Asus P5WD2 Premium: DDR2-1066 and the Promise of 955x SLI
by Wesley Fink on May 11, 2005 12:05 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
With every introduction of new chipsets and processors, one of the first products to reach reviewers is boards from Asus. This is really no surprise, since Asus is the largest independent motherboard maker in the world, and Asus has resources for development that many motherboard makers can only dream of.
We have noticed a trend over many years that Asus is particularly adept at designing boards for Intel processors. This makes perfect sense when you realize the very close working relationship that Asus engineers have with Intel engineers. It is the reason why you saw Asus pioneering PAT on the 865 Northwood chipset - just one of many innovations that Asus has brought to motherboards for Intel processors.
With the Intel preview of Dual-Core processors, Asus managed to deliver a board based on the new nForce4 chipset for Intel supporting dual-core processors - something that NVIDIA was not able to deliver by that time frame. We were very impressed with the performance of the Asus P5ND2-SLI Deluxe, so we were excited to take a look at the Asus board based on the Intel 955x chipset, the Asus P5WD2 Premium. Asus has implemented many unique options on this board - not the least of which are FSB options to 1066, and the promise of "semi-SLI" performance for the future.
This review is not another Intel dual-core processor platform comparison. This was covered in Dual Core Intel Platform Shootout - NVIDIA nForce4 vs. Intel 955X. If you are interested in how the nForce4 Intel compares to an Intel 955x in multi-tasking, you should take a closer look at the platform shootout. This review takes a closer look at the unique features, performance, and overclocking capabilities of the Asus P5WD2 Premium, which is based on the Intel 955x chipset. We also compare features, performance, and overclocking to the Asus P5ND2-SLI Deluxe, which is the Asus NF4 Intel solution.
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overclockingoodness - Wednesday, May 11, 2005 - link
Can someone tell me why they decided to bench both at DDR-667 and DDR-800?Wesley: are you planning on testing all Intel mobos like that with two different memory speeds?
Capt Caveman - Wednesday, May 11, 2005 - link
I actually plan on returning the P5WD2 Premium that I purchased. I bought this board for going to dual core but was really sold on the Wifi-TV card that was supposed to come with it. It's the first board in Asus's Ai Life Series and the major component of this series is the Wifi-TV Card.Well, surprise my Asus Premium doesn't come with one. It's optional. I spoke to people at Asus US in Technical Support, Customer Service, Pre-sales and RMA groups and they all confirmed to me that there was only one model and it's optional. Every retailer that carries the P5WD2 Premium has it without the Wifi-TV Card. Yet, the reviewers have them, making you think that the card comes with the board.
Also, things have been down-graded on this board from previous premium boards. The mosfet heatsink is aluminum compared to the copper heatsinks used in my P5AD2-e Premium. Contrary to what some have said, the P5WD2 Premium does not have IDE Raid when the P5AD2-e Premium did. The P5AD2-e Premium also has 1394b where the P5WD2 Premium does not. And obviously no built on Wifi.
Why did they call this board a Premium when it's missing all of the premium items that we're used to getting? Why didn't they just call it the Deluxe since this board does not have the premium features as it's other premium boards?
I believe Asus is misleading folks. I have yet to receive a reply back to several emails that I have sent also.
Sad thing is that I was a huge fan of Asus til getting this board which I must pay a 15% restocking fee to return.
elecrzy - Wednesday, May 11, 2005 - link
on page 2, you might want to add that NF4 supports SATAII, not just SATAI.RadeonGuy - Wednesday, May 11, 2005 - link
it would have been better to include a fx-55 as competition