Asus P5WD2 Premium: DDR2-1066 and the Promise of 955x SLI

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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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Read More/Source: AnandTech

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