x38 VS x48 VS p35

Discussion about Intel CPU Motherboards
Post Reply
User avatar
martini161
Mr Awesome
Mr Awesome
Posts: 3183
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:27 pm
Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey

x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by martini161 »

So, im am looking to buy a new motherboard. my budget is about 200 shipped maybe more if i can get the old one sold. Its has to be intel chipset, dont care about multi gpu, and it has to be one of the 3 chipsets above. but thats what im not sure about;
How much better is the x48 over the x38?
and how much better is the x38 over the p35?
the main thing here im looking for is for good overclocking ability. and i would like it to be one of those ddr2/ddr3 mobo's so that i can upgrade in the future, so the old DS3L p35 is out of the question. dont care much about brand, asus/gigabyte/abit/foxconn what ever as long as its not some Senor Juans discount mobo company or something. TIA
User avatar
DMB2000uk
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 7095
Joined: Mon Jul 18, 2005 5:36 pm
Location: UK

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by DMB2000uk »

wow, I just had to get a decipher to work out what your thread title said :finga:

I've made it a bit more legible for you now.

Dan
Image (<- Clickable)
User avatar
Methious
Legit Extremist
Legit Extremist
Posts: 893
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2007 9:39 am
Location: Joplin Mo.

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by Methious »

I can't go much into the comparisons end but I've had good luck with the Asus P5KC dual ram Mobo, I've run the Q6600 up to 3.6 on it and Mushkin 12800 at full speed 1600 MHZ (up to 1752 stable). It gets picky about Ram at higher freqs and you gotta spend some time tweaking it. It comes in around $150 with the p35 chipset.

Biohazard has an MSI dual ram board he's had good luck with too that's in that price range. You'd have to check his sig for that one though, it's the one with the rollercoaster heatpipe. He's running 12800 ram full speed on it too.

Depending on the CPU you have to be careful though, like to run my q6600 with the ram at full speed I have to hit a FSB of 400 on a just above vanilla board. So I drop the multiplier to run the cpu at 3.2 and the ram at 1600. Being a just above vanilla board your probably not going to get much past 425fsb. The FSB wall is keeping me from hitting 1800 on the Mushkin. Next board up capable of running it better was in the $300 bracket.

In the $200 range shipped your probably looking p35, almost any X38 - X48 worth having would pretty much be excluded from that price range. (Believe me I've looked). The p35 chipset is as fast as the x38 and overclocks really well.

The X48 has a different NB (I believe) and is a refinement that was aimed at the faster ddr3, then most of them came out set up for ddr2 with higher freqs. Go figure. The X48 chipset almost caused me to drop a load in my tighty whities when I saw the prices starting at $400 and up. Been a while a few might have dipped into the 3-400 range.

If I were going to go though I'd hit p35 in that price range good chip set, decent price. I'd skip the x38 which has already been superseded by the x48, and If I wanted to land in the middle I'd look at the 45 boards.
Image
User avatar
Methious
Legit Extremist
Legit Extremist
Posts: 893
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2007 9:39 am
Location: Joplin Mo.

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by Methious »

I checked and didn't even see any p43/45 boards that do ddr2/ddr3.

I did find one Foxconn x38 that does ddr2/ddr3 but the ddr3 specs say 1333mhz ddr3. I haven't had personal experience with the board but you might find some reviews on it. People are saying Foxconn is making a return to the enthusiast market and the idiots reviewing it over on Newegg say their hitting 3.8 with the e8400. I wouldn't take their word for any thing in Church on Easter Sunday though.

Here's the linky: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813186134

Oh yea there's an ECS Elitegroup board ddr3 only, but friends don't let friends go ECS :vom:

Here's BioHazards dual DDR Board (90% sure it's that board):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813130141

Then here's the Asus P5KC I use:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813131188

Oh yea I almost forgot if your into Onboard raid the P5KC suxxors for that. Raid requires an E-Sata drive in the array

I'd stay back from the Asrock dual boards the OCing on them was added as an afterthought.
Image
User avatar
martini161
Mr Awesome
Mr Awesome
Posts: 3183
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:27 pm
Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by martini161 »

Thanks for the links! ill be checking those out. didnt even know p45 was out yet. that x38 dual ram i was seriously considering, have to get some reveiws of it
User avatar
Methious
Legit Extremist
Legit Extremist
Posts: 893
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2007 9:39 am
Location: Joplin Mo.

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by Methious »

Yea p43/45 is out but I didn't see any ddr2/3 boards. The p35 boards get finicky with ddr3, of the two I listed I'd probably look at the MSI board because the raid suxxors on the Asus and it gets finicky with ddr3 at higher freqs.

The Foxconn I'd have to see some solid reviews on before I jumped.

Me I need a decent ddr3 board with 1600/1333/1066 fsb native, ddr3 at least 1333/1600/2000, and FSB that'll give some uber insane FSB OClocks. Preferably in the I can eat some thing besides Ramen for a month category lol. I'm going to snatch an e8400 for OCing fun and later a good board to run it or the q6600 on.
Image
User avatar
martini161
Mr Awesome
Mr Awesome
Posts: 3183
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:27 pm
Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by martini161 »

so these are the ones im lookin at ATM (unfourtunatly my price range has been lowerd to 175, not much difference
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813128082 Gigabyte p35 ddr2/ddr3, its vanilla because they only have that one model with ddr2/3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813130141 Cheapest, nice MIR
dont like the asus one, a little to vanilla for me
im really liking these p45s even though they dont have ddr2/3 capability
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813128344
this is whats winning in my book right now, even though it doesnt have ddr2/3. the p45 chipset as a whole is really growing on me and this one is just within my price range and is a a step or two above vanilla, unlike the gigabyte.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813128344
User avatar
Methious
Legit Extremist
Legit Extremist
Posts: 893
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2007 9:39 am
Location: Joplin Mo.

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by Methious »

I'm going for an e8400 CPU and supposed to be getting an Asus Striker/Maximus class mobo review sample in the near future so I'm strangling my techno lust until I find out for sure.

Really with the E8400 I just need a CPU that can clock up and down reliably past 3.6 so they can't say the GTX-260/280 that'll be here by the end of the week is being throttled by the CPU. Early reports say 3.5 GHZ and modern C2D is the throttle release point.

Besides with review samples the better the equipment you have the better swag they send. This time around it's a Leadtek GTX-2XX, and I'm not complaining a bit. Do a good job with it then next time maybe get a little better brand. Lets put it this way I hope the GPU works cause all the tables and lists are already done, all the research, it's all done. Not that I'm excited or anything :supz: :supz: :supz:
Image
User avatar
martini161
Mr Awesome
Mr Awesome
Posts: 3183
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:27 pm
Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by martini161 »

after seeing some more performance numbers on Nahalem, i decided im gonna make a mistake and be a first adopter of that puppy :axe: i was originally going to get one of these to hold me over until they get the kinks worked out, but i decided to start saving up for the first generation of whatever the calling the FSB replacement :axe:
User avatar
Methious
Legit Extremist
Legit Extremist
Posts: 893
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2007 9:39 am
Location: Joplin Mo.

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by Methious »

They have some good numbers. With me it doesn't matter much most of my stuff gets sold in a few months as the machine evolves.

I'd probably hold the q6600 and the e8400 as classic over clockers anyway.

Lettem work the bugs out then a price drop and I'll be looking at the new CPUs. I jumped on an 8800gt a while back, not that long ago and paid 260, now A guy can snatch one for 160. It's always that way. Wait a few months and the price drops.
Image
User avatar
martini161
Mr Awesome
Mr Awesome
Posts: 3183
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:27 pm
Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by martini161 »

same with me to, i payed 300 for one a while ago when they first came out to
User avatar
Methious
Legit Extremist
Legit Extremist
Posts: 893
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2007 9:39 am
Location: Joplin Mo.

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by Methious »

Well I ended up with a Gigabyte p45 ep45 extreme:

http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Products/Mot ... uctID=2860

Hybrid Heatpipe/water cooled mobo. Not sure if the one I'm getting is ddr2 or 3 but I got both so I'm set for a while.
Image
User avatar
martini161
Mr Awesome
Mr Awesome
Posts: 3183
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:27 pm
Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by martini161 »

nice! i was looking at one like that but it was out of my price range. let me know how it goes
User avatar
Methious
Legit Extremist
Legit Extremist
Posts: 893
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2007 9:39 am
Location: Joplin Mo.

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by Methious »

The company rep which isn't always the best source says it's the best Over Clocker they've ever built (of course that was after slandering my beloved Asus for several minutes).

If you believe Gigabyte Asus is using non-Japanese solid caps on some of their boards (shrug).
Image
User avatar
martini161
Mr Awesome
Mr Awesome
Posts: 3183
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:27 pm
Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by martini161 »

Methious wrote:The company rep which isn't always the best source says it's the best Over Clocker they've ever built (of course that was after slandering my beloved Asus for several minutes).

If you believe Gigabyte Asus is using non-Japanese solid caps on some of their boards (shrug).
hell they didnt start using all soild caps till a little while ago and i have boards from before then and they still work good as new
User avatar
Methious
Legit Extremist
Legit Extremist
Posts: 893
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2007 9:39 am
Location: Joplin Mo.

Re: x38 VS x48 VS p35

Post by Methious »

Never had a blown cap in 25 years. In a confidential document I get on motherboards (we can discuss it but not share it), they were showing blown caps on Asus boards. No telling what they did to make them blow.

By the time a regular cap blows the board is obsolete any way (in most cases).

I do have to say though in those confidential documents their flat out rude and the documents more resemble an argument with a 13 year old than any reliable facts.
Image
Post Reply