ASRock X58 EXTREME vs Intel DX58SO

[rozia]

Hi all,

I am in process of upgrading my system to Core i7. Already decided on i7-920 after taking a quick look at Lynnfield, but I still have doubts about board to get.

I can either get a good Tom's Hardware recommeded budget board ASRock X58 EXTREME or have Intel DX58SO for a similar price. Assuming price is not a factor, which of the two boards have better performance / feature set? Are there any real contenders under $200?

Right now my plan is to slightly OC and put a single moderate GPU (having dual-GPU option open in the future would be a bonus).

Please advise.

 

[chunkymonster]

I just replaced the mobo in my i7 machine from a DFI LP DK X58-T3eH6 with an ASRock X58 Extreme.

Albeit this is not a direct comparison to your situation but the reason I swapped out the DFI for the ASRock was due to compatibility issues and a buggy BIOS with the DFI plus all the stellar reviews and write-ups about the ASRock X58 Extreme. I also have ASRock mobos in my HTPC and NAS and they have been running stable without any issues, so why not try one in my gaming machine.

To further clarify, I am using a Highpoint RocketRAID 2310 and 4-80GB WD drives in a RAID0 array as my OS drive. The DFI board consistently "forgot" that the 2310 controller card was installed, "forgot" the boot order, and "forgot" memory timings and overclocking settings. Believe me when I say I tried everything from ensuring the latest firmware and driver updates to even replacing the battery. Tech support from DFI was basically useless because I was/am using a 3rd party RAID controller. So, my solution was to swap out the mobo. After plugging on all my devices and components into the ASRock, I could tell after second reboot that the compatibility and BIOS issues I had with the DFI mobo were/are completely gone.

Even though I have only been using the ASRock X59 Extreme for less than 3 days, I can say with some confidence that the reviews on Newegg are legit, that the X58 Extreme is a quality i7 platform at a reasonable price, and the EZ overclocking settings are truly EZ. Another bonus for the ASRock over the DFI was that the ASRock recognizes memory XMP profiles. Nice!

I can recommend the ASRock X58 Extreme and I can especially recommend it over the DFI LP DK X58-T3eH6!!!!!

 

[Guest]

I just replaced the mobo in my i7 machine from a DFI LP DK X58-T3eH6 with an ASRock X58 Extreme.

Albeit this is not a direct comparison to your situation but the reason I swapped out the DFI for the ASRock was due to compatibility issues and a buggy BIOS with the DFI plus all the stellar reviews and write-ups about the ASRock X58 Extreme. I also have ASRock mobos in my HTPC and NAS and they have been running stable without any issues, so why not try one in my gaming machine.

To further clarify, I am using a Highpoint RocketRAID 2310 and 4-80GB WD drives in a RAID0 array as my OS drive. The DFI board consistently "forgot" that the 2310 controller card was installed, "forgot" the boot order, and "forgot" memory timings and overclocking settings. Believe me when I say I tried everything from ensuring the latest firmware and driver updates to even replacing the battery. Tech support from DFI was basically useless because I was/am using a 3rd party RAID controller. So, my solution was to swap out the mobo. After plugging on all my devices and components into the ASRock, I could tell after second reboot that the compatibility and BIOS issues I had with the DFI mobo were/are completely gone.

Even though I have only been using the ASRock X59 Extreme for less than 3 days, I can say with some confidence that the reviews on Newegg are legit, that the X58 Extreme is a quality i7 platform at a reasonable price, and the EZ overclocking settings are truly EZ. Another bonus for the ASRock over the DFI was that the ASRock recognizes memory XMP profiles. Nice!

I can recommend the ASRock X58 Extreme and I can especially recommend it over the DFI LP DK X58-T3eH6!!!!!

i have a dx58so with a gts 250 can oc my i7 920 to 3.5ghz+ on stock cooler no prob intel boards are good,solid and reliable so i can vouch for dx58so

 

[capt_taco]

I would always recommend against Intel if you have an equivalent choice from a different manufacturer. Haven't dealt with any of their socket 1366 boards yet, but through the end of the socket 775 era, Intel boards had a reputation for being unfriendly to most "performance" RAM and components. Meaning that with anything other than standard-issue components at standard-issue speeds ... a lot of people had a hell of a time getting their system to be stable. And based on the couple of times I dealt with Intel boards, I'd say it was a reputation that was well-deserved.

Maybe they've gotten better about that in this generation, or maybe they haven't. I'm sure never going to find out, because I'm done with them. Why voluntarily risk running into those issues if you have a choice?

 

[diet15]

I will second that.I have a Intel DX38BT mobo, had problems withe the 1st board that was exchanged without fuzz by Tiger Direct
new board ran for 1.5 years.No OC - standard
now the setup crashed: no video or fans
Tech support said to send the mobo in- I did.Warranty dept found some scratches under the screw in places - not getting into the board, not having caused the crash, just a usual screw head scratch: denied the warranty claim

Summary: 2nd board also failed, not good.Even worse: Manufct weasels out of warranty - no support
Why associate with an outfit with that attitude when you have a choice?