Today we look at their GA-EP35-DS3P motherboard which takes a new road towards energy efficient motherboards. Even with all the extra options available, at its very core it is still a strong P35 based board. With a standard LGA775 socket, compatible processors range from the earlier Pentium4s and Celerons using the 90nm process to the latest 45nm quad core Extreme Edition processors. This board can handle pretty much any LGA775 based processor Intel has or has had on the market in the past few years. Whether you're looking for a strong board with plenty of options or saving a few dollars on your electric bill, this board appears to fit into both columns.
Anytime someone asks about assembling a computer, the main item needed is the motherboard. This is what the rest of the system is based on and determines the rest of the items you are needing to buy. It determines if you can use dual video cards, which memory brand and type, and more specifically which processor. The next question is always which board or brand to build on.
One brand that has always stood out for their reliable hardware is Gigabyte. Getting their start in 1986 as a motherboard manufacturer, their first products were "EMS cards" which allowed memory limited 286 and 386 systems to be able to use up to 2MB of memory. Fast forward a few decades and Gigabyte has made a name for themselves, not only for their EMS and iRAM "Ramdisk" peripherals and other items, but more specifically their motherboards.
Using their commitment to quality and large company size, each generation of motherboards allow them to take farther advances and a few more gambles then other manufacturers can afford. Today we look at their GA-EP35-DS3P motherboard which takes a new road towards energy efficient motherboards. Even with all the extra options available, at its very core it is still a strong P35 based board. With a standard LGA775 socket, compatible processors range from the earlier Pentium4s and Celerons using the 90nm process to the latest 45nm quad core Extreme Edition processors. This board can handle pretty much any LGA775 based processor Intel has or has had on the market in the past few years. Whether you're looking for a strong board with plenty of options or saving a few dollars on your electric bill, this board appears to fit into both columns.
| PRODUCT |
|
| CPU SUPPORT |
- LGA775 socket
Supports almost everything from a Celeron D 325 to the latest Core™ 2 Extreme QX9650
Allows FSB from 800 to 1333 stock or even overclocked up to 1600 |
| CHIPSET |
|
| MEMORY |
- Four DDR2 memory slots
Stock rating of 1.8V
Supports up to 8GB
Standard 667/800/1066 speeds
Also supports up to 1200MHz overclocked (see their website for compatibility) |
| EXPANSION SLOTS |
- Two PCI Express x16 slots (The PCIE_16_1 slot supports x16; the PCIE_16_2 supports x4.)
Three PCI Express x1 slots
Two PCI slots
PCIe X16 slots only supports ATI/AMD Crossfire. Does NOT support Nvidia SLI. |
| STORAGE |
- Total of 8 SATAII ports up to 3Gb/s
Supports RAID 0, 1, 5 and 10 on the 6 standard ports
Supports RAID 0, 1 and JBOD on the GSATA ports
One IDE connector supporting ATA-133/100/66/33 and up to 2 IDE devices
One floppy drive connector |
| AUDIO |
- Onboard audio supports up to 7.1 surround
Realtek ALC889A codec and HD Audio
Support for S/PDIF In/Out |
| LAN |
- Single onboard port supports Gigabit connections
Realtek 8111B chip |
| REAR I/O PANEL |
- 1 x PS/2 keyboard port
- 1 x PS/2 mouse port
- 1 x coaxial S/PDIF Out connector
- 1 x optical S/PDIF Out connector
- 8 x USB 2.0/1.1 ports
- 2 x IEEE 1394a Firewire ports
- 1 x RJ-45 port
- 6 x audio jacks
|
| INTERNAL I/O |
- 1 x 24-pin ATX main power connector
- 1 x 8-pin ATX 12V power connector
- 1 x 4-pin molex PCIe 12V power connector
- 1 x floppy disk drive connector
- 1 x IDE connector
- 8 x SATA 3Gb/s connectors
- 4 x fan headers, CPU, system and power
- 1 x North Bridge fan header
- 1 x front panel header
- 1 x front panel audio header
- 1 x CD In connector
- 1 x S/PDIF In header
- 1 x S/PDIF Out header
- 2 x USB 2.0/1.1 headers
- 1 x IEEE 1394a header
- 1 x parallel port header
- 1 x serial port header
- 1 x power LED header
- 1 x chassis intrusion header
|
| SYSTEM BIOS |
- Latest version as of this article is F2
Supports DualBIOS Plus
2 x 8 Mbit flash ROM
- Use of licensed AWARD BIOS
- PnP 1.0a, DMI 2.0, SM BIOS 2.3, ACPI 1.0b.
|
| FORM FACTOR |
- Standard ATX
30.5cm x 24.4cm
12" x 9.6" |
| WARRANTY |
- All motherboards carry a 3 year limited warranty (First 2 years parts & labor, 3rd year parts only)
|
| CURRENT PRICING |
|
The bundle included with the board contains the bare essentials needed to get your system going as well as some welcome additions. The standard floppy and IDE cable are the typical Gigabyte blue ribbons that has been their standard color for several years. The inclusion of not only 2 regular SATA data cables but also 2 cables with the right angle on one end should allow you to connect the drives in even the tightest of cases. One spot that Gigabyte has really stepped up is the added eSATA expansion slot plate with proper eSATA data and power cables. This allows a connection of up to 2 eSATA drives directly to the plate and a power cable to connect directly from the plate to the hard drive.
