ASUS P5E3 Deluxe vs. ASUS Maximus Extreme
Author:
Date: 17.01.2008 |
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ASUS P5E3 Deluxe
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| Chipset |
Intel X38 |
| CPU |
LGA775 Pentium 4 FSB 1333/1066/800/533 MHz
Celeron Conroe/Prescott FSB 800/533 MHz
Dual-Core Pentium4 Smithfield/Presler
Quad-Core (Yorkfield/Kentsfield), Dual-Core (Wolfdale/Conroe) FSB 1600/1333/1066/800 MHz
HyperThreading |
| Memory |
DDR3 800/1066/1333/1600/1800 |
| HDD |
1x UltraDMA/133
8x SerialATA(RAID)
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| Extras |
2 IEEE-1394a
Audio Intel HDA
12 USB 2.0
2x Gigabit Ethernet |
| Price: |
~$320 (Price.ru) |
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ASUS Maximus Extreme
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| Chipset |
Intel X38 |
| CPU |
LGA775 Pentium 4 FSB 1333/1066/800/533 MHz
Celeron Conroe/Prescott FSB 800/533 MHz
Dual-Core Pentium4 Smithfield/Presler
Quad-Core (Yorkfield/Kentsfield), Dual-Core (Wolfdale/Conroe) FSB 1600/1333/1066/800 MHz
HyperThreading |
| Memory |
DDR3 800/1066/1333/1600/1800 |
| HDD |
1x UltraDMA/133
8x SerialATA (2x RAID)
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| Extras |
2 IEEE-1394a
Audio Intel HDA
12 USB 2.0
2x Gigabit Ethernet |
| Price: |
~$320~380 (Price.ru) |
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Modern public is already used to the merits of digital photography - all the features are included into almost any mobile phone, and a "point and shoot" camera sells at "peanuts" today. But few know that as many as 20 years ago a film recorder camera used to be a dreadful gift. The cameras themselves were OK, especially that cameras made in the USSR were regarded as one of the best in the world. So they were presented with clear conscience and sincerity. But the owner of such a gift was going to be in for troubles: to purchase a photographic enlarger (costing as much as half the monthly salary), special chemicals to develop the film, special developing units, containers, chemicals for printing (developer, fixing agent), photo paper. Since all the process had to be done in complete darkness, a special photo bag, sleeves and a red lamp was also needed. All in all, the new member of photographers' community was in for lots of trouble.
These days, one of the "dreadful" gifts is a motherboard built on the base of Intel X38 or P35 chipsets, which is aimed at operation with DDR3 memory. The motherboards themselves have nothing to complain about. So you can safely buy it and present with clear conscience. But the future owner of such a board is most likely in for long hours of "nasty time" while looking for DDR3 memory around the shops, then comparing its prices versus those for DDR2 memory. In particular, retailers offer a wide variety of 1GB DDR2 memory modules priced at ~$25, whereas DDR3 modules of the same capacity cost $200. At the same time, their choice is highly restricted.
So, it's time we reviewed the two most "dreadful" gifts - ASUS P5E3 Deluxe and ASUS Maximus Extreme which are based on Intel X38 and operate solely with DDR3.
Specifications
ASUS P5E3 Deluxe
ASUS Maximus Extreme
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ASUS P5E3 Deluxe |
ASUS Maximus Extreme |
| CPU |
- Intel Pentium 4 (Prescott (2M)/Gallatin/CedarMill) with the bus speeds 1066/800/533 MHz
- Dual-core Intel Pentium D/EE (Smithfield/Presler) with the bus speeds 800/1066 MHz
- Intel Celeron-D (Conroe-L, Prescott) with the bus speeds 800/533 MHz
- Support for Intel Core 2 Duo/Quad (Kentsfield, Conroe) with the bus speeds 1333/1066/800 MHz
- Support for Intel Core 2 Duo/Quad (Yorkfield, Wolfdale) with the bus speeds 1600/1333/1066/800 MHz
- Socket LGA775
- Support for HyperThreading |
| Chipset |
- North bridge Intel X38 (MCH)
- South bridge Intel ICH9R
- Interbridge communication: DMI |
| System Memory |
- Four 240-pin slots for DDR3 SDRAM DIMM
- Maximum memory capacity 8GB
- Supported memory DDR3 800/1066/1333/1600/1800
- Dual-channel memory access
- Power indicator |
| Graphics |
- Three PCI Express x16 slots |
| Expansion options |
- Two 32-bit PCI Bus Master slots
- Two PCI Express x1 slot
- Twelve USB 2.0 ports (6 integrated + 6 additional)
- Two IEEE1394 ports (Firewire; one integrated + 2 additional)
- Integrated High Definition Audio 7.1
- Two Gigabit Ethernet LAN controllers |
| Overclocking options |
- FSB adjustable within 200 to 800 MHz in 1 MHz increments; multiplier adjustable
- Adjustable voltage on the CPU, memory, FSB, and the chipset (NB + SB)
- ASUS AiBooster |
| Disk subsystem |
- One UltraDMA133/100/66/33 Bus Master IDE link (JMB363; with support for up to 2 ATAPI devices)
- Support for Serial ATA II (6 links - ICH9R, with support for RAID)
- Support for Serial ATA II (2 links - JMB363)
- Support for LS-120 / ZIP / ATAPI CD-ROM |
| BIOS |
- 16 Mbit Flash ROM
- AMI BIOS with support for Enhanced ACPI, DMI, Green, PnP Features
- ASUS EZ Flash 2
- ASUS CrashFree BIOS 3
- ASUS MyLogo 3
- ASUS OC Profile
- Multi-languages BIOS |
| Misc |
- One port for FDD, one serial port, port for PS/2 keyboard
- STR (Suspend to RAM)
- SPDIF Out
- ASUS AI Remote |
- One port for FDD, a port for PS/2 keyboard
- STR (Suspend to RAM)
- SPDIF Out
- Power, Reset, and Clr CMOS buttons |
| Power management |
- Wake-up on modem, mouse, keyboard, LAN, timer, and USB
- Main 24-pin ATX power connector
- Additional 8-pin power connector |
| Monitoring |
- Monitoring the temperatures of the CPU, system, voltages, rotational speeds of the five fans
-Q-Fan 2
- ASUS AI Gear, AI Nap
- ASUS PC Probe II |
- Monitoring the temperatures of the CPU, system, chipset (NB+SB), voltages, rotational speeds of the eight fans
-Q-Fan 2
- ASUS AI Gear, AI Nap
- ASUS PC Probe II |
| Dimensions |
- ATX form factor, 245x305 mm (9.63" x 12") |
- ATX form factor, 269x305 mm (10.6" x 12") |
Retail boxes
The mark for the package bundle is in direct dependence on the retail price of the product. In this case, the price for each of the motherboards is over $300, so we have a right to expect a great number of additional components and colorful package. However, only the Maximus board can boast a nice-looking box (with a handle to carry it around).
Package bundle:
- motherboard;
- User's Manual in English + brief usage guide;
- Drivers & Utilities DVD plus CD with third-party software;
- one ATA133 cable, one FDD cable;
- 6x SerialATA cables + a power supply adapter (2 connectors);
- a cap for the rear panel of the housing;
- bracket for an additional Firewire and 2 USB 2.0 ports;
- two additional fans;
- Q-Connectors kit;
- USB-receiver AI Remote + a remote control;
- ASUS corporate logo sticker.
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- motherboard;
- User's Manual in English + brief usage guide;
- drivers and utilities DVD;
- DVD with the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game;
- one ATA133 cable, one FDD cable;
- 6x SerialATA cables + a power supply adapter (2 connectors);
- A bracket for 2 additional USB 2.0 ports and a Firewire port;
- ASUS corporate logo sticker;
- a kit of rubberized feet;
- kit of additional connectors;
- a cap for the rear panel of the housing;
- additional sound card;
- kit of clamps, adapters, and nipples for the water-powered cooling system;
- additional fan;
- kit of clamps;
- three external thermal sensors;
- LCD-Poster.
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The contents of the boxes is highly varying. However, the kit of standard items is the same: six SerialATA cables + one power supply adapter with two connectors, PATA and FDD cables, bracket for a Firewire port and two USB 2.0 ports, as well as a cap for the rear panel of the board.
Note that the cap in P5E3 Deluxe has a vibroprotective coating, and the cap for the Maximus board has a wire to reject the static discharge.
The documentation for the boards is up to the mark. Each of the boards comes bundled with a highly detailed user's manual as well as an assembly guide. All the needed drivers and proprietary utilities software are recorded on the bundled DVD.
Besides, the Deluxe board comes bundled with a CD with third-party software. With the Maximus board, the user gets a full version of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game recorded on a DVD.
We also note that the package bundles of the boards lack bridges to connect Crossfire cards; however, there is a kit of connectors to facilitate plugging in housing buttons to the board.
As regards the optional items, the difference in the package bundles is especially noticeable. The P5E3 Deluxe board offers a couple of additional fans, as well as an external AI Remote unit with a remote control.
The Maximus board lacks such a unit. On the other hand, there is an external LCD-Poster diagnostic screen, a kit of rubberized feet, a kit of clamps, adapters and union pipes for the water-powered cooling system, a kit of fasteners, and three external thermal sensors.
Besides, there is an additional turbine fan and an external audio boar in the package bundle:
The final conclusion regarding the package bundle: we rate ASUS P5E3 Deluxe as "3.5/4", and ASUS Maximus Extreme as "4.5/5".
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