recommend to wait a little bit for the prices to go down. If you are not going to upgrade to new CPUs with 333MHz bus, then you may be quite happy with an Intel P965 Express based board, as they should become even better value now that the new mainboards are becoming more and more widely spread. So, looks like the summer is going to be not only hot, but also pretty exciting.