DFI BI P45-T2RS LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

A breath of fresh air!

Reviewed By: bstm300 on 12/30/2009

Tech Level: average - Ownership: 1 month to 1 year

This user purchased this item from Newegg

Pros: This card works well with the BFG 9600GT OC I bought from newegg.com this summer. In fact, it has given me no issues besides incorrectly recognizing the CPU I put into the system. No matter. Windows Vista did correctly recognize the CPU, but, for overclocking purposes, an improperly recognized CPU could pose problems. If you are curious, the CPU I bought was an Intel E5200 2.5 Ghz.

Cons: It isn't able to use DDR3 memory; yet, it can still be an affordable board for a mid-range gaming build. Keep in mind, 2X2 GB DDR2 memory seems to have gone up in price while the same DDR3 memory has begun to come down in price. Also, the driver and bios support seems to be lacking. I remember going to the site, emailing them and never receiving any response (after weeks and weeks).

Other Thoughts: While this board has issues with overclocking and is limited to only DDR2 memory, I still value its quality given it has worked with no issues for 6 months now. Prior to buying this board, I bought a similar mobo from ASUS which was DOA on arrival. Newegg did reimburse me but it was a costly process. In order to properly test the full system build I had bought, I needed another motherboard before the 30 days manufacture return period expired. Thus, I went with the DFI board, Still, I ended up paying for two motherboards until newegg reimbursed me at a later date for the low quality ASUS mobo.

All I can say to those who whine and give this board poor ratings is please do your research before you buy a $100 board for overclocking. But, I do sympathize with those who got DOA boards. DOA's are horribly painful to deal with, but this board seemed to have fewer DOA's and issues than ASUS equivalents.

Did you find this review helpful?

Thanks for the valuable feedback you provided!

Reviewed By: djcowboygodzilla on 12/3/2009

Tech Level: somewhat high - Ownership: 1 week to 1 month

This user purchased this item from Newegg

Pros: 2 16xPCIe and overclocking capability at a great price. Worked great as a overclocked gaming machine.

Cons: First board was DOA. Newegg took care of me quickly and sent a replacement. Unfortunately it died during a BIOS update a month later, and will not POST. Second MOBO is out of return period, so i'm working with DFI for ANOTHER replacement. Overall it is a very fickle board and did not accept my PCIe4x SAS RAID card. 4 step phase power is kinda lagging behind other brands even at the time of release.

Other Thoughts: MOBO did not complete POST or enter BIOS with a LSI 8308-ELP SAS RAID card. I tried updating to the newest BIOS as a last resort, the DFI utility crashed, and now I have a dead board. IM working with DFI for a resolution.

Did you find this review helpful?

Thanks for the valuable feedback you provided!

decent board - not for the serious overclock though

Reviewed By: good board on 11/14/2009

Tech Level: high - Ownership: 1 day to 1 week

This user purchased this item from Newegg

Pros: Relatively inexpensive. P45 is a good chipset. It's a DFI which is always a plus. DFI has a good website and support forum.

Cons: You cannot under volt the chip to minimize voltage (Vcc). It will run at whatever the VID on your processor is set to so keep your fingers crossed that you have a good chip! You can only ADD voltage to the stock VID. Only has one 400 MHz strap (400/800) so forget about running your RAM higher if you're pushing the FSB in that strap. No auto reset for your BIOS - you have to use a jumper on the board. Kinda lame. Tight fit around the CPU mount due to the +12 volt connector. Getting my Xiggy S1284 on there was a PAIN! Had to do it with the board out of the case and actually connected the +12 outside of the case too. Poor documentation in the user manual so know what you're doing or learn to use google. No cooling on the NB HS. Mine tends run around 55 C @ 333/1066 strap. Kinda warm. You have to move jumpers to get the PCI-X slot to run @ 16x/ you cannot run both @ 16x, only 8x/8x.

Other Thoughts: If you're planning to do a mild overclock (like 266 --> 333) it should be fine, but if you want to run at a 333 MHz chip @ 400+ MHz, you only have one strap with this board! If you want a better board, consider the LT/UT series.

I still gave it 5/5 since it was never indented to be a serious o/c board. KNOW WHAT YOU'RE BUYING BEFORE YOU BUY IT!

Did you find this review helpful?

Thanks for the valuable feedback you provided!