Sandy Bridge-E and X79 – The ASUS P9X79 PRO Review
by Ian Cutress on November 14, 2011 3:01 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
- Asus
- X79
3D Movement Algorithm Test
The algorithms in 3DPM employ both uniform random number generation or normal distribution random number generation, and vary in various amounts of trigonometric operations, conditional statements, generation and rejection, fused operations, etc. The benchmark runs through six algorithms for a specified number of particles and steps, and calculates the speed of each algorithm, then sums them all for a final score. This is an example of a real world situation that a computational scientist may find themselves in, rather than a pure synthetic benchmark. The benchmark is also parallel between particles simulated, and we test the single thread performance as well as the multi-threaded performance.
As expected, due to the 3960X, we have a clear lead on 3DPM. In single thread mode, we have a 3.9 GHz core taking top place, and the power of 12 threads at 3.6 GHz in multithreaded mode shows in the 914.76 score.
WinRAR x64 3.93 - link
With 64-bit WinRAR, we compress the set of files used in the USB speed tests. WinRAR x64 3.93 attempts to use multithreading when possible.
The more cores and threads for WinRar also play a role in providing some excellent times in comparison to other chipsets.
FastStone Image Viewer 4.2 - link
FastStone Image Viewer is a free piece of software I have been using for quite a few years now. It allows quick viewing of flat images, as well as resizing, changing color depth, adding simple text or simple filters. It also has a bulk image conversion tool, which we use here. The software currently operates only in single-thread mode, which should change in later versions of the software. For this test, we convert a series of 170 files, of various resolutions, dimensions and types (of a total size of 163MB), all to the .gif format of 640x480 dimensions.
In this single threaded workload, no real difference is seen compared to P67, showing that for FastStone, memory is not a limiting factor, and the move to SB-E doesn't make much of a difference.
Sorenson Squeeze 6.0 - link
Sorenson Squeeze is a professional video encoder, complete with a vast array of options. For this test, we convert 32 HD videos, each a minute long and approximately 42 MB in size, to WMV 512KBps format. Squeeze can encode multiple videos at once, one for each thread.
With Squeeze being a fully multithreaded test, we're comparing a 4 thread i5-2500K to a 12 thread 3960X, so it's no wonder that the 3960X comes out on top.
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buildingblock - Monday, November 14, 2011 - link
Amongst all the other goodies, the outstanding feature for me is the BIOS fan control. Well done to Asus, this board has probably the best PWM based fan control yet. Other board makers, particularly GigaByte, please take note.ASUSTechMKT - Monday, November 14, 2011 - link
Thanks so much for the feedback. We have been working hard to consistently improve in the quality of fan controls. Kudos to Ian for taking the time to detail it as well. This is somethign we have to take more time in the development ( Super I/O controller and frmware and software ) but any serious enthuiast can appreciate the additional functionality and increased usability.Thanks again!
jigglywiggly - Monday, November 14, 2011 - link
am i the only one kind of dissapointed? No integrated gpu is lame, also not that much faster.Kougar - Monday, November 14, 2011 - link
Holy moly, $330 for just the Pro?Given the extreme prices involved here, I'd especially like to know the key differences between the Pro and the Deluxe models, and even the Pro and the vanilla model as well.
ASUSTechMKT - Monday, November 14, 2011 - link
DeluxeOffers BT3.0 with Wifi, Additionally USB3, Dual Lan, A more advanced VRM heatsink assembly,
In regards to the pricing it is important to remember many of the additional items incorporated have a higher cost ( such as the hardware required to allow for UEFI flashing with CPU, Memory or a Graphics card this required a hardware level IC, the more advanced super I/O controller with more advanced fan controls for all the headers ) These additional touches add to the total cost of the board.
Kougar - Monday, November 14, 2011 - link
Thank you for the reply!For anyone else curious, after some digging I can say that in addition to the above, P9X79 Vanilla also loses the Marvell controller and associated SATA 6Gb/s ports. The Realtek sound chip also changes from a 898 to the 892, not sure what the difference is. The PWM phase design appears to remain unchanged between the vanilla and PRO models, while the Deluxe doubles the CPU & uncore phases.
Somewhat oddly, the P9X79 also gains a firewire port over the PRO model.
ASUSTechMKT - Wednesday, November 16, 2011 - link
Yes as you go up the boards you will also have more USB 3 (as the PRO has more USB which makes sense as 1394 is a legacy standard). Main reason it is offered on the Standard is that this model is adopted by sometimes business or professionals you still need some legacy connections.In regards to the overall VRM design we use the same high quality dual N mosfet package on all three boards and advanced driver this aligns with the high amperage rated choke. While the "phase" is increased on the Deluxe this only helps to slightly improve balancing of the VRM otherwise the performance for overall power delivery is rated the same. (Although the advanced heatsink design as you move up will help to ensure a cooler operating temperature for the VRM assembly.
Hope it helps!
Filiprino - Monday, November 14, 2011 - link
There was a rumour saying ASUS would release a dual socket LGA2011 motherboard to compete with EVGA SR-3. Any news?Kougar - Monday, November 14, 2011 - link
The board exists, but I haven't seen anything about it so far. Very curious to see it and the EVGA SR-3 compared, even if just to drool over!ASUSTechMKT - Wednesday, November 16, 2011 - link
Sorry cannot comment on that one......