VIA KT333 Put To The Test: 18 Motherboards Compared

Soltek SL-75DRV5: Stable, With Thermal Protection

The Soltek SL-75DRV5.

Packaging of the Soltek SL-75DRV5.

Soltek frequently sends its motherboards to the Munich lab. Apart from the Asus A7V333, the SL-75DRV5 is the only other board in this test that has effective thermal protection for AMD processors. Soltek evaluates the data from the thermal diode and, in the case of overheating, it immediately switches off the power. In addition to the USB 2.0 functionality, the Northbridge fan is noteworthy. The boot process breaks the record, taking less than two seconds to start up. The board is also exemplary in that it is the only one out of all the test candidates that includes an external temperature sensor in the package. This can be placed on the individual components. Less interesting for the end user is the CNR slot, for there are no peripherals available. The performance scores attest to the fact that Soltek has fallen slightly behind, compared to its competitors and compared to the last KT266A test Mega Test: 14 Boards with KT266A and nForce 420D .

Items included with the Soltek SL-75DRV5.

Thermal protection for AMD CPUs: this function can be activated with the Soltek SL-75DRV5.