Intel Skulltrail Part 2: Overclocking & Power

Skulltrail Board: Unsuitable For Overclocking

Intel's Skulltrail board is not geared for overclocking.

Further overclocking attempts led us to conclude that the 5400 Northbridge on the Skulltrail board does not offer nearly as much overclocking potential as a P35 or X38 board.

One of the major drawbacks is the lack of memory speed options; instead, the BIOS selects a setting automatically. Posting takes up to 48 seconds, and the BIOS menu is very slow in general. If the board refuses to start up because the settings are too aggressive, it always has to be reset using the CMOS jumper. This also takes a while. Finally, FB-DIMM modules simply aren't designed for overclocking.

Overall, the Skulltrail board offers much lower overclocking potential compared to conventional desktop boards. Neither its BIOS nor its chipset are really suited for overclocking.