Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3P P45 Motherboard Review

Features

In the competitive motherboard market, manufacturer-specific features are one of the strongest selling points when choosing between two motherboards that utilize the same chipset. Gigabyte is obviously well aware of this fact, and they have outfitted the mainstream-oriented EP45-UD3P with a healthy assortment of worthwhile features. In Gigabyte-speak, the Ultra Durable 3 series benefits from Ultra Cool, Ultra Performance, Ultra Durable, Ultra Power Efficient, Ultra Secure, Ultra Speed, Ultra Safe, and Ultra Smart...quite a lofty claim.


Let’s take a closer look at some of these standout features.

Dual Channel DDR2-1366+ Setting an industry record, the Gigabyte EP45-UD3P officially supports memory speeds of DDR2-1366+. Overkill you say? Perhaps, but it does demonstrate that Gigabyte is confident in the memory overclocking capabilities of this motherboard. Also, there are actually a few soon-to-be-released 4GB DDR2 kits that will be able to achieve DDR2-1300 speeds with relative ease, so stay on the lookout for those!	Dolby Home Theater® The EP45-UD3P features an 8-channel high-definition audio codec chip that supports Dolby Home Theater, which is designed to automatically deliver the best possible surround sound listening experience no matter if you're using two to eight speakers or simply headphones.
ATI CrossFireX With its two mechanical PCI-E x16 slots, the EP45-UD3P is CrossFireX capable, just like most other P45 motherboards. The slots operate in x8/x8 configuration, but since they support the PCI-E 2.0 specification, they provide as much bandwidth as x16 PCI-E 1.0 slots.	Dynamic Energy Saver Advanced The new Dynamic Energy Saver Advanced provides better energy saving capabilities and most importantly it actually works while overclocking, which is something that competing energy saving solutions do not support. Finally, we can all benefit from maximum power savings and maximum system performance, the best of both worlds.
Ultra Durable 3 The EP45-UD3P is the first model to support the new Ultra Durable 3 technology. As with Ultra Durable 2, this signifies that the motherboard was designed with high quality and energy efficient components, namely Low RDS(on) MOSFETs, ferrite core chokes, and long-lasting solid capacitors. However, it also features an industry-first 2 ounce copper PCB delivering lower system temperature, improved energy efficiency and enhanced overclocking stability.	2 Power Phases for Both NB and RAM In the last 18 to 24 months, motherboard manufacturers have really placed the onus on improving power delivery designs. With processors benefiting from 6-8-12-16 phase power designs, it was only natural to see similar improvements expand to other critical components. With this in mind, Gigabyte has outfitted the EP45-UD3P with two-phase power designs for the northbridge and the memory. This will not only help provide better power regulation but improved efficiency as well, which should theoretically improve overclocking.
Ultra TPM Continuing their pioneering efforts, Gigabyte is the first motherboard manufacturer to outfit their motherboards with an onboard Trusted Platform Module (TPM). This Infineon-sourced TPM provides an industry-leading 2048-bit data encryption through a hardware and software approach. We could spend a few pages explaining the intricacies of this Ultra TPM feature, but instead we recommend that interested readers check out Gigabyte’s article.	High Velocity 2X Bandwidth Boost The Dual LAN controllers support Teaming functionality allowing 2 single connections to act as 1 single connection for twice the overall bandwidth. Also, they prevent network downtime by transferring the workload from a failed port to a working port.
Hardware Overvoltage Control ICs Catering to the enthusiast crowd, the EP45-UD3P features hardware overvoltage control ICs which allow for linear real-time voltage control options for the CPU, memory, and northbridge. In addition, these ICs also allow for extremely accurate control, allowing overclockers to perfectly adjust voltages in precise 20mV increments.	LED Indicators The EP45-UD3P has a whole slew of LEDs. First, there are 7 onboard diagnostic LEDs which indicate if a malfunction is occurring and allow users to quickly identify the source of the problem. Secondly, there are 4 embedded LEDs which indicate system power status, preventing potential hardware damage due to improper installation/removal of components while the systems is still in a power-on state (S0, S1, S3, S4, S5).
EasyTune6 Let’s be honest here, the overwhelming majority of manufacturer provided overclocking/tweaking utilities just plain suck. It is due to this undeniable fact that Gigabyte completely redesigned EasyTune6 from the ground up to make it easier than ever to manage, monitor, and tweak your hardware and system settings.	DualBIOS Providing bullet-proof BIOS protection, the EP45-UD3P has 2 physical BIOS ROMs which permit instant recovery from BIOS damage or failure due to viruses or improper BIOS updating.