Our testing methods
Obviously, we'll be pitting the Rampage Formula and DX48BT2 against each other. We've thrown in a collection of LGA775 motherboards based on a variety of different chipsets to liven things up a little, as well. Those results should provide a good frame of reference for the kind of performance that can be expected from most of the enthusiast-oriented Core 2 motherboards currently on the market.
All tests were run three times, and their results were averaged.
| Processor | Core 2 Duo E6750 2.67GHz | ||||||
| System bus | 1333MHz (333MHz quad-pumped) | ||||||
| Motherboard | Asus P5K3 Deluxe | Asus P5E3 Deluxe | Gigabyte X48T-DQ6 | XFX MB-N790I-UL9 | Intel DX48BT2 | XFX MB-N780-ISH9 | Asus Rampage Formula |
| Bios revision | 0604 | 0201 | F4D | 811N1P01 | 1521.EB | 2.053.B2 | 0219 |
| North bridge | Intel P35 Express | Intel X38 Express | Intel X48 Express | nForce 790i SLI Ultra SPP | Intel X48 Express | nForce 780i SLI SPP | Intel X48 Express |
| South bridge | Intel ICH9R | Intel ICH9R | Intel ICH9R | nForce 790i SLI MCP | Intel ICH9R | nForce 780i SLI MCP | Intel ICH9R |
| Chipset drivers |
Chipset 8.3.1.1009 AHCI 7.8.0.1012 |
Chipset 8.3.1.1009 AHCI 7.8.0.1012 |
Chipset 8.3.1.1009 AHCI 7.8.0.1012 |
ForceWare 9.64 |
Chipset 8.3.1.1009 AHCI 7.8.0.1012 |
ForceWare 9.46 |
Chipset 8.3.1.1009 AHCI 7.8.0.1012 |
| Memory size | 2GB (2 DIMMs) | 2GB (2 DIMMs) | 2GB (2 DIMMs) | 2GB (2 DIMMs) | 2GB (2 DIMMs) | 2GB (2 DIMMs) | 2GB (2 DIMMs) |
| Memory type | Corsair CM3X1024-1600C7DHX DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz | Corsair CM2X2048-8500C5 DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz | |||||
| CAS latency (CL) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 4 |
| RAS to CAS delay (tRCD) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 4 |
| RAS precharge (tRP) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 4 |
| Cycle time (tRAS) | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 12 | 12 |
| Command rate | 1T | 1T | 1T | 1T | 1T | 1T | 1T |
| Audio codec | Integrated AD1988B with 5.10.1.6110 drivers | Integrated AD1988B with 7.0.0.0 drivers | Integrated ALC889A with 1.88 drivers | Integrated ALC888S with 1.88 drivers | Integrated 9274D with 5762.5713.v68 drivers | Integrated ALC888S with 1.88 drivers | Integrated AD1988B with 6.10.1.6280 drivers |
| Graphics | GeForce 8800 GT 1GB PCIe with ForceWare 169.25 drivers | ||||||
| Hard drive | Western Raptor X 150GB | ||||||
| OS | Windows Vista Ultimate x86 with KB936710, KB938194, KB938979, KB940105 updates | ||||||
Thanks to Corsair for providing us with memory for our testing.
All of our test systems were powered by OCZ GameXStream 700W power supply units. Thanks to OCZ for providing these units for our use in testing.
Finally, we'd like to thank Western Digital for sending Raptor WD1500ADFD hard drives for our test rigs.
We used the following versions of our test applications:
- SiSoft Sandra Standard 2008 13.12
- WorldBench 6.0 Beta 2
- TCD Labs HD Tach 3.01
- Call of Duty 4 1.4
- RightMark Audio Analyzer 6.06
- NTttcp
- Crysis 1.1
- Enemy Territory: Quake Wars 1.4
- Half-Life 2: Episode 2
- CPU-Z 1.41
The test systems' Windows desktop was set at 1280x1024 in 32-bit color at an 85Hz screen refresh rate. Vertical refresh sync (vsync) was disabled for all tests.
All the tests and methods we employed are publicly available and reproducible. If you have questions about our methods, hit our forums to talk with us about them.
