G31 vs G41

[Emissary Of Pain]

Hey all you guys and gals that are way smarter then me !!


I have a problem ... I posted a previous thread that was about a motherboard choice I needed 2 make 4 a cheap but very benificial upgrade ... my choices were

Asus p5kpl-am se
GB G31m-es2c
XFX Intel G31i

I plan on keeping my old lga775 3ghz <single core> and using it on the new board just 4 a month or so until I can afford a ... e8400\e8500 which I will overclock the hell out of


I landed up choosing the Asus through the advice and help attained on this very forum ... BUT ! ... this morning I had an email from a friend who said that the G41 chipsets are a must and suggested the GIGABYTE GA-G41M-ES2L ... The lovely asus i chose is a g31 ... ...

Can anyone explain the difference between the G31 and G41 ... ... and maybe suggest a group of asus boards < or boards by anyone > that retails for a similar price which is around 90$ which are great for overclocking ...

Your help would make my pc upgrade and myself 2 very happy ...uh ... things ... lol ...

Thank You all in advance !!

 

[GhislainG]

Are you using the on-board video or a discrete video card? If you are using a video card, then having a PCI Express x16 that isn't limited to x4 might be important. Motherboards based on the G31 or G41 chipsets usually aren't the best for overclocking, particularly when using on-board video.

What are you using the system for if overclocking is a requirement? The $90 price is in what currency?

 

[Emissary Of Pain]

Both boards have pci-e 16x ... so that is not a problem ... ...

90 USD ... In my country its like R650-R700 <ZAR> ...

I am going 2 be gaming and every pc I have ever had I have clocked ... ... guess its in my blood ... lol

IF the G31,G41 are not good 4 clocking ... what can u suggest that is in the price range I have said ??

 

[jsc]

G41 is just a more modern chipset.

I happen to be home on vacation so I went upstairs and rechecked sis-in-law's GA-G41M-ES2L. It has all the basic OC options in the BIOS. Not bad for a $60 motherboard.

Once you get to around $90, things change a little. At around $100, you have the Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3L which is a good overclocker. I have a Q6600 running at 3.6 GHz. in one of these. No built-in graphics though.

The problem with this is that now you are at a good percentage of a P55 motherboard.

 

[Emissary Of Pain]

damn ... ok looks like I will have 2 try source out a G41 board ... which may be a problem due 2 prices in my country ...

Who is a better overclocker ... Asus or Gigabyte ? ... ...

If I cant source a G41 board ... Will the Asus still be an ok board 4 a yr or 2 ?? ... Is the Asus a decent board 4 clocking ??

 

[godbrother]

I own the Gigabye G31 and its Fing awesome! Don't listen to others. I got a old Pentium D clocked from 2.8 to 3.4 on stock cooling!

 

[tcsenter]

The difference is that G41 has support for PCI Express 2.0 and supports 8GB RAM vs. 4GB for the G31. There shouldn't be any significant difference in overclocking since this is a value chipset that is not used on enthusiast boards. The Southbridge used is exactly the same on both chipsets (ICH7 non-RAID).

PCI Express 2.0 is nice to have but its not worth paying a lot more unless you plan on buying a high-end graphics card. The 8GB RAM support may be worth paying more to have, though, if you intend to run 64-bit OS. Otherwise, if you plan to stick with 32-bit for the next couple years, then you can upgrade again to a motherboard that supports 8GB later.

 

[godbrother]

The difference is that G41 has support for PCI Express 2.0 and supports 8GB RAM vs. 4GB for the G31. There shouldn't be any significant difference in overclocking since this is a value chipset that is not used on enthusiast boards. The Southbridge used is exactly the same on both chipsets (ICH7 non-RAID).

PCI Express 2.0 is nice to have but its not worth paying a lot more unless you plan on buying a high-end graphics card. The 8GB RAM support may be worth paying more to have, though, if you intend to run 64-bit OS. Otherwise, if you plan to stick with 32-bit for the next couple years, then you can upgrade again to a motherboard that supports 8GB later.

The gigabyte G31 has PCI-e 2.0. - To be honest, havn't 8GB is a waste of space. No game needs 8GB of ram, nor 6GB. (not if your useing a LGA775 setup anyways) 4GB of DDR2 800Mhz is good for a long run. Even GTA IV uses no more then 2GB on load, so its pointless. It's good for a budget build that will last you at least a year on decent settings with a good GPU.

 

[tcsenter]

The gigabyte G31 has PCI-e 2.0.

Actually, now that you made me double-check, it appears that neither G31/P31 nor G41 support PCI-E 2.0. Both chipsets are PCI-E 1.1 according to Intel:

P31 Specs

G31 Specs

G41 Specs


I can't find a single motherboard using either chipset that advertises support for PCI-E 2.0. My bad.

 

[jsc]

Not surprising. It is an economy chipset for and economy motherboard.

 

[Emissary Of Pain]

Will the 9800GT ... which is Pci-e 2.0 ... work on a Pci-e 1.1 ... ... or will I be bottlenecking my card and wasting my money ??

 

[godbrother]

Will the 9800GT ... which is Pci-e 2.0 ... work on a Pci-e 1.1 ... ... or will I be bottlenecking my card and wasting my money ??

I could have swarn my Gigabyte motherboard is 2.0. The box was always laying around, and for some F'ed up reason it decided to take a stroll when I needed it.

Put it this way, even if it was 1.1 (which I'm sure it ain't) and if the rig that I built is getting 50FPS+ on maxed out settings on most games, then trust me, that is by far more then enough. (still pretty sure its 2.0 I'm going insane trying to find my box.)

 

[tcsenter]

I could have swarn my Gigabyte motherboard is 2.0. The box was always laying around, and for some F'ed up reason it decided to take a stroll when I needed it.

It wouldn't matter if the box did have the wrong specs. It still doesn't make the G31/P31 PCI-E 2.0. This chipset is based on G33/G35/P35 core, none of which support PCI-E 2.0.

 

[godbrother]

It wouldn't matter if the box did have the wrong specs. It still doesn't make the G31/P31 PCI-E 2.0. This chipset is based on G33/G35/P35 core, none of which support PCI-E 2.0.

I highly doubt Gigabyte would ship out hundreds of thousends of motherboards with the wrong specs on them. That would be insane.

 

[tcsenter]

Its happened to other manufacturers and companies. Gigabyte would be immune from such problems because...its a very special company or because God is on Gigabyte's side?

 

[godbrother]

Its happened to other manufacturers and companies. Gigabyte would be immune from such problems because...its a very special company or because God is on Gigabyte's side?

So are you telling me the 8800GT in that machine, is not performing at 2.0? But at 1.1 instead? What is that like... Half of its bandwith?

 

[GhislainG]

You should read this article: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/crossfire-pci-express,2095.html

 

[Emissary Of Pain]

That was a great article !! ... Thank You ! ... ... And the great thing is how a single Pci-e 1.1 card keeps a steady score ...

 

[b3owulf]

Thread has been dead for awhile it would seem, Emissary of pain where bout in SA are you from?

if by chance anyone else finds this thread best place in SA to look for stuff is matrix warehouse (they will put in special orders for you)
Or www.computersonly.co.za

I have a G31 MB and it is crap regret buying it... altho im running a HD 4870x2 on it but the things over heats and shuts down.. alas the G41 i doubt will be better go for a EP45 mb simple and reasonably priced..

 

[tcsenter]

Your HD 4870x2 is not over-heating because of the motherboard.

 

[Inkiad]

Answering this thread i would say gigabyte G41-ES2L is better. I have one of this and it has quite good ocing option. And the onboard chipset is also good. Running my oced dual core 2.7 on 3.4 for about 1 year now.

 

[Lian]

Answering this thread i would say gigabyte G41-ES2L is better. I have one of this and it has quite good ocing option. And the onboard chipset is also good. Running my oced dual core 2.7 on 3.4 for about 1 year now.

I know im a thread necro now, but any chance you could post a GPU-Z screenie so i can see if the G41 is PCI-E2.0 or 1.1? Would be much appreciated if you could. Been having some arguments with a online store on there G41 boards as they say it does have PCI-E2.0 and i have no proof of this what so ever as it doesnt state it has anywhere... Not from Gigabyte or Intel.

 

[kiran_43]

I have a core 2 duo e6550 @ 2.33 processor with foxconn g41mxe and ddr3 2gb ram....
can i play a graphic more games and how is this system?