Original Link: https://www.anandtech.com/show/1556
FIRST LOOK: Asus P5AD2-E - 1066FSB & DDR2-711
by Wesley Fink on November 29, 2004 12:01 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
When Intel introduced the new Socket 775 architecture in late June, two new chipsets were launched to drive the new 775 Prescotts. The 915 was targeted at mainstream users, and the more expensive 925X was to drive the enthusiast level boards. In our August roundup of all the top 925X motherboards, the Asus P5AD2 Premium received our Gold Editors Choice as top Intel motherboard. It is worth looking back at Intel 925X Roundup: Creative Engineering 101 to see the challenges faced by board makers. Most were trying to find creative ways to circumvent design limitations for the 925x/915, which limited overclocking to about 10%. Asus had the most successful solution, packaged in an incredibly full-featured board whose only drawback was the very high price compared to the competition.
Fast forward 3 months and the Enthusiast seems to be moving in large numbers to the AMD Athlon 64 platform, so Intel has souped-up the 925X/775 to stop the bleeding. We first looked at the new 925XE in Pentium 4 3.46 Extreme Edition and 925XE: 1066MHz FSB Support is Here. We found that the 1066 speed bump was not all we expected, since there was very little improvement in performance compared to the 800FSB 925X. Perhaps even more disappointing was the fact that the only 1066 CPU for some time to come was a 3.46GHz P4EE based on the Gallatin core and the 130nm process. There were no announced Prescott 90nm cores with huge L2 caches running at 1066 in the near future, and there would not be a 4.0GHz Prescott either. For the immediate future, the only official support for 1066FSB would come with the $1050 3.46EE and a to-be-announced 3.73GHz P4EE with the multiplier boosted from 13 to 14.
This is not meant to be a depressing scenario of the current state of Intel, but it would not really be meaningful to look at the new Asus P5AD2-E in isolation. Those looking for the absolute fastest performance should look at Athlon 64 solutions. However, the P5AD2 was and is a brilliant motherboard design, and the -E version should take it even further. It is reasonable to expect the P5AD2-E to take you to the highest levels of Pentium 4 performance.
Basic Features
The P5AD2 has one of the most complete selections of BIOS adjustments and board features that you will find on a Socket 775 motherboard. Therefore, Asus had no real need to include additional features on the P5AD2-E. The changes that were made are generally enhancements to existing options, like extending the chipset voltages and memory voltages and providing finer adjustments.Asus P5AD2 Premium Motherboard Specifications | |
CPU Interface | Socket 775 Pentium 4 (Prescott) |
Chipset | Intel 925XE/ICH6R |
FSB Speeds | 1066, 800 |
Clock Speeds | 100MHz to 400MHz (in 1MHz increments) |
PCI Speeds | To CPU, 33.33, Auto |
DDR2 Speeds | Auto, 400, 533, 711 |
Core Voltage | 1.4375V to 1.6125V in 0.0125V increments |
DRAM Voltage | 1.80V to 2.20V in 0.05V increments |
Chipset Voltage | Auto, 1.5V to 1.8V in 0.05V increments |
FSB Termination Voltage | Auto, 1.2 to 1.5V in 0.05V increments |
Memory Slots | Four 240-pin DDR2 Slots Dual-Channel Unbuffered Memory to 4GB |
Expansion Slots | 1 PCIe x16 Slot 2 PCIe x1 slot 3 PCI Slots |
Onboard SATA/IDE RAID | 4 SATA 150 drives by ICH6R Can be combined in RAID 0, 1, Intel Matrix PLUS 4 SATA 150 RAID by Sil3114R RAID 0, 1, 10, 5 |
Onboard IDE | One Standard ATA100/66 by ICH6R (2 100/66/33 drives) Plus One IDE RAID by ITE 8212F (2 133/100/66, RAID 0, 1, JBOD) |
Onboard USB 2.0/IEEE-1394 | 8 USB 2.0 ports 3 IEEE 1394b FireWire Ports by TI 1394b |
Onboard LAN | 2 X Gigabit PCIe LAN Both by Marvel 88E8053 |
Onboard Audio | CMedia CMI9880 (Intel HD) 8-Channel with SPDIF in/out |
Wireless LAN | WiFi 802.11g Included |
Tested BIOS | 1005 Beta 002 |
The one surprise in the Asus update to the P5AD2-E is the reduced range of CPU voltages. The original P5AD2 provides a vCore range from 1.4375V to 1.7875V, where the new -E version is just 1.4375V to 1.6125V. That's an adequate range, but it seems the wrong way to be going for top-line options. We hope that Asus will correct this in a BIOS update.
The Asus 925XE/925X boards are Premium boards - clearly top-of-the-line in every way. All of the Asus Proactive AI (Artificial Intelligence) features are included. This includes a special cooling plate on the bottom of the board in the CPU area that Asus calls Stack Cool.
Features are all but identical to the P5AD2, with both LAN ports powered by the new Marvel 88E8053 Ethernet controllers on the faster PCI Express bus. The P5AD2-E includes a complete WiFi setup with embedded (built into the board) 802.11g capabilities and an external antenna. You will also find 3 of the high-speed "b" versions of IEEE 1394 firewire, which promise double the speed of 1394a ports. Speed-step, a new Intel feature that allows the CPU to be downclocked to 14 for FSB/memory overclocking or cooler operation, is another Asus feature.
The premium C-Media CMI9880 codec supports the Intel High-Definition audio, with 8 channels and Dolby Digital Live technology support. The CMI9880 is the only audio solution we've seen that has a built-in Dolby AC3 encoder. The encoder can actually encode your digital audio into Dolby digital streams, which can be output to the SPDIF for Dolby Digital playback. The CMI9880 does this real-time for any digital audio in your system to feed Dolby Digital playback. Asus carries High-Definition (Azalia) audio further on the P5AD2-E and the P5AD2 than any other 925XE/925X board that we have seen.
The storage area is one area where the Asus stands above the crowd. All of the 925X/925XE boards support the ICH6R standard 4 SATA/1 IDE (2drives) configuration. The P5AD2/-E boards add 4 more SATA ports for a total of 8 SATA ports. They go even further by adding an ITE controller for 2 more IDE devices for a total of 4. Asus even includes a slot-mounted external SATA adapter for converting 2 SATA ports into external SATA ports for handling external SATA devices.
Asus is a manufacturer who pays close attention to the layout of their motherboards. We praised the layout of the P5AD2, and the P5AD2-E is exactly the same layout. Floppy and Hard Drive connectors are in the preferred upper right board-edge position, where they usually work best in most case designs. The 24-pin power connector and 4-pin 12V connector are both at board edges where they do not require being snaked across the CPU and restricting air flow. The 8 SATA ports are clustered at the lower right of the board (4 ports) and the bottom edge of the board (4 ports). The additional IDE connector is also near the bottom edge along with the headers for additional SATA and IEEE1384b ports.
Asus P5AD2 Premium: Overclocking and Stress Testing
FSB Overclocking Results
Front Side Bus Overclocking Testbed | |
Processor: | Pentium 4EE LGA 775 (Gallatin Core) 3.46/3.2GHz |
CPU Voltage: | 1.55V (default) |
Cooling: | Thermaltake Jungle 502 |
Power Supply: | OCZ PowerStream 520W |
Maximum OC at Stock Multiplier: | 300x13 - 3900MHz (+12.7%) |
Maximum FSB OC: | 324FSBx12 (+21.8% Bus OC) |
The 3.46EE CPU Intel supplied for testing was unlocked, but the only available multipliers were a stock 13X and 12X. Since the 3.46EE is the only current 1066FSB CPU, this means that options for bus overclocking are limited. However, having said that, we were still able to reach 324FSB at 12X for a DDR2 1:1 memory overclock of 648. Asus also provides an additional memory multiplier of 711 on the P5AD2-E, so we tried out the higher memory frequency with some of the latest OCZ 1GB DDR2 DIMMs rated at 3-2-2-8. This memory ran great in the P5AD2-E and also allowed us to reach DDR2-750 with a modest overclock at the DDR711 setting.
The P5AD2-E provides the best overclocking that we've seen on an Intel 925XE/925X board, although the Abit Fatal1ty AA8XE, based on the same 925XE xhipset, reaches virtually the same levels in overclocking. The 711 multiplier for memory opens new options for memory overclocking that are unique to the P5AD2-E.
Memory Stress Test Results:
The memory stress test measures the ability of the Asus P5AD2-E to operate at its officially supported memory frequency (533MHz DDR2), at the best performing memory timings that Crucial/Micron PC2-4300U will support. Memory stress testing was conducted by running DDR2 at 533MHz (stock 1:1 ratio) with 2 DIMM slots operating in Dual-Channel mode. Stable DDR533 Timings - 2 DIMMs (2/4 DIMMs - 1 Dual-Channel Bank) |
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Clock Speed: | 266MHz |
Timing Mode: | 1:1 |
CAS Latency: | 3.0 |
Bank Interleave: | Auto |
RAS to CAS Delay: | 3 |
RAS Precharge: | 3 |
Cycle Time (tRAS): | 10* |
Command Rate: | N/A |
The Asus P5AD2-E was completely stable with 2 DDR2 modules in Dual-Channel at the settings of 3-3-3-10, at 1.8V default voltage. Intel has updated memory timings on the 925XE series boards and now specifies 3-3-3 as default timings compared to the 4-4-4 timings specified at the 925X/915 launch.
Filling all four available memory slots is more strenuous on the memory subsystem than testing 2 DDR2 modules on a motherboard.
Stable DDR533 Timings - 4 DIMMs (4/4 DIMMs - 2 Dual-Channel Banks) |
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Clock Speed: | 266MHz |
Timing Mode: | N/A |
CAS Latency: | 4.0 |
Bank Interleave: | N/A |
RAS to CAS Delay: | 3.0 |
RAS Precharge: | 10T* |
Precharge Delay: | 3.0 |
Command Rate: | N/A |
As we first saw in the 925X roundup, four DDR2 DIMMs are not stable at CAS 3 as 2 DIMMs are. We required 4-3-3 timings when using 4 DDR2 DIMMs, though the 4-3-3 timings did work fine at default voltage.
Test Setup
We compared the performance of the Asus P5AD2-E to the Abit Fatal1ty AA8XE (925XE), the Intel 925X motherboard, and the Asus P5AD2 Premium (925X). We tested with the 3.6Ghz 800FSB Intel 560 CPU on the 925X, and the 3.46EE 1066FSB CPU on the 925XE boards. We also included results for the fastest current A64 processors - the FX55 and the 4000+ on the nForce 4 PCI Express Reference board. To remove the video card as a performance factor, all benchmarks were run with the PCI Express nVidia 6800 Ultra.Performance Test Configuration | |
Processor(s): | Intel 3.46EE (1066FSB) Socket 775 Intel 560 (3.6GHz) Socket 775 AMD FX55 (2.6Ghz) Socket 939 AMD 4000+ (2.4GHz) Socket 939 |
RAM: | 2 x 512MB Crucial DDR2-533 2 x 512MB OCZ 3200 Platinum Rev. 2 DDR |
Hard Drive(s): | Maxtor 250GB MaXLine III (16MB buffer) |
Video Card(s): | nVidia GeForce 6800 Ultra PCIe |
Video Drivers: | nVidia 61.77 Graphics Drivers |
Operating System(s): | Windows XP Professional SP1 |
Power Supply: | OCZ Power Stream 520 (520W) |
Motherboards: | Asus P5AD2-E (Intel 925XE) Abit Fatal1ty AA8XE (Intel 925XE) Asus P5AD2 Premium (Intel 925X) Intel 925XCV (Intel 925X) nVidia nForce 4 Reference Board |
The configuration was kept as close as possible between the 3 motherboards, but we are forced to compare DDR400 memory at 2-2-2-10 to DDR2-533 at 3-3-3-10. However, as we saw in the DDR vs. DDR2 review, the performance of fast DDR400 and DDR533 is very close.
In the Performance graphs, the tested Asus P5AD2-E board is in Dark Blue. Other Intel-based motherboards are in Light Blue. Athlon 64 reference results are in Green - Light Green for FX55 and Dark Green for 4000+.
Performance Tests
DirectX 9 Gaming
If you refer to test results in the 925XE launch review, you will see that an apples to apples comparison at 3.2GHz (3.2EE/800 to 3.2EE/1066) showed virtually no difference in test results. This is a caution not to jump to conclusions about performance of the 3.46EE compared to the 3.6E in some benchmarks. The performance differences are the result of the larger cache on the 3.46EE and not the higher FSB.
As we have seen so often recently, the AMD Athlon 64 dominates DirectX 9 gaming. However, comparing the Intel boards, the Asus P5AD2-E is consistently the fastest board in almost every DX9 benchmark - edging out the Abit Fatal1ty AA8XE in most benchmarks.
Performance Tests
DirectX 8 & OpenGL Gaming
The same pattern continues in DX8 and Open GL games. The Asus is the winner among Intel boards most of the time, though the difference between the Abit and Asus is normally small. In the older games, AMD Athlon 64 continues to dominate the benchmarks.
General Performance
Intel generally performs better in FutureMark benchmarks than Athlon 64, and that continues with PCMark 2004. The coming E die Athlon 64's will likely close this gap somewhat, since they will support many SSE3 instructions.
Our Take
Take our Gold Editors Choice P5AD2 Premium, update the chipset to 925XE, and further refine the BIOS adjustments. You've just created the P5AD2-E. The latest Asus Intel board does a great job of extracting whatever performance is available from a 1066FSB 3.46EE. This will come as a surprise to no one, as Asus has a long tradition of tweaking their very best boards to make them even better.It would be a mistake, however, to overlook the potential of the P5AD2-E to extract even more performance from an 800 CPU than you can achieve with the regular 925X version of the Asus. New to the 925XE version is the option to run memory at DDR2-711 while the CPU runs at 533. You also have really excellent adjustment ranges for squeezing the most from any quality DDR2 memory that you care to install in this 925XE board. Most of these enhanced adjustment ranges will likely find their way into the earlier P5AD2, but keep in mind that support for both 1066 and 800 will not be an option for the earlier 925X board.
Does 1066 support really matter? From a stock performance standpoint, we would say' "No, it doesn't." But the added flexibility for squeezing top performance from other components is very useful. If and when more processors show up that support 1066, we may actually find the 1066 option even more useful.
For now, we would definitely choose the 925XE Asus over the 925X if the prices are close. It is just a little bit faster and a lot more flexible; that is, if you are looking for and insist on an Intel motherboard. The Athlon 64 processor is faster than Intel in most applications and the A64 boards are a better choice if top performance is your goal. However, Intel has narrowed the gap recently with the introduction of the 3.8GHz and next year, things will likely get tighter between Intel and AMD. Our biggest concern, and it's a huge reservation, is the super premium price demanded for the Asus P5AD2/E motherboards. While the price has dropped in the past 3 months, these boards are still priced between $250 and $300 - a lot of money for a motherboard. However, if you want the best Intel motherboard that you can buy, the Asus P5AD2-E is still likely your best choice. The 1066 processor cost is also a hard pill to swallow at over $1000, especially when the 3.46EE is outperformed by many lower cost Athlon 64 processors.
It is still early in the 925XE introductions and something better might yet come along. For now the Asus P5AD2-E is the best Intel motherboard that you can buy. The Asus matches the overclocking capabilities of the Abit AA8XE, and the Asus P5AD2-E is consistently the fastest board at stock speeds.