Review: gigabyte ga-x79s-up5
Gigabyte presents us with its latest creation of the 2011 platform: Gigabyte GA-X79S-UP5-Wifi . Among its novelties we find a high current design with digital controllers with the IR3550 PowIRstage chip, compatibility with NVIDIA / ATI cards in 3 Way SLI / CrossFire and its great incentive: the integration of the Intel C606 chipset for SAS ports.
Product ceded by:
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GIGABYTE Z77X-UP5 TH FEATURES |
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Processor |
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Chipset |
Intel® C606 Express Chipset |
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Memory |
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Integrated Graphics |
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| Audio |
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Wireless network and LAN card |
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Expansion Sockets |
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| Multi Graphics Technology | Supports 3-Way / 2-Way AMD CrossFireX ™ / NVIDIA SLI technology |
| Storage interface | Chipset:
Marvell 88SE9172 chip:
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| USB / IEEE 1394 | Chipset:
Cool FL1009 chip:
VIA VL800 chip:
VIA VT6308 chip:
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| Rear connectors. |
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| BIOS |
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| Format | E-ATX: 30.5cm x 26.4cm |
These GIGABYTE boards use GIGABYTE's award-winning Ultra Durable ™ 5 technology, which includes components capable of withstanding high currents for the CPU power zone, such as the IR3550 PowIRstage® chip from International Rectifier, 2X Copper PCB and choke coils with certified ferrite cores up to 60A, which are jointly capable of supplying temperatures up to 60º below traditional motherboards. GIGABYTE Ultra Durable ™ 5 technology is the next evolution in quality motherboard designs, and is available on a comprehensive set of motherboards based on the Intel® X79 and Z77 Express chipsets.
The motherboard also includes a unique PCIe expansion card that offers connectivity via Bluetooth 4.0 and Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11 b / g / n. The Bluetooth 4.0 standard includes Smart Ready technology that debuts on mobile devices like the Apple ® iPhone ® 4s. This means that transferring content from a smart phone or tablet will be easier and faster than ever.
GIGABYTE's revolutionary 3D BIOS ™ application is based on our new UEFI DualBIOS ™ technology, available in two unique interaction modes never seen before in BIOS environments. GIGABYTE has redefined the way that BIOS is traditionally handled by providing medium and enthusiast users with a variety of unique and powerful graphics environments.
UEFI DualBIOS ™ Technology
At the heart of this incredible 3D BIOS ™ technology is a pair of physical BIOS ROMs that contain the exclusive UEFI BIOS technology designed by GIGABYTE. With graphical capabilities including 23-bit color and smooth mouse navigation in a friendly environment, the UEFI DualBIOS ™ makes BIOS setup a novel and engaging experience for both novice and experienced users alike. UEFI BIOS also natively supports large disk drives on 64-bit operating systems.
3D mode
Designed to provide a highly harmonized BIOS environment, GIGABYTE's exclusive 3D Mode offers a fully interactive and clear user interface that allows the user to optimize performance through key configuration adjustments in the UEFI BIOS in a simple and intuitive way. 3D Mode allows novice or casual users to clearly understand which areas of the board are affected by BIOS changes, thus clearly understanding how the BIOS works.
Advanced mode
Advanced Mode offers a more comprehensive UEFI BIOS environment designed specifically for overclockers and power users who need maximum control of their PC hardware. The hallmark of GIGABYTE's MIT tuning technology can be found alongside other fully configurable parameters within GIGABYTE's new 3D Digital Power Motor. In short, Advanced mode combines the accumulated BIOS experience expected from GIGABYTE, wrapped in a new and optimized UEFI graphical interface layer.
This GIGABYTE motherboard is equipped to be able to help the most extreme players see the enemy in the distance, no matter how bloody the battlefield, and offer the greatest flexibility and upgradeability, with support for multiple GPUs and with three PCI Express slots for both AMD CrossFire ™ X and Nvidia SLI ™ technology in discrete 3-way configurations. This GIGABYTE motherboard provides maximum FPS, allowing players to see more clearly, aim faster, and move faster.
Today, SAS is the dominant storage technology on servers, workstations, and computers for professional digital media creators.
The Intel C606 chipset provides SAS support with up to eight SAS disks. Its improved performance and long-term stability make SAS disks ideal for critical and intensive 24/7 workstation applications.
- Faster reads and writes - up to 15, 000rpm
-Lower search times - more responsiveness
-Better long-term stability - MTBF of up to 2 million hours
-MTBF: Mean Time Between Failures
-Available in 3.5 ″ and 2.5 ″ compact form factors
-Better data integrity thanks to the SCSI protocol
Gigabyte presents its X79S-UP5-WIFI motherboard in a robust box and excellently protected. On the front we can see the infinity of logos and certifications achieved. At the back we have all the perfectly detailed characteristics that this motherboard has.
The plate includes a large batch of accessories:
- Manuals and quick guide SLI / CrossFire cables Wifis 802.11 b / g / n.Installation CDs Rear hood.
I'm in love? Its blue / black color scheme and its excellent aesthetics achieve this. With an E-ATX size of 30.5cm x 26.4cm it allows us to install it in any cabinet on the market.
The board has an excellent layout, since it allows us to install up to 3 high-end graphics cards. In addition we have a total of 4 PCI Express ports to perform distributed computing and 4 independent graphics.
Refrigeration is possibly one of its strongest points. Robust, efficient and highly dissipative heatsinks. We also have to bear in mind that the board incorporates Ultra Durable 5 technology with a double layer of PCBs, high-end chocks (certified up to 60A) capable of supplying temperatures up to 60º below the competition.
The power phases are also protected by the back of the motherboard.
It incorporates 8 DDR3 sockets that support up to a total of 64 GB DDR3 at 2133 mhz with overclock. Memory limits?
Thanks to the Intel C606 chipset we have 14 SATA connections and compatibility with SAS devices. We will never have trouble installing hard drives or optical drives.
Although the board does not allow us to perform a strong overclock, it incorporates an 8-pin connection for the power supply. Although we already anticipated that we have reached 4500 mhz comfortably with this motherboard.
Back board connections, Dual LAN, E-SATA, USB 3.0, OC button, etc…
Like previous analyzed motherboards, the motherboard incorporates its excellent UEFI DUAL BIOS in 3D version or Advanced Mode. We leave you some screenshots of the advanced mode.
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TESTING BENCH |
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Processor: |
Intel i7 3960X |
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Base plate: |
Gigabyte X79S-UP5-WIFI |
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Memory: |
Kingston Hyperx Predator |
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Heatsink |
Corsair H100i |
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HDD |
Kingston Hyperx 120gb |
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Graphic card |
SLI GIGABYTE GTX580 OC |
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Power supply |
Antec HCP 850 |
To check the stability of the processor and motherboard. We have performed a moderate OC at 4600 mhz with Prime 95 Custom and two Gigabyte GTX580 OC graphics cards.
The performance has been very good: "28892" points with 3d Mark Vantage. As we expected the Gigabyte X79S-UP5 Wifi allows us to get the most out of our processor. Let's see the results obtained in the rest of the tests:
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TESTS |
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3dMark Vantage: |
28892 PTS TOTAL. |
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3dMark11 |
6642 PTS. |
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Heaven Unigine v2.1 |
63.1 FPS and 1590 PTS. |
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CineBench |
OPENGPL: 65.08 AND CPU: 13.16. |
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Battelfield 3 at 1920 × 1200 high level. |
99.80 FPS. |
The Gigabyte GA-X79S-UP5-WIFI is a motherboard for socket 2011 with X79 chipset, certification for 3 Way CrossFireX / SLI technology, 8 DDR3 slots up to 64GB (compatible with ECC), Dual BIOS UEFI and the latest in wireless connections: Bluetooth 4.0 and dual Wi-Fi 802.11N.
It incorporates Ultra Durable 5 technology controlled by efficient IR3550 PowIRstage chips with 95% efficiency at higher current levels. Also, it allows us small collateral power losses assuming less heat in our equipment. If we add the integration of one of the best passive dissipations on the market, we have some of the coolest and safest motherboards on the market
The X79S UP5 Wifi comes equipped with the Intel C606 Chipset making it the motherboard with the highest number of SATA 3.0 / 6.0 connections, specifically 14, on the market. This is due to the Intel C606 chipset that allows us to connect up to eight SAS hard drives improving performance and stability from its connection. What improvements do we find? Faster read / write, less search times, better long-term stability (MTBF of 2 million hours), better data integration thanks to the SCSI protocol. A wonder for lovers of Workstation motherboards.
In our test bench we have used high-end material: i7 3960X at 4500 mhz, two Gigabyte GTX580 OC graphics cards at 780 mhz and 16GB DDR3 at 2133 mhz. The team has given excellent performance with 29, 000 points in 3DMARK Vantage and 6650 in 3DMARK11.
We can define the Gigabyte GA-X79S-UP5-WIFI as an efficient, robust, fresh board, a good repertoire of SATA connections and with a good overclock margin. Without a doubt it is among the 3 best motherboards for socket 2011 on the market. Its price is at the height of the motherboard: € 300-310.
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ADVANTAGE |
DISADVANTAGES |
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+ BLUE-GRAY AESTHETICS AND BLACK PCB. |
- NONE. |
| + EXCELLENT REFRIGERATION. | |
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+ ULTRA DURABLE 5 AND UEFI DUAL BIOS. |
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+ 14 SATA CONNECTIONS (INTEL C606). |
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+ GOOD PLATE FOR OVERCLOCK. |
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| + BLUETOOTH 4.0 AND DUAL WIFI. |
The Professional Review team awards you the Platinum Medal and Recommended Product Badge:
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