Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3P P45 Motherboard Review

Conclusion

In the ultra-competitive mainstream motherboard market, Gigabyte's challenge was to create a new P45 model that would stand above the rest. Have they succeed? Well let's compare the EP45-UD3P to its closest competitor, the ASUS P5Q PRO. Both have two mechanical PCI-E x16 2.0 slots, both have 8 SATA II ports, both have similar RAID functionality, both have eSATA and FireWire ports, both have 8-channel HD audio, both have advanced energy saving technologies...and we could go on and on. However, while they may initially appear quite evenly matched, Gigabyte's newest model distances itself with its distinctly superior layout, better BIOS, greater overclocking capabilities, a better cooling system, two PCI-E Gigabit LAN controllers, integrated TPM data encryption chip, and EasyTune6. As a result, we believe that it is fair to state that Gigabyte really have created a motherboard that belongs at the top of Mainstream Mountain.

The layout in itself is a tremendous achievement. Almost everything has been placed exactly where it should be to maximize usability and minimize compatibility issues, namely on the edge of the board. In particular, we are glad to see that no SATA ports need to be sacrificed when using a CrossFire configuration, which is an issue that needlessly affects far too many motherboards.

Admittedly, we were a little disappointed with our fully stable overclocking results. However, we did have unusually high expectations for this model, and a 100% stable 515Mhz is still a very good result. In fact, it is more than 99% of users will need for achieving a high CPU overclock for 24/7 use. More importantly though, these results were achieved with an immature bios, and based one our experiences with the EP45-DQ6, we know that Gigabyte will shortly release a BIOS that further improves overclocking. This hidden potential can be seen in our maximum benchable results, which were quite simply jaw-dropping.

Related to this (potential) overclocking prowess is the EP45-UD3P's excellent voltage regulation. Whatever voltage you set in the BIOS is nearly always what the motherboard outputs, and even under load the voltages remain steady. The only (very) minor exception to this is the vCore, but thanks to the introduction of Load-Line Calibration, vDroop can be effectively eliminated.

What can we say about Ultra Durable 3 itself? Well the higher quality solid capacitors, MOSFETs, and chokes are obviously a welcome addition, as they potentially increase the durability and longevity of the motherboard. The 2 oz copper PCB layers may have played a role in the low MOSFET temperature we recorded, as well in our extreme overclocking achievements, but there is obviously no way for us to verify this directly.

The EP45-UD3P does have one Achilles' Heel at the moment: price...at least here in Canada. Due to a number of economic factors, this model's price has been steadily increasing over the last few weeks and most retailers are selling it for between $180-$205 CAD, which is a $20-30 more than we would expect. On the other hand, our fortunate American neighbours can find this model for 135$ USD (and under), and at that price it is the best Bang for the Buck P45 motherboard on the market. Period.

By the way, those of you who would like a DDR3 version of this motherboard will be glad to know that the EP45T-UD3P should be available in the retail channel in early November.


Pros

- Excellent layout.
- Great cooling system.
- Impressive overclocking potential.
- CrossFire support.
- Fantastic BIOS options.
- Load-Line Calibration now available.
- EasyTune6.
- Price (in the United States).


Cons

- Price (in Canada).
- Immature BIOS prevents maximum FSB overclock.

Our thanks to Gigabyte for making this review possible!