DFI LanParty UT X58-T3eH8 LGA 1366 Motherboard Review

Test Setup & Methodologies

Test Platform:
Motherboard:	DFI LanParty UT X58-T3eH8 Intel 9.1.0.1007
Processor:	Intel Core i7 965 Extreme Edition
Processor Cooling:	Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme-1366 2 x Scythe Ultra Kaze 120MM 2000RPM 87.6CFM (DFS123812L-2000)
Thermal Paste:	Arctic Cooling MX-2
North Bridge Cooling:	Stock
South Bridge Cooling:	Stock
PWM Cooling:	Stock
Memory:	Corsair Dominator-GT 3x2GB PC3-15000 7-8-7 (TR3X6G1866C7GTF) Corsair Dominator 3x2GB PC3-12800 8-8-8 (TR3X6G1600C8D)
Power Supply:	Corsair HX1000W
Video Card:	EVGA GTX 295 (NVIDIA GeForce 181.20 WHQL)
Additional Fan:	Scythe Ultra Kaze 120MM 2000RPM 87.6CFM (DFS123812L-2000)
Hard Drives:	Seagate 7200.9 80GB SATAII 8MB cache
OS:	Windows Vista SP1 (with all updates)

We have listed two Corsair Dominator kits of memory, one being the from the Dominator-GT series and the other being the highly popular Dominator 3x2GB PC3-12800 CL8 kit from Corsair. We will be using for the Dominator-GT kit for all of our overclocking and benchmarking but will also be testing to make sure the PC3-12800 Dominator kit run smoothly at stock on this motherboard. Both kits will in fact be tested for stability at their XMP profiles to ensure 100% compatibility with the DFI X58-T3eH8. This has been an increasingly popular type of testing we have found during the X58/triple-channel memory era and one we will continue with for the foreseeable future. Let's now go over out stability testing methodology.

Stability Overclocking Methodology

Testing for true system stability is an arduous task and one that can be hotly debated in an open forum. We have many years of experience watching these debates and have tried to put together a strong collection of stability tests to accommodate all schools of thought on the subject. Our stability testing methodology has also been a great success in finding a number of 24/7 overclocks on all kinds of systems. A lot of us here at HWC, myself included, use this same type of testing when setting up our own daily use machines and those that we setup for friends and family. This methodology is sound and shouldn't be taken lightly. We are definitely not like other sites that post a CPU-Z screen shot and then say the system passed all of our benchmarks. Our results should be considered a realistic sample of what one can expect from this motherboard for 24/7 operation.

Obviously we won't be able to test everything for a literal 24/7 overclock because of time restraints with a review, but our virtual recipe equates nicely to a 24/7 stable overclock. The following is a run-down of programs used for our stability testing. All overclocked results in the next section have passed this testing, with screen shots to outline settings used:

• 8 threads of 32M SuperPi Mod 1.5 (ran at the same time using Hyper Pi 0.99b)
• 2 hours of 8 threads of Prime95 using Prime95 v25.7 Stress Testing Blend
• 2 hours of OCCT Custom 2H Mix OCCT v3.0.1 - Except for Memory Overclocking
• 2 hours of HCI MemTest Pro in Windows using all available memory
• 6 loops of 3DMark Vantage (over 60 minutes of looping the full test suite)

We truly feel this testing methodology produces solid and useful results for end users. Of course you do have to keep in mind that all setups will react differently. Our CPU may need more or less vCORE/VTT in order to run the overclocks we will be looking at shortly. The memory we used may be stronger or weaker than kits in your machines. There are a number of variables when it comes to overclocking and there are no stead fast rules, only guidelines. We have provided all of the voltages used for our overclocks but those should only be used as a guide or starting point for your systems. You may need more - or less - voltage to achieve the same type of clocks.

Benchmark Methodology

We are yet again stuck with our wheels spinning in the mud when it comes to working XMP profiles with the DFI X58-T3eH8. Like the EVGA X58-SLI - which just received a BIOS with working XMP - at the time of this review, the DFI X58 does not support XMP profiles. This simply means that our stock results will be without simply enabling XMP on the Dominator-GT memory, but instead, we will have to manually adjust the settings to best comprise the XMP profile. This is of course what we will also be doing for our stability testing of the Dominator-GT memory in the upcoming section.

The other two sets of results that we are going to be looking at will be designated by the grey and red bars in the graphs. These sets of results will consist of our overall maximum overclock from the upcoming overclocking section. These settings are a result of our 24/7 settings with one difference between the two. With the grey set of results, we are going to only be running 2x2GB and with the red, 3x2GB. We have decided to use this motherboard review of the DFI X58-T3eH8 to investigate the performance difference between 3x2Gb and a dual channel 2x2GB kit. This was recently questioned in the forum comment of a previous memory review so we figured now was a great time to do that testing. Here is a breakdown of the method in which the OS will be setup for each configuration:

1. Windows Vista x64 w/SP1 is installed using a full format
2. Intel Chipset drivers and accessory hardware drivers (audio, network, GPU) are installed followed by a defragment and a reboot
3. At time of benchmarks the latest drivers were downloaded from their official web sites as the latest drivers, most notable, NVIDIA GeForce Release 181.20 WHQL
4. Programs and games are then installed followed by another defragment
5. Windows updates are then completed installing all available updates followed by a defragment
6. Benchmarks are each ran three times after a clean reboot for every iteration of the benchmark unless otherwise stated, the results are then averaged