Gigabyte EP45-DS3R P45 Motherboard Review

Test Setup and Methodologies

Test Setup

Processor: Intel C2D Xeon E3110 (45nm dual core)
Video Card(s): HIS IceQ HD4670 512MB x2
Memory: 2GB Crucial Ballistix PC8500
Motherboard: Gigabyte EP45-DS3R Rev 1.0
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 250GB SATAII
Power Supply: Tagan BZ 900W
Case: None
Cooling: Swifttech Apogee (CPU), 2 x dual heatercore w/ 4 x 120mm fans
Fans: 1 x Panaflo 120mm
Operating System: Windows Vista Basic 64 bit

Testing will occur on a table top and a Lian Li chassis will be used to secure the motherboard. This test bed allows easier access to the motherboard and allows us to change parts much easier and faster than in a traditional case. All components mentioned above were used throughout the testing process.


Overclocking Methodology

The following section shows the maximum overclock achieved on a dual core Xeon E3110 45nm 1333FSB CPU. For testing methodology two main tests will be used and several benchmarks will be run at the overclocked speeds. The first of the two main stability tests will be a 5 hour custom test of OCCT which tests CPU, memory, and FSB stability. OCCT is a great test for reviews because it tests multiple core CPUs, creates user friendly graphs of temperatures and voltages, and is very efficient at picking up errors.

The second stability test will be 3 runs of 3DMark Vantage. This tests the 3D stability of the overclock as well as CPU, FSB and memory. Once an overclock passes these tests but fails anything further, this is the point deemed as “stable” for the purposes of this review.

Upon commencement of testing, the latest beta BIOS from Gigabyte F10 dated 2008/09/22 was flashed as it is the most recent release.


General Benchmark Methodology

All benchmarks will be a comparison of the Xeon E3110 at stock speed and at maximum overclock to give an idea of how much performance a user can gain when overclocking the EP45-DS3R. For CrossFireX tests, the overclocked speed will be used to test performance between one and two HD4670 video cards in 3D benchmarks and games.

The overclocked speed on the Xeon E3110 will be 4203Mhz on the overclocked tests and RAM speed will be set to 467Mhz (DDR934) and 4-4-4-4. CrossFireX will be enabled, ATI Catalyst 8.10 drivers will be used for 3D along with Windows Vista Home Basic 64 bit.