Review: HEXUS Group Test :: Is there a perfect high-end Intel motherboard?

by Michael Harries on 10 July 2008, 05:15

Tags: LANPARTY LT X48-TR2, DX48BT2, 132-CK-NF79-A1, P7N Diamond, nForce 790i Ultra SLI MCP, nForce 780i SLI MCP, X48 Express Chipset, EVGA, Intel (NASDAQ:INTC), AMD (NYSE:AMD), MSI, NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA), DFI (TPE:2397)

Quick Link: HEXUS.net/qanqd

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MSI P7N Diamond BIOS options




Item Specifications
CPU FSB 100MHz - 625 MHz (1MHz increments)(400 – 2500 QDR)
(1MHz increments)
CPU multiplier CPU min. (x6) – x60 (1x increments)
PCI-E clock 100MHz - 200MHz (1MHz increments)
Memory clock 400MHz-1400MHz (increment varies)
400MHz- 1400MHz (800MHz FSB CPU)
400MHz- 1387MHz (1066MHz FSB CPU)
400MHz- 1333MHz (1333MHz FSB CPU)
400MHz- 1400MHz (1600MHz FSB CPU)
CPU voltage +0.00000 - +0.38750V (0.0125V increments)
Memory VDIMM 1.80V-2.80V
1.80V-2.10V (0.05V increments)
2.10V-2.80V (0.1V increments)
Northbridge voltage 1.20V-1.60V
1.20V-1.55V (0.025V increments)
1.55V-1.60V (0.05V increments)
Southbridge voltage

1.500V-2.000V
1.500V-1.750V (0.025V increments)
1.750V-2.000V (0.05V increments)

FSB termination voltage 1.056V-1.313V
1.056V-1.191V (0.009V increments)
1.201V-1.313V (0.001/0.002V increments)



The nForce 780i has a whole host of memory tweaking options, with its biggest strength being the ability to clock the memory and FSB independent of one another, just like the nForce 790i Ultra SLI

The FSB speeds you are able to request are considerably above what the board can actually achieve, and the voltage options offer more than enough headroom for overclocking, offering levels that could potentially damage the components if misused.

Gallery



Here you can see the limited fan-control options, which are for the CPU only. Options to control the other system and chassis fans would have been greatly appreciated, and quite frankly, somewhat expected from an enthusiast board.











As usual, all other adjustments are there, but it's not as polished as the others',