P45 head-to-head: MSI P45 Platinum and Asus Maximus II Formula

Motherboards/Intel S775 by massman @ 2008-07-16

In this article we´ll focus on what the MSI P45 Platinum and Asus Maximus II Formula can bring us in terms of performance, overclocking and the performance gained from overclocking. We´ll be giving you basic pointers for obtaining better results and will spend a little time on the energy-saving technology used on these boards.

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Asus Maximus II Formula undressed

Let's have a look at what Asus delivers with their Maximus II Formula motherboard.

Box Lay-out

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The accessories are all packed together in a box inside the main box.

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Accessoires

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  • LCD Poster
  • ASUS Optional Fan
  • 3 in 1 ASUS Q-Connector Kit
  • UltraDMA 133/100/66 cable
  • Floppy disk drive cable
  • SATA cables
  • SATA power cables
  • 2-port USB2.0 + IEEE 1394a module
  • Q-Shield
  • Driver DVD
  • User's manual
  • SupremeFX X-Fi Audio Card

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    Motherboard

    What does the motherboard offers us:

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  • 1 x PS/2 Keyboard port(purple)
  • 1 x eSATA port
  • 2 x LAN (RJ45) ports
  • 6 x USB 2.0/1.1 ports
  • 1 x IEEE1394a port
  • 1 x Clr CMOS switch

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  • 2 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (single max @16,dual @ x8 speed)
  • 3 x PCIe x1 ( the PCIEx1_1 (black) is compatible with audio slot)
  • 2 x PCI 2.2

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  • 3 x USB 2.0 connectors supports additional 6 USB 2.0 ports
  • 1 x Floppy disk drive connector
  • 1 x IDE connector for two devices
  • 6 x SATA connectors (Blue)
  • 2 x Speeding HDD connectors (Black)
  • 8 x Fan connectors: 1 x CPU / 1 x PWR / 3 x Chassis / 3 x Optional
  • 3 x thermal sensor connectors
  • 1 x IEEE1394a connector
  • 1 x Chassis Intrusion connector
  • 24-pin ATX Power connector
  • 8-pin ATX 12V Power connector
  • 1 x En/Dis-able Clr CMOS
  • 1 x LCD Poster connector
  • 1 x ROG connector
  • 1 x Power-on switch
  • 1 x Reset switch

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    Special features

    Asus added some extra overclocking features as well:

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  • Pin Fin Thermal Module
  • Extreme Engine
    - 16-phase power design for CPU
    - 3-phase power design for north bridge
    - 2-phase power design for memory
  • BIOS Flashback
  • iROG
  • Extreme Tweaker
    - CPU Level Up
    - AI Overclocking (intelligent CPU frequency tuner)
    - ASUS AI Booster Utility
    - O.C Profile
  • Speeding HDD
  • Voltiminder LED
  • COP EX (Component Overheat Protection - EX)
  • ASUS C.P.R.(CPU Parameter Recall)
  • Loadline Calibration

    Let's have a look at the bios ->
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    Comment from jmke @ 2008/08/03
    Hey Massman, in your MSI bios shots you have the H/W monitor showing this:



    in the system I set up here I get more values:



    any idea why I get ICore Pout and Efficiency in the BIOS with the MSI P45?
    Comment from Massman @ 2008/08/03
    Newer bios version.
    Comment from jmke @ 2008/08/03
    flashed to latest beta (thanks MM) and now those ICore/Pout/Efficiency values have moved to another submenu "GreenPower"

     

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