![[H]ardOCP](/images/blank.gif){kind=small}
- Date:
- Thursday , May 04, 2006
- Author:
- Morry Teitelman
- Editor:
- Kyle Bennett
- Google +1
ASUS P5N32-SLI Deluxe
ASUS delivers a one-two punch to the competition by releasing the P5N32-SLI Deluxe, using the Intel version of the nForce4 x16 chipset. Just how well does this stack up to its AMD counterpart?
BIOS
ASUS designed the P5N32-SLI’s BIOS using the familiar AMI based interface. The BIOS version shown and used in testing was version 0308.
The IDE Configuration submenu within the Main screen houses all IDE and SATA related configuration options for those ports connected to the integrated NVIDIA based controller. The RAID functionality for the SATA II ports is enabled through the NVIDIA RAI D Function option. Note that the NVIDIA RAID boot BIOS will only show with this option enabled and when drives are actively connected to the SATA II ports and assigned to the RAID controller. Drives can be used in RAID and standalone mode with the RAID option enabled. The System Information submenu contains status on the current processor speed and type, the BIOS version and build date, as well as the current system memory size.
The Advanced tab contains a series of submenus for configuring onboard and chipset devices, as well as board level device operating parameters.
The USB Configuration submenu contains options for controlling various aspects of the operation of the onboard USB 2.0 ports, while the CPU Configuration submenu contains options for setting CPU specific options. Through this submenu, you have the choice of disabling Hyper Threading, enabling the Execute Disable Function for supported CPUs, customizing the CPU multiplier for unlocked CPUs, as well as disabling the CPU thermal stepping control.
The Chipset submenu contains options for controlling the operation of the PCI-Express x16 slots as well as the Northbridge and Southbridge chipset bandwidths. Each chipset has a maximum settable HyperTransport speed setting of 800MHz, which translates to a 4x multiplier of the base 200MHz CPU FSB setting. The PEG Link Mode option controls the aggressiveness of the access timings for the PCI-Express x16 slots, with the Faster setting giving the best overall performance..
The Onboard Devices Configuration submenu contains all configuration options for the assortment of integrated devices. The Onboard GbE LAN1 option corresponds to the NVIDIA GigE NIC, with the Onboard GigE LAN2 option controls the Marvell GigE NIC. The Silicon Image controller is controlled through the Onboard SATA-II Controller option, with settings for both RAID and standalone operation available. Note that the Silicon Image boot BIOS will only load with this option set to RAID mode.
The PCIPnP submenu contains options for configuring the system IRQ and PnP related device settings. Although you are unable to assign IRQ devices to interrupts, you can manually configure the individual IRQ pool assignments.
The Hardware Monitor submenu is accessible via the Power tab. This submenu contains real time statistics on all board monitored voltages, temperatures, and connected fan speeds. The only configurable setting available was the Smart Q-FAN Function, allowing for control of connected fan speeds based on factory configured temperature thresholds.
The Boot tab contains a series of submenus for controlling the system device access order at initial boot time. The Hard Disk Drives submenu appears when multiple hard disk type devices are connected and detected at system start time. When a USB 2.0 hard drive type device is detected at system boot time, the device will show as a viable boot device in this submenu. The access order of the drives listed within the Hard Disk Drives submenu can modified using the + or – keys, with the lowest number in the list given top boot priority.