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 reality, and they have outfitted the EP45-DQ6 with an impressive assortment of exclusive and innovative features. In Gigabyte-speak, the DQ6 series benefits from 6-Quad, which stands for Quad Bios, Quad Cooling, Quad Triple Phase, Quad eSATA2, Quad-Core Optimized, and Quad DDR2 Slots.
But that is just the tip of the iceberg, so let’s take a closer look at some of the standout features. Dual Channel DDR2-1333+
 With the arrival of the new F10o BIOS, Gigabyte has updated the EP45-DQ6's specifications to list DDR2-1333+ as the highest officially supported memory speed for the EP45-DQ6. 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-DQ6 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
 Thanks to its two physical PCI-E x16 slots, the EP45-DQ6 is CrossFireX capable, just like most other P45 motherboards. However, unlike most other motherboards, Gigabyte has outfitted this high-end model with two open-ended PCI-E x4 slots, which means that it supports QUAD CrossFireX in an 8x/x4/x4/x8 configuration. It won’t really perform all that well, but it’s nice to see that the capability is there. | 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 2
 Ultra Durable 2 is the phrase that Gigabyte has chosen to the highlight the fact that the EP45-DQ6 was designed with high quality and energy efficient components, namely Low RDS(on) MOSFETs, ferrite core chokes, and long-lasting solid capacitors. Gigabyte was the first to create a motherboard series that exclusively used solid capacitors, so it’s nice to see them continue and improve upon this tradition. | 2 Power Phases for Both NB and RAM
 In the last 18 to 24 months, motherboard manufacturers have really placed the onus on improving their overall power delivery designs. With processors benefiting from 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-DQ6 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 4X Bandwidth Boost
 Many of you are already aware that Gigabyte has outfitted the EP45-DQ6 with a record four Gigabit LAN ports. While it is certainly overkill for most, Gigabyte argues that this design provides fault tolerance, preventing network downtime by simply switching from a failed port to a working port. Also, the Teaming/Bonding functionality allows the 4 single connections to act as a single ultra-high-speed connection with a theoretical 4Gbit/sec throughput. | Hardware Overvoltage Control ICs
 Catering to the enthusiast crowd, the EP45-DQ6 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. | Smart Backup - Plug & Play Hardware RAID
 Taking the guess work out of RAID 1 configurations, the EP45-DQ6 has two onboard RAID controllers which can configure up to 4 SATA hard drives for RAID 1 data backup without user intervention. | LED Indicators
 The EP45-DQ6 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. Is it any good? Well we will examine it thoroughly in the Software Section. | DualBIOS
 Providing bullet-proof BIOS protection, the EP45-DQ6 has 2 physical BIOS ROMs which permit instant recovery from BIOS damage or failure due to viruses or improper BIOS updating. | Onboard Quick Switches
 Last, but certainly not least, are the onboard Power, Clear CMOS and Reset buttons which are an undeniably convenient feature, particularly for those of us who operate our computer systems without a traditional PC case. |
As you can see, Gigabyte really didn’t hold back when it came to equipping the EP45-DQ6 with useful features, and we can’t wait to test them all out for your convenience and reading pleasure.
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