![[H]ardOCP](/images/blank.gif){kind=small}
- Date:
- Thursday , June 14, 2007
- Author:
- Morry Teitelman
- Editor:
- Kyle Bennett
- Google +1
ASUS P5K3 Deluxe
ASUS jumps full force in to the latest Intel chipset with the P5K3 Deluxe board. Featuring support for the latest technologies, including a 1333MHz CPU FSB and DDR3 memory, this board brings a lot of performance potential to the table.
BIOS
ASUS chose to use an AMIBIOS based design for the P5K3 Deluxe board BIOS. The BIOS used during all tests was version 0403.
The SATA Configuration submenu, accessible using the SATA Configuration link from within the Main screen, contains all configuration options for the ports controlled by the ICH9R chipset. The SATA Configuration option configures how the ports are accessed by the system. The Compatible mode setting allows for a total of 4 active ports in IDE emulation mode, while the Enhanced mode setting allows for use of all 6 ports. The Configure SATA as option becomes visible with the SATA Configuration set to Enhanced mode, which activates the AHCI and RAID functionality of the chipset. Note that the RAID boot BIOS will only show with drives connected to the onboard ICH9R’s SATA 2 ports.
The System Information submenu contains read-only settings detailing the current CPU and memory speed and type.
The Advanced menu contains submenus for configuring the onboard device and chipset related settings.
The USB Configuration submenu contains all USB port related configuration options, with a separate submenu for configuring the individual USB device emulation options. The USB Mass Storage Device Configuration submenu, used for configuring these emulation options, becomes user accessible with a properly detected USB device connected to the system. The Emulation Type option within this submenu allows for configuring device specific emulation modes for the system detected USB devices.
The CPU Configuration submenu contains internal CPU related function settings, which include the following: CPU multiplier ratio, C1E support, CPUID value limit, Vanderpool virtualization technology, CPU Trusted Module function support, Execute Disable Bit, PECI, and the Intel SpeedStep technology.
The Advanced Chipset Settings submenu, accessed through the Chipset link on the main Advanced screen, contains chipset configuration settings. The North Bridge Configuration link within this submenu opens to the North Bridge Chipset Configuration submenu. This submenu contains configuration settings for the onboard PCI Express x16 graphics slots.
The Onboard Devices Configuration submenu, opened via the Onboard Devices Configuration link within the Advanced screen, contains settings for configuring the integrated system devices, including the JMicron RAID controller, all LAN controllers, the IEEE 1394 ports, and the HD audio device. When the JMicron eSATA/PATA Controller setting is enabled, the Controller Mode option becomes user accessible. This setting controls the operation mode for the JMicron controlled e-SATA ports, allowing for IDE, RAID, or AHCI based operation. Note that the devices connected to the JMicron controlled IDE port are not RAID or AHCI enabled.
The Advanced PCI/PnP Settings submenu contains system PnP related settings. Unfortunately, the BIOS does not allow direct control of the IRQ interrupt or pool assignment related settings.
The Hardware Monitor submenu can be accessed via the Hardware Monitor link from within the main Power menu. The submenu contains up to the second statistics on all system monitored temperatures, voltages, and fan speeds, as well as automated fan configuration capabilities. The system automated fan configuration is enabled using the Q-Fan Control options. With the Q-Fan Control options enabled, the user configuration options display. The CPU Fan profile offers pre-configured operating modes for the CPU fan header, while the Chassis Fan Ratio and Target Temperature options allow for end user setting of a target overall system temperature and fan speed setting. Note that the Chassis configuration settings affect all non-CPU fan headers on the board.
Accessed through the Hard Disk Drives link in the upper level Boot screen, the Hard Disk Drives submenu contains a list of all available hard drive type devices configurable for system initialization. With the device properly connected and detected at system start time, a USB 2.0 type device will show as a viable device in this menu.
The Tools screen contains links to the various integrated ASUS specific BIOS tools, which include a BIOS flashing utility and a profile load and save utility. The ASUS EZ Flash 2 submenu runs the proprietary ASUS EZFlash2 BIOS update applet. This application allows for flashing the board from BIOS update files from any connected system device, including properly detected USB 2.0 devices. The O.C. Profile Configuration submenu controls creation, storage, and load for up to 2 BIOS profiles. The Start O.C. Profile option allows for saving or loading customized BIOS profiles from a file. The interface is very similar in design to the EZ Flash 2 interface, with access to all attached system storage devices for save and load operations, including attached USB 2.0 devices.