ASUS P5E64 WS Evolution and MSI P45D3 Platinum
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Date: 28.08.2008 |
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BIOS
The BIOS of both the motherboards is based on the AMI BIOS version.
the capacity of the ASUS BIOS is 16 Mbit, that for the MSI - 32 Mbit
The section of memory settings in the ASUS P5E64 WS Evolution is on the page of overclocking tools and includes a really wide kit of timings:
As we found out, the ASUS board wouldn't start up with A-Data 1600X (AD31600X001GU) memory modules. On the other hand, this type of memory is missing in the compatibility list, so there can't be any complaints to ASUS. On the other hand, the compatibility list includes only 4 names of DDR3-1800 memory, 3 names of DDR3-1600, and four names of DDR3-1333. That is extremely little, and in most cases the user will buy memory at random. As regards the MSI board, A-Data 1600X (AD31600X001GU) memory modules started up without an issue. As regards the MSI board, its capabilities for memory tuning are no less powerful.
At the same time, the MSI board allows adjusting the 1T and offers the Memory-Z feature.
In fact, the Memory-Z feature has nothing to do with tuning, this is a feature that displays data on the memory modules. Possible is both the short option
and the extended:
The next important parameter that affects the performance is setting the memory operating frequency.
Now look at the system monitoring section.
Both the motherboards display the current temperatures for the CPU and the system, detect the current voltage levels and rotational speeds of the fans (MSI - 3, ASUS - 5). The boards also offer a feature for adjusting the rotational speed of the CPU cooler and additional fans depending on the temperature of the CPU and the system.
Both the boards are able storing and loading BIOS settings as profiles (the ASUS board supports two profiles, MSI - four).
To handle the BIOS, the ASUS motherboard offers the integrated EZFlash 2 utility:
Unfortunately, this feature can see sections on the HDD in only the NTFS format. Look at the sector in charge of controlling the features of Intel processors:
All the features in the ASUS board are gathered on one page, and in the MSI board they are scattered around various sections. We also note the ASUS' feature to display BIOS in multiple languages:
Overclocking and stability
Before we move on to overclocking, let's look at the power converters. The PWM of the ASUS' board uses a 8-phase scheme in which there are eleven 560 mkF and two 270 mkF capacitors. At the same time, we note that the power converter of the memory modules, like the PWM of the north bridge are implemented on a 2-phase scheme. The PWM of the MSI board uses a 5-phase power scheme, in which there are eleven 820 mkF and four 470 mkF capacitors. The power converter of the memory modules and the north bridge, like in the ASUS board are implemented on a 2-phase scheme.
Now on to the overclocking features. On the ASUS motherboard, all the relevant features are gathered in the "Ai Tweaker" section,
and on the MSI board - in the "Cell Menu" section.
| Motherboard |
ASUS P5E64 WS Evolution |
MSI P45D3 Platinum |
| Multiplier adjustment |
+ |
+ |
| FSB adjustment |
within 200 to 800 MHz (1) |
within 133 to 800 MHz (1) |
| Vcore adjustment |
within 0.85 to 1.9 V (0.00625 V) |
within 0.96 to 1.94V (0.01 V) |
| Vmem adjustment |
within 1.5 to 2.78 V (0.02 V) |
within 1.19 to 2.77 V (0.01V) |
| Vdd adjustment |
within 1.25 to 1.91 V (0.02 V) |
within 0.728 to 2.624V (0.012V) |
| Vsb adjustment |
1.05 V; 1.2 V |
within 0.7 to 2.13V (0.01V) |
| Vtt adjustment |
within 1.2 to 1.5 V (0.02V) |
within 0.89 to 2.47 V (0.01V) |
| Vpll adjustment |
within 1.5 to 2.78 V (0.02 V) |
- |
| PCI-E adjustment |
within 100MHz to 180 MHz (1) |
- |
We note the following traits of the motherboards at overclocking. First, programmers at ASUS and MSI have added the feature for highlighting the parameters exceeding the range of safe overclocking (in their opinion) with different colors. Secondly, the Vcore range in the ASUS board does not meet the declared. The documentation says that the upper limit is 1.7 V, the BIOS displays 2.3V, but the real maximum Vcore = 1.9 V. A similar situation with the voltage is on the north bridge: the real maximum Vcore = 1.91V, and not 2.21V, as is displayed by the BIOS. However, there is a note in the BIOS stating that to attain this value you should change the OV_NB jumper which is missing on our board. Also, the ASUS board lacks the ASUS NOS (Non-Delay Overclocking System) technology which used to be implemented on almost all the previous models by this manufacturer. A similar feature is implemented on the MSI motherboard and is named D.O.T. It allows overclocking the system by ~73%.
 By the way, in the MSI board there is a difference between the declared and real voltage adjustment ranges. Now let's look at the practical results of overclocking. The maximum stable FSB speed in the ASUS board is 564 MHz; that for the MSI board - 450MHz.
We had no complaints to the ASUS board - the results are at a high level. But the MSI board did not show its best: overclocking worked only with the BIOS version 1.1, and we produced the final result with the BIOS version 1.2.
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