GIGABYTE GA-MA770-UD3 AM2+/AM3 Motherboard Review

Voltage Regulation

Our voltage regulation testing will focus on the various voltages and the differences encountered between what is selected in the BIOS and what is reported by a digital multi-meter (DMM). We have found five voltage read points on the motherboard so the vCORE, CPU/NB, NB, HT, SB, and vDIMM will be recorded with our DMM. The vCORE and CPU/NB will be read from the underside of the motherboard at the output side of the corresponding inductor. The remaining voltages will be read from points on the top of the motherboard. vDIMM will be read directly from a DIMM slot's VDD pin. The ground point used for all readings will be a screw hole. Here are a few photos showing the various read points used.


Now that we have established where the read points are, let’s have a look at the results. These measurements were taken at stock system speeds and with Cool N' Quiet disabled in the BIOS. So without further ado, here are our extensive findings:


As a whole, the MA770-UD3 has excellent voltage output. For starters, there is little difference between what you select in the BIOS and what the board actually outputs. It is off by 0.02V at the very most. The CPU NB, NB, SB, and DRAM voltages are accurate and very stable, displaying effectively no variances between idle and load. The most noteworthy voltage is obviously the vCore, and not only is accurate but absolutely stable as well. To demonstrate just how perfect the vCore line is, let's take a closer look at the vCore's characteristics with a one-hour OCCT stress test.


As you can see, the vCore line is straight as an arrow displaying zero variance even during load changes. This is a top-notch result from a budget motherboard, especially considering the hefty 3.65Ghz overclock and considerable 1.525 vCore.

Temperature Testing

Now it's time to see if the MA770-UD3's simplistic cooling system works as well it as looks. For this test we relied on our trusty digital thermometer for all temperature measurements. We set the system to its overclocked configuration, and then ran Prime 95 Blend for one hour. The temperatures were recorded at ten minute intervals throughout the one hour tests and the results averaged out. The ambient temperature was 23°C/73.4°F.


In the 'closer look' section, we mentioned that the northbridge heatsink had a fair bit of wiggle room and that it might impact cooling ability. The northbridge heatsink clocked in at a toasty 55°C/131°F, which suggests that it is making acceptable contact with the 770 northbridge, since otherwise the heatsink would run cool due to poor heat transfer. We would still like to see the mounting system improved, but as it stands the NB cooling solution appears to be doing its job. The itty-bitty southbridge heatsink ran quite hot, almost as if it was absorbing the heat generated by the GeForce GTX 280. The naked MOSFETs understandably ran hot too with 1.525vCore going thru them. Remember that none of the above components benefited from any direct air cooling, so all these figures essentially represent a worst-case scenario. In a regular case with some half-decent airflow, temperatures should be much lower.