Tech Link(Motherboard): ASUS P5K3 Deluxe

HardOCP has a new motherboard review up for your scrutiny. This bad ass motherboard sports the latest chipset from Intel and supports the latest Intel processor and can overclock well too. It didn't get the highest Gold honor, but still, a pretty cool board if you're a kind of geek who always wanted to try things out first thing they came out on the stor. Expand to read the conclusion...

The Bottom Line

The ASUS P5K3 proves to be another motherboard founded on stellar engineering culminating in great stability, excellent performance, and solid overclocking prowess. This is an expensive motherboard however and once you factor in the cost of DDR3 modules you are going to find yourself easily above a $600 upgrade investment.


Had we seen it outpace other motherboards in top end CPU bus overclocking it certainly would have been worthy of a Gold [H] Award. Still the levels of overclocking shown on the P5K3 are nothing short of awesome and will likely fill the needs of any overclocker other than the super-hardcore.

Source:ASUS P5K3 Deluxe

Tech Link (Motherboard): MSI P35 Platinum Motherboard

HotHardware posted a review of a new board from MSI* with the newest P35 chipset from Intel. The author is pleased with the results, check it out if you are itching to upgrade your current motherboard.

Three years ago, Intel launched the 925X / 915 chipsets and were criticized by some for introducing some new technologies before the market demanded them. This time around, however, with the launch of Bearlake, Intel has scored some points. The P35 chipset brings with it a handful of new technologies, like official 1333MHz bus speed support and DDR3 to just name a few. But unlike 925X and 915G, P35 comes in both DDR2 and DDR3 flavors, making the platform all the more attractive to price sensitive end users looking to save a bit on their memory expenditures.

Not only does the MSI P35 Platinum, which is one of the first Intel P35 motherboards on the market, have an excellent feature set, it also showed that it has the raw horsepower to keep up with the EVGA nForce 680i SLI and in some cases, we even saw the MSI P35 Platinum outperform the 680i SLI, albeit by very small margins.

It’s also nice to see that MSI is once again trying to implement new and interesting ideas like their ‘roller coaster style’ motherboard heat pipe cooling technology. Not only does it look cool, it even stays relatively cool to the touch without a fan due to its effective heat dissipation.

The BIOS was also generally good, with a large number of customizable features that allow for some decent overclockability.

The only issues with the board that came up during the review process were the inaccuracy of the motherboards debugger and the fact that it was quite difficult to read. The board also only has four SATA ports, which because of today’s dirt-cheap hard drive market and more common SATA optical drives, may not be enough for even a motherboard targeted toward the more mainstream computer builder.

But overall, the MSI P35 Platinum is a solid motherboard. It is a solid performer, has good features and is overall, pretty well rounded. If you’re looking for a new motherboard for your next Intel Core 2 system and want the latest motherboard technology at a reasonable price, the MSI P35 Platinum is definitely a product to consider.

Source:MSI P35 Platinum Motherboard

Tech Link (Motherboard): Intel X38 Express Chipset Surfaces

DailyTech posted a scoop on the i975x chipset replacement, in the form of X38. It seems many manufacturers are jumping in to this bandwagon and are really beefing up their line up of motherboards based on this chipset. I am excited to see how it will perform, on stock and in overclocking. Expand to read the news post...

ntel's 975X Expess gets the "Bearlake" upgrade

Intel will unveil the high-end version of its Bearlake-family next month – the Intel X38 Express. The new Intel X38 Express replaces the 975X Express, which launched over a year ago with Intel’s Presler Netburst processors. The new chipset introduces new features to Intel’s high-end enthusiast and workstation platform such as PCIE 2.0 and DDR3 memory.

New to the Intel X38 Express is support for dual full-speed PCIe 2.0 x16 slots. The dual PCIe 2.0 slots are compatible with AMD’s CrossFire technology for multi-GPU graphics processing. Motherboard manufacturers are also free to equip Intel X38 Express based boards with a third physical PCIe 2.0 x16 for triple-play physics. Due to chipset limitations, the third physical PCIe 2.0 x16 slot has lesser lanes, with most manufacturers opting for four lanes.

DDR3 is the only officially supported memory for the Intel X38 Express. Intel touts DDR3-1333 memory for X38 Express motherboards. DDR2 memory support has been removed officially from the X38 Express, however, the memory controller can still function with DDR2, just without Intel validation. The DFI LANParty X38-T2R will pair DDR2 support with the Intel X38 Express chipset.

The Intel X38 Express also supports upcoming Intel Penryn-family dual and quad-core processors with front-side buses up to 1333 MHz. The new Penryn family is Intel’s first 45nm processor family, expected to launch in Q1’2008 for consumer desktops. Desktop Penryn-family Core models will launch in early 2008.

ASUS, Biostar, DFI, Gigabyte, Intel and MSI have X38 Express-based motherboards on display at Computex 2007. ASUS plans to release an X38 Express-based workstation board. The upcoming ASUS P5E3 WS Professional pairs the X38 Express with the ICH9R south bridge. The board supports dual-channel DDR3-1333 memory, with no mention of ECC support. The P5E3 WS Professional does not have a third physical PCIe 2.0 x16 slot. ASUS opted for a vanilla orange PCB with the P5E3 WS Professional.

Biostar is preparing the TX38D3-A7 Deluxe with three PCIe 2.0 x16 slots. Two of the PCIe 2.0 x16 slots operates at full speed while the third slot has four lanes. Biostar also adds one PCIe x1 and two PCI slots into the mix. The TX38D3-A7 also features onboard power and reset buttons for the tweaking-inclined.

DFI has two X38 Express-based models in the pipeline – the LANParty X38-T2R and the X38-T3R. The two models differ in the memory support department. The LANParty X38-T2R supports DDR2-800 memory while the X38-T3R supports DDR3-1333. The upcoming X38-T2R and X38-T3R feature genius BIOS and CMOS Reloaded technologies. New to the LANParty X38-T2R and X38-T3R is the DFI Bernstein 8-channel theater-level audio solution.

Gigabyte is taking the same route as DFI, with two X38 Express based motherboards – the GA-X38T-DQ6 and GA-X38-DQ6. Both boards have similar feature sets, with the GA-X38T-DQ6 offering DDR3 support while the GA-X38-DQ6 supports DDR2. Gigabyte takes DDR3 further than other manufacturers by claiming support for DDR3-1600 memory. Gigabyte has opted to equip its GA-X38x-DQ6 motherboards with two PCIe 2.0 x16 slots. New to the Gigabyte X38 Express-based motherboards is the Realtek ALC889A high-definition audio codec, offering a 106dB signal-to-noise ratio.

Intel also plans to join in on the X38 Express festivities with the successor to the D975XBX2 BadAxe2. The new DX38BT Bonetrail features three physical PCIe 2.0 x16 slots. The DX38BT is one of the few enthusiast X38 Express motherboard currently on the Computex show floor without an elaborate heat-pipe cooling setup. Instead, Intel sticks with a simple aluminum cooler.

Lastly is MSI with the X38 Diamond. MSI manages to squeeze four physical PCIe 2.0 x16 slots into the X38 Diamond. Two of the PCIe 2.0 x16 slots are full-speed while the other two slots are half-speed. MSI also squeezes in support for DDR2-800 and DDR3-1333 memory on the same board.

Expect Intel to officially launch the X38 Express next month, coinciding with the upcoming Core 2 Duo E6x50-series.

Source:Intel X38 Express Chipset Surfaces

Tech Link (Motherboard): Asus P5K3 Deluxe WiFi AP with DDR3

BitTech has posted a review of the new board from Asus*, based on Intel's newest chipset in town, supporting DDR3. While the crew at BitTech gave it a perfect 10 in features, the "value" is at low score of just 5. Over all, they gave the board a 7, but I am not really sure if it reflects the experience, as the score seems to be the "average" of (10 + 6 + 5) / 3 thingamajig. Check out the Final Thoughs by expanding this news post...

Final Thoughts
Apart from the ton of features and excellent stability, the board doesn't offer any spectacular performance and is far more expensive than the competition, or even other Asus boards. You'd be far better off investing in anything DDR2, rather than forcing yourself down and extremely expensive upgrade path. It will allow some future proofing, but by that time in 12-18 months, you might as well upgrade the motherboard with a newer chipset which will undoubtedly support faster DDR3 modules and newer features as well.

It's a really weird situation because it's genuinely a really good board, but there's absolutely no reason to buy it. Get the P5K Deluxe or something P965 or nForce 680i (LT) SLI instead... oh and a ton of performance DDR2, a large monitor, a better graphics card and perhaps a new car or apartment as well. You know, the same kind of money you would have spent on the P5K3 Deluxe and DDR3.

It you're after CrossFire support to match a couple of Radeon HD 2900 XTs you've just bought (I'm assuming you run Vista here) and are dying for an updated chipset rather than the antique 975X, then you've either got to settle for the DFI LANParty UT ICFX3200 T2R/G, or wait until September for X38. However, X38 will also be DDR3, sooo I'd just buy the DFI...

Source:Asus P5K3 Deluxe WiFi AP with DDR3

Tech Link (Motherboard): MSI P35 Platinum

I have been doing some scouting of upcoming boards from Intel coupled with a new chipset and I found several that are pretty interesting. One is the MSI P35 Platinum from MSI*. This particular board will be great looking to ugly looking depending on who you ask and personal preference. For me, it looks decent, and as long as those heatpipes and heatsink does the job, does not obstruct installation of aftermarket heatsink fan, and will not inflate the price skyhigh then I am all for it.



You can find more information about this board on quite a few sites. windwithme of XS has posted some pictures already. HardwareZone posted their initial thoughts as well.

Here are some more pictures for your viewing pleasure (pictures owned by respective owners):




I reserve my final judgement of this board till the results and benchmarks comes out in the open. As it is right now, it is still under NDA I believe. Till next...

Tech Link (Chipset): Intel to launch Bearlake chipset at Cebit

More and more information about the new Intel chipset is pouring in slowly, but surely. THG (yeah, TGDaily, whatever) has a news posted about the upcoming launch of the said chipset in CeBit 2007@Germany. Expand to read more...

Hannover (Germany) - While Intel has remained quiet in public about a possible introduction of a refreshed Core 2 Duo platform, first motherboards that support the faster front side bus FSB1333, the upcoming 45 nm processor Penryn and provide the technology foundation for DDR3 memory have surfaced at the Cebit tradeshow.

Cebit is scheduled to open tomorrow, March 15, and vendors are still in the midst of building their show booths in a total 28 exhibition halls. However, on a first stroll around the show floor, we noticed virtually all Taiwanese motherboard manufacturers setting up motherboards with Intel's new "Bearlake" chipset.

Bearlake, the core of Intel's "Salt Creek" platform, will be named the Intel 3 series of chipsets. The first chipset out is the G33, which has been showcased first on the MSI board G33M2 at Cebit. This chipset is aimed at the lower end of the mainstream market and will be accompanied by the mainstream P35, which is also expected to debut at Cebit. In Q3, Intel will introduce the G35, which will support Clear Video technology, DirectX10 and native HDCP integration to deal with high definition DRM.

All new 3-series chipsets are based on the new ICH-9 southbridge and support DDR3 memory. While the G33, P35 and G35 are limited to DDR3-1066 and DDR3-800 memory devices, the upcoming enthusiast chipset X38 will be compatible with DDR3-1333 modules. Industry sources told TG Daily that these FSB1333 chipsets have been running in Intel's test labs for a while with the new FSB1333 generation of Core 2Duo processors and apparently are capable of providing a "significant" speed boost. We are hearing news about systems that are able to boot a complete system in 30 seconds or less.

The fact that Intel will be showing Bearlake chipsets indicates that the company will be launching the FSB1333 processors at Cebit as well. We are expecting three versions of these CPUs: The Core 2 Duo 6650 (2.33 GHz), the 6750 (2.66 GHz) as well as the 6850 (3.0 GHz).

ICH9, introduced with the 3-series of chipsets, will also serve as the initial southbridge for Intel's 45 nm Penryn processor, which is expected to be launched in Q4 of this year or early in Q1 2008. ICH9 will continue the legacy removal that has begun with the current ICH8 version: PATA support will be disappearing from the mobile version; there will be added USB support (12 ports) and a reduced power consumption of less than 3.5 watt.

Source:Intel to launch Bearlake chipset at Cebit

Tech Link (Chipset): Intel P35 "Bearlake" Chipset Performance Preview

TweakTown manage to put together a preview of benchmarks for the upcoming Intel P35 chipset, codenamed BearLake. The chipset puts a good showing on the series of benchmarks, and it's looking like a killer chipset for the performance FanBoys. Check it out...

Final Thoughts
While we have only got our hands on the first working silicon of Intel’s P35 Bearlake-P chipset, we are extremely impressed with it so far.

Intel has put a lot of work into this chipset by the design of it, and with more on the way we can only hope things do get even better. Intel is looking like they are setting themselves up for a great run for the remainder of 2007 and into next year with their upcoming Yorkfield and Wolfdale processors. And with massive price drops on the horizon for upcoming Intel processors since all Dual Core processors will become mainstream parts making room for Quad Core as premium high-end, it’s only going to mean good things for Intel. For instance, the E6850 processor will debut with a street price around $266 USD which is around 75% cheaper than what the X6800 was selling for and you’re getting a processor platform which is able to perform faster.

One thing that was very limited in this silicon revision was its overclocking. By default the motherboard supports 333MHz FSB but we only managed to get it to 350MHz and this wasn’t 100% stable. This wasn’t anything to do with the board itself, as our board was supplied with plenty of overclocking tweaks, just that the chipset is of first silicon and not ready for full release yet. As we said, the P35 is based on 65nm process technology and once it’s fully ready for public consumption, we expect it to perform as least as well as Intel P965 in FSB overclocking.

Intel’s Bearlake will soon make its debut onto the motherboard market with the P35 first to market with the G33 and G35 soon to follow for the value segments. X38 will be the big thing but don’t expect that till late in Q3 of 2007 when DDR-3 memory is shipping.

Looking good so far!

Source:Intel P35 "Bearlake" Chipset Performance Preview

Brag: I just played with my new toyz (Bearlake-based boards and Mini-ITX board)

Sorry, no picture or any proof but I can assure you that I haven't lied to my visitors, and that I have these sample boards in my possesion. I love these new babies, the stability is commendable at such an early stage of preproduction.

Bearlake board is performing nicely, with just a minor quirk, I can't make the on-board lan work but everything is a-ok. Anyone fancy ICH9? Woot, and if you're not familiar with Bearlake, well, better Google it (yay hehe). Anyway, the Mini ITX board is great as well, it works on standard PSU and it is really performing nicely with Windows XP.

I'l see if I can get the "go" to post even just the pictures, and I'll put it up ASAP. For now, I am just bragging I have these already. FanBoy out...