P45 or X48 - Which is the best & newest?

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Shaitan00

Weaksauce
Joined
Dec 3, 2006
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For starters I wanted to thank everyone who has been helping me over the past week build up my new system - given the massive constant advice I have opted to go with a Asus DDR2 motherboard as opposed to my inital Rampage Extreme X48 DDR3 - for the lack of benifits (none - given that I won't OC) and insane price it just isn't worth it - thank you all for helping me come to that conclusion.

So now I must find a replacement board for a DDR2 system (note - I am an Asus fan so going to stick with them). Initially the obvious choice was the Rampage Formula (X48 DDR2 - winning awards left/right/center) - but today some of you mentioned the Asus P45 series instead - this opens up an entire new can of worms and I was hoping to - once again - get some advice...

First off - I was always under the impression that P45 was an older chipset, I thought intel released the P45 -> X38 -> X48 (making it 3 generations old), I mean why release the new Rampage Extreme with X48 if it isn't the latest & greatest - can someone confirm this point for me - I want to be sure I know what I am talking about (P45 better...)

Given my immediate love for the Rampage Extreme, and that it looks like P45 is better for me then X48 (Q9550 - no OC) - I automatically fell for the MAXIMUS II FORMULA.
I also did some reading and found a comparable P5Q-DELUXE which seemed good.

So - here it is - the last leg of my investigation - the final choice ...
X48 VS P45
Rampage Formula VS Maximus II Formula (or P5Q-Deluxe)

Doing the comparing of the specs it looks to me like the Maximus II Formula is the winner .... But as I've shown lately ... what do I know? :)

BTW - all 3 boards are pretty much the same price so....
Whats the general concencus?

Thanks,
 
why would you spend so much on a motherboard if your not overclocking?
buy something cheaper think this is a cheap but decent board.

Also the p45 chipset is newer then the x38. the x48 came out a little bit after the p45.
 
P45 is newer than X48. If you're going to use Crossfire, go with the X48. If not, then go with the P45.
 
Didn't know that.....oh well. But he should still buy a cheaper board if he's not overclocking.
 
The P45 and X48 oc similarly. If you aren't using crossfire and don't plan on it, then go with the cheaper P45...It only makes sense.
 
So - the only question is ... which P45 board?
Maximus II Formula or P5Q-Deluxe...
Keep in mind - they are exactly the SAME PRICE for me .....

What do you think?
 
Maximus... but it sounds like the P5Q Deluxe has everything you need. But since it's the same price :D
 
I am not a fan on how the P5Q-D is setup. I prefer the layout of the P5Q Pro personally.
The Maximus has more goodies. So it really is dependent on what you want with the package imo.
 
I don't see why the OP needs to have such a overkill motherboard - Maximus II Formula or P5Q-Deluxe? Come on! Save that money for a good dinner

For his purposes, P5Q Pro already meets his target + more. P5Q-E for a little bit more if the vendor does not carry P5Q Pros....
 
Totally, if he's not overclocking, even the P5Q-E/Pro are kinda overkill, and the Deluxe/Maximus II are super overkill... Why buy an enthusiast board loaded w/extra features if you're not OC'ing or don't have any particular need for it? Total waste of money... A vanilla P5Q for $110 or whatever it's going for would more than suffice, there's less of a difference between it and the other P45 ASUS variants anyway (compared to past ASUS model lines, P5K series, etc.). Ignoring the Maximus II which has it's own unique distinctions, the only real differences are the type of onboard audio, number of SATA ports, the inclusion of eSATA, and other even more minor stuff.

As far as the chipsets, the X48 replaced the X38 obviously, although it didn't change a whole lot. Just added official support for 1333MHz FSB. They're both aimed at people who want to go with dual-GPU setups (CrossFire), and priced accordingly (usually $200+). The P45 is newer than either and it only supports CF as an afterthought (bottlenecked at higher res), it replaces the older P35 (which wouldn't do CF at all) and it's Intel's main chipset right now (ignoring the Gx ones w/integrated graphics). Prices will vary a lot depending on the mobo and extra features, but the Deluxe/Maximus/etc. variants are usually overpriced unless they have something you really need (extra SATA ports, etc) or you just have tons of disposable income.
 
Shaitan00 said:
For starters I wanted to thank everyone who has been helping me over the past week build up my new system - given the massive constant advice I have opted to go with a Asus DDR2 motherboard as opposed to my inital Rampage Extreme X48 DDR3 - for the lack of benifits (none - given that I won't OC) and insane price it just isn't worth it - thank you all for helping me come to that conclusion.

So now I must find a replacement board for a DDR2 system (note - I am an Asus fan so going to stick with them). Initially the obvious choice was the Rampage Formula (X48 DDR2 - winning awards left/right/center) - but today some of you mentioned the Asus P45 series instead - this opens up an entire new can of worms and I was hoping to - once again - get some advice...

First off - I was always under the impression that P45 was an older chipset, I thought intel released the P45 -> X38 -> X48 (making it 3 generations old), I mean why release the new Rampage Extreme with X48 if it isn't the latest & greatest - can someone confirm this point for me - I want to be sure I know what I am talking about (P45 better...)

Given my immediate love for the Rampage Extreme, and that it looks like P45 is better for me then X48 (Q9550 - no OC) - I automatically fell for the MAXIMUS II FORMULA.
I also did some reading and found a comparable P5Q-DELUXE which seemed good.

So - here it is - the last leg of my investigation - the final choice ...
X48 VS P45
Rampage Formula VS Maximus II Formula (or P5Q-Deluxe)

Doing the comparing of the specs it looks to me like the Maximus II Formula is the winner .... But as I've shown lately ... what do I know? :)

BTW - all 3 boards are pretty much the same price so....
Whats the general concencus?

Thanks,
Click to expand...

First off you were thinking of the P35 in terms of age. The order is P35 > X38 > X48 > P45. The P45 chipset has only been out for about three months. Besides that, can you give some more details on what this board is going to be used for. You already said no OC'ing but is it going to be used it just an everyday computer for surfing the web and checking email, or will it be a gaming machine or some other sort of graphics intensive task? Also tell us some features you might need, ie. raid, dual ethernet lan, dual pci express x16??
 
P45 has ICH10R, which X48 only has ICH9R
anyone know the difference?
 
If X48 with ICH9R and P45 with ICH10R, which one should I get? If considering price difference is not a problem to me.
 
cpthk said:
If X48 with ICH9R and P45 with ICH10R, which one should I get? If considering price difference is not a problem to me.
Click to expand...

Answer the questions that CamaroZ28 asked. They were for the OP but they apply to you as well since you're asking the same question.
 
Does X48 gets more stable on ddr3? I actually having P45 with asus P5Q3, but the ddr3 support is driving me crazy. I am thinking exchanging another board for better support.
 
cpthk said:
Does X48 gets more stable on ddr3? I actually having P45 with asus P5Q3, but the ddr3 support is driving me crazy. I am thinking exchanging another board for better support.
Click to expand...

No. The x48 is the same as the P45 when it comes to DDR3 support. You may just have a bad or finicky motherboard. And you haven't answered the questions.
 
P5Q Deluxe has expressgate for 5 seconds boot into linux for email/internet surfing and has recently beated the maximus formula II in TomHardware roundup of the P45 mobos. But the watercooling ready desing of the Maximus Formula II may incite you to join the waterworld;)

I am still looking for a confirmation that the P5Q3 DDR3 version can achieve CAS6/DDR3 1600/tRD 5 timings with top notch DDR3 modules until then P45 DDR2 options are the way to go.
 
geok1ng said:
P5Q Deluxe has expressgate for 5 seconds boot into linux for email/internet surfing and has recently beated the maximus formula II in TomHardware roundup of the P45 mobos. But the watercooling ready desing of the Maximus Formula II may incite you to join the waterworld;)

I am still looking for a confirmation that the P5Q3 DDR3 version can achieve CAS6/DDR3 1600/tRD 5 timings with top notch DDR3 modules until then P45 DDR2 options are the way to go.
Click to expand...

Every P5Q has expressgate fyi.
 
Yes, but some will make you install it on your HD while others (the Deluxe/Premium versions) have it pre-loaded unto flash memory on the mobo... I don't think it really makes for a big difference in bootup though, it's still far faster than loading Windows.
 
Impulse said:
Yes, but some will make you install it on your HD while others (the Deluxe/Premium versions) have it pre-loaded unto flash memory on the mobo... I don't think it really makes for a big difference in bootup though, it's still far faster than loading Windows. Me, I rarely turn my machine off, but I still like the feature. Seems handy for when I'm traveling or going away for the week and I do turn it off before doing everything I had to do online.
Click to expand...

I suppose it depends on your HDD, but on my 7200.11 it's fast as crap.
 
Like I said, doesn't really make a huge difference, the flash-based ExpressGate will load faster but they'll both load pretty quickly, far far quicker than Windows would ever boot.
 
Danny Bui said:
No. The x48 is the same as the P45 when it comes to DDR3 support. You may just have a bad or finicky motherboard. And you haven't answered the questions.
Click to expand...

I don't think they are the same. If they are the same, why the QVL of 2 different chipset board in asus site are totally different? Even the same chip and different board are different.
 
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