DFI or Asus

[rctycoon]

Im looking at an x48 mobo and right now, the dk x48 and the p5e deluxe, and i was wondering which of these boards would be better for a first time OC'er. I really like the look of the dfi and the clear cmos switch, but asus has a good reputation from what i hear and is not as limited by the northbridge heatsink

 

[auscanzukus]

If you're really a first timer, go with GA-EX48-DS4 or DQ6. Gigabyte is easiest to o/c. GB can only store one set of bios settings. ASUS can do 2. DFI can do 5.

 

[Shadow703793]

^Actually you can store up to 3 different BIOS profiles on the DS4 (Hint: Press F12).

Go with the ASUS or the Gigabyte. I do hope you plan to do CrossFire else those X48 boards are a waste.

 

[rctycoon]

Looking at newegg, the asus board has some poor reviews, although most seem to be that it looked open when they recieved it or ram compatability issues, has anyone used a P5E Deluxe, and if so could they give me their opinoin of it?

 

[auscanzukus]

Don't take newegg's user comments seriously. If you want, read a few reviews from reputable sources like Tom's, Anandtech, etc.

P5E is a solid board.

 

[Amg]

hmm if it was up to me asus, they are on of the best oc brands there is and their boards are rock solid even after a naff oc, it depends on your price range and what you want really DFI are also a good brand.

 

[Scotteq]

DFI's boards are rock solid, HIGHLY overclockable, and compete/beat anything else out there on performance and reliability. Having said that, the Bios is very extensive and, unless you have at least a basic familiarity, the wide array of options could be a bit much to wade through at times.


BUT!! Before this thread turns into a commercial and/or popularity contest let me ask - What are your plans for your computer? Target overclock? Are you going to run Crossfire? Are you going for big Benchmark numbers? Or is this going to be an everyday working overclock?

For an everyday working overclock, any of the mentioned brands will serve very well.

If you're pushing for benchmark numbers is when you may want to start splitting hairs - Asking questions like, 'How many phase is the voltage regulation' and such.

Regardless of the brand, though. Personally I'm a fan of actual numbers in a Bios. Rather than + and - values like you would find on some boards, like much of Gigabyte's lineup. Call me stupid, or whatever, but when I want to set 1.21volts on something, I greatly dislike having to think "Well.. The standard is 1.8v, so +3 should be correct..". Screw that. If I want 1.21, I want to see 1.21 on the screen. And then when I boot and check settings via software, I want to see 1.21 there (actual output), as well. My DFI delivers that. ASUS, especially their enthusiast boards, are also fully capable of delivering that as well. Though I haven't built one recently.

 

[rctycoon]

i have an e8400, and ideally i plan to overclock to around 4ghz but i hear that can be hard for some people and seeing as im new to all this i might stick to some wehre around 3.6-3.8, thanks for all the replys!

 

[auscanzukus]

That can be done on P35. Not hard, but some are afraid of high voltages. They see Joe Blow did it on a low voltage so they try to be copycats and fail and blame it on something else. Like I got a crap chip. They have only themselves to blame. A good overclocker will get where they want.