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DFI LANPARTY DK P55-T3eH9 Review
[Abstract]
Introduction It's still early days yet since the launch of Intel's new mainstream Lynnfield processors and the LGA1156 motherboards that support it. So far, we have no proper sales figures from...
[Content] PCDigitalMobileGame
The DFI LANParty DK P55-T3eH9
The long and sometimes cryptic naming conventions used for motherboards can often bewilder us with its logic (or lack of) but DFI has been quite consistent in its system. The '9' at the end of the string for the DFI LANParty DK P55-T3eH9 refers to the nine-phase power design that's found on this board, with DFI opting for a digital PWM design for power efficiency. As usual, these are clustered around the CPU socket.
DFI uses a 9-phase digital PWM design for this board. Also, if you're worried about the socket, it's from LOTES, not Foxconn. |
And yes, if you're not in the loop about the processor burns associated with the use of Foxconn sockets that AnandTech highlighted recently, it's time to do some reading. In any case, DFI uses LOTES so that's not an issue. Besides, the general enthusiast shouldn't have any problems with Foxconn sockets either, unless we're talking about extreme overclocks that involve liquid nitrogen. More importantly however is the pressure applied when mounting your coolers, so pay special attention when doing so and practice safe installation methods. From our own investigation and discussion with motherboard vendors, this seems to be the bigger issue. So this means no shortcuts or compromises - and something that's taken for granted as enthusiasts grow all too confident with their own way of doing things.
Among the usual outputs that are found at the rear panel, DFI included a surprise. And no, it's not a clear CMOS switch, though there is one included. |
Next, we move to the rear panel of the DFI, where besides the usual assortment of outputs, including both optical and coaxial S/PDIF and a clear CMOS switch, we found a mini-USB connector. If you have seen our Computex coverage, this connector is DFI's new BIOSecure feature, which is similar to what ASUS is doing with its ROG Connect, as seen here.
The surprise is this mini-USB port, which is part of a technology DFI calls BIOSecure. What it does is it allows users to flash the BIOS of the DFI motherboard using another system when connected through this mini-USB port and the included cable, even when it's powered down. |
While ASUS' ROG Connect is focused on allowing users to tweak their settings on the fly, DFI's BIOSecure is about securing the BIOS. One can update the existing BIOS on the board via another system using the USB cable and the software utility provided. This can be used to resurrect damaged BIOS or faulty settings without even powering the motherboard. Serving a dual role of both securing and updating the BIOS, we can see this being an extra but helpful feature, especially when disaster strikes your board.
The other feature that's unique to DFI is its Auto Boost System, now known as ABS II on this DFI board. It is basically a way to boot the system using profiles with tweaked settings from the BIOS. One can 'swap' profiles with fellow users online and it is a rather useful way for beginners to get a headstart on overclocking by building on what others have tried. This is particularly important since DFI's BIOS settings can be rather perplexing and unwelcome to beginners due to its complexity and organization. Things however have changed for the better and the BIOS layout for the P55-T3eH9 is much improved (it feels more like an ASUS BIOS surprisingly).
Conveniently too, DFI has included a BIOS profile on this board that pushes the base clock to 160MHz from 133MHz. It's not really close to a decent overclock for the P55 and Lynnfield, since MSI and ASUS' current auto-overclocking tools can reach a higher clock, but at least it's something and it's automatically applied by default.
Eight SATA ports should be sufficient for most users, the two black ones here are provided by the JMB322 controller and hence shouldn't be used without installing the proper drivers. |
Quite a few of the P55 motherboards we have seen have increased the number of SATA ports on their models from the standard six. DFI too adds two more (colored in black) and this is possible via a third-party controller from JMicron. The alignment and position of these SATA ports gets the thumbs up from us, though we expect no less than that from DFI.
The power and IDE connectors are as usual near the DIMM slots. |
Legacy support remains on this board, from the PS/2 connectors at the rear to having both IDE and floppy connectors available. There's even a COM port header for those who need that. However, we saw no FireWire controller and unlike the more extreme boards, just a single Gigabit Ethernet port, albeit Intel-branded. HD audio is provided via a Realtek HD audio CODEC and DFI advertises this board as having support for Creative's X-Fi features, but this of course this is done by the onboard Realtek audio chip via software and not a true hardware solution.
Onboard power and reset buttons are a boon for enthusiasts who have their systems open and not in a chassis. Also, a clear CMOS option is onboard in case you find the rear panel version too inconvenient. |
Finally, there's room for up to three graphics cards on this board, which trumps some of its competitors that offer only two. Of course, the third PEG slot only has the equivalent bandwidth of a PCIe x4 so do take note. While it's less than optimal, with 3-way configurations, you're likely looking at diminishing returns even before this is factored in. At least DFI provides sufficient allowance in its expansion slots for three dual-slot graphics cards.
Not all P55 motherboards come with three PCIe 2.0 slots for graphics cards. The DFI is one, allowing it to support 3-way SLI or CrossFireX. There's ample space too for dual-slot cards. |
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