MSI P55-GD65

Product: MSI P55-GD65

Website: www.msi.com/p55-gd65
System Specifications: LGA1156 i5/i7, P55 chipset, DDR3 Dual channel memory 4xDIMM, 2xPCI-E gen2 x16, 1xPCI-E gen2 x4, 2xPCI-E gen2 x1, 2xPCI, 7xSATA, 1xeSATA, 1xFireWire, 1xIDE, 8xUSB, 6xAudio ports, Coaxial SPDIF/Optical SPDIx1, SLI/CrossFire, APS, DrMOS, Ethernet
Price: £130

WITH THE ADVENT of the Intel Lynnfield Core i5 and i7 processors has come a range of new motherboards. Recently we've turned our attention to Asus and Intel for their options; now comes the turn of MSI and its offering for this new P55 chipset.

MSI's series of Xtreme speed motherboards boasts some standout abilities over the rest of the crowd, according to MSI. These features come along in the form of instant overclocking for beginners, new cooling technology from their graphics cards and better MOSFET abilities.

Getting something more out of what you actually paid for will always be popular, especially in today's economic climate and none more so than with expensive computer hardware. Overclocking has its heart firmly placed within that very concept,  and this motherboard features a welcome instant CPU tweaking facility to get extra out of the processor and memory.

MSI has included what it's calling the world's first dedicated overclocking processor, the OC Genie. This offers instant tweaking, calibration and setting of the CPU and memory to get the most from the components used and all without any fiddling around with the BIOS.

Just one press of the motherboard-based OC Genie button and all the complex work is done for you, with the voltages, base clock, ratio and memory clock all safely overclocked. There's also plus and minus buttons either side of the OC Genie for increasing and decreasing the CPU's speed if needed. MSI has even bundled a power button right alongside the Genie, saving the trouble of reaching outside of the computer's innards to power on system.

MSI is calling this feature '1 second overclocking'. If one second to tweak a whole system seems all too good to be true, it is. To automatically overclock the system a complete shut down of the PC is needed first, as the OC Genie button cannot be pressed while the system is up and running. After the system shuts down, pressing the OC Genie button on the motherboard does take but a single second and it's only there the MSI claim holds merit.

CPU-Z results - Intel Core i7-870 non-overclocked

We ran the overclocking aspects of the MSI P55-GD65 with the latest Intel Lynnfield Core i7-870 processor. The 2.933 GHz i7-850 had some trouble with the OC Genie feature, where benchmarking the system using 3DMark 06 and the latest SI Sandra software actually caused the system to shut down.

MSI said this was an abnormality and passed along a revised BIOS firmware for the GD65, where we obtained the exact same results. As the error reporting ability on the motherboard is almost non-existent we found it very hard to determine the exact nature of the fault, although we suspect at this point that overheating might have been the issue. On the few occasions we were able to get back into the BIOS after the system wide failure we noted the temperature of the CPU was around 85 degrees Celsius and climbing, where on a non-overclocked state the temp was only around 45 degrees.

After some research, along with trial and error we used another much larger heat sink on the CPU, a very different one than the smaller heat sink and fan that accompanies the Intel Core i7-870 retail box. The system no longer shuts down while performing the benchmarks, which clearly shows a larger heat sink and fan is needed when overclocking than Intel bundles with its processors, a word of caution there for first time overclockers who are considering this motherboard.

CPU-Z results - Intel Core i7-870 overclocked

Disregarding our initial experience with the i7-870, the OC Genie could be a very good way for those unfamiliar with overclocking to experience it for the very first time and in a safe way without blowing up the ever-so-expensive hardware. One of our irks over the OC Genie is that the case has to be opened for overclocking to be used each time. What would have been more useful would be if MSI took a leaf out of Intel's book, where it included a button on the rear riser plane of its latest motherboard for accessing the BIOS. When that button is pressed, the motherboard defaults to the BIOS setup screen at bootup until the button is once again pressed. The OC Genie could have had a more accessible button we feel, especially for those first time users of overclocking.

CPU-Z results - memory non-overclocked

There are also a number of user customisable profiles inside the BIOS for setting up overclocking themes, for the more adventurous tweakers out there. All of these can be easily accessed and run from the BIOS's OC profile menu, while reverting back to previous profiles if anything goes awry. It's a good way for the more experienced overclockers not to be left out with this motherboard, while at the same time offering up a way for the less experienced to graduate beyond the OC Genie when they gain more confidence.

CPU-Z results - memory overclocked

It's worth mentioning at this point that the OC Genie disables Intel Turbo Boost Technology, as MSI believes its overclocking ability offers up more of a performance gain than Intel's own built-in overclocking feature. We've seen some stats by MSI and have run some tests of our own and we see a much better performance gain in lower i5 Lynnfield processors, although it will be interesting to see if Intel has a rebuttal within time.

MSI has brought in technology first seen in its graphics cards to help solve the heating issue with its Superpipe cooling. This is primarily used for dispelling the CPU build up of heat. The overall piping's size is much thicker than other motherboard manufacturers employ at eight millimetres, whereas others use around six. This makes it the thickest heatpipe seen on motherboards around, with its own liquid-state coolant that should be able to absorb the heat and dispel it much better along the length of the pipe's larger body.

MSI has included its 3-in1 DrMOS MOSFET technology for regulating and managing power to the components, along with a six phase active phase switching module on the P55-GD65 and for all those energy and planet saving needs. The APS also has an LED component on the motherboard showing exactly those six phases being cycled down when the CPU is not in great use or when the full might isn't required. This is controllable from a desktop application where the APS can be manually manipulated, with various schemes applied. All of this could have done with a little more guidance we feel from MSI, just as it was lacking in other areas too. The power schemes weren't as straightforward as other aspects and a little knowledge is needed from the start where we just chose to stay away from tweaking here and let the system automatically handle itself.

Occasionally a computer is needed for just a few seconds, where an OS is required to boot up almost instantly just to check something as insignificant as train times or print off an email. Asus has its ExpressGate Linux on a chip built into its motherboards and MSI has bundled in Winki on DVD for the P55-GD65. This is a complete Linux live OS edition on disc, with all the most commonly used applications such as web browser, file manager and Skype.

The Asus version does have around a five second boot up time making it preferable as a result, whereas the MSI version is hampered by the DVD drive's load time. Although if there's a spare USB flash drive laying around Winki can be installed onto that device, making some headway of a compromise between that and meeting halfway towards the Asus ExpressGate's performance.

There are some other niceties MSI has thrown in such as its M-Flash BIOS, which provides the ability to just run firmware from a USB stick without re-flashing the whole motherboard. This is a great way to test out new firmware's features for compatibility, besides making sure all is well with an early beta BIOS before a complete re-flash is performed.

In Short
The whole point of this new motherboard is the instant overclocking for amateurs. It does the job pretty well and provides a learning curve to start off the whole process of tweaking a motherboard. What it doesn't do is provide the necessary tools and understanding of what overclocking is and explain it all along the way, which is somewhat negligent of MSI.

There really should be more information and guides on hand to bridge the gap from novice to expert, rather than leave them alone with tools that could end up ruining their system. After all, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. µ

The Good:
Overclocking for the amateur, Lynnfield support.

The Bad:
Poor error reporting from the BIOS.

The Ugly:
Could have done with better guidance for the beginner about overclocking.

Bartender's Report:
7/10