Gigabyte X79-UD5 Review

[siopao1984]

---

Introduction & SpecificationsToday we are taking a look at the Gigabyte X79-UD5, an eight DIMM slot E-ATX motherboard and one of four models in the streamlined Gigabyte X79 range. This feature packed board brings several firsts for Gigabyte including a UEFI BIOS implementation and a digital PWM system.

In contrast to previous generations where Gigabyte have released a dozen or more models in a range, the X79-UD5 is one of just four clearly delineated models along with the UD3, UD7 and G1 Assassin 2. Gigabyte is pitching the feature packed UD5 at content creators, professionals and any users requiring memory capacity with heavy multithreaded CPU workloads. The other boards cover the budget (UD3), gaming (G1 Assassin) and overclocking (UD7) segments. Notably, the UD5 is the only board in the range to feature eight DIMM slots and therefore the only one that supports the full 64gb memory capacity of the platform. This fact alone will appeal to many users.Before we dive into the UD5 itself, below is a general overview of the X79 platform supporting 2nd generation Intel i7 processors for the LGA2011 socket. The increased number of PCIe lanes and quad channel memory support are the major distinguishing features over the mainstream P67/Z68 platforms.

Read more: Gigabyte X79-UD5 Review by VR-Zone.com

[siopao1984]

Specifications of the Gigabyte X79-UD5






Additional note:

Since the release of the UD5, Gigabyte issued a statement urging users who overclock their boards to update to the F7 or later BIOS. The new BIOS' update some protection mechanisms relating to the PWM. The update is only necessary for users with heavily overclocked systems. Day to day users won't notice any difference even if they don't switch to the new BIOS. They went as far as offering an unconditional five year warranty on the boards to alleviate concerns. Gigabyte in house overclocker Hicookie went on to claim several overclocking records with the new BIOS, debunking some unjustified forum scare-mongering. Our own overclocking tests resulted in no issue whatsoever with both the old BIOS and the new.

[siopao1984]

A Closer Look at the Gigabyte X79-UD5

We begin with a look at the box and accessories. The front of the box is quite mild compared to some manufacturers whilst the back is crammed with the features Gigabyte wants you to take note of.





Below are the accessories that come with the X79-UD5. the biggest inclusion is a combined WiFi & Bluetooth 4.0 expansion card that connects to a PCIe 1x slot with a set of antennas. Nice!

Complete list:

1x WiFi & Bluetooth 4.0 expansion card
2x Antenna's
1x Twin USB 3.0 port expansion box (fits in a 3.5" floppy drive bay)
1x 3way SLI bridge connector
1x 2way SLI bridge connector
1x 2way Crossfire bridge connector
1x Back panel I/O shield
1x Driver & Software CD
1x WiFi driver CD
4x SATA cables
3x User manuals (user, installation & WiFi)
1x Gigabyte case sticker
1x Dolby case sticker

With four SATA cables, most users will be covered and most that aren't will probably have spares but perhaps a few more would be better? Nitpicking really..



Now for the board itself:

It's an E-ATX model so consideration needs to be given to the case it will go in. It's quite a nice looking board, much better than the candy color Gigabyte color schemes of old.

There is very little to criticize regarding the layout with the exception of the CMOS battery. We can forgive this though as they last for years and these days it is rare that a failed overclock will require removal of this battery.



Below we see the rear I/O panel of the UD5. We see seven (red) USB 2.0 ports, two (blue) USB 3.0 ports, a PS/2 KB/mouse port, firewire and a pair of eSATA connectors (one 6GB/s and a combo USB/eSATA 6GB/s). There is a single RJ45 LAN port. Some user may like to see an additional LAN port here. Audio outputs are a common five analogue ports and a S/PDIF optical connector.

The three buttons on the second module from the left are a one touch overclocking button, a switch to change between the two BIOS chips and a small CMOS clear button on the bottom.

[siopao1984]

A Closer Look Part II

We'll take a bit of a tour around the motherboard starting with the SATA connectors. The six at the top are the standard ports supported by the X79 chipset consisting of a pair of SATA 6GB/s connectors and four 3GB/s connectors. The bottom four connectors labelled "GSATA" 6 to 9 are 6GB/s compatible and support RAID 0 and 1. These ports are controlled by a pair of Marvell 88SE9172 chips. There is a gap for an additional four ports, probably held over for a future revision of the board with a revised X79 chipset including the omitted SAS ports.

At the bottom of the board we see the dual BIOS chips (switchable via the back panel switch) and the reset button. The heatsink itself is very large and will benefit from some airflow over the area, helping to cool the chipset and particularly the PWM connected via the heatpipe.



Below we see several of the controller chips for the board. On the left is the iTE IT8728 I/O controller that handles the ps/2 ports, hardware monitoring and miscellaneous features such as chassis intrusion detection. The space consuming VIA VT6308P chip handles IEEE1394 (firewire) duties with a port on the back panel and a header for an additional port. Audio is provided by a standard Realtek ALC898 chip supporting HD with up to 7.1 channels. LAN duties are serviced by an Intel controller rather than the commonly seen Realtek solution. On the far right is a Fresco FL1009 chip providing the two ports on the rear panel. A little further off the right of the pic is another Marvell 88SE9172 controlling the two eSATA ports. In total there are three of these Marvell chips on the UD5!



Below are the expansion slots. The three PCIe 16x slots are all PCIe 3.0 compliant with the middle one being an 8x electrical slot. The other two are full 16x slots. There are a pair of PCIe 1x slots that conform to the 2.0 standard. Also present is a legacy PCI slot, a rare sight on an X79 board and possibly a deal maker for those with a PCI card they don't wish to part with.

With three 16x slots, obviously 3way SLI and Crossfire are supported. Those few that want to use 4way will need to choose another board. The cheaper UD3 is 4way capable which is interesting. This is an indicator that Gigabyte is pushing the board towards the content creation and professional market rather than catering for the tiny percentage of 4way users who would likely go for a board like the UD7 anyway.



The PWM heatsink part is really small. Given the power that Sandy Bridge-E chips can pull when overclocked, we think Gigabyte needs to address this design. As a result, good airflow is critical, particularly when overclocking. Both heatsink sections make excellent contact with the components.



As we mentioned in the intro, Gigabyte's X79 motherboards are the company's first to debut digital PWM systems for the CPU and memory. Some major advantages of a digital system over an analogue implementation are finer granularity and control of features such as switching frequency, load line calibration and voltages themselves. Feedback & monitoring are also inherently improved. This solution offers dynamic phase control (perfect for the variable turbo and C-state features of Intel CPU's), I2C support for software control and also saves valuable board space over an equivalent analogue system. In total there are fourteen phases for the CPU on the UD5.

The memory channels feature a similar scaled down system, with one set for each pair of memory channels. These two systems plus the CPU implementation give rise to the 3D Power moniker being pushed by Gigabyte.



Quality IR MOSFET's and tantalum capacitors are found on the rear of the board as well.



The CPU PWM is controlled by an International Rectifier IR3567 digital controller.

[siopao1984]

The BIOS & Software - Gigabyte goes UEFI

Gigabyte's X79 range is their first to feature a UEFI BIOS. While other manufacturers debuted the UEFI system with the launch of the P67 platform, Gigabyte chose to bide their time and get their implementation right. They appear to have done a good job with the interface itself, with good contrasting colour selections, easy navigation and a logical layout. Selecting the icons at the bottom of the default main page takes the user to menus that will be familiar to traditional BIOS tweakers. Users familiar with Gigabyte's motherboards will find their traditional feature list and layout is still largely present.

Gigabyte dubs their new UEFI implementation as 3D BIOS. Below we see the default screen users see upon entering the BIOS. Moving the mouse around the picture of the board highlights different sections and components which are selected with a click. This allows a user not experienced with a traditional BIOS interface to quickly navigate to the settings they wish to change instead of wandering through menus. The interface is slick, very easy to use and is a good implementation for novice users.



Users familiar with Gigabyte boards will recognize these menus. The leftmost menu contains the overclocking settings or Motherboard Intelligent Tweaker in Gigabyte speak.



Moving to the right we see the system information page.



The BIOS features page shows the boot options and CPU configuration settings.



The peripherals page contains the controls for, you guessed it: The peripherals. SATA configuration controls are also located here.



Power management and sleep/wake settings.



Despite not being marketed to overclockers specifically, the UD5 is fully featured and contains all the settings required for the casual and extreme overclockers. In the Motherboard Intelligent Tweaker (M.I.T.) tab there are three major sections for frequencies, voltage and memory. The page below shows the frequency settings including the base clock Gear Ratio or strap which is one of the major additions to the Sandy Bridge-E platform.

We would like to see the ability to save profile names and have the option relocated to the M.I.T page. If you have multiple profiles it can get confusing as to which one is which. As of the latest bios available (F9A) there are four profile slots.



The memory settings page shows the XMP option, multiplier and timings control.



The range of memory timing control is sufficient for 99% of the market. The other 1% of hardcore overclockers may wish to take a look at the UD7 for everything plus the kitchen sink levels of control.



The voltage settings page has further submenus for the different components of the board.



The monitoring page has a good range of information.



Gigabyte Touch BIOS

Moving onto the software we have the Gigabyte Touch BIOS, which is a windows tool containing most of the settings found in the BIOS itself.





Gigabyte 3D Power utility

As we mentioned when talking about the benefits of the IR digital PWM system, one of the benefits is the ability to adjust settings via Windows based software.

Gigabyte offers a program that allows users to adjust aspects of the system. Below is the default screen upon opening the 3D Power utility. Clicking on one of the three sides of the cube takes the user to voltage, frequency or phase control menus.



Voltage Loadline calibration page:



CPU phase controls:



PWM switching frequency controls for all digitally controlled board power:



Other Gigabyte software such as the long used EasyTune have been updated with support for the X79 range.



Read more: Gigabyte X79-UD5 Review by VR-Zone.com

[siopao1984]

Test Setup and Benchmarks Part I

We used the Asus Rampage IV Extreme as a comparison board to the X79 UD5. Although not competitors so to speak, with these reasonable conservative settings the boards should perform very closely unless there is a glaring issue.

Test Setup



Benchmarks











The boards are neck and neck in these CPU and memory focused tests. As is to be expected really at identical settings.

Below is a test of SATA III performance using Crystal Disk Mark. For this test only a SATA III Kingston 120gb HyperX SSD was used. Before each test, the drive was secure erased to maintain comparable results. The results are very close again with the Asus board ahead by a fraction in the 512k read test.

[siopao1984]

Benchmarks Part II

Now for some 3D testing









In terms of 3D Performance, the boards again are expectedly neck and neck. Testing with other boards has shown the R4E to be very efficient at 3D tasks so it's good to see the UD5 is able to match it.

Overall there's basically nothing substantial to split most of the top boards performance wise. Now that several X79 boards have been tested and BIOS' are maturing, we are seeing that other criteria are better for differentiating between the boards such as feature sets, stability and overclocking more so than relative performance.

[siopao1984]

Overclocking

We started our overclocking of the X79-UD5 with some stability testing with a i7 3960X processor.

To find a stable overclock, we limited the voltage to a not too ridiculous BIOS set 1.41v with low level of loadline calibration and pushed as far as we could. This kind of test is heavily dependent on the individual CPU, ambient temperatures and cooling more so than the motherboard so users results will vary. Some may choose to run higher Vcore but beware of running into diminishing returns and unacceptable temperatures. We weren't comfortable pushing a full 12 thread load for extended periods on the Intel branded single 12cm radiator watercooler.

Once we had an idea of the capabilities of the CPU, memory and bclk, we combined them and ran HyperPi 0.99b which runs twelve concurrent Superpi 32m threads. It places a very heavy load on the CPU, IMC and memory. We had little trouble achieving stability at 33x133.7 with a 4x4gb configuration running at a decent speed. Settings like these bode well for users of upcoming i7 3820 CPU's which will rely on the bclk strap to get the best out of them. Using the F8G BIOS, the 125Mhz bclk strap is considerably improved over our previous testing. Impressive!

1.38v Loaded



1.404v Idle



Following on from our note on the first page, despite some fears that Gigabyte was crippling the boards to prevent PWM damage, the UD5 showed it is easily capable of running an overclocked processor reliably and stably as we would expect from just about every X79 motherboard.

We did spent a little time attempting to overclock a 32gb configuration consisting of eight 4gb modules. This places a heavy burden on the integrated memory controller of the CPU. We ran two different 4x4gb kits with different memory IC's rated at different speeds and timings at the same time.

We were able to hit just over 2000Mhz but couldn't achieve any real stability. The most likely reason being differing tertiary subtimings conflicting between the different modules. We went back to 1866Mhz and with next to no tweaking we were perfectly stable at mostly auto settings. While not a stellar result, 32gb of memory at this speed is still impressive considering this is a common speed with just 2x2gb.

The board struggles sometimes in dealing with a failed overclock. When pushing memory too hard the board goes into a reboot loop that requires a PSU power off before booting to a failed OC prompt.

CPU clocking was very similar to other boards tested. Heat became a limiting factor before the motherboard ran into issues. A hot Australian summer combined with mediocre air conditioning is not the optimum time for really pushing an overclock!

[siopao1984]

Conclusion

The Gigabyte X79-UD5 is primarily marketed at users placing features, stability, multithreaded/content creation workloads and memory capacity above all else. When evaluating it with these criteria it does very well and has all the features most users would expect of a premium motherboard.

Gigabyte is not pushing the UD5 as the overclockers choice in their range with power users urged to consider the X79 OC X79-UD7. Despite this, the UD5 shows itself to be capable of doing most of what we asked of it in terms of stability testing, memory overclocking and base clock performance. The board did not have any issue related to powering the CPU at 1.5v+ putting to rest in our mind any fears the PWM hardware is seriously flawed. The LN2 crowd is much more likely to be using the UD7 over the UD5 so its business as usual on that front really. The UD5 proved to be a solid overclocking board for a not so overclocking focused board. Good stuff.

The Gigabyte X79-UD5 is a good solid board. It is much improved using later BIOSes and getting better all the time, particularly on the memory side. It has a quality feature list, its efficiency is fine, its stable and it looks great. It doesn't quite distinguish itself enough to earn an unequivocal favorite recommendation, however users looking for a fully featured, affordable and efficient board with decent overclocking capabilities backed by Gigabyte's five year warranty and support network continuing throughout and beyond the lifespan of the platform could do far worse than use a UD5 at the heart of their system. Do bear in mind it is an extended ATX board so be sure it will fit in your case!

The Gigabyte X79-UD5 carries a US suggested retail price of $324.99

[kenox]

nice ang interface sah bios =)