BIOS: as good as the rest?
| Item | Specifications |
|---|---|
| CPU FSB (BCLK) | 100MHz-250MHz in 1MHz increments |
| CPU multiplier | 12x - 60x on 965 EE |
| Memory bus multiplier | Auto, Force DDR3-800, Force DDR3-1,066, Force DDR3-1,333 |
| CPU voltage | 1.00V - 1.60V in 0.00625V increments |
| CPU VTT (uncore) |
1.00V to 1.575V in 0.025V increments |
| Memory voltage | 1.5V to 2.77V in 0.01V increments |
| X58 IOH voltage | 1.1V-1.4V in 0.1V increments |
| ICH10 voltage | 1.5V- 1.65V in 0.05V increments |
Discussion
XFX provides a basic tweaking section under, ironically, the 'advanced' tab of the BIOS that's very ASUS-like on first glance.The base clock-speed doesn't have the incredible range of adjustment seen on others, but a Core i7 920 would be running 5GHz if at the top end of the scale.
Memory ratios are poor, and the user can force one of three speeds, with the fastest being DDR3-1,333MHz with a BCLK of 133MHz. Yes you can go higher by raising the BCLK, yet many competitive boards offer DDR3-1,866 right off the base 133MHz clock.
CPU voltage, too, is fine-tuned but lacking in top-end, however the same cannot be said of the memory, so it's galling that the input speed isn't higher.
Gallery
Here's the advanced section with the basic adjustments.
And the section that most readers would head to, that is, overclocking. The uncore speed can be set separately, as well as Turbo Mode, QPI, and memory frequency.
Annoyingly, you cannot set the desired BCLK by inputting a number; you have to cycle through them all. Further, increasing any parameter doesn't instantly update the 'current' frequencies on the v1.1 BIOS.
Scrolling on down, there are a decent array of options by which to fine-tune the board.
Heading in to the DRAM section, you can manually configure each parameter, including command rate. The Crucial RAM's latencies are correctly identified in this section, populating the three topmost channels.
With the usual number of user-input options on X58 boards, and this one being no different from the rest, XFX, sensibly, adds a BIOS-reload function that can either manually store three settings or, as a selling point, overclock a Core i7 920 to either 940 or 965 EE speeds.
There's no real trickery here other than raising the BCLK - 160MHz for a 965 EE - and increasing voltages
Trouble is, DIMM voltage is taken up to 1.65V and CPU core and uncore given a shot in the arm, but the overclock relies on a straight ratio jump, meaning that RAM is overclocked by, in this case, 28 per cent. Your components need to be up to it.
Summary
A decent number of options but XFX drops the ball by not offering a little higher Vcore and better memory ratios at stock speeds.
