Which p45

D

dtess17

2[H]4U
Joined
Feb 7, 2005
Messages
2,235
I'm looking to get a P45 board for a build I'm starting.
I'll be looking to do some overclocking, Hopefully pushing to the 3.8-4.0 range. ( yes I know, everything overclocks different, and I might get nothing.) I could end up running Xfire, and I'll likely fill all four slots with 2GB ram chips. Cooling will be air, if that matters at all.

I've looked at a few mobo's and each seems to have it's own merits. These are the ones I'm looking at now.


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131297

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128358

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131319

Looking for a rock solid board that OC's very well, Thoughts?


I bought the Gigabyte....P5Q-pro might become backup
 
AFAIK all those will work well for what you are using them for. I have the Asus P5Q WS, which is similar to the P5Q-E. IT also had dual NICs, but has a PCI-x slot instaed of a 3rd PCI-express slot. Probably comes down to price vs which features you will be using in this case. BTW, E8500 OCed to 4.0GHz on stock cooler, no prob!
 
P5Q-E here. All i can say is it simply works and works well. OC'd on first try and running a respectable 3.2ghz on Q6600. Room to OC alot higher but simply no need right now. Everything was a breeze to install, one of the nicest bios I have used in quite some time, runs cool, uses barely any voltage at all to OC and rock stable. Agreed with the other posts before me, it'll come down to a decision of which layout is best for YOU. The P5Q-E simply fit my setup the best due to using a HT Claro soundcard and wanting that PCI slot above any video slots so as to not obstruct or interfere with any future dual graphic setups and airflow issues. The P45 chipset was and is a fantastic platform for anyone.
 
They are all within my budget, so that isn't much of an issue. The reviews come back pretty solid on these too...It's awesome there is such a great chipset out there to build this system off of, but damn it makes picking so much more difficult.
 
I bought the P5Q Pro "open box" because of the price, and I was familiar with the layout of the Asus BIOS settings vs the GB BIOS settings. But remember that you may not get all of the accessories with it. Mine did not, but that's ok, because I did not really need them. Some people say that the GB mobos will overclock higher, but I don't know whether that is true or not. I'm running at 480FSB on mine.
 
How is the GB bios? I've heard they can OC higher sometimes, but also can be pretty picky.
 
No problems here. Little tip though, you have to hit Ctrl+F1 to unlock some hidden OCing features.
 
I've come down to three boards now...although I wonder am I doing myself a disservice by not looking at the X48?
 
I have the p5q Pro, and it has been rock solid with my E8400 at 4gz on air and DDR2-1066 ram.
 
The pro is a consideration for a backup system. I currently have on loan a maximus formula, which i'm not blown away with. I was thinking of replacing it with a pro, and then getting a second higher end board for the main system.
 
I have a P5Q pro and it overclocks very well. My only complaint is that I've had to send 2 back due to faulty temperature sensors. Probably just bad luck, but its worth considering.

Aside from that, it hits 3.6 on my Q6600 without trying. The northbridge doesn't even heat up significantly.
 
Love my UD3R, Highest fsb i have gone on it has been 524 under a Q9550 with the sink lapped and with as5, temps never going over 34C on it. Ram wise, it has gotten my PI Black sticks up to 1048 (524 fsb) under a 400 strap, Keep in mind m sticks are rated at 800 @ 4-4-4-12.

One of my buddies has a e7400 on a p5q pro, and its around the same overclock wise, So a P5Q or UD3 would do nicely for you. Why pay $150+ when these 3 boards will be more than enough? :cool:

Dfi boards are indeed very nice, but for the op, a P5Q or UD3P/R would be enough.
 
I think I'll give the Gigabyte a try.
Layout looks pretty clean. I might still get a P5Q-pro for a second system.
 
vanilla_guerilla said:
gigabyte? please.
Click to expand...

I take it you don't have any experience with the UD3P and 45nm quads.

OP, if you've got a 45nm quad in mind, stick with the UD3P board. Take it from someone that owns an Asus MIIF, the board is nice but the Gigabyte at under half the price OC's higher and with a lot less tweaking.
 
Asus P5Q Pro here. With my E8400 and 4 gb ram. Its been rock solid...Great board and layout...
 
zod96 said:
Asus P5Q Pro here. With my E8400 and 4 gb ram. Its been rock solid...Great board and layout...
Click to expand...

I think it will end up as my backup if for whatever reason the Gigabyte board doesn't meet my needs.
 
Everything came today. I just put the board on my tech station, and I'm finishing off getting a TRUE installed.

Got some 1066 ram to put with it, and I'll just use a old HD and gpu for testing purposes.

This board seems to have a great layout. Nothing is too cluttered, and it's been fine to work on thus far.

updates to come
 
Gigabyte FTW. my P45 works great. I dont overclock like crazy tho. a modest 3.0 GHz for my Q6600.
 
I have an gigabyte gaep45-ude3p with an E8600, ATI Radeon 4870 1gb and I love it. The only downside with this motherboard is the choosing of the HSF. Some fans will not fit.
 
mlightsey said:
I have an gigabyte gaep45-ude3p with an E8600, ATI Radeon 4870 1gb and I love it. The only downside with this motherboard is the choosing of the HSF. Some fans will not fit.
Click to expand...

I've got a TRUE dual fan on there right now, with no issue. I was a little worried at first because of the height of the northbridge, but everything is on there just fine.
 
So far so good. I've started to tinker around with the BIOS a bit. I got a Q9550 in there right now. Going up a little at time. goal is 4.0
 
Well I'm left to find out if I have shit ram, the mobo is a bitch or if the cpu just sucks.
 
Whats your ram? You know you can switch fsb straps to keep the ram at its rated speeds?
 
dtess17 said:
OCZ reaper 1066

I'll try that now
Click to expand...

Try the 333/400 Strap and go through the Choices, meaning A, B, C, D and use what ever keeps your ram at its rated speeds. Or whatever is close to the amount of overclock you want.
 
Casper312 said:
Try the 333/400 Strap and go through the Choices, meaning A, B, C, D and use what ever keeps your ram at its rated speeds. Or whatever is close to the amount of overclock you want.
Click to expand...

I'm working through that right now. I think this chip has a good amount of room. I have a feeling I just need to tweak the board. Right now I'm having trouble over 450,

I feel like this mobo should go a lot higher than that too. I've seen tons hitting 500+
 
Remember to give the mhc (Did i spell it right?) some more voltage since your doing decent fsb clocks.

They indeed do some decent fsb numbers, I did around 524 under a Q9550 and was very happy. :cool:
 
Casper312 said:
Remember to give the mhc (Did i spell it right?) some more voltage since your doing decent fsb clocks.

They indeed do some decent fsb numbers, I did around 524 under a Q9550 and was very happy. :cool:
Click to expand...

Yeah i didn't do much with voltage yet.
Why'd you get rid of that chip?
 
I'll just put all the voltage to max. That should keep me safe right?;)

There are so many options to give volts to this or that...friggin crazy.
 
dtess17 said:
Yeah i didn't do much with voltage yet.
Why'd you get rid of that chip?
Click to expand...

Psu purchase made me rma the chip, i got it right next to me, but im planning to sell it to a local friend once he gets the money together.

Im planning to wc with the money so i can maintain my clocks during the summer, It gets pretty hot up here (Attic). Should have some money left over, so i might just watercool the board as well. Im gonna regret selling the chip, since im sure im gonna head back into quads in the summer, but who knows i might pick up a Q9650 and call it a day at 4.5+Ghz.

For now my E5200/9800GTX/UD3R is enough. :cool:
 
Casper312 said:
Psu purchase made me rma the chip, i got it right next to me, but im planning to sell it to a local friend once he gets the money together.

Im planning to wc with the money so i can maintain my clocks during the summer, It gets pretty hot up here (Attic). Should have some money left over, so i might just watercool the board as well. Im gonna regret selling the chip, since im sure im gonna head back into quads in the summer, but who knows i might pick up a Q9650 and call it a day at 4.5+Ghz.

For now my E5200/9800GTX/UD3R is enough. :cool:
Click to expand...

Still, a chip that overclocked so well. Shame to give it up. hopefully your friend makes good use of it.

On a side note, I'm starting to get a bit frustrated with this system right now. So I'm going to go get a few beers, and try again in the AM
 
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