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GIGABYTE P55M-UD4 Motherboard Review

While this new GIGABYTE may look small, this micro-ATX wonder packs a punch and hits where it counts. The P55M-UD4 performs like the big boys, proving that size truly does not matter...for a motherboard.

Introduction

GIGABYTE is well known in the computer component space for their high performance products that boast some of the best stability records in the sector. While not embraced by the enthusiast crowd overwhelmingly in the motherboard space till recently, GIGABYTE caters to the enthusiasts with its innovative BIOS and cooling designs. Their latest addition to their Intel P55 chipset line does a fine job of illustrating this trend.

The GIGABYTE P55M-UD4 board supports all LGA1156 based Intel processors through the use of the Intel P55 chipset.

The Intel P55 chipset supports the following technologies: Intel LGA 1156 Core i7 and Core i5 processors, DDR3 memory operating in Dual Channel mode up to 1333MHz officially, and either NVIDIA SLI and ATI CrossFireX graphics mode using matching video cards. GIGABYTE designed the following devices in to the board: 5 SATA II ports and 1 e-SATA port (RAID 0, 1, 0+1 and 5 capable) on the Intel P55 controller; 2 SATA II ports (RAID 0 and 1) GIGABYTE controller; 14 USB 2.0 capable ports (10 in rear panel, and 2 onboard headers supporting 2 ports each); 2 IEEE 1394 capable port (1 in rear panel, and 1 onboard header supporting 1 port each); 1 Realtek GigE Ethernet port in the rear panel; Realtek 8-channel HD audio codec with integrated S/PDIF optical and RCA component output ports; integrated power, system reset, and CMOS reset buttons; and a PS/2 keyboard/mouse port in the rear panel.

Main Specifications Overview:

Detailed Mainboard Specification List:

Packaging

GIGABYTE chose to keep it simple with the P55M-UD4’s box art, with the board name and features large and clear across the box front. The following accessories are included with the board: a ribbon IDE cable; SATA drive cables; the rear panel shield; a 2-way NVIDIA SLI cable; and the normal complement of manuals and drivers discs.

Board Layout

The P55M-UD4’s layout and overall design is sleek and neat, with a nice overall fusion of looks and function. While the CPU area may look tight due to the motherboard’s small form factor, neither that area, nor any others are space constrained. The DIMM slots are a bit close for comfort to the primary PCI-Express x16 slot, but you shouldn’t have much of an issue inserting or removing DIMMs with a video card installed. The board itself has no clearly defined serial number marked on the surface, but does sport a revision number in the upper left corner of the board, with the test board being a 1.0 version. As for the board’s power needs, GIGABYTE chose to use all aluminum Japanese manufactured solid-electrolyte capacitors.

GIGABYTE designed the CPU socket area to be free of encumbrances with all surrounding power circuitry designed with low profile components. The CPU cooler is held to the chip by the standard 4-hole LGA1156 mechanism, with a rear mounted metal bracket to help reduce board flexing. As seems to be standard with the P55 based boards, the chipset has been relocated to the traditional Southbridge area, just under the PCI Express slots. The CMOS battery, SYS_FAN1 header, and front panel audio header are located to the upper left of the CPU socket. The 8-pin ATX12V power connector and CPU_FAN header are located to its upper right.

The four onboard DDR3 memory slots are located directly below the CPU socket area, with Dual Channel memory mode activated with DIMMs placed in like-colored slots. Below the DIMM slots are the ATA-133 IDE port, and the 24-pin ATX power connector, as well as the Phase LED bank. The Phase LED bank visually shows how much power is being drawn by the CPU at any given time. Note that this LED bank is enabled via the windows Dynamic Energy Saver 2 application.

The Intel P55 chipset is located just under the secondary PCI-Express x16 slot, covered with a low profile heat sink. Just below the chipset are the onboard power, reset, and CMOS reset buttons, the SYS_FAN2 header, and the seven onboard SATA 2 ports. Note that the Intel P55 controlled ports are colored light blue, while the GIGABYTE controlled ports are white. The multi-colored front panel header is located in the lower left corner of the board, with the two onboard USB 2.0 headers and the IEEE 1394 header just above it.

The P55M-UD4 is designed with a total of four card slots - two PCI-Express x16 slots, one PCI-Express x1 slot, and one PCI slot. The floppy drive port and the S/PDIF input and output headers are located to the outside of the PCI slot, with the CD_IN header located just above the secondary PCI-Express x16 slot.

GIGABYTE chose to integrate the following ports in to the P55M-UD4’s rear panel: 1 PS/2 keyboard/mouse port; none USB 2.0 ports; one dual function USB 2.0/e-SATA port; 1 Realtek GigE Ethernet port; and six analogue and S/PDIF optical and RCA component audio output ports.

GIGABYTE EasyTune 6

For windows based monitoring and overclocking, GIGABYTE chose to package version 6 of their EasyTune software on the install DVD with the version shown being revision B09.0723.1. The Quick Summary icon in the upper right corner of the app (shown as a paper with a corner folded down) displays the board’s current speed, voltage, and temperature settings via the Quick Summary Window. The EasyTune application starts up in the Tuner tab, which allows for user controlled manipulation of the various board bus speeds and voltages depending on the operational mode selected. The Quick Boost mode allows for gross user configuration of base clock and CPU speeds using pre-set configurations.

With the mode set to Advanced, the user has complete access to frequency, CPU multiplier and voltage settings, using the Frequency, Ratio, and Voltage tabs shown. Note that the CPU multiplier can be adjusted on a per core basis for even better fine tuning if desired.

The CPU tab shows real time system statistics on the various bus speeds, and well as detailed CPU and BIOS related information. The Memory tab shows memory statistics for all onboard slots on a slot by slot basis.

The Graphics tab shows current core and memory speed for the video card in use, as well as allowing for direct video card based core and memory speed manipulation.

The Smart tab contains settings for the CIA2 dynamic overclocking chipset, as well as controls for manually setting the CPU Smart Fan temperature thresholds for optimal CPU cooler performance.

The HW Monitor tab displays statics on all BIOS monitored voltages, fan speeds, and temperatures. This screen also allows for the configuration of alert settings for the monitored fan speed and temperature devices.