Intel P35 Express Comparison: ASUS & Gigabyte

by Michael Lin — Thursday, August 16, 2007, 11:00 AM EDT

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Gigabyte GA-P35T-DQ6: Specifications & Features

As we previously mentioned, ASUS' P35 product line is quite large, consisting of thirteen different boards. Not to feel left out, Gigabyte also has a large set of P35 based motherboards, although they 'only' have twelve different models. While it may seem odd that both ASUS and Gigabyte are offering such a large selection of P35 based boards, it makes sense when you remember that we're in the middle of a transition from DDR2 to DDR3 and from 1066MHz FSB to 1333MHz. Roughly half of the boards in both ASUS and Gigabyte's P35 line-ups support DDR2 while the other half are geared for newer DDR3.

The second competitor in our comparison is the Gigabyte GA-P35T-DQ6. In Gigabyte's naming scheme, boards with names that end in 'DQ6' are the top products offered by Gigabyte for their respective chipsets. This has resulted in 'DQ6' boards earning quite a reputation for quality and performance, although being the top products also means they come with the biggest price tags. A glance at the P35T-DQ6 spec sheet gives us hope that it will be another winner.

Gigabyte GA-P35T-DQ6 Specifications

Designed With 'Ultra Durable' Components

CPU

LGA775 socket for Intel Core 2 Quad/Intel Core 2 Extreme/Core 2 Duo/Pentium Extreme/Pentium D/Pentium 4 Processors
Support Intel next generation 45nm Mulit-Core CPU
Intel EM64T / EIST / Hyper-Threading Technology

Chipset

Intel ® P35 / ICH9R with Intel® Fast Memory Access Technology

Front Side Bus

1333/1066/800 MHz

Memory

4 x DIMM, max. 8GB, DDR3 1333/1066 / 800 MHz, non-ECC, un-buffered memory
Dual channel memory architecture

Expansion Slots

2 x PCI-E x16 (blue @ x16 mode, orange @ x4) supports CrossFire Technology
3 x PCI-E x1 slot
2 x PCI 2.2 slots

Audio

Realtek ALC889A 8-channel High Definition Audio with DTS Connect
Coaxial / Optical S/PDIF out ports at back I/O

Storage

1 x Ultra DMA 133/100/66/33
8 x Serial ATA 3.0 Gb/s
Supports SATA RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 & JBOD)

LAN

Gigabit LAN controller

Special Features

Ultra Durable 2 Motherboard
All Copper SILENT-PIPE Heatpipe Array
Crazy Cool Copper Backside Cooler
All Japanese manufactured solid capacitors with SMD (Surface Mount Device)
Low RDS(on) MOSFET Design
Ferrite Core Choke Design
Over-clocking Enhanced
Gigabyte Quad BIOS
RoHS Compliant

Back Panel I/O Ports

2 x S/PDIF Out (Coaxial + Optical)
1 x PS/2 Keyboard port
1 x PS/2 Mouse port
1 x LAN (RJ45) ports
4 x USB 2.0/1.1 ports
1 x LPT port
1 x COM port
1 x IEEE1394a
8-channel Audio I/O

Internal I/O Connecto r s

4 x USB connectors support additional 8 USB ports
1 x Floppy disk drive connector
1 x IDE connector
1 x TPM pin connector
8 x SATA connectors
2 x IEEE1394a connector
1 x S/PDIF Out Header
1 x CD audio in
1 x Front panel audio connector
24-pin ATX power connector
8-pin ATX 12V Power connector

Accessories

UltraDMA 133/100/66 cable
FDD cable
4 x Serial ATA cables
2 x eSATA cables
2 x External Molex power cables
1 x I/O Shield
1 x 2-port USB2.0 module
2 x 2-port eSATA + 1-port molex power module
User's manual
Hardware installation guidebook
Driver CD

Form Factor

ATX Form Factor, 12"x 9.6"(30.5cm x 24.5cm)

We took a look at the first DQ6 from Gigabyte, the GA-965P-DQ6, almost a year ago in our first Intel P965 motherboard comparison. That DQ6 was the first motherboard to offer an all-solid-capacitor design and since then several motherboards from various manufacturers have incorporated solid capacitors. With the introduction of the Intel P35 chipset, Gigabyte upped the ante by introducing the Ultra Durable 2 branding. All motherboards in the Ultra Durable 2 series have an all-solid capacitor design, but that's not all. They also use low RDS(on) MOSFETs which produce lower switching resistance for faster electric current charging and discharging than standard MOSFETS as well as ferrite core chokes instead of the less efficient iron core chokes seen on most other boards. These three Ultra Durable 2 series features translate into better power efficiency, longer component life-time and cooler operation. In fact, Gigabyte claims that Ultra Durable 2 motherboards can operate up to 33 degrees Celsius cooler in the area around the CPU socket than some competing products.

Another feature from the GA-965P-DQ6 that makes an appearance in the new GA-P35T-DQ6 we are looking at today is the Crazy Cool backside cooler. The Crazy Cool is a low-profile heatsink attached to the backside of the motherboard. Gigabyte has raised the bar here as well as the P35T-DQ6 has two Crazy Cool coolers, one for the CPU socket and northbridge and a second one for the southbridge.