Gigabyte ga-ep45-ud3P motherboard

wont the Q6600 have some issues having FSB 1066MHz and the board having 1333MHz, what will happen, it downclocks? and if it does wont it bottleneck the combo of having q6600 and the giga mobo?
 
wont the Q6600 have some issues having FSB 1066MHz and the board having 1333MHz, what will happen, it downclocks?

The FSB rating of an Intel motherboard is the maximum FSB the chipset/board supports based on Intel standard stock speed certifications. So 333 FSB 1333MHz Intel CPUs are the fastest stock CPUs the board supports officially. This is all based on the specifications of the chipset (Northbridge and south-bridge) used on the board. To repeat- this specification is based on standard stock Intel specifications.

All recent 775 socket motherboards support the whole family of Intel Core 2 chips (and some older ones) and at boot up will automatically adjust the FSB to match the stock FSB of the CPU based on the CPU id code programmed on the chip. This is done with the BSEL pins on the CPU. The CPU identifies itself to the bios during startup and the bios adjusts FSB speed to match the CPU stock specifications.

and if it does wont it bottleneck the combo of having q6600 and the giga mobo?

No. Please define bottleneck. This board will run the q6600 as fast as the q6600 was intended to run. Also because it is an enthusiast/overclocking board it will easily run the Q6600 much much faster than stock speeds Intel intended just by increasing the FSB settings in the bios. See the many previous posts. See my sig. It is a trivial matter to run a Q6600 at 400FSB (Intel 1600 buss) on these boards and achieve a corresponding performance increase. One of the newer 45nm chips would have the potential to perform a little bit better if set to the same OC speed due to improvements in the chip but it is nothing to get excited about. The dirty little secret is that only very minor changes have been made to core 2 duo chips since they were first introduced. With the exception of SSE instructions and cache size the most recent CPUs are just die shrinks of the the first one released over 2 years ago. The newer chips are better but the question is by how much and what is the cost difference. The price of a Q6600 is very attractive compared to the newer chips and it performs within 95% of a newer quad for less money. A 45nm chip is preferred if you do not have budget concerns but the Q6600 is a proven OCer and fairly inexpensive. Also a lot of people bought the chip last year or earlier and want to upgrade the motherboard for various reasons and there is no need to buy a new CPU.

A q6600 overclocked to 3.2GHz (8 x 400 FSB for example) would run faster and outperform say a Q9450 running at stock 2.6 GHz just by virtue of the raw faster speed overcoming the minor improvements in the 9450 and its larger cache. However there is nothing to keep one from OCing a Q9450 to 3.2 GHz as well and then it would perform slightly faster because of those improvements than the Q6600.

So no, by the normal use of the word "bottleneck" - lesser performance due to a component in the performance path restricting or holding back the entire system overall performance- I don't think that really applies here and if so with OCing it is not a concern.

If you have the money would a 45nm 1333 Buss Quad be a better match and offer a little bit more performance? - yes, no question about it.
 
I just started installing this board in my water-cooled stacker. Unfortunately, it is a bit of work since I had to pull just about everything out from the last install. I will also be using DDR2-1066 and will hopefully post my results soon.
 
Quick question for other owners of this mobo. I'm finding its not controlling the speed of my cpu fan. Its running at full power all the time which is quite loud. I have a Zalman 9500P. I remember my old mobo would slow down the cpu fan when I wasn't loading the cpu. I tried playing with the bios cpu fan settings and ive also attempted to use the easytune utility but nothing seems to let me adjust the cpu fan speed. I have it plugged into the CPU fan header on the mobo. It's a 3pin plug.
 
Quick question for other owners of this mobo. I'm finding its not controlling the speed of my cpu fan.

Not working here either. 100% all the time but I have a quiet Sythe Flex 120 anyway so its not a bother.
 
Well I got my UD3P and started switching from my DS3L. After wrestling my Tuniq Tower off I worked on mounting it to the UD3P. The H-bracket didn't fit between the heatsinks. And one of the pins on my Intel heatsink isn't pushing all the way through. Frustrating.

hnotfitting.jpg


Just a word of warning to Tuniq Tower owners.
 
Well I got my UD3P and started switching from my DS3L. After wrestling my Tuniq Tower off I worked on mounting it to the UD3P. The H-bracket didn't fit between the heatsinks. And one of the pins on my Intel heatsink isn't pushing all the way through. Frustrating.

Just a word of warning to Tuniq Tower owners.

Crap, that sucks.

Is there ANY way to get around this like modding the bracket? I was thinking of getting the UD3P but I won't if the the Tuniq can't fit.
 
Its the little bulges in the middle that are in the way. I think they're only there for mounting to a different socket, so if you can remove them one way or another (dremel or hacksaw?) the bracket should fit down in the processor area. When I get some time I'll try this myself.
 
So what are the main differences between the UD3P and the DS3R?
 
Guys I love this board. Check out my new 525 FSB 24/7 settings. It was hard to get to this point because I could not get Orthos blend stable for 24 hours. Took me almost a week till I finally hit on what I needed. I refused to run at what I considered unsafe voltages. My MCH reference needed to go one step lower then what I had it on. Once I moved it to .70 I got 24 hours Orthos blend stable finally.

Maybe this can help somebody else.

In bios: 525x8, Turbo memory, XMP disabled, LLC enabled, 2.0D strap (400 FSB) 1:1, memory timings in screen shot.

525x8esr4.jpg


525x8esettingsqk4.jpg
 
Can any of you owners verify if this MoBo has a built in speaker for beep codes?
 
i fully intend to purchase one of these UD3P+E7400+2x 4850s a budget game box.
 
from newegg :

Expansion Slots
2 x PCI Express 2.0 x16
(one running at x16 model, another one running at x8 model)

The tweaktown review says differently though:
http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/1626/4/gigabyte_ep45_ud3p_motherboard_exclusive_review/index.html

Lastly, we are onto expansion possibilities. Thanks to the P45 Express chipset we get true Crossfire. How this works, if you haven’t read any P45 reviews in the past, is the 16 lanes from the P45 Northbridge have two modes; single GPU and multi GPU. When in single GPU, all 16 lanes are routed to the blue PCIe x16 slot. When a second graphics card is inserted into the orange PCIe x16 slot, the board automatically steals eight lanes from the blue slot and sends them to the orange slot, giving both cards eight lanes of bandwidth each. One disadvantage to this setup is the fact you can’t run two of ATIs X2 series cards in CrossfireX, since there isn’t enough bandwidth, they just won’t work.
 
The tweaktown review says differently though:
http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/1626/4/gigabyte_ep45_ud3p_motherboard_exclusive_review/index.html

Lastly, we are onto expansion possibilities. Thanks to the P45 Express chipset we get true Crossfire. How this works, if you haven’t read any P45 reviews in the past, is the 16 lanes from the P45 Northbridge have two modes; single GPU and multi GPU. When in single GPU, all 16 lanes are routed to the blue PCIe x16 slot. When a second graphics card is inserted into the orange PCIe x16 slot, the board automatically steals eight lanes from the blue slot and sends them to the orange slot, giving both cards eight lanes of bandwidth each. One disadvantage to this setup is the fact you can’t run two of ATIs X2 series cards in CrossfireX, since there isn’t enough bandwidth, they just won’t work.

I read that review as well and I *think* (please correct me if I am wrong) that this means when 2 video cards are used, PCI-E(1) will work at 8x and PCI-E(2) will work at 8x as well.
 
Hello all!
I am new to this board and would like to add that it has been an invaluable source of information. I am building a system right now and considering purchasing the GA-EP45-UD3P board.

I am also thinking of pairing this board with the intel q6600 quad core since I am reading rave reviews about it's potential overclocking and not to mention its price.

I was concerned about the memory and which to purchase. I have seen many good reviews and recommendations for G. Skill and Corsair but I think I am leaning towards G. Skill PC2-6400 (800) with low memory timings (CAS 4). I have also noticed that UD3P has a recommended memory voltage of 1.8. Is it best to go with this voltage? What are the advantages/disadvantages of going with a 1.9, 2.0 or 2.1 volt?

Questions:
1) If I do decide to overclock, is this a good set of modules to go with?
2) If I want to overclock the q6600 with stock heat sink and 3 80mm fans in my case, is this possible and if so, how high can I get without damaging anything (with stock equipment, no extra cooling.) I'm just curious.

Thanks!
 
Generally yes 1.8V is a good choice for RAM voltage. Higher voltage RAM do tend to offer higher speeds, better overclocks and/or tighter timings. However you seriously would not notice the difference between CAs4 and CAS5 in any real world app or game. So the CAS4 G.Skill RAM is NOT worth the extra $15 over the $50 CAS5 G.Skill RAM:
G.Skill F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ 2 x 2GB DDR2 800 RAM - $50

1) Read above. Definitely the $50 G.Skill RAM
2) It is possible to overclock BUT your overclock will be limited due to the 80mm fans and stock HSF. As for max OC, YMMV but do keep these parameters in mind: Keep the Q6600 at around 65C under load and the voltage no higher than 1.5V. As long as those two parameters are met, your OC'd Q6600 will be fine. Though out of curiosity, what case do you have?
 
Generally yes 1.8V is a good choice for RAM voltage. Higher voltage RAM do tend to offer higher speeds, better overclocks and/or tighter timings. However you seriously would not notice the difference between CAs4 and CAS5 in any real world app or game. So the CAS4 G.Skill RAM is NOT worth the extra $15 over the $50 CAS5 G.Skill RAM:
G.Skill F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ 2 x 2GB DDR2 800 RAM - $50

1) Read above. Definitely the $50 G.Skill RAM
2) It is possible to overclock BUT your overclock will be limited due to the 80mm fans and stock HSF. As for max OC, YMMV but do keep these parameters in mind: Keep the Q6600 at around 65C under load and the voltage no higher than 1.5V. As long as those two parameters are met, your OC'd Q6600 will be fine. Though out of curiosity, what case do you have?

Okay, I figured there would be a limiting factor so I just wanted to know. It seems everyone is oc'ing now-a-days. It's become common place. Even the mobo's are designed to take advantage of this. Forgive my ignorance, but what does YMMV mean and how long will the OC'd Q6600 will be fine? What is the life expectancy of an OC'd chip/mobo/memory?

I kept reading faster, better timings so I was looking at CAS4 instead of 5. With that in mind, I was originally looking at the Kingston HyperX PC8500 Dual Channel memory at tiger. I heard they use Micron chips which are better (correct me if I am wrong). Would you recommend this over the G. Skill? I saw it at tiger and variations at new egg.

Tiger:
Kingston HyperX Dual Channel 4096MB PC8500 DDR2 1066MHz Memory (2x2048MB)
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4242488&CatId=2531

New Egg:
Kingston HyperX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104062
and
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104060

I was also looking at the corsair:

Corsair:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4148851

My case is a basic one found below. It's not nearly as snazzy as some cases through:
http://3btech.net/blchha25atxc.html

Thanks!
 
I read that review as well and I *think* (please correct me if I am wrong) that this means when 2 video cards are used, PCI-E(1) will work at 8x and PCI-E(2) will work at 8x as well.

That's correct. It's not a problem for 2 single GPU cards as they will each run at 8x 8x. According to Kyle from this site he does not think that bandwidth is an issue though with current gen cards and games. So 2 4870s or 2 4850s would work fine. I don't know why 2 4870x2 cards would not work well but I will take their word for it. I guess 4 GPU's saturate the bus.


If I were you I would get Corsair but this one

CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145197

Not only is it on sale for $79 after rebate with free shipping, but it comes with a memory cooler. And one more thing. With Intel CPU's lower timings is not nearly as important as higher clock speeds. You will always want to choose higher clocks over lower timings if you can't have both at the same time, which you can't if you want to run at higher speeds. If you are running 1:1 though and can't change straps because its beyond the capability of your memory and you have some headroom, then its good to try and lower timings, but only at that point.
 
I don't know what the chipset voltage setting is in this screen can anyone let me know? And besides that and vcore setting is there any other setting on this screen I should tweak for when I'm overclocking? Memory is already stable, I'm done with that.

Picture.jpg
 
That's correct. It's not a problem for 2 single GPU cards as they will each run at 8x 8x. According to Kyle from this site he does not think that bandwidth is an issue though with current gen cards and games. So 2 4870s or 2 4850s would work fine. I don't know why 2 4870x2 cards would not work well but I will take their word for it. I guess 4 GPU's saturate the bus.



If I were you I would get Corsair but this one

CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145197

Not only is it on sale for $79 after rebate with free shipping, but it comes with a memory cooler. And one more thing. With Intel CPU's lower timings is not nearly as important as higher clock speeds. You will always want to choose higher clocks over lower timings if you can't have both at the same time, which you can't if you want to run at higher speeds. If you are running 1:1 though and can't change straps because its beyond the capability of your memory and you have some headroom, then its good to try and lower timings, but only at that point.

Great. Thanks for the info. I saw your earlier post about this stick of ram but I was not sure if my mobo would take it due to the higher voltage requirement. Question: Whats the advantage/disadvantage of higher/lower voltages when dealing with memory? GA recommends 1.8v on this board but obviously you can increase it. Does higher voltage mean more power which translates into higher clocking/better performance? Also, if I don't OC and use the Dominator, would I notice a difference in 800 vs 1066? I've read in various places that the difference is minimal. I am just wondering, I love computer knowledge. I eat this stuff up :)
 
Okay, I figured there would be a limiting factor so I just wanted to know. It seems everyone is oc'ing now-a-days. It's become common place. Even the mobo's are designed to take advantage of this. Forgive my ignorance, but what does YMMV mean and how long will the OC'd Q6600 will be fine? What is the life expectancy of an OC'd chip/mobo/memory?
YMMV = Your Mileage May Vary
And a properly OC'd Q6600 that stays within the parameters that I mentioned earlier will last for years. I have yet to hear of anyone killing a C2D based CPU as the result of overclocking. So as long as you properly overclock, the life expectancy between an OC'd and non-OC'd system is virtually nil.

I kept reading faster, better timings so I was looking at CAS4 instead of 5. With that in mind, I was originally looking at the Kingston HyperX PC8500 Dual Channel memory at tiger. I heard they use Micron chips which are better (correct me if I am wrong). Would you recommend this over the G. Skill? I saw it at tiger and variations at new egg.

Tiger:
Kingston HyperX Dual Channel 4096MB PC8500 DDR2 1066MHz Memory (2x2048MB)
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4242488&CatId=2531

New Egg:
Kingston HyperX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104062
and
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104062

I was also looking at the corsair:

Corsair:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4148851

No I would not recommend the Corsair or Kingston RAM over the G.Skill RAM. Note the prices: $50 for the G.Skill RAM without dealing with any sort of rebate whereas the Kingston RAM is $93 before rebates ($64 AR) and the Corsair Dominator RAM is $120 before rebates ($79AR). Just on price alone the G.Skill RAM is much much better choice. In addition, for the Q6600, all you need is DDR2 800 RAM even with overclocking in mind:

Stated FSB/4 = Actual FSB
Actual FSB x 4 = Stated FSB
Multiplier x Actual FSB = CPU Speed
1:1 Ratio: 2 x Actual FSB = RAM Speed
1:1 Ratio: FSB = 1/2 RAM speed
Note that C2D systems don't see a performance increase with any ratio higher than 1:1

Q6600:
Multi x Actual FSB, Stated FSB, RAM Speed = Clock Speed
9 x 266Mhz, 1066Mhz, DDR2 533 RAM = 2.4Ghz <== Stock Speeds
9 x 333Mhz, 1333Mhz, DDR2 667 RAM = 3.0Ghz <== Good OC
9 x 400Mhz, 1600Mhz, DDR2 800 RAM = 3.6Ghz <== Excellent OC, About the Max

So as shown above, as long as you maintain a 1:1 ratio, all you need is the $50 G.Skill DDR2 800 RAM.

Also, if I don't OC and use the Dominator, would I notice a difference in 800 vs 1066? I've read in various places that the difference is minimal.
You would not notice a single difference between DDR2 800 and DDR2 1066 in everyday apps and games.
 
I don't know what the chipset voltage setting is in this screen can anyone let me know? And besides that and vcore setting is there any other setting on this screen I should tweak for when I'm overclocking? Memory is already stable, I'm done with that.
The chipset voltage is the one called MCH Core. Depending on how much your overclocking you may want to lower your MCH reference by a notch or two and then stability test.

Here is a link to some threads about this board and settings where there is a wealth of information:

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=205132

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=203785

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=203272
 
Great. Thanks for the info. I saw your earlier post about this stick of ram but I was not sure if my mobo would take it due to the higher voltage requirement. Question: Whats the advantage/disadvantage of higher/lower voltages when dealing with memory? GA recommends 1.8v on this board but obviously you can increase it. Does higher voltage mean more power which translates into higher clocking/better performance? Also, if I don't OC and use the Dominator, would I notice a difference in 800 vs 1066? I've read in various places that the difference is minimal. I am just wondering, I love computer knowledge. I eat this stuff up :)

Well the board can adjust to whatever voltage your memory is specced to handle. It can go from 1.8 to higher than 2.3 for memory like Cellshock which is made to handle high volts. The most important thing is to set the volts to what the memory was made to run at because the board can handle it. You can over-volt the memory but with sticks like the Gskill or Corsair 2x2GB it won't accomplish very much. You would need D9 sticks for that, they love extra volts but also have a higher failure rate. People tend to try to give extra volts to memory that can handle it to increase their overclocks, but sticks like the Gskill and the Corsairs that I have tend not to do any better with the extra volts.

If you are not Overclocking then you will not notice a difference in real world performance between 800 and 1066. The 1066 will come in handy if you are trying for very high FSB speeds. For instance if you are running at 500 FSB 1:1 the 800 memory will have to run at 1000mhz which is a 200 mhz overclock. The 1066 will be underclocked though by 66 mhz. And then there is the FSB itself. Not every pair of sticks can run at high FSB. The Gskill's I had would not go over 460 FSB and that's why I moved to the Corsair's.

Now as a beginning overclocker and with a Q6600 you probably will not be running a very high FSB. You could try but remember its harder to do with a Quad core then a dual core like an E8400. You may have no real need for the 1066. I like it because I run at a high FSB, but I also loved that memory cooler that came with it.

I would do some reading over at Xtreme systems forums, as there is a huge and growing amount of info on this board.
 
Generally yes 1.8V is a good choice for RAM voltage. Higher voltage RAM do tend to offer higher speeds, better overclocks and/or tighter timings. However you seriously would not notice the difference between CAs4 and CAS5 in any real world app or game. So the CAS4 G.Skill RAM is NOT worth the extra $15 over the $50 CAS5 G.Skill RAM:
G.Skill F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ 2 x 2GB DDR2 800 RAM - $50

1) Read above. Definitely the $50 G.Skill RAM
2) It is possible to overclock BUT your overclock will be limited due to the 80mm fans and stock HSF. As for max OC, YMMV but do keep these parameters in mind: Keep the Q6600 at around 65C under load and the voltage no higher than 1.5V. As long as those two parameters are met, your OC'd Q6600 will be fine. Though out of curiosity, what case do you have?

What speed can I expect when OC'ing the Q6600 (with stock options and my 3 80mm fans; 2 under the PS and 1 adjacent the CPU and stock heatsink)? Can you post some modifications for the bios to accomplish this? I am looking at the $50 G. Skill since I am not majorly going to OC.
 
What speed can I expect when OC'ing the Q6600 (with stock options and my 3 80mm fans; 2 under the PS and 1 adjacent the CPU and stock heatsink)?


I already answered this question when I said "YMMV" In other words, pretty much a matter of luck. But I wouldn't be surprised if you could only get around 2.6GHz to 3.0Ghz.
 
ordered and shipped out today to replace a rather unpredictable and broken P5Q Pro that asus refused to replace.
 
I already answered this question when I said "YMMV" In other words, pretty much a matter of luck. But I wouldn't be surprised if you could only get around 2.6GHz to 3.0Ghz.

I see. Sorry my mistake. I didn't get that from the post. I probably will not OC it then at all or if I do, it will be after I complete the system build, run it for a while and then look into cooling peripherals.

Thanks for the info. I'll be ordering this board and getting the G. Skill ram as well.
 

Great review! I am definitely sold on this board and OC'ing. The review did indicate that you could reach a 500mhz FSB with no cooling other than stock UD3P. Is this correct? Can anyone confirm this?

Also, I want to OC this puppy with a Q6600. Which cooling system should I look at and where can I purchase it? Ram wise, what should I get other than the G. Skill PC-6400 at Newegg for $50? The Corsair Dominator was recommended to me earlier. This would be a viable option, correct? I am not looking at extreme over clocking. I 3.0GHZ would be great because I was debating getting the C2D E8400 at 3.0GHZ because of its higher speed.

Basically I would like my Q6600 to be as fast OC'ed as a stock C2D at 3.0GHZ (maybe more if I can squeeze it out without burning anything up).

Thanks!
 
I currently have my q6600 on the UD3P board at 3.672 Mhz with most settings at AUTO except for CPU voltage which was set in the BIOS to 1.38125. CPU-Z reports it at 1.334. I did manage to get to 3.8 + Mhz and boot into windows but I didn't test for stability. I did't really care for the Easytune6 program. Quick Boost offered only 3 options, and my memory seemed to be way underclocked. However, I didn't play around with it too much. If you do use this program adjust the voltage in your BIOS to what you are comfortable with. From what I read and experienced, this program raised the CPU voltage right up there. Personally I like to raise it in small increments. Watch temps too. On water cooling, Real Temp 2.0 reports temps at 26 28 23 29 Idle.
I ran Prime95 for two hours while testing at these settings. Highest Temps were around 50-52, I forgot to write them down. Anyhow, I think I am approaching the upper limits of this processor and probably not play around with it too much more. I would like to try a 45 nm
processor and shoot for the higher FSB. I wanted to download and install the F5A BIOS, but Q-FLash didn't recognize the file on the floppy. I will have to look further on this. Good luck with your OC.
 
Forgot memory and settings; At 3.672 Mhz and 1:1 my memory clock is at 900 Mhz. The memory I am using is the G.Skill F2-8000 CLD5D-4GBPQ DDR2 1000. Unfortunatly, I am underclocked by 100MHz. from what they are rated. Timing settings are stock; 5-5-5-15. Voltage is set at 2.00V. I am thinking of getting a set of the ones suggested by Danny Bui. The G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) for $49.00 at Newegg, and try to run them at 900 Mhz with the Q660 on another board. I will save the DDR2 1000 for a 45nm and try to take advantage of the potential of higher FSBs on this board.
 
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