Asus ROG Maximus III Formula P55 Preview

As the launch of Intel's Core i5 and 800 series Core i7 processors creeps ever closer, the hardware for this next generation is quickly starting to see the light of day. All the major manufacturers have pulled out the stops to see who has the biggest and baddest board on the block. Gigabyte is claiming a 24 phase power circuit for its top end UD6 version of the company's P55 board while ASUS is taking a different tack with the use of an intelligent design strategy called Extreme Design. Realizing that just one feature does not the motherboard make, it takes a whole package to be successful. With that said, the ROG Maximus III Formula gets a load of features that are aimed squarely at the gamer and hardcore enthusiast. Let's take a quick jaunt around this board and see what it has to offer before it goes under the gun.

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MSI P55-GD80 Lynnfield Motherboard Preview‏

As we mentioned in our preview of the ASUS P7P55D and EVGA P55 FTW motherboards, the official launch date for the Lynnfield series is quickly approaching and with them a veritable swarm of P55 motherboards is going to hit the market. The sheer scope of new models available at launch is going to surprise and shock many consumers. That is why smart manufacturers like MSI have wisely chosen to preview their new P55 models to help their motherboards stand out from the crowd as early as possible. Today, we will be showing off MSI's most fully-featured new model: the P55-GD80. As the Top of the Line model in MSI's roster, the P55-GD80 has been designed to surpass the best that the competition has to offer. It supports all upcoming Lynnfield LGA1156 processors, has a formidable DrMOS 8+2 phase power design, four DDR3 memory slots with frequency support up to DDR3-2133 (O.C), three mechanical PCI-E x16 slots, CrossFireX and SLI support, dual Gigabit LAN ports, an 8-channel HD audio CODEC, 8 SATA II ports, 9 USB 2.0 ports, 1 FireWire ports, 3 eSATA ports, a new OC Genie real-time overclocking processor with accompanying OC Genie & DirectOC buttons, touch-sensitive onboard power/reset switches, phase LEDs for every major component, a post code debug display and quite a bit more. In this our third P55 motherboard preview, we will give you a quick rundown of all the features this model has to offer in order to whet your appetite until the actual review hits our front page. Unfortunately, due to NDAs we can't show you performance or BIOS screens but don't worry, you won't have to wait too long before we put this board through our torture tests.

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EVGA P55 FTW Lynnfield Motherboard Preview + EVGA's P55 Lineup Revealed

With the release of Intel’s new Lynnfield processors rapidly approaching, our testing room is filling with P55 motherboards at an alarming pace. It is more than evident that every motherboard manufacturer wants to get the jump on their competition by literally flooding the market with Lynnfield-supporting products from the moment the chips are officially released. Among our stack of retail boxed P55 boards there stands a lone nondescript white box that holds the board we are previewing here today: an early production version of the EVGA P55 FTW. This is board is going to be in the higher-end range of their P55 line-up and has features a-plenty. This preview will be a bit different from the other ones we will be doing over the course of the next few weeks. Naturally, we can’t show you any BIOS screenshots, performance numbers or overclocking results but what we can do is give you a quick picture tour around the motherboard. We can’t post detailed specifications or features for the time being either as EVGA would like to keep some of their game-changing additions under wraps until they are ready to fully unveil the board alongside Lynnfield processors. In such a highly competitive market, we can totally understand this decision on their part. Speaking of EVGA’s line-up, we can promise you that once everything is said and done there will be no fewer than seven P55 boards available ranging in price from under $200 for the P55 LE to quite a bit higher for the upcoming P55 Classified. Anything more than $250 may seem a lot to pay for a Lynnfield-supporting motherboard but both the P55 FTW 200 and the Classified 200 will use Nvidia’s nForce 200 chip. Depending on the layout, we have seen boards where nForce 200 effectively adds the capability to run up to 40 PCI-E lanes when combined with the 16 from the Lynnfield CPU. There is an additional four already provided by the P55 PCH. After we are done putting the P55 FTW under the microscope, we’ll give the rest of the EVGA P55 line-up a look by showing everything from an mATX board to some tantalizing details about the upcoming (and still under cover) P55 Classified. All in all, this should be an interesting little article so let’s get the show on the road.

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Asus Rampage II GENE Review

Whenever a new chipset is released there is always a rush to be the first on the market and take advantage of the high prices that invariably come with almost every new hardware release. Unfortunately this rush to the market causes premature releases meaning unstable drivers, a performance hogging BIOS and many other unfortunate shortcomings remedied by later editions. One fairly standard rule though is that if you want all the features, then you have to have all of the board. This means that if you want to play with things like SLI, Crossfire, Overclocking, and pretty much every other enthusiast feature available, then your sights are narrowed immediately to just the ATX style and the gigantic eATX style motherboards. Far from perfect for the mobile gamers out there forced to lug a huge case around simply for lack of a smaller motherboard that doesn't skimp on the features. Enter the Asus Republic of Gamers branded Rampage II GENE motherboard.

The RIIG is the first uATX style motherboard to join the ROG family, and it is as deserving of the title as every other product in the ROG line! With features like full 24GB 2000MHz RAM support, SLI/Crossfire abilities, support for 12 USB 2.0 Ports (6 built-in, 6 on-board headers), Fuzion waterblock compatibility, and integrated X-Fi sound, the RIIG is as packed on paper as it is in real life but with all of these capabilities is it just the jack of all trades or does truly perform with the big boys? Let's find out!

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G.Skill Trident 6GB PC3-16000 CL9 DDR3 Memory Kit Review

G.Skill International Enterprise was founded in 1989 in Taipei, Taiwan by a group of devoted computer enthusiasts, origins which would eventually shine through. While the company originally manufactured mainstream PC memory, flash cards and USB flash drives, in 2003 they sowed the seeds to their own success by debuting a line of high-quality, high-end overclocking-friendly memory kits. Since then, in a short 5-6 year span G.Skill has leapt to the forefront of the memory industry by catering to the needs and wants of the enthusiasts community while bolstering consumer confidence with their popular lifetime warranty. Building upon the success of their memory kits and wisely seeking to diversify, the company announced its first SATA II 2.5" solid state drives (SSDs) in May 2008, which we had the exclusive pleasure of reviewing. This was then followed up by a bigger, bolder and better model that won us over with its excellent performance and value. When the Core i7 processors were launched in November, DDR3 memory prices were still very much out of the price range of your average consumer. This is one of the reasons that we were so taken aback when we received the G.Skill F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ memory kit in January. Here we had a triple-channel 6GB DDR3-1600 product for $200CDN flat. This was not only the cheapest 6GB DDR3-1600 kit on the market, but it was cheaper then most 4GB DDR3-1066/1333 memory kits at the time. Heck, it was half the price and three times the size of most DDR3 kits available a mere one year prior. All this to say that the increasing standardization of DDR3 was slowly beginning to benefit consumers. With the better than expected adoption of the Core i7 platform, the surprising popularity of AMD's AM3 processors and the imminent arrival of Lynnfield / P55, DDR3 choices have expanded while priced have dropped and continue to do so. With this in mind, we have seen some new products hit the market that would not have been feasible a mere 3-4 months ago. Case in point: the G.Skill Trident F3-16000CL9T-6GBTD model that we will be reviewing today. This is a triple-channel 6GB DDR3-2000 9-9-9-24 memory kit, featuring a low 1.65V default voltage and a price that will make you do a double-take: $160CDN. Want to know more? Keep reading.

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G.Skill F3-12800CL8T-6GBHK Review

With the release of i7 processors, DDR3's popularity greatly increased. Also, due to the triple channel nature of the CPU architecture, memory has been bundled in groups of three. The average speed of memory targeting the i7 is generally 1600MHz, with value memory at 1333MHz and performance memory above 1866+MHz. Intel suggests a maximum of 1.65V for operation with JEDEC voltage at 1.5. Most kits are using intricately designed heat spreaders nowadays since DDR3 runs fairly cool. Being reviewed today is a triplet of blue and silver memory from GSkill that operates at 1600Mhz with tight 8-8-8-21 timings at 1.6V. These modules are labeled F3-12800CL8T-6GBHK. They should provide great performance at 1600MHz and will most likely overclock well since there is some head room on the voltage and timings. This 6GB of memory also comes in handy with 64-bit operating systems!

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Corsair Professional HX850 850W Power Supply Review

By now we all know that a quality power supply will not only help with system stability but it can also save you money on your electricity bill. As power supply reviews continue here at Hardware Canucks, it is becoming more and more evident that the powers that be are pushing efficiency above all else. The 80Plus designation has allowed manufacturers to give potential customers a tangible certification so they can better determine their power savings and many have embraced it. While we hope that overall build quality will not be sacrificed to eke out the best possible efficiency numbers, some companies have made sure their old “high quality, high efficiency” mentality stays is place. As you may have already guessed, Corsair has been fighting with all hands on deck to ensure output quality remains top notch while efficiency numbers increase. One of their latest creations is the HX850; a power supply that promises to take this merry bunch of buccaneers to the pinnacle of power supply supremacy. Even though this power supply is part of their new “Professional” series, many of you are probably thinking that the HX850 is nothing more than a modular TX850 that sports an accordingly inflated price point. Fortunately, there is much more lurking below the surface of this product and its sibling the HX750 than just a fancy paint job and a modular interface. These units use a completely different platform from anything that has been previously put in play by Corsair and the HX850 in particular is graced with an 80Plus Silver rating as a consequence. There must be plenty of you who are saying “that sounds great, but what’s it cost?” Fortunately, a lot less than you may think. While many high quality competing 850W power supplies from the likes of Silverstone, Thermaltake and Cooler Master retail for above $200, the HX850 normally goes for about $210CAD and has been seen for $180CAD after mail in rebates are taken into account. With Corsair’s longstanding tradition of great customer support and one of the best warranties in the business at 7 years, customers have been shown to be more than willing to pay a slight price premium for their products. This review will be particularly interesting since we will be comparing the HX850 directly to its less expensive, non-modular predecessor: the TX850. Will the newcomer have the performance necessary to make the price difference immaterial? We intend to find out.

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