Overclocking
| BIOS Frequency And Voltage Settings For Overclocking | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ASRock X58 Extreme | Asus P6T SE | ECS X58B-A | |
| CPU Base Clock | 100 - 300 MHz (1 MHz) | 100 - 500 MHz (1 MHz) | 133 - 511 MHz (1 MHz) |
| CPU Multiplier | Yes | Yes | No |
| DRAM Data Rates | BCLK x6 - x16 (x2) | BCLK x6 - x16 (x2) | BCLK x6- x12 (x2) |
| PCIe Clocks | 50 - 150 MHz (1 MHz) | 100 - 200 MHz (1 MHz) | 100 - 200 MHz (1 MHz) |
| CPU Vcore | 0.84 - 2.00V (6.25 mV) | 0.85 - 2.10V (6.25mV) | 0.50 - 1.60V (6.25mV) |
| Uncore Voltage | 1.20 - 1.90V (70mV) | 1.20 - 1.90V (6.25mV) | +481mV (12.5mV) |
| IOH Core | 1.10 - 1.49V (6.25mV) | 1.10 - 1.70V (20mV) | +693mV (11mV) |
| ICH Core | 1.12 - 1.56V (20mV) | 1.10 - 1.40V (10mV) | +150mV (50mV) |
| DRAM Voltage | 1.56 - 2.00V (15mV) | 1.50 - 2.46V (20mV) | +945mV ((15mV) |
| CAS Latency | 6 - 11 Cycles | 3 - 11 Cycles | 3 - 11 Cycles |
| tRCD | 3 - 15 Cycles | 3 - 10 Cycles | 3 - 15 Cycles |
| tRP | 3 - 15 Cycles | 3 - 10 Cycles | 3 - 15 Cycles |
| tRAS | 9 - 31 Cycles | 3 - 31 Cycles | 9 - 30 Cycles |
| BIOS Frequency And Voltage Settings For Overclocking | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Foxconn FlamingBlade | Gigabyte EX58-UD3R | Jetway BI-600 | MSI X58 Pro-E | |
| CPU Base Clock | 66 - 500 MHz (1 MHz) | 100 - 1200 MHz (1 MHz) | 133 - 500 MHz (1 MHz) | 133 - 400 MHz (1 MHz) |
| CPU Multiplier | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| DRAM Data Rates | BCLK x6 - x16 (x2) | BCLK x6 - x18 (x2) | BCLK x6 - x16 (x2) | BCLK x6 - x16 (x2) |
| PCIe Clock | Not Adjustable | 90 - 150 MHz (1 MHz) | Not Adjustable | 100 - 200 MHz (1 MHz) |
| CPU Vcore | +1260mV (10mV) | 0.50 - 1.90V (6.25mV) | 0.80 - 1.55V (10mV) | -0.32 - +0.63V (10mV) |
| Uncore Voltage | +1260mV (10mV) | 1.08 - 2.02V (20mV) | Not Adjustable | 0.88 - 1.83V (10mV) |
| IOH Core | 1.10 - 2.36V (20mV) | 1.0 - 2.0V (20mV) | 1.10 - 1.25V (50mV) | 0.80 - 2.35V (10mV) |
| ICH Core | 1.40 - 1.80V (12mV) | 0.92 - 2.38V (20mV) | Not Adjustable | 0.70 - 2.13V (10mV) |
| DRAM Voltage | 1.50 - 2.86V (10mV) | 1.30 - 2.60V (20mV) | 1.50 - 1.65V (25mV) | 1.20 - 2.477V (10mV) |
| CAS Latency | 5 - 15 Cycles | 6 - 15 Cycles | 3 - 18 Cycles | 6 - 12 Cycles |
| tRCD | 5 - 15 Cycles | 1 - 15 Cycles | 3 - 15 Cycles | 3 - 15 Cycles |
| tRP | 5 - 15 Cycles | 1 - 15 Cycles | 3 - 15 Cycles | 3 - 15 Cycles |
| tRAS | 10 - 31 Cycles | 1 - 31 Cycles | 9 - 30 Cycles | 9 - 31 Cycles |
Most enthusiasts are unwilling to settle for the hardware manufacturers desire to sell us at the prices they want us to pay, a fact that makes overclocking stability a big factor in many of our purchasing decisions. Let’s see how the “cheap” boards stack up.
Anyone willing to cope with a few limitations, such as its support for a maximum of three memory modules, will find Foxconn’s FlamingBlade an exceptional overclocker, while those looking for more traditional features should be able to appreciate the MSI X58 Pro-E’s close second place. Jetway’s BI-600 was limited by issues discussed in its page-eight description.
A difference of two megahertz puts the ECS X58B-A ahead of most contenders in achievable base clock.
Foxconn and Gigabyte had the highest memory clocks, but fall to the bottom of our chart due to their inability to support six modules. While either of those motherboards would make a good choice for anyone who will never use more than one matched set of memory, the MSI X58 Pro-E forges ahead in a six-DIMM configuration.
