Testing Report: Gigabyte X48T-DQ6 Rev. 1.1

[BenchZowner]

Hello guys,
I'm starting "experimenting" with the Gigabyte X48T-DQ6 Rev. 1.1 to get to know it well before I start reviewing it, I thought that it'd be nice to open a thread here to show my findings and of course share them with you ( and you with me of course ).

"Owners" of the board ( PCB Rev1.1 plz ) feel free to chime in and report your experience, findings, hints, etc

I'll start with a mini photo presentation and then I'll start reporting things as they "occur" to me








the PLL...needed for SetFSB

[dinos22]

PLL is already supported mate

[BenchZowner]

I've just finished testing the board for the max stable FSB with my best Q6600.
At first I tried to hit it from inside BIOS...but anything over 455MHz FSB resulted in no POST.

Tried various FSB/DRAM ratios - Straps ( strap's controlled by the memory divider selection ), nothing.

Then I decided to go with SetFSB in Windows...
And yes! Max stable FSB with my best Q6600 was 485MHz. Not bad ( this CPU's max stable frequency on my best Asus P5K3 Deluxe is 506MHz, and 498MHz on the Abit IP35 Pro )

CPU-z Validation Link for Max Stable FSB with the Q6600 ( Click Me )

The only FSB/DRAM ratio ( involving FSB Strap as well ) that allowed me to reach that FSB stably was the 4.00D

Max stable FSB with this Q6600 and various dividers/straps:

485MHz - 4.00D
460MHz - 4.00B
472MHz - 3.20B
No Go - 4.0A
460MHz - 3.33D
*Mobo Went Crazy* - 2.66D
459MHz - 4.0C
No Go - 3.33C

Edit: I know it's working Dinos thx

[delewin]

Hi BenchZowner,

Thanks for starting this thread. I am interested in buying this board.


The CPU I intend to get is the E8400
The RAM is G Skill PC3-12800 DDR3 1600 (F3-12800CL7D-2GBHZ)

I am keen to hear the thoughts of existing users, especially concerning Over clocking.

Thanks in advance,

David

[BenchZowner]

Hi David,

I'm waiting for a E8400 to arrive today, and I'll start testing it for max FSB, etc.
Hope it does well ( and it looks like it has the potential to do so )

More to come later on

[delewin]

Hi David,

I'm waiting for a E8400 to arrive today, and I'll start testing it for max FSB, etc.
Hope it does well ( and it looks like it has the potential to do so )

More to come later on

The absolute deadline for my purchase is late April 2008. I am holding off as long as possible to get best bang for buck.

Looking forward to your results.

Best wishes,

David

[LuckyNV]

why is the crazy cool backplate present again?

[delewin]

why is the crazy cool backplate present again?

Does anyone know if Crazy cool actually works or is it just a Sales Gimick?

Thanks,

David

[BenchZowner]

why is the crazy cool backplate present again?

Because it's... crazy marketing cool

Kid 2 kid mode "Hey dude! Check this out, this motherboard is full of copper heatsinks, even in the back! It's definitely better than the rest!"

Does anyone know if Crazy cool actually works or is it just a Sales Gimick?

I will test with Crazy Cool and without to see if there's any difference at all.
However if you're going to use a heatsink/waterblock that make use of a retention plate at the back of the motherboard, you'll have to remove it ( the "Crazy Cool" ) anyways

[LuckyNV]

that's my point, its supposed to be a high end enthusiast board, so the space at the back needs to be clear for heatsink/water block backplates :/

[BenchZowner]

Let's take this thing to another level

Core 2 Duo E8400 "Wolfdale"
CellShock DDR3-1800 8-7-6-21
Quick FSB Tests ( just some quick quick test )

CPU-z Validation: 520MHz FSB, 400 Strap, DDR3-2081 8-8-8-28 SuperPi 1M Benchable

[[XC] gomeler]

Damn that seriously blows My X38-DS4 pushes 540FSB with the 1600 strap but anything else is crippled. I'll be reviewing the X38-DS4 over the weekend, interested in seeing how these two boards match up. Cheap X38 vs high-end X48T.

[George_o/c]

Come on Bill, push it a little bit more, I know you can So far, lookin' awesome Do you think the board isn't maxed out yet ? What about the rams, are they clocking good with that board (I know it ain't your P5K3 Deluxe , just out of curiosity wanna see your reaction ) ...

[BenchZowner]

520MHz is not my max FSB...

I'm waiting for a newer BIOS with better RAM overclocking & dividers 'support'.

I'm starting the default ( stock ) clocks measurements for the review now, gotta remain in schedule.

[GripS]

Whoa!! So far a bit disappointing. It's only 1 board and maybe future bios updates will improve it's performance but wow..... not good.

[dinos22]

that's my point, its supposed to be a high end enthusiast board, so the space at the back needs to be clear for heatsink/water block backplates :/

Gigabyte has been providing screws as options to remove those crappy backplates for a LONG time

it really isn't an issue as you have everything in the box to allow you to remove it and secure the NB

[dinos22]

520MHz is not my max FSB...

I'm waiting for a newer BIOS with better RAM overclocking & dividers 'support'.

I'm starting the default ( stock ) clocks measurements for the review now, gotta remain in schedule.

don't hold your breath too much :p

RAM dividers have been problematic on older boards for a long time...i've tested lots of bioses and i can only say that very early bioses for X38 boards are far better FSB OCers as well as everything else for that matter so i prefer to stick with them for great performance

just a tip set a loose tRD in bios and boot at 480/500 and setFSB up

also try using high vMCH volts with a monster fan blowing over it to see what the gains are.........this will also allow you to tighen tRD in windows better (to get better tRD you also need to get your timings in bios right.....>> make sure they are tight )

use Turbo setting for memory performance otherwise performance suffers

[BenchZowner]

Turbo is better than extreme ? [ haven't tested yet ]

Mobo won't boot over 455MHz FSB no matter how loose the timings are [ BIOS F4d ]

Yea, the dividers are indeed very very problematic.
Hope for a BIOS fix soon

High Vmch is on the way [ already done with +0.450V ]

Oh Dinos, clarify some things for me please ( if you can of course ) 'coz my gigabyte contact is away

Vmch default voltage is 1.4V [ so +.045V in BIOS means 1.85Vmch ]
Vfsb default voltage is 1.2V [ so +0.2V in BIOS means 1.4Vfsb ]
Vmem default voltage is 1.5V [ so +0.45V in BIOS means 1.95Vmem ]

right ?

[dinos22]

looks right to me

I suggested Turbo memory because Extreme can sometimes tighten subtimings too much and prevent RAM/FSB OCs

[BenchZowner]

One more question.... is the D.E.S. software working for you ?
The latest version from Gigabyte's website opens up as a vertical 10pixels gray bar...
( tested in XP & Vista )

[dinos22]

i don't have a proper X48 so donno

[BenchZowner]

Today's update:

Max Benchable FSB with a Core 2 Duo E8400 = 536MHz
Max Stable FSB with the same Core 2 Duo E8400 = 528MHz
Max Stable RAM frequency ( 1T CR ) = DDR3-2000 +/- 10MHz

Screenshots & CPU-z Validations:



CPU-z Validation - DDR3-2000 8-7-6-21 1T
CPU-z Validation - Max Benchable FSB with C2D E8400

[GAR]

One thing about Gigabyte i LOVE, is the build quality, its the best in the biz IMO

[dinos22]

fast time Bill

have a look how you stock up against good benchers

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...=32m+challenge

not bad at all mate

[BenchZowner]

I've just finished the measurements for the mobo's review.
I compared it with the Asus P5K3 Deluxe... so it's kinda like P35 vs X48.
Set for the same CPU & RAM clocks on both boards, and then tweaked each board ( sub-timings, strap, performance level, etc ).

CPU: Core 2 Duo E8400 @ 3.6GHz ( 400MHz FSB x 9.0 )
RAM: CellShock DDR3 CL8 Kit @ DDR3-1600 6-5-5-18 ( obviously 1:2 FSB/DRAM Ratio used )
VGA: eVGA GeForce 8800GTS 512MB ( Stock )
OS: Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP2
SPU: Creative X-Fi Fatal1ty FPS
[ no LoD, no software tweaks, just clear OS configured for 24/7 usage ]

Gigabyte X48T-DQ6 Rev. 1.1 ( BIOS F4d ) on the left, Asus P5K3 Deluxe ( BIOS v0910 ) on the right:

SuperPi 8M = 156.703s - 155.109s
Hexus PiFast = 25.25s - 25.2s
WinRAR = 2028 - 2130
wPrime = 23.734s - 23.765s
AquaMark 3 = 225929 - 228567
3D Mark2001SE = 66408 - 65862
3D Mark06 = 13376 - 13343
Everest ( Memory Read ) = 10278MB/s - 11129MB/s
Everest ( Memory Write ) = 8528MB/s - 8529MB/s
Everest ( Memory Copy ) = 8928MB/s - 8844MB/s
Everest ( Memory Latency ) = 51ns - 45.9ns