We utilize a fresh Windows 7 installation for each phase of testing to minimize variance in benchmark scores. Although Windows 7 is not ideal for benchmarks like SuperPi 32M or early 3DMarks, it does give us some indication of what is possible in terms of processor speeds on each board and allows us to utilize our normal benchmark test suite.

 

 

Two high-end 4GB DDR3-2200 kits from Corsair and GSkill were used throughout testing. Until our next memory review, we can safely say that the Corsair can run tighter latencies at lower voltages, while the G.Skill provides higher bandwidth capabilities on this platform. The choice of kit depends on your particular needs but either one is simply superb for overclocking. Both kits allowed us to max out the memory controllers of each test processor on all the boards we have tested to date.

Index 3DMark Vantage
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  • spacedude - Thursday, January 7, 2010 - link

    Just wanted to comment that I just ordered a EVGA P55 SLI (NOT FTW) from newegg and received a foxconn socket...

    Though on the forums, the evga reps are insistent that there is no problem with their boards.... Who knows if I even have a revised socket........

    ARGHHHHHHH
  • johnyfriend - Tuesday, November 17, 2009 - link

    Saw recently a number of boards from asus and gigabyte with Usb3 and Sata 6gb support.Are you guys planning to include those boards in your upcoming p55 board reviews?
  • groove420 - Saturday, November 21, 2009 - link

    The new Gigabyte boards will be designated as "P55A-UD6" for example, along with a "333" designation on the box.
    The feature that caught my eye on these is that they have been refitted with a LOTES clamp instead of the Foxconn.
    They remain fitted with a Foxconn socket apparently though.
    Whether the fix for the "hot socket" was just a better clamp, or indeed the socket is a revision as well remains an unknown from what I've gathered.



  • johnyfriend - Tuesday, November 24, 2009 - link

    Think they went with the more afordable way to change the clamps than the entire socket.got to wait and see if it pays out..incase those who are willing to buy decide to dump $$$$$$$$ in that
  • Arbie - Monday, November 9, 2009 - link

    "Be warned the results are geared more towards benchmarking fanatics and are not in any way indicative of your everyday web browsing PC needs... "

    Is this a benchmarking fanatics website? Or is it aimed at folks who want high-performance gear for day-in, day-out use? I am in the latter group, which is why I visit AnandTech practically every day. But I won't even bother clicking through a report like this.

    In fact, probably only 0.1% of your readers are going to build on the edge (sub-zero cooling?), and there are plenty of websites for them. I'd rather see the same time and effort spent on something more relevant to the other 99.9%.

    My opinion...
  • dingetje - Monday, November 9, 2009 - link

    fail troll, stop whining or go to tomshardware
  • matthewfoley - Tuesday, November 10, 2009 - link

    I happen to agree 100% - I am interested in the high-performance gear for day-in, day-out use idea.

    Anybody who wants Lynnfield for breaking OC benchmarks is wasting their time.
  • dia - Tuesday, November 10, 2009 - link

    99% of the articles here are for regular users. This happens to be an article that is not for everyone. So what's the big deal if the minority audience occasionally gets a hearing every now and again? When I see articles like this going up every single week I might start to ask questions, but not before that.
  • AstroGuardian - Wednesday, November 11, 2009 - link

    Guys and gals,

    This article is 100% for everyone despite what other ppl say.
    You are totally missing the point of this post. This post is not about manufacturers and main boards. This post is about P55!!!

    I am sure everyone (including benchmark fanatic) would like to hear about P55's capabilities. This article says about P55's abilities and gives insight about possible scenarios when pushing the P55 to its limits.

    So what do you want to say? Do you criticize this site or what? Not all of you are IT professionals. As a matter of fact so few of you are IT professionals. And as professionals you musk know as much as possible about your area of expertise. I would like to know everything Anandtech has to say about everything. That's the beauty of it
  • cyclo - Wednesday, November 11, 2009 - link

    +1. I rarely overclock myself but I still am interested in what the capabilities of this CPU/chipset combo are. I like seeing systems pushed to their limits until weaknesses become apparent. Extreme overclocking in my opinion is like stress testing... if there is any weakness in a design overclocking can expose it. In this case it could be the Foxconn socket, the lesser number of pins on the CPU itself (compared to previous gen i7s), the interface, or all of the above.

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