Thinking of X-fire w/q9550; which mobo?

[Infrnl]

I was thinking of either going with a Asus P45 mobo or x48. what do you suggest? Theoretically the P45 2x 8x pci-e 2.0 is supposed to have the same bandwidth as the x48 2x 16x Pci-e .



I will be running a Q9550 and HD4850(s)



I have only seen 1 review from tweaktown that proves this wrong; does anyone else have proof to support this review. I also do not know if the xtra cost of a x48 is worth it over a P45. Thanks for any input.





INFRNL

 

[akhilles]

If you're keeping the mobo for a long while, go with X48. If you're upgrading to Nehalem this or next year, go with a cheap-o P45.

 

[Infrnl]

Ok,
So should I get Rampage or LT x48-t2r?

 

[Sylvanas]

Originally posted by: Infrnl
I was thinking of either going with a Asus P45 mobo or x48. what do you suggest? Theoretically the P45 2x 8x pci-e 2.0 is supposed to have the same bandwidth as the x48 2x 16x Pci-e .



I will be running a Q9550 and HD4850(s)



I have only seen 1 review from tweaktown that proves this wrong; does anyone else have proof to support this review. I also do not know if the xtra cost of a x48 is worth it over a P45. Thanks for any input.





INFRNL

Have a look at Lopri's bandwidth sticky at the top of this forum. When one card is used the P45 uses 16x PCI-E 2.0, when using two cards this is reduced to 8x PCI-E 2.0 (which is equivilent in bandwidth to PCI-E 1.1 16x). The X48 however, uses two 16x PCI-E 2.0 lanes when two graphics cards are used so it is significantly better than the P45 in this respect. The Tweaktown review is the only reviewer site to look into this fully but we have all known that when using cards in SLI/CF you will need as much bandwidth as you can get-this is why the P45 does not do well in Crossfire. So bottom line, for Crossfire you want an X48, for Single card might aswell get a P45.

Here is AT's review of the Rampage formula

Here is the review of the DFI X48 LT T2R

I would go for the Rampage Formula because the TrD adjustment is much simpler (instead of the 'pull in' phases used in the DFI) but both boards are top notch. DFI's BIOS is always the most heavily featured BIOS going round so it is generally not recommended to beginner overclockers, but if you have an in depth knowledge it can be rewarding for benchmarks.

 

[akhilles]

^ seconded. Rampage if you like to work/play more then tweak. DFI if you like to tweak more than work/play. I haven't figured out every setting on my board.

 

[Infrnl]

Thanks; as of right now I think I would want to work more than tweak. I have run both DFI and ASUS so I have a feel for how both of them are. I was thinking of looking to see which one I could get cheaper. I was going to use that MS cashback deal but looks like they dropped down to 20% today. depending on the cost difference between 5% might still order one.


will have to see and also will check out the reviews and do more homework. I imagine they will overclock about the same. getting the most out of my cpu is probably the most important, but I do not want to spend a month trying either,lol

 

[Infrnl]

Just bought a DFI LP LT X38-TR2. couldnt pass up on it. after MS cashback deal it will only cost me $134. cant get an X48 for close to this and I am not sure if an X48 will give me much more over the x38 for the extra $100 cost. I will see how this board does; if I do not like it; I will sell it and get something else.

INFRNL