DFI PW65-D 810 ATX Slot-1

The Bad

For a "revolutionary" chipset, the PW65-D doesn't do the 810 much justice. A 1/6/0 expansion slot configuration would've been desired, however 5 PCI slots isn't anything to complain about either. The lack of a heatsink on the relatively hot 810-DC100 GMCH isn't too reassuring and definitely doesn't contribute to the board's stability to any positive extent. The lack of a manual voltage adjustment feature in the BIOS is also a downside for die hard overclockers, although the inclusion of the 95MHz FSB setting isn't a bad move at all.

The User's Manual bundled with the PW65-D is nothing more than a more in-depth regurgitation of the i810 press release and the spec sheet for the motherboard itself, if only the PC99 specification had a clause for including basic installation instructions in written documentation... DFI doesn't get points for user friendliness in that sense, not the most comforting motherboard for the first time builder.

Considering the average nature of the PW65-D, the $120+ price is definitely not justified, you're better off spending your money in a few weeks on something a little spicier.

USB Compatibility

• Number of Front Universal Serial Bus Root Ports: 0

• Number of Rear Universal Serial Bus Root Ports: 2

• USB IRQ Enable/Disable in BIOS: Yes

• USB Keyboard Support in BIOS: Yes

Recommended SDRAM

Recommended SDRAM: Mushkin SEC -GH PC100 SDRAM; Memory Man SEC -GH PC100 SDRAM
SDRAM Tested: 1 x 64MB Mushkin PC100 SDRAM; 1 x 64MB Memory-Man PC100 SDRAM; 1 x 256MB Corsair PC100 SDRAM DIMM (for compatibility testing only)

Manufacturer: The Memory Man
Purchase Web-Site: http://www.memory-man.com

Manufacturer: Mushkin
Purchase Web-Site: http://www.mushkin.com

USB Compatibility

• Number of Front Universal Serial Bus Root Ports: 0

• Number of Rear Universal Serial Bus Root Ports: 2

• USB IRQ Enable/Disable in BIOS: Yes

• USB Keyboard Support in BIOS: Yes