Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5 X58 Motherboard Review

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Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5
X58 Motherboard Review

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Price: $337CDN + Click Here to Compare Prices
Manufacturer Product Page: Giga-Byte Technology Co., Ltd.
TechWiki Info: Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5
Manufacturer's Part Number: GA-EX58-UD5
Warranty: 3 year limited warranty (First 2 years parts & labor, 3rd year parts only)


All the way back in late September in Taipei, during the Gigabyte Open Overclocking Championship 2008, we had the unique opportunity to get a first-hand look at a prototype Gigabyte X58 motherboard. Although it wasn't quite ready for the spotlight, it still had the frightening lime green and pink memory slots, the sample certainly had a promising layout and drool-worthy assortment of PCI-E x16 slots.

Currently, Gigabyte is full steam ahead with regard to Intel's latest chipset, and the company has the second most substantial roster of X58 motherboards, with the current count clocking in at an impressive six models. From the Top-of-the-Line EX58-EXTREME to the surprisingly budget-friendly EX58-UD3R, all the models share the sleek new White & Blue colour-scheme, Ultra Durable 3 design attributes, and enough integrated features to make a smartphone jealous.

Today, we will be reviewing the EX58-UD5, which is the second most high-end model in Gigabyte's current roster, and which is largely differentiated from the EXTREME model by its lack of the elaborate Hybrid Silent-Pipe 2 cooling system. The omission of the more impressive cooling system doesn't seem to have diminished interest in this motherboard, since this is the model that consumers are buying in spades and it is easy to see why. Gigabyte have packed the EX58-UD5 with a tackle box full of features. What stands out immediately are the three mechanical PCI-E x16 2.0 slots, 3-way CrossFireX and 3-way SLI support, unprecedented storage capabilities in the form of ten SATA II ports, eSATA and FireWire capabilities, onboard 8-channel High-Definition audio with Dolby Home Theatre technology, Dynamic Energy Saver (DES) Advanced, twin PCI-E Gigabit LAN controllers, two physical BIOSes, motherboard-wide array of diagnostic LEDs, and that just scratches the surface hardware wise.

Clearly everything looks very promising on paper, so we are interested in determining how well it all comes together in one package, and seeing what the results are when you combine Gigabyte's design and engineering 'know-how' with the new Core i7 platform.

 

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Specifications

Specifications

As a necessary companion to the Core i7 processors, Intel released the X58 Tylersburg northbridge, now known as the IO Hub (IOH). This reclassification has occurred because of the fact that the memory controller has been integrated into the processor itself. As a result, the IO Hub is now solely responsible for implementing PCI Express lanes and linking to the I/O Controller Hub (ICH) southbridge. Since the front side bus is no more, the X58 communicates with the processor via the new high-speed QuickPath Interface (QPI), and it is connected to the southbridge (ICH) via the traditional Direct Media Interface (DMI). The southbridge is the venerable ICH10 found on all P45 Express motherboards, and it supports six SATA II ports, AHCI, and Matrix RAID technology.

The X58 features 32 PCI-Express 2.0 lanes, which signifies that it supports two proper PCI-E x16 slots. However, depending on the motherboard manufacturer's design, those 32 PCI-E 2.0 lanes can also be utilized in a triple PCI-E x16 (x16/x8/x8) and/or quad PCI-E x16 (x8/x8/x8/x8) configuration. Naturally all X58 motherboards have full CrossFireX support, but some motherboards such as the GA-EX58-UD5 that we are testing today have been certified for NVIDIA SLI as well, which is something that enthusiasts the world over have been waiting for with great anticipation.

Officially, Intel's specifications list DDR3-1066 as the highest supported memory speed. However, all motherboard manufacturers are marketing their models as DDR3-1600 capable via overclocking, and some are even ambitiously claiming support for DDR3-2100 and above!


Now that we have examined some of the specifications inherent to the new platform, let's see what kind of motherboard Gigabyte have built around this new chipset:

 

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Features

Features

With the relocation of the memory controller from the northbridge to the CPU the performance differences between two competing X58 motherboards are now going to be infinitesimally small. This is a phenomenon that we have observed on the AMD side since they made the switch to an integrated memory controller, and it is undoubtedly going to apply to the Intel Core i7 platform. As a result, manufacturer-specific features and overclocking capabilities are going to be the deciding factors when choosing between two similarly-priced X58 motherboards. As mentioned previously, the EX58-UD5 is the second most high-end X58 model in Gigabyte's roster, behind only the overclocking-focused EX58-EXTREME, therefore we fully expect it to be a technological Swiss Army knife.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the included features:

<table align="center" bgcolor="#666666" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="1" width="90%"><tr><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>Triple Channel DDR3-2100+</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-1.png" style="float: left; margin: 4px 5px 0 0;" />The Intel Core i7 processors feature an integrated memory controller and a triple-channel DDR3 memory interface. To be take advantage of these new performance-enhacing capabilities features, the EX58-UD5 supports DDR3-2100+ memory speeds, even while the 6 DIMM slots are occupied.</td><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>3-Way CrossFireX & 3-Way SLI</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-2.png" style="float: left; margin: 4px 5px 0 0;" />The most exciting feature of the GA-EX58-UD5 is 3-Way CrossFireX and 3-Way SLI, which is a capability that enthusiasts have been waiting for on forever on an Intel chipset. In order to support SLI, motherboards must first be certified by NVIDIA, and Gigabyte have wisely chosen to do so with three of their X58 models.</td></tr><tr><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>Ultra Durable 3</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-3.png" style="float: right; margin: 4px 0 0 5px;" />As we have come expect from Gigabyte, the EX58-UD5 utilizes the new Ultra Durable 3 technology. As with Ultra Durable 2, this signifies that the motherboard was designed with high quality and energy efficient components, namely Low RDS(on) MOSFETs, ferrite core chokes, and long-lasting solid capacitors. However, it also features an industry first 2 ounce copper PCB delivering lower system temperature, improved energy efficiency and enhanced overclocking stability.</td><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>Dynamic Energy Saver Advanced</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-4.png" style="float: right; margin: 4px 0 0 5px;" />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.</td></tr><tr><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>DualBIOS</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-5.png" style="float: left; margin: 4px 5px 0 0;" />Providing bullet-proof BIOS protection, the EX58-UD5 has 2 physical BIOS ROMs which permit instant recovery from BIOS damage or failure due to viruses or improper BIOS updating.</td><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>High Velocity 2X Bandwidth Boost</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-6.png" style="float: left; margin: 4px 5px 0 0;" />The Dual LAN controllers support Teaming functionality allowing 2 single connections to act as 1 single connection for twice the overall bandwidth. Also, they prevent network downtime by transferring the workload from a failed port to a working port.</td></tr><tr><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>EasyTune6</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-7.png" style="float: right; margin: 4px 0 0 5px;" />Historically, the majority of manufacturer provided utilities have been quite poor. It is due to this undeniable fact that Gigabyte redesigned EasyTune6 from the ground up to make it easier than ever to manage, monitor, and tweak your hardware and system settings.</td><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>Onboard Quick Switches</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-8.png" style="float: right; margin: 4px 0 0 5px;" />Befitting its high-end roots, the EX58-UD5 features 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.</td></tr><tr><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>Hardware Overvoltage Control ICs</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-9.png" style="float: left; margin: 4px 5px 0 0;" />Catering to the enthusiast crowd, the EX58 series 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. </td><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>Visible Overvoltage Reminder</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-10.png" style="float: left; margin: 4px 5px 0 0;" />This motherboard features an embedded post code debug LED display, which indicates if a malfunction is occurring and allow users to quickly identify the source of the problem. Secondly, it indicates 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).</td></tr><tr><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>OV-Alert LED</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-11.png" style="float: left; margin: 4px 5px 0 0;" />The 4 sets of OV-Alert LEDs indicate the overvoltage level of the CPU, Memory, North Bridge and South Bridge to prevent component damage.</td><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>Visible Overclocking Reminder</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-12.png" style="float: left; margin: 4px 5px 0 0;" />The OC-Alert LED indicates the degree to which to your CPU is overclocked, ranging from low to high, which might be useful for novice users who likely should not be overclocking to begin with.
</td></tr><tr><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>Visible Temperature Reminder</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-13.png" style="float: left; margin: 4px 5px 0 0;" />Gigabyte has outfitted the EX58-UD5 with 2 sets of Temperature Alert LEDs. These LEDs serve to inform users about the current temperature level of the CPU and Northbridge, which should be a useful novelty feature for novice users.</td><td align="justify" valign="top" bgcolor="#ececec" width="50%"><center><b>Dolby Home Theater®</b></center>
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/mac/reviews/gigabyte/EX58UD5/icons/features-14.png" style="float: left; margin: 4px 5px 0 0;" />The EP45-UD3P 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.</td></tr></table>

 

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Package & Accessories

Package & Accessories

Now that we have examined some of this motherboard’s abundant features, let’s take a quick peek at the package and accessories.

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Here we have the relatively simple, yet appealing Gigabyte EX58-UD5 box. It is not quite as eye-catching as past Gigabyte designs, but it gets the job done thanks to the large Ultra Durable 3 logo that dominates the front. We do like the novelty cutout in the lower right corner, simulating the 2 oz copper inner layer that is the distinguishing feature of the Ultra Durable 3 design. It hard to tell by the photos, but in terms of size this is by no means the largest motherboard packaging we have seen so far, coming in at a compact 13.5 inches tall, 10.75 inches wide, and a slim 3.5 inches thick. Does this mean it has a light accessories bundle? We will examine that shortly.

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Although quite difficult to see from afar, the white box is not only slightly glossy, but it has some neat pearlescent effect to it, very cool. It may not standout next to some more extravagant packaging, but it is just the little bit extra attention to detail which we appreciate.

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The motherboard itself is packed in a regular anti-static (ESD) bag, and under the bag is a layer of foam material. This is standard and quite acceptable, but as a high-end product we would have rather seen it shipped in a protective plastic enclosure, like was done with the EP45-DQ6.


Next up, let's take a closer look at the accessories bundle, which as you will comes with everything that we would need and expect. Let’s break down the list of items:

• 1 x Floppy Cable
• 1 x IDE Cable
• 4 x SATA Cables
• 1 x 2-port eSATA PCI Expansion Bracket (with accompanying eSATA cables)
• 1 x SLI bridge retention bracket
• 2-Way SLI bridge connector
• 3-Way SLI bridge connector
• I/O Panel
• Manual & Software CD + Installation Guide

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As we have come to expect from Gigabyte, the bundled cables are of a high quality. In particular, we like the fact that two of the cables come with handy 90 degree connectors, and all the connectors have a clip that ensures that they remain securely fastened to your hardware. The eSATA bracket further enhances this motherboard's already impressive connectivity options, and comes with a very handy external molex connection, which could be used to power external radiator fans for a water cooling system or simply a hard drive.

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This mysterious little bracket has bewildered most reviewers, but we can tell you that it is a SLI bridge retention bracket, which is designed to hold the SLI bridge in place and prevent it loosening itself from the graphics cards. On the right, we have the two included SLI bridge connnectors, for both 2-way and 3-way SLI configurations. Functionality wise they are perfect, but we wouldn't mind if they were made of a flexible material instead of standard PCB.

 

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A Closer Look at the Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5

A Closer Look at the Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5

At first glance, the overall layout is very positive. The ATX power connector, the floppy connector, and the SATA ports are all intelligently located at the edge of the motherboard, which is both convenient and functional. There is a large amount of room between all three physical PCI-E x16 slots, which should allow the use of just about any aftermarket VGA cooling solution. Due to its position near the northbridge cooler, the PCI-E x1 slot cannot accept longer cards, but that is a non-issue for the vast majority of consumers. The 8-pin CPU power connector is well-positioned layout-wise, but it can be somewhat difficult to access as your fingers are jammed in between the heatpipe and the back of an I/O module. Overall though, the designers have done a commendable job with the EX58-UD5's layout.

Now let’s take a closer look at the individual sections:

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As you can see, the general CPU socket area on this motherboard is relatively unobstructed and the northbridge and mosfet coolers are all low profile. This should ensure compatibility with any size air cooler or water block without issue. However, those utilizing more extreme sub-zero forms of cooling may encounter some difficulty during the insulation process due to the significant number of solid capacitors that surround the socket area. A quick fix to this problem is simply removing the entire metal retention module with a 3mm allen wrench, which is something that you could not do with the past LGA775 unit.

This motherboard comes with a twelve-phase power design consisting of Low RDS(on) MOSFETs per channel and high-quality sealed R80 ferrite core chokes. Assuming a design of 30 amps per phase, as we seen on some past Gigabyte motherboards, this PWM can handle even the most highly-clocked Core i7 processor and should provide stable voltage regulation.

The cooling system on the EX58-UD5 is an elegant design, with thick heatpipes running from the MOSFETs heatsinks to the northbridge cooler. There is also another hidden flat heatpipe connecting the northbridge cooler to the impressive southbridge heatsink. We will be testing the efficacy of this new cooling system in a later section.

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No matter what you think of the baby blue colour, everyone is in agreement that these new blue & white memory slots are a huge improvement over the past yellow & red or ghastly pink & lime green themes. The memory slots have the same spacing as we have seen on all other six slot motherboards, which is to say that you will not want to use any memory modules with abnormally thick heatspreaders. Gigabyte have outfitted this model with a three-phase power design for the memory, which should ensure stable voltages to your precious DDR3 modules. We can also see the perfectly located 24-pin ATX power connector

Next we have one of the impressive five system fan headers, the backlit onboard power button, and the reset switch. Lastly, we have the sweet-looking ACPI LED display, which illuminates according to how many power phases are in use.

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Here we get a good look at the stylish and huge southbridge cooler, which is held down by push-pins. Starting from the left, we see one of the two grey FireWire headers, the two yellow USB headers, and the colour-coded front panel header. At the bottom, there is the debug LED display and the impressive ten 90-degree SATA II ports. The four white SATA ports are capable of RAID 0/1/JBOD and are controlled by two JMicron 322 storage processors. The six blue ports come from the ICH10R southbridge and support RAID 0/1/5/10. We really are not too keen on the placement of the IDE port, since it is blocked when a full-length card is installed in the third PCI-E x16 slot. We definitely would have rather seen the floppy port in that location, since few would mind losing access to that relic.

The overall expansion slot layout and assortment is excellent. There are three full-sized PCI-E 2.0 x16 slots, one PCI-E x4 slots, one PCI-E x1 slot, and two legacy PCI slots. As is the case on nearly every motherboard on the market, if you install dual-slot graphics cards in any of the PCI-E x16 slots, you automatically lose access to the slot directly under it. In this case it would be the legacy PCI slot(s) or the floppy port. It should be noted that only the two blue PCI-E x16 slots support a full 16 electrical PCI-E lanes each, while the orange PCI-E x16 slot is limited to x8. The PCI-E x4 slot can fit full-length cards, and can accept graphics cards if you are so inclined. We wouldn't recommend gaming from an x4 slot, but it could be used to host a card who's sole function is folding.

By now it should be needless to say that the EX58-UD5 support both 3-way SLI and 3-way CrossFireX, which obviously makes it highly desirable among gamers and benchmarkers with healthy bank accounts. When utilizing multiple graphics cards, the PCI-E x16 slots can operate in a x16/x8/x8 or x16/x16/x1 configuration. If Gigabyte outfitted the EX58-UD5 with one additional PCI-E x16 slot, then four-way CrossFireX would have been an option via the X58's x8/x8/x8/x8 configuration capabilities.

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Starting from left to right, we have the two Realtek 8111D Gigabyte LAN controller chips, which run on the PCI-Express bus, and the Realtek ALC889A High Definition Audio codec. Next there is the ITE IT8720F chip I/O controller, which is responsible for hardware monitoring, fan speed management, and it supplies the legacy floppy support and PS/2 ports. Lastly, we see the two 8Mbit BIOS chips.

Next is a closer look at the finned northbridge cooler, which features a pretty thick base. Although it may look a little underwhelming, the X58 IOH runs a fair bit cooler than previous chipsets and this heatsink should prove to be more than capable. By the way, notice the well-hidden heatpipe which connects the northbridge and southbridge coolers. To the left of the NB heatsink you may spot the five Temperature Alert LEDs which indicate the approximate temperature level of the chipset.

As you can see, the rear I/O panel is quite busy. From left to right, there are the PS/2 ports, optical and coaxial S/PDIF connectors, FireWire port, clear CMOS button, eight USB ports, two Gigabit LAN ports, and the six audio jacks. The MOSFET heatsink reaches to the back of the motherboard and allows hot air to vent out. The only gripe we have is the fact that only one type of FireWire connector is present, while we have seen both 4-pin and 6-pin types present and accounted for on cheaper models like the EX58-UD3R.

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On the back on the motherboard we can spot the large metal backplate behind the CPU socket area. This is a new design feature specified by Intel to ensure that heavy cooling solutions would not bend and potentially damage the PCB or even the CPU socket itself. This was obviously a wise choice since the Core i7's high Thermal Design Power (TDP) requires hefty heatsinks to keep temperatures in check, particularly when overclocking. It is also interesting to note that Gigabyte have placed a number of MOSFETs on the back of the motherboard, serving both the processor and the X58 chipset.

 

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Hardware Installation

Hardware Installation

In the Hardware Installation section we examine how major components fit on the motherboard, and whether there are any serious issues that may affect installation and general functionality. Specifically, we are interested in determining whether the motherboard has adequate clearance levels in all critical areas.

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As mentioned previously, the 8-pin CPU power connector can be somewhat difficult to access as your fingers are jammed in between the heatpipe and the back of an I/O module. Those with larger hands/fingers will find the procedure particularly problematic and borderline painful. This is obviously only relevant for those who are constantly swamping motherboards or power supplies in and out of their systems.

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The Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme LGA-1366 easily clears all three heatsinks, regardless of which way the cooler is oriented. However, a wide heatsink will overhang the first DIMM slot when installed in the unusual East-West orientation. This does not prevent access to the affected memory module, but it does make the installation and removal process a bit more tricky than it otherwise should be. This is something that we have noticed on all six slot X58 motherboards, therefore it is not a Gigabyte-specific design flaw.

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Clearly, there are no concerns about memory clips coming into contact with the back of any full-length add-in cards.There are no problems installing a full-length card in the orange PCI-E x4 slot, as long there aren't any extraneous components on the back of the card that would contact the northbridge cooler. If you plan to use the PCI-E x1 slot, the card must be exactly 3 inches or shorter.

Due to the fact that all ten SATA ports are placed on a 90-degree angle they are accessible at all times, regardless of what kind of graphics card(s) is installed.

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When you install dual-slot graphics cards in the first and third PCI-E x16 slots, you can fit another dual-slot card in the second PCI-E x16 slot, but obviously the space is tight. As a result, we recommend that you direct one or two fans at the cards to increase airflow and improve cooling. A dual-slot graphics card installed in the third PCI-E x16 slot does overhang all the connectors and headers at the bottom of the motherboard, but they are all still usable.

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There is nothing on the back of the motherboard that interferes with the Thermalright's backplate, and we see no reason to suspect compatibility issues with other brands and models.

 

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BIOS Rundown

BIOS Rundown

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When we reviewed the Gigabyte EP45 series motherboards we noted that we were pleasantly surprised by the marked improvements in the BIOS department, both in terms of layout and functionality. Well, we are pleased to report that these improvements have made their way on to this EX58 series model and then some.

Let's take a closer look:

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The initial selection screen should be broadly familiar to anyone who has used an Award-based motherboard in the past, and it conveniently lists the GIGABYTE-specific MB Intelligent Tweaker (M.I.T.) section as the first menu.

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When you open the M.I.T. section you are greeted with all the essential system clock control options that a serious overclocker needs: CPU & memory multiplier, BLCK, UCLK, QPI Link, PCI-E, etc. Most notably we have access to numerous multipliers for both the QPI Link and system memory, but no such multiplier for the Uncore...that is until we access the appropriate sub-menu, as denoted by the little white arrows.

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The Advanced CPU Features sub-menu allows us to enable/disable Intel’s various CPU-specific technologies. The C1E, EIST, Virtualization, and Thermal Monitor technologies are carryovers from the Core 2 days, while the Turbo Boost, Multi-threading, and Cx State Supports are new additions to the Core i7 series. The Uncore & QPI Features sub-menu allows another means of adjusting the QPI Link speed and Uncore frequency.

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The Advanced Clock Control sub-menu permits adjustment of the BLCK and PCI-E frequencies, as as well controlling the C.I.A 2 (CPU Intelligent Accelerator) automatic overclocking function. The clock drive and clock skews settings are also present, but thus far we haven't had a use for them during our Core i7 overclocking endeavours.

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As you scroll down, the motherboard voltage and DRAM options are revealed. Every voltage setting that a serious overclocker could ever want is present and accounted for. There are drop-down lists for the voltage options, but you can can also manually insert the voltage settings which is our favourite method. The more perceptive among you will have noticed in the above screenshots that this model also features Load-Line Calibration (LLC), which is a terrific feature that eliminates droopage on the CPU Vcore, and which we will examine closer in our Voltage Regulation section.

For a complete list of voltage ranges, see the chart below:

<table border="0" bgcolor="#666666" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="1" width="735px"><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#cc9999" width="100"> </td><td align="center" bgcolor="#cc9999" width="100"><b>Minimum</b></td><td align="center" bgcolor="#cc9999" width="100"><b>Maximum</b></td><td align="center" bgcolor="#cc9999" width="100"><b>Increment</b></td><td align="center" bgcolor="#cc9999" width="335"><b>Notes</b></td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">CPU Vcore</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.50000v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">1.90000v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.00625v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Normal sets the VID for the CPU</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">CPU PLL</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">1.800v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">2.520v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.020v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 1.80v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">QPI/VTT</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">1.075v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">2.015v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.020v</td> <td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 1.10v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">IOH Core</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">1.000v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">2.000v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.020v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 1.10v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">PCIE</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">1.000v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">2.140v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.020v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 1.50v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">ICH Core</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">1.000v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">2.000v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.020v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 1.10v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">ICH I/O</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">1.050v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">2.500v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.020v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 1.50v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">DRAM</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">1.300v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">2.600v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.020v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 1.50v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">DRAM Termination</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.500v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">1.205v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.020v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 0.75v</td></tr>
<tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">Ch-A Data VRef.</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.680v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.950v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.010v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 0.75v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">Ch-B Data VRef.</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.680v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.950v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.010v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 0.75v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">Ch-C Data VRef.</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.680v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.950v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.010v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 0.75v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">Ch-A Address VRef.</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.690v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.950v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.010v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 0.75v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">Ch-B Address VRef.</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.690v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.950v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.010v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 0.75v</td></tr><tr><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">Ch-C Address VRef.</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.690v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.950v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="100">0.010v</td><td align="center" bgcolor="#ececec" width="335">Standard 0.75v</td></tr></table>

As you can see, Gigabyte have been quite loose with the available voltage options, and they have provided high enough maximums to satisfy all but the most ambitious (ie: crazy) overclockers.

Click on image to enlarge​

The Standard CMOS Features menu is pretty standard, it lists the connected storage devices and allows you to set the date/time in the BIOS. The Advanced BIOS Features section is where you can set boot device priority, disable the boot-delaying logo, as well as choose which graphics card in which expansion slot to utilize during system boot.

Click on image to enlarge​

The Integrated Peripherals section allows you to enable/disable all of the various onboard devices (RAID, audio, USB, FireWire, LAN, etc), while the Power Management Setup is fairly self-descriptive. As on most motherboards, the PC Health Status section is a slight disappointment since there is insufficient voltages and temperatures readouts. On a motherboard of this caliber there is no reason not to have all vital voltages available for scrutiny in the bios.

Click on image to enlarge​

This last screenshot is of the Q-Flash utility which is accessed via the F8 key. Since Q-Flash is built right into the BIOS and it can read files directly from a USB flash drive, BIOS flashing is now a simple and quick procedure. We have never experienced an issue with this well implemented tool, and it has certainly made our lives a little less stressful.

Overall, Gigabyte have done a great job with this BIOS. Our usual disappointment with the lack of voltage readouts is more than overshadowed by the excellent MB Intelligent Tweaker section, which has every feature that we would expect in a high-end X58 motherboard. On a side note, we are pleased to report that the scrolling and general feel of this BIOS (version F5c) was much snappier than the occasionally sluggish BIOS in the EP45 series.

 

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Included Software

Included Software

In this section, we will take a closer look at EasyTune6 and D.E.S Advanced, which are the two main software utilities that Gigabyte have packaged with the EX58-UD5.


EasyTune6

EasyTune6 is a system management utility that displays system clock speeds, voltages, temperatures, and fan rotation…but more importantly it allows users to overclock from within Windows. Now anyone familiar with past EasyTune iterations knows that although this utility has always contained a fair bit of functionality, its ease of use left a little to be desired. Well thankfully Gigabyte went back to the drawing board, and created a brand new EasyTune version from scratch. Let's check it out.

The CPU and Memory tabs provide basic component information and are somewhat reminiscent of the immensely popular CPU-Z utility. On a side note, those looking for the best CPU-Z copycat application should take a look at the E-LEET utility bundled with the EVGA X58 SLI.

For those who desire a more manual approach to overclocking, the Tuner tab has an Easy mode which allows control over the base clock (BCLK). However, it is when users click on Advance that EasyTune 6 reveals its true inner beauty…unprecedented Windows-based overclocking options. Not only can you adjust the BLCK, the memory multiplier, and the PCI-E frequency, but they have also provided overclockers with every voltage option that is found in the BIOS. Another impressive addition is the option to manually adjust the multiplier on every individual CPU core, even the 'virtual' logical cores (which is unnecessary to be honest).

The Graphics tab can be used to manipulate your graphics card’s core/memory/shader clock speeds. As you can see, it had a slight problem interacting with our Radeon HD 4870 X2 (Catalyst 9.1), so in the mean time we still recommend GPU-Z or RivaTuner for VGA tweaking/monitoring. The Smart tab gives you access to the CPU Intelligent Accelerator (C.I.A) 2 and Smart Fan functions. The CPU Intelligent Accelerator was designed to automatically overclock the CPU according to system load and user-selected level. In our experiences, C.I.A.2 has never really worked as well as it should and it has now been effectively replaced by Quick Boost, so we wouldn't be surprised to see it disappear shortly. As the name suggests, Smart Fan feature gives users finely-tuned control over the CPU fan speed.

Lastly, we have HW Monitor which is the only part of EasyTune6 that disappoints us. Despite providing us with over a dozen voltage tweaking options in the Tuner tab, the HW Monitor only displays three voltage readings. This is a high-end motherboard, and surely comprehensive voltage monitoring shouldn't be viewed as an extravagant luxury. Failing to provide us with the trio of important system voltages (3.3V / 5.0V / 12V), we would have settled for the +12V rail since it is considerably more important than the +5V in modern systems.

Overall though, we do sincerely enjoy using EasyTune6. It was consistently one of the first pieces of software we installed after a fresh Windows installation, and it was definitely a huge help in finding this motherboard's overclocking limits. EasyTune 6 was arguably the first of the next-generation manufacturer-specific tweaking utilities, and with little tweaks here and there it remains a worthwhile application.


DES Advanced

Now let's have a look at the DES Advanced energy saving solution, which is one of Gigabyte’s most highly-publicized features.

After first installing the Dynamic Energy Saver (DES) software, we are greeted with a powered down control panel. This means all DES functions are turned off and disabled. Only when we click on the large DES logo to the right does the panel come to life and power savings begin.

The software is pretty straightforward; we have our power savings meter in the top portion providing us with information about how much power was saved. There is the meter total that can easily be reset and the total amount saved since DES was first installed and enabled. Right below the meter is the animation that shows us how many phases of the PWM are actually running. Because the system was in a high load state all twelve phases were in use.

In this image the system is in an idle state, and DES Advanced has throttled down the CPU and only 4 power phases are being utilized. Below we see the on-board LEDs that also show how many phases are in use. These LEDs can be turned on and off through the control panel with the little green light to the right under the main DES on/off switch.

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Now that we have gone through all the trouble of explaining how it works, the big question is does it work? In order to test this out we enabled all the Intel energy saving features in the BIOS, then let the system idle for 1 hour and measured the KW/h power consumption through our UPM EM100 power meter. We repeated the same procedure for 1 hour of Prime 95 Blend load. We then installed the DES software, set it to maximum energy saving, turned the Dynamic Frequency on, and repeated the tests. Here are the results:

While the power savings at idle were unmeasurable during our brief one hour test, these results prove that DES works quite well in high load scenarios. While running Prime 95 Blend, the power consumption of the DES-enabled system reached a maximum of 246W, whereas the default system peaked at 250W. This might seem like an insignificant decrease, but over the span of several months the energy and monetary savings would begin to add up, especially for those who constantly run intensive programs like Folding @ Home. When we enabled CPU Throttling, which is disabled by default, the peak power consumption remarkably dropped down to 219W. However, these energy savings come at the cost of performance since the CPU clock fell to and remained at 1.66Ghz despite the heavy CPU load.

Last, but of particular importance to the enthusiast crowd, is the fact that Dynamic Energy Saver Advanced can be used with an overclocked system, which is something that most competing energy saving technologies do not support.

 

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Test Setup & Methodologies

Test Setup & Methodologies

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Test Platform:​

Testing will occur on a Highspeed PC Standard Top Deck Tech Station and not in a traditional case. This allows easier access to the motherboard for the constant poking and prodding that is required during the reviewing process. The setup remained as pictured during the duration of the benchmarking and stability overclocking process.

Overclocking Methodology

Since the EX58-UD5 is a high-end model we expect to achieve some impressive overclocking results and we are definitely going to find out what it is truly capable of. The overclocking section is definitely the part of our reviews that we take the most pride in, and we spend an excruciating numbers of hours testing, tweaking, failing, and succeeding in order to give you the best possible insight into each motherboard’s overclocking capabilities. After all, if you are anything like us, the overclocking section is the first (and often last!) part that you read when checking out a motherboard review.

For the purposes of this review, our overclocking efforts will primarily focus on three main areas: highest stable BLCK overclock, highest stable memory overclock, and overall stable system overclock.

In these three overclocking tests we put an emphasis on stability. While the question “What is stable?” could be debated endlessly, we have devised a methodology that combines a wide range of programs that test the stability of the entire system.

Here is the suite of applications that will be run in order to validate each of the overclocks:

• Eight 32MB instances of SuperPi Mod 1.5 (ran at the same time)
• 3+ hours of dual Prime 95 v25.6 using the Stress Testing Blend
• 2 hours of OCCT Custom 2H Mix OCCT v2.0.0a - Except for Memory Overclocking
• 3+ hours of quad HCI MemTest in Windows using all available memory
• Multiple loops of 3DMark 06 (30 minutes of looping the full tests each)
• 1 hour of game play in Team Fortress 2 & Crysis @ 1680x1050

Altogether, the above suite should provide enough stress testing to ensure a completely stable overclock, however we are always up for new suggestions. As always, no two systems are ever alike, so your results may vary. Also, overclock at your own risk! The Core i7 platform is brand new, and although we are fairly conservative with our voltage estimates, there is always the possibility that you could damage any and all of your components. If you aren’t fully confident in what you are doing, feel free to stop by our forums and our helpful community will be glad to offer some assistance.

Benchmark Methodology

For this review, our benchmarking section will focus solely on the Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5, in stock and overclocked configuration. The reasoning behind this approach is that there is a minuscule clock-for-clock performance difference between two motherboards that share an identical chipset and declaring one product a winner based on a 1% performance advantages seems futile to us.

We have outlined the two setups in the sample graph to the right. The blue results will indicate the performance at the BIOS defaults. The only changes that will be made are to the memory in order to get it running at its rated frequency and timings. Every other setting will be at the default that the BIOS sets. The red results are achieved using the overall stable system overclock for this particular setup.

For all of the benchmarks, appropriate lengths are taken to ensure an equal comparison through methodical setup, installation, and testing. The following outlines our testing methodology:

A) Windows is installed using a full format.

B) Intel Chipset drivers and accessory hardware drivers (audio, network, GPU) are installed followed by a defragment and a reboot.

C) Programs and games are then installed followed by another defragment.

D) Windows updates are then completed installing all available updates followed by a defragment.

E) Benchmarks are each ran three times after a clean reboot for every iteration of the benchmark unless otherwise stated, the results are then averaged.

We have listed the benchmark versions on each graph as results can vary between updates. That should about cover everything so let's see what kind of numbers this motherboard puts up in the overclocking section and in our chosen suite of benchmarks.

 

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Overclocking Results

Overclocking Results

Core i7 overclocking is quite different then anything else in the past. There are now five clock speeds (CPU/BCLK/MEM/UCLK/QPI) and four multipliers (CPU/MEM/UCLK/QPI) to tweak, as well as eight different voltages. Put simply, there are lot of new variables and potential limitations that an overclocker must now take into consideration. At the moment, no one is an expert when it comes to Core i7 overclocking, and we are all learning new tips, tricks, and tweaks on a nearly daily basis.

Before beginning, you should enter the CPU Configuration menu in the BIOS and disable the CPU TM Function. This will circumvent the "Overspeed Protection" mechanism that limits current draw and CPU power consumption to 100 A and 130 watts, respectively. You are unlikely to ever encounter these limits, but we might as well remove any potential obstacles right off the bat. Secondly, after selecting your BCLK and memory frequency, always set the UCLK and QPI speeds as close to default as possible, in order to prevent them from becoming overclocking bottlenecks. This is particularly important because at the moment it appears that the QPI frequency is the single greatest limitation to Core i7 overclocking (perhaps second only to temperatures), since anything above the 7600-7800MT/s (3800Mhz-3900Mhz) range is nearly impossible to accomplish with any stability. Thankfully, Intel are well aware of this fact, and they are working on providing lower QPI multipliers as we speak.

On similar note, as stated in the BIOS the UCLK must be at least twice the DRAM frequency. Some have argued that the UCLK should be lower than the QPI frequency, but we have had no stability issues when running the UCLK equal to or even above the QPI rate. Some people will argue that HyperThreading should be disabled since it uses more power and causes higher temperatures, but we will leave it enabled in all our tests since we believe it is a central element of the Core i7's appeal.

Highest Stable BCLK Overclock

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Living up to its potential, the EX58-UD5 proved to be an excellent overclocker and we were able to increase the base clock (BCLK) from the stock 133Mhz to a heady 209Mhz, which is almost a 57% improvement. This is within 1Mhz of the result we achieved with the hardcore ASUS Rampage II Extreme. Could we expect an even better result from the EX58-EXTREME? We might have to find out...*hint hint*

At the moment, adept Core i7 overclockers can achieve stable 24/7 BCLK results in the 190-210Mhz range, with extreme overclockers having recently reached up to a dizzying 238Mhz, so the fact that we were able to approach the high-end mark reflects very positively on this particular board as well as our prize 965 XE. In order to achieve this result, we had to increase the QPI/VTT voltage from 1.20V up to 1.455V BIOS, which is marginally higher than Intel's recommended 1.35V maximum. Unlike with the RIIE, we did not have to manually tweak IOH and ICH voltages in order to load Windows at these speeds.

Highest Stable Memory Overclock

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As in our proper review, the 6GB G.Skill DDR3-1600 memory kit was able to achieve 1890Mhz 10-10-10-24 at 1.76Vdimm. While this frequency will not impress those used to the blistering DDR3 speeds achieved on the Core 2 platform, the actual bandwidth and latency numbers absolutely decimate all past platforms. In order to achieve this result, we had to increase the QPI/VTT voltage 1.455V, which helped juice the integrated memory controller (IMC) and increase the memory overclocking headroom. Every Core i7 processor has different memory overclocking potential, so it is just as possible that the IMC will bottleneck your memory overclock as the modules themselves. We have no reason to doubt this motherboard's claimed DDR3-2100+ support, but we are not quite ready to subject (& risk) our pricey Core i7 to the 1.55-1.65V QPI/VTT voltage that would likely be required to attain such a high-frequency.

With respect to the much publicized DRAM voltage limit, we can confidently state that all the hype was for nothing. Yes, very early engineering samples were susceptible to damage when high Vdimm was used, but the retail chips are much more robust. What matters the most with respect to this issue is the voltage differential between the QPI/VTT voltage and the DRAM voltage, the general consensus is that it should not be larger than 0.5V.

Overall Stable System Overclock

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For our overall stable system overclock, we selected a 4.0Ghz core clock, 200Mhz BCLK, and DDR3-1600 memory speeds.This effectively mimics the clock speeds of a Core i7-920 overclocked to 4.0Ghz, which is what we would run on a 24/7 basis, and it will serve as the overclocked configuration in our subsequent benchmarking section. Before anyone asks, we did not bother overclocking our memory kit because triple-channel DDR3-1600 already provides a huge amount of memory bandwidth and higher memory speeds/lower latencies simply did not result in worthwhile performance improvements, especially when weighed against the increased voltage required to achievement those higher frequencies.