Sound card for p35 neo. MSI P35 Neo3 is an inexpensive solution based on Intel P35. Ports, connectors and connectors on the surface of the board
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Today we will look at two boards based on the P35 chipset: MSI P35 Neo and MSI P35 Neo Combo. Both products are intended for middle-end systems, however, due to the novelty of the chipset, the retail price is quite high. In our opinion, the time has not yet come for the P35 chipset: it does not provide a noticeable increase in functionality, and also does not provide a performance increase in conjunction with DDR3 memory. As for supporting processors with a 1333 MHz bus, there are a lot of motherboards based on previous generation chipsets that officially support such processors. |
Specifications
| CPU | - Intel Pentium 4 (Prescott (2M)/Gallatin/CedarMill) with bus frequency 1066/800/533 MHz;
- Dual-core Intel Pentium D/EE (Smithfield/Presler) with bus frequency 800/1066 MHz; - Intel Celeron-D (Prescott) with a bus frequency of 533 MHz; - Support Intel Core 2 Duo (Kentsfield (4 cores), Conroe/Allendale (2 cores)) with bus frequency 800/1066/1333 MHz; - Support for Intel Yorkfield, Wolfdale with bus frequency 1333/1066/800 MHz; - Socket LGA775 connector; - Support for processors with HyperThreading technology; |
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| Chipset | - Northbridge Intel P35 Memory Controller Hub (MCH);
- South Bridge Intel ICH9 (Enhanced I/O Controller Hub); - Communication between bridges: DMI; |
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| System memory | - Two 240-pin slots for DDR2 SDRAM DIMM;
- Two 240-pin slots for DDR3 SDRAM DIMM; - Maximum memory capacity 4 GB; - Memory type DDR3 800/1066 is supported; |
- Four 240-pin slots for DDR2 SDRAM DIMM;
- Maximum memory capacity 8 GB; - Memory type DDR2 667/800 is supported; - Dual-channel memory access is possible; |
| Graphic arts | - One slot PCI Express x16; | |
| Expansion options | - Two 32-bit PCI Bus Master slots;
- Three PCI Express x1 slots; - Twelve USB 2.0 ports (4 built-in + 8 additional); - Two IEEE1394 ports (Firewire; one built-in + one additional); - Built-in High Defenition Audio 7.1 sound; - Gigabit Ethernet network controller; |
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| Overclocking options | - Changing the FSB frequency from 200 to 500 MHz in 1 MHz steps; multiplier change;
- Change the voltage on the processor, memory, PCI-E and chipset (nb & sb); |
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| Disk subsystem | - 1 channel UltraDMA133/100/66/33 Bus Master IDE (Marvell 88SE6111; supporting up to 2 ATAPI devices);
- Support for SerialATA II protocol (4 channels - ICH9); - Support for SerialATA II protocol (1 channel - Marvell 88SE6111); - Support LS-120 / ZIP / ATAPI CD-ROM; |
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| BIOS | - 4Mbit Flash ROM; - AMI BIOS with support for Enhanced ACPI, DMI, Green, PnP Features; |
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| Miscellaneous | - One port for FDD, one serial port, ports for PS/2 mouse and keyboard;
- STR (Suspend to RAM); - SPDIF Out; |
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| Power management | - Wake up from modem, mouse, keyboard, network, timer and USB;
- Main 24-pin ATX power connector; - Additional 4-pin power connector; |
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| Monitoring | - Monitoring processor temperature, system temperature, voltage, rotation speed of three fans;
- Smart Fan technology; |
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| Size | - ATX form factor, 220mm x 305mm (8.65" x 12"); | |
Boxes
The contents of both boards are exactly the same.
- Motherboard;
- User's Guide on English language+ quick guide;
- Disk with software and drivers;
- One ATA-133 cable;
- One SerialATA cable + power adapter (one connector);
- Blank on back panel housings;
And it contains only the most necessary components for assembly.
Boards
It's easy to see that both boards have a very similar PCB design. The only differences are in the area of the memory slots. In particular, the MSI P35 Neo Combo board has four multi-colored slots, two of which are for DDR2 modules, and two for DDR3.
The MSI P35 Neo board also has four slots, but all of them are for DDR2 modules.
Each board has three fan connectors: one 4-pin (for the processor cooler) and two three-pin. The latter are not used - the chipset cooling system is completely passive and consists of two radiators.
The boards have one PCI Express x16 slot, two PCI slots and three PCI Express x1 slots.
Both boards have an ICH9 southbridge with a heatsink. As a result, the boards support four SerialATA II channels.
In addition, the boards have an additional ParallelATA/SerialATA controller Marvell 88SE6111.
As a result, seven hard drives (5 SATA + 2 PATA) can be connected to each of the boards. Next, the ICH9 southbridge supports 12 USB2.0 ports: four on the rear panel, and eight more are connected using brackets (not included). In addition, the boards support serial bus Firewire. To do this, they are equipped with an additional controller VT6308P manufactured by VIA.
Accordingly, the boards support two ports, one of which is installed on the rear panel, the other is connected using a bracket (not included).
Also, both boards have the ALC888 audio codec installed.
A few words about the network: both boards support high-speed network connections; they have the same RTL8111B controller installed:
The rear panel of the boards is the same and has the following configuration:
Let's talk about BIOS settings.
BIOS
The BIOS of the MSI P35 Neo and P35 Neo Combo boards is based on the AMI BIOS version and is as unified as possible.
In the memory settings section there is the following set of timings:
An important parameter that affects performance is the memory frequency setting.
Let's look at the system monitoring section.
Both boards display the current values of processor and system temperatures, voltages, monitor the rotation speed of three fans, and have the function of adjusting the rotation of the processor cooler depending on the CPU temperature.
Overclocking and stability
Before moving on to overclocking, let's look at power converters. Their circuit is the same: the PWM of the MSI P35 Neo Combo board and the MSI P35 Neo board has a 3-phase circuit, in which one capacitor with a capacity of 3300 μF, four capacitors of 1000 μF and eight of 680 μF are installed.
The overclocking features are also the same.
| Pay | MSI P35 Neo/Neo Combo |
| Changing the multiplier | + |
| Change FSB | 200 to 500 MHz (1) |
| Vcore change | up to +0.7875 V (0.0125 V) |
| Vmem change | 1.8 V to 3.3 V (0.05-0.1 V) |
| Change Vdd | 1.2 V to 1.6 V (0.025 V) |
| Change Vpcix | 1.5 V to 1.8 V (0.1 V) |
| Change Vsb | from 1.05 V; 1.15 V |
| Vtt change | 1.2V to 1.6V (0.025V) |
| PCI-E Change | 100 MHz to 200 MHz (1) |
A few words about the MSI D.O.T mode, in which overclocking occurs exactly when needed. In other words, the FSB frequency increases when a resource-intensive application is launched (for example, a game). And after exiting the application, the system returns to the normal frequency.
Let's look at the practical results of overclocking. The maximum stable FSB frequency of the MSI P35 Neo board is 466 MHz; the MSI P35 Neo Combo board has 350 MHz.
Performance
When determining the starting FSB frequency, it turned out that both boards overestimate it by 1 MHz.
Published back on PS, we began to explore motherboards in the lower price range, which are not perceived by most users as “overclocking” products. Compared to a similar priced product called Biostar TP45 HP, the MSI P45 Neo-F motherboard has only one significant advantage - widespread availability. When looking for the next candidate for review, it was decided to find a board that combines the same popularity as the MSI P45 Neo-F, but is neither a direct nor indirect competitor in price terms to the Biostar TP45 HP. After a short search, such a board was found - MSI P35 Neo.
INTRODUCING THE MOTHERBOARD
Launched on the market over a year ago, the MSI P35 Neo motherboard comes in a small blue box.
advertising
The front side provides information about compatibility with processors and the supported system bus frequency. WITH reverse side provides information about the main technologies and capabilities:
On the side there is a sticker with the main characteristics:
The scope of delivery is typical for all motherboards MSI company of the lower price category, it includes.
The MSI Neo line of motherboards contains standard components, so you should expect the P35 Neo to perform well, but not have a ton of extra features that you may not need. to the average user. Due to the fact that the production cost is low, the board is in the lower price range.
Cheap motherboards generally don't support dual PCI Express x16 graphics cards, and the MSI P35 Neo is no exception. This fact should not greatly influence the decision when buying a motherboard for “budget” enthusiasts who are ready to compromise in performance, because the second slot for video cards on expensive boards still only works in x4 mode. The only PCI Express x16 slot on the P35 Neo motherboard operates in full x16 mode. The board also has three PCI Express x1 slots and two legacy PCI slots, for a total of six expansion cards. ATX supports a maximum of seven slots, and on the P35 Neo board the place of the topmost “missing” slot is reserved for a fan connector.
The P35 Neo motherboard is equipped with a three-phase voltage stabilizer, typical of cheap motherboards; there are no radiators to cool the voltage stabilizers. Two radiators cool the north and south bridges sufficiently, helped by a downdraft cooler.
Power and ATA connectors are ideal for traditional cases. The four-pin ATX12V power connector is located at the top of the board near the rear edge, the 24-pin power connector is located at the front edge of the board, and the UltraATA connector is located at the top of the board near the front edge. Users of UltraATA optical drives will love how easy it is to run the cable from here to the top bays of their cases.
The four SATA ports, supported by the low-cost Intel ICH9 Southbridge, are also positioned almost perfectly for routing cables to the bottom bays. hard drives, but that's where the compliments end. The fifth SATA port, supported by the built-in Marvell Ultra+Serial ATA controller, is blocked by the heatsink of long video cards. The front panel audio port is inconveniently located at the farthest bottom corner, far from the front panel ports, which are located at the top in many modern cases. Finally, the drive connector is also poorly located under the lowest PCI slot. Fortunately, users will not need a disk drive to load RAID drivers during Windows installations XP, because this south bridge does not support RAID.
| MSI P35 Neo (Revision 1.0) | |
| North Bridge | Intel P35 GMCH |
| South Bridge | Intel ICH9 |
| Voltage regulator | Three-phase |
| BIOS | 1.1B7 (05/18/2007) |
| 266.6 MHz (FSB1066) | 266.9 MHz (+0.1%) |
| Connectors and interfaces | |
| On board | 1x PCIe x16 (1x x16) 3x PCIe x1 2x PCI 4x USB 2.0 (2 ports per connector) 1x IEEE-1394 FireWire 1x floppy drive 1x Ultra ATA (2 drives) 5x Serial ATA 3.0 Gbps 1x for front panel audio ports 1x CD Audio input 1x digital audio output (S/P-DIF) 1x 4-pin for cooler (CPU) 2x 3-pin for fans (case) |
| On the I/O panel | 2x PS2 (keyboard + mouse) 1x parallel port 1x serial port 1x RJ-45 network 1x IEEE-1394 FireWire 4x USB 2.0 6x analog audio ports (7.1 channel + microphone in + line in) |
| Drive controllers | |
| Intel ICH9 | 4x SATA 3.0 Gb/s |
| Marvell 88SE6111 | 1x Ultra ATA-100 (2 drives) 1x SATA 3.0 Gb/s |
| Net | |
| Realtek RTL8111B PCI-E | 1x Gigabit Ethernet connection |
| Sound | |
| HDA controller (Azalia) | Realtek ALC888 codec (8 channels) |
| FireWire | |
| VIA VT6308P | 2x IEEE-1394a (400 Mbps) |
Adding to the attractiveness of this inexpensive motherboard is the IEEE-1394 FireWire controller.
The P35 Neo motherboard's I/O panel is based on traditional interfaces, including legacy PS/2 keyboard and mouse ports, parallel and serial COM ports. Six analog audio ports provide 8-channel audio with simultaneous microphone and line input, four USB port 2.0 and one IEEE-1394 FireWire port are designed to work with high-speed devices, and the only gigabit network port allows you to work online.
The BIOS of the MSI P35 Neo motherboard limits the bus frequency to a maximum value of 500 MHz (FSB2000), which is probably the limit of the board even when using “ideally overclocked” processors. Incredibly huge CPU and memory voltages give the impression of possibility maximum overclocking processor and memory, but do not forget that this inexpensive motherboard is equipped with only a three-phase voltage regulator.
| Frequencies and voltages in BIOS (for overclocking) | |
| FSB frequency | 100-500 MHz (1 MHz steps) |
| Multiplier adjustment | Yes |
| Memory frequency | FSB x 1.0; 1.2; 1.25; 1.5; 1.66; 2.0 |
| PCIe frequency | 100-200 MHz (1 MHz steps) |
| CPU Vcore | Default - +0.7875 V (0.0125 V), 1.550 V maximum |
| CPU FSB voltage | 1.20 - 1.60 V (0.10 V steps) |
| North Bridge Voltage (MCH) | 1.25 - 1.625 V (0.025 V steps) |
| South Bridge Voltage (ICH) | 1.05/1.15 V |
| Memory voltage | 1.50 - 2.10 - 3.30 V (0.05/0.10 V) |
| CAS delay range | tCAS: 3-6; tRCD: 3-6; tRP: 3-6; tRAS: 9-24 |
On the P35 Neo motherboard, we overclocked the Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 processor to 3.44 GHz, although other boards can reach 3.46 GHz. Reducing the CPU multiplier to 6x made it possible to increase the bus frequency only to 369 MHz (FSB1476).
The P35 Neo motherboard comes with only the essential accessories needed to build an affordable system, including one SATA cable and one Ultra ATA cable.
In this article, we suggest taking a look at another more budget-friendly option, designed for lovers of overclocking and performance systems with modern processors - the MSI P35 NEO motherboard.
Note that when a FireWire controller is installed on this board, the index F is added to the model name, and its name looks like MSI P35 NEO-F.
MSI P35 NEO Motherboard Specification:
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Manufacturer |
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North Bridge |
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South Bridge |
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CPU socket |
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Supported processors |
Intel Core 2 Quad-Core / Core 2 Duo / Pentium / Celeron Intel Yorkfield, Wolfdale |
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System bus, MHz |
1333/1066/800 MHz |
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Memory used |
DDR2 800/667 MHz |
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Memory support |
4 x 1.8 V DDR2 DIMM dual channel architecture up to 8GB |
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Expansion slots |
1 x PCI-E x16 |
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Disk subsystem |
Southbridge ICH9 supports: Additional controller Marvell 88SE6111 supports: |
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Sound subsystem |
Realtek ALC888 8-channel audio codec |
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LAN support |
Network controller RTL 8111B (10/100/1000 Mbit) |
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24-pin ATX power connector |
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Cooling |
Aluminum radiators on the north and south bridge |
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Fan connectors |
1 x CPU |
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External I/O ports |
2 x PS/2 ports for connecting keyboard and mouse |
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Internal I/O ports |
8 x USB |
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Overclocking options |
Frequency change: FSB, PCI-Express, memory. |
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Equipment |
1 x SATA cable |
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Form factor Dimensions, mm |
ATX |
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Products webpage |
The new BIOS version for MSI P35 NEO2-FR/FIR can be downloaded from the official page. |
The MSI P35 NEO motherboard is packaged in a small cardboard box designed in the MSI style. The packaging notes the presence of support for a 1333 MHz system bus and 45 nm processors.
MSI P35 NEO motherboard package includes:
- two CDs with drivers for Windows Vista and Windows XP;
- user manual and installation instructions,
- cable UltraDMA 133/100/66;
- Serial ATA cable;
- I/O panel blank;
- SATA power adapter.
MSI P35 NEO motherboards have a fairly good layout - power connectors and ports are located mainly along the edge of the PCB. Although there are some drawbacks - in a not very favorable position, under the PCI slots, there is an FDD connector, as well as opening the latches of the green slots random access memory the inserted video card will interfere. When upgrading a computer, perhaps many users would like to have three PCI slots instead of the existing two, so we will also note this fact as a small drawback of the MSI P35 NEO. I was also not pleased with the lack of currently quite “fashionable” polymer capacitors. It is worth noting that on a similar PCB, MSI releases the MSI P35 Neo Combo, which supports both types of DDR2 and DDR3 memory, and the MSI G33 Neo with integrated graphics.
To cool the northbridge, a relatively large but not very tall aluminum radiator is used. The cooler on the south bridge is much smaller.
Since several sets of logic can be used to fill the PCB of the MSI P35 NEO motherboard, empty spaces are visible on it for two more SATA connectors, which are installed when using the Intel ICH9R south bridge, and there is also a place reserved for the FireWire controller. In our case, the MSI P35 NEO uses an Intel ICH9 chip, which supports four SATA II ports without the ability to create RAID arrays. To ensure the operation of the IDE port and another SATA, an additional Marvell 88SE6111 controller is used.
For ease of connection, the eight internal USB ports and the system panel connector are color-coded.
The MSI P35 NEO motherboard only has two PCI slots, three PCIE x1 and one PCIE x16 slot. Of the controllers integrated on the board, one can note the gigabit network card on RTL 8111B, eight-channel audio codec Realtek ALC888, the front panel connector of which supports connections in HDA and AC`97 formats.
The processor power regulator on the MSI P35 NEO motherboard is only three-channel, but for a board of this class this fact is not surprising.
The following ports are located on the rear panel: two PS/2 for keyboard and mouse, four USB connectors, COM and LPT ports, RJ45 connector for network connections and connectors for 8-channel audio.
The MSI P35 NEO motherboard has three fan headers, one of which is 4-pin for the CPU cooler, and the rest, intended for connecting case fans, are 3-pin. All connectors are located in different parts of the board, which simplifies the choice of connection location.
The MSI P35 NEO motherboard uses an AMI code BIOS with a lot of settings. Almost all settings related to overclocking are located in a separate section of the Cell Menu.
Settings required for overclocking:
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Parameter |
Menu name |
Range |
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Processor technologies |
EIST, CPUID MaxVal, Execute Bit |
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Proprietary intelligent overclocking technology |
1, 3, 5, 7, 10, 15 % |
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CPU multiplier |
Adjust CPU Ratio |
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System bus frequency |
Adjust CPU FSB Frequency |
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PCI Express Bus Frequency |
Adjust PCI-E Frequency |
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Memory dividers |
FSB/Memory Frequency |
1:1.25; 1:1.5; 1:1.67; 1:1.2; 1:1; 1:1.2; 1:1.6; |
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Memory timings |
CAS, RAS to CAS, RAS Precharge, RAS Act to Prechar, tRFC, tWR, TWTR, TRRD, tRTP |
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CPU voltage |
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Memory module voltage |
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FSB bus voltage |
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Northbridge voltage |
1.25 – 1.65 V |
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I/O controller voltage |
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Southbridge voltage |
In the BIOS it is possible to activate the proprietary automatic overclocking technology D.O.T. (Dynamic Overclocking Technology), with which you can overclock the processor from 1% to 15%.
To set the memory frequency, there are seven dividers that can be used to optimally set the frequency during overclocking.
As usual, it is possible to configure RAM timings and sub-timings, but you will notice the absence of the 1T/2T Memory Timing setting, which changes the command decoding time.
Wide ranges of voltage settings will improve system stability during overclocking. In addition, the levels of critical values are very conveniently shown, which will help less experienced users navigate.
In the Hardware Monitor window you can monitor:
- temperature of the processor and motherboard;
- rotation speed of the processor cooler and two case fans;
- voltage on the power lines 3.3V, 5V, 12V, 5V SB and the processor core.
In the “CPU Smart FAN Target” item, you can enable the function of automatically controlling the rotation speed of the processor cooler.
The MSI P35 NEO motherboard was able to run at a system bus frequency of 530 MHz. Considering the large range of settings in the BIOS, we can assume very good possibilities for overclocking processors with its help.
Testing the audio path based on the Realtek ALC888 codec
Overall results (RightMark Audio Analyzer)
Performance testing
The following equipment was used to test the capabilities of motherboards.
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CPU |
Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 (LGA775, 1.86 GHz, L2 2 MB) |
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Thermaltake Sonic Tower (CL-P0071) + Akasa AK-183-L2B 120 mm |
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RAM |
2x DDR2-800 1024 MB PQI PC6400 |
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Video card |
EVGA GeForce 8600GTS 256 MB DDR3 PCI-E |
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HDD |
Samsung HD080HJ, 80 GB, SATA-300 |
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Optical drive |
ASUS DRW-1814BLT SATA |
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power unit |
Chieftec CFT-500-A12S 500W, 120 mm fan |
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CODEGEN M603 MidiTower, 2x 120 mm in/out fans |
MSI P35 NEO shows an excellent level of performance for a board in its class.
conclusions
The MSI P35 NEO motherboard is a relatively inexpensive solution with good functionality and good overclocking potential, which, in a sense, managed to exceed our expectations. Although overclocking enthusiasts should take into account the far from the most powerful processor power regulator. The cost of the MSI P35 NEO is one of the lowest among offerings based on the Intel P35 chipset, and it has almost no obvious disadvantages. Perhaps some future owners would like to see more PCI slots, instead of the same PCI-E x1.
Advantages:
- support Intel processors Penryn, made using 45 nm technology;
- a large number of BIOS settings required for overclocking;
- tested bus capability at 530 MHz;
- 8-channel High Definition Audio;
- low cost for its class.
Flaws:
- absence official support DDR2-1066;
- very modest equipment;
- only two PCI slots;
- no external S/PDIF;
- There is no FireWire controller.
We would like to express our gratitude to PF Service LLC (Dnepropetrovsk) for the motherboards provided for testing.
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The game Doom 3 equalizes both boards. The MSI P35 Neo3 wins one frame in low resolution, but at 120 frames this is not significant. As the resolution increases, the results level out. This shows that in real applications we will not see a difference between the compared boards due to the fact that they are made on the same system logic. But it’s still worth saying thanks to the MSI engineers, who were able to “squeeze” a little more out of their brainchild than the competitors. Perhaps this is achieved due to reduced latencies of the memory controller, or perhaps the difference is explained by different secondary memory timings that the boards set themselves.
Conclusion
The MSI P35 Neo3 model can be called a worthy representative of the mid-price segment in the motherboard market. High-quality performance using long-lasting capacitors guarantees stable operation of this model in normal conditions. system unit at home or in the office. The board is also a good option for those who are aiming for an upgrade and are faced with choosing a new product, but at the same time want to connect all the remaining devices with PCI interface. If desired, it is possible to install one expansion card with a PCI-Express x1 interface. Support for basic RAID modes will allow you to create simple arrays of hard drives to increase the performance of the disk subsystem. The lack of external digital audio interfaces and FireWire 1394 in this model is a little disappointing, but it is fully justified by the price. By connection options peripheral devices The MSI P35 Neo3 is indeed a little inferior to some other representatives based on the Intel P35, but, as we have seen, in performance it is even slightly ahead of the more expensive models of its competitors. For the average user, this board, given its initial performance, will be a good buy.
But for the enthusiast and overclocker category, the MSI P35 Neo3 does not have anything outstanding to offer. No cooling on power elements processor power system and 8-pin additional power connector. There are few overclocking options in the BIOS, but all the basic functions are present. A small radiator on the chipset is only enough to cool the P35 at standard frequencies. Therefore, it is not recommended to get carried away with excessive overclocking on this board without additional cooling of the components, although the model has potential.
