How would I talk about the capabilities of the Intel Z68 Express chipset using the example of MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3)

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    I suggest on behalf of a trained user to get acquainted with the capabilities of the new chipset from the guys from Santa Clara on the example of the flagship motherboard MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3). Of course, I know in advance what I will encounter: the possibility of overclocking the processor and integrated graphics, Intel RST SSD Caching (Rapid Storage Technology) technology and, of course, LucidLogix Virtu's unique initiative of its kind.


    But for starters, a little senile grumbling. I have only one question for Intel: "Why couldn’t I immediately release the Z68 Express logic?" After the announcement of the LGA 1155 platform, many who wanted to switch to it had to make a choice between two sets of system logic Intel P67 and Intel H67. The first provided all the necessary tools for overclocking Core 2500K / 2600K processors and RAM. The second opened access due to the FDI bus (Flexible Display Interface) to the rather powerful GMA HD 3000/2000 graphic core with its proprietary Intel Quick Sync Video chip, which accelerates video transcoding in MPEG-2 and H.264 formats at the hardware level. In addition, thanks to Intel InTru 3D technology, integrated graphics allow you to output stereoscopic 3D Blu-ray video through HDMI 1.4.

    I suggest using a simple example to illustrate the above words. So, there is a Core i7-2600K processor (3.4 GHz), which easily conquers 4700 MHz with air cooling. There is a person who wants to get a quick response from his PC on his actions, is fond of moving movies to the format of his favorite iPad, sometimes this user has a desire to run to CS with friends. For all this, the computational reserves of the Core i7-2600K model are enough for him. In addition, the future owner of the LGA 1155 platform is familiar with the concept of overclocking, for this reason he is looking at the Core 2500K / 2600K chips with the letter "K" in the title.

    On the Intel P67 platform, it is not able to get the following benefits from the GMA HD 3000/2000.

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    The Intel H67 platform makes it impossible to get an additional 1300 MHz for Core i7-2600K processor cores.

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    Moreover, when choosing a motherboard based on Intel P67 logic, the user is deprived of the opportunity to save on a discrete graphics adapter. Even for a budget graphics card you need to pay about $ 35, and after all this money can be spent on the purchase of a more efficient cooler for the processor or on the purchase of another 4 GB of RAM. When choosing Intel H67, we will be left without overclocking the processor, and simply will not buy the Core i7-2600K model, but we will get around the solution without a “K”. All the shortcomings of the Intel P67 and Intel H67 chipsets when handling the Core i7-2600K processor are designed to solve the Intel Z68 Express.

    Motherboard MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3).

    First of all, I want to list what when acquaintance with a new motherboard based on Intel Z68 Express logic, for most users it is important and what is not. In other words, not that important, according to the marketing department of a particular company that produces motherboards.

    What matters:
    • Convenient tools for overclocking both in BIOS and in the environment of the Windows operating system;
    • Good built-in sound;
    • Hassle-free operation of LucidLogix Virtu technology;
    • The presence of USB 3.0;
    • Multiphase power subsystem. Maybe not so important, but still I want to provide my processor with good power;
    • High-quality elemental base;
    • Support for CrossFireX and SLI configurations. Many people know in advance that they will never buy two video cards, but just in case, we leave this point.
    • Intel RST SSD Caching. Perhaps there are a lot of doubts about this point. Yet users prefer to control what they want to host on the SSD.
    • The presence of two network interfaces. A very useful option, sometimes helping out.
    • The presence of an IDE connector. Still, the fleet of optical drives and hard drives with an ATA interface is large.
    • The presence of connectors PS / 2 or the presence of a combined.
    • The form factor of the motherboard.
    • Number of PCI slots

    What does not matter:

    • Number of USB ports
    • Number of SATA ports 3 Gb / s and SATA 6 Gb / s;
    • The presence of optical S / PDIF;
    • Power and reset buttons. Such a solution will be appreciated only by overclockers endlessly using them.


    Options

    The motherboard MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3) comes in a large and colorful package, on all sides of which are painted the technical specifications of the product and the MSI technologies used.

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    Like a laptop, the top of the box leans back, hiding even more useful information.

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    Contents of delivery:

    • 4 cables SATA SATA 6Gb / s;
    • 2 adapters for supplying power to SATA;
    • SLI bridge
    • A cap on the rear panel;
    • V-Check adapters for measuring voltages with a
      multimeter;
    • Panel with two USB 3.0 connectors;
    • Adapter kit M-connectors;


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    But thanks for the additional panel with two USB 3.0 connectors.

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    From the literature you can find the following.

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    Appearance

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    Characteristics

    I will not bore the reader with a long listing of all the controllers, technologies and other elements of the MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3) motherboard, along with a good dozen advising pictures. I will give a summary table with the characteristics of this flagship product.

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    Overclocking

    Before giving the reader a few screenshots with the results of overclocking, both in manual mode and using OC Genie II technology, it’s worth saying a few words about the concept of overclocking within the framework of the LGA 1155 platform. This concept boils down to one thing: you have a Core 2500K processor / 2600K or not. If there is, then by increasing the multiplier and increasing the operating voltage, the chip can be accelerated to an impressive 5.0 GHz with air cooling. If not, you will have to be content with a modest additional 5-6 MHz at the base frequency. In other words, the Core i7-2600 model (without the letter “K”) with its 34x multiplier can be overclocked from a nominal frequency of 3400 MHz to just 3570 MHz if the BCLK is 105 MHz. Why is that? The desire to simplify the PCB layout of LGA 1155 motherboards forced Intel to transfer the base frequency generator to the chipset. Yes, the same cloker is now in the chipset. Now with an increase in BCLK frequency, the operating frequencies of other PC components also increase. For example, the same SATA controller is allergic to increased frequencies of its operation. Therefore, it is not surprising that all motherboards that have an Intel P67 chipset or an Intel Z68 chipset have a threshold for raising the reference frequency in the range of 105-108 MHz.

    The board in question was able to show stability at a BCLK frequency of 105 MHz. And there is no fault at all with the MSI engineer.

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    OC Genie 2 automatic overclocking technology, which allows using a special button to overclock the processor and memory in one touch, made the Core i7-2600K processor operate at a frequency of 4200 MHz, and the memory in DDR3-2133 mode.

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    There could be no surprises in the manual mode because the cooler Zalman CNPS 9700 was not the most productive by modern standards. It was he who limited the overclocking potential of the MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3). With increasing voltage, the heat output from the processor grows exponentially, and the Zalman 9700 is not able to cope with its removal, no matter what the motherboard is. But extreme cooling systems would significantly increase the voltage supplied to the processor, thereby increasing overclocking. As a result, a completely standard operating frequency of 4700 MHz was obtained.

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    LucidLogix Virtu Technology

    Immediately touch on the problem. Yes, the Intel Z68 Express chipset allows you to take advantage of the Intel P67 and Intel H67 logic at the same time. The owner of a board based on Intel Z68 is able to access integrated graphics and overclock Core 2500K / 2600K processors. Even more, he has access to a special GMA HD 3000/2000 GPU graphics unit called Intel Quick Sync Video, which accelerates the transcoding of video files. But this is not a task, it’s worth installing a discrete graphics card, as the integrated graphics chip in the Sandy Bridge processor is automatically turned off. Thus, the opportunity to use the benefits paid by the user is lost. LucidLogix company has proposed its solution to this issue - Virtu.

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    If you approach the description of this technology without fanaticism, you can meet one sentence. The LucidLogix Virtu initiative allows you to use the built-in Intel GMA HD 3000/2000 core in 2D mode, and when switching a PC in 3D mode, it automatically switches to discrete graphics. The advantages are obvious: reduced system power consumption due to the lack of load on the discrete graphics adapter and access to Quick Sync Video technology.

    The coordinated work of LucidLogix Virtu technology within the Intel Z68 Express chipset and discrete graphics is ensured by the following requirements:

    • The presence of the operating system Windows 7;
    • Connecting a monitor to the video output of the motherboard;
    • The BIOS settings should indicate that the initialization of the PC graphics subsystem should begin with the integrated graphics;
    • The Virtu driver is installed.


    The main tab of the Virtu control panel is not difficult to understand, and this does not require additional explanation.

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    The second tab displays information about supported games and benchmarks. Driver update Virtu carries not only the optimization of technology from LucidLogix, but also support for new games.


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    If the software product is supported by the Virtu driver, a notification will appear on the screen. And the number of FPS is easy to understand. Of course, the LucidLogix Virtu logo can be disabled.

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    Considering that the work of the integrated graphics and a discrete graphics card is controlled through a virtual Lucid Multi GPU driver, it’s worth to find out how much this driver bites off the performance of a discrete accelerator. To do this, add the N580GTX Lightning video card to the test bench and run some of the most popular benchmarks in and without Virtu modes.

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    The performance loss was about 4-5%, which can easily be compensated by overclocking the video card. If we lost somewhere, then we must add somewhere. And you can add in matters of transcoding videos from one format to another. We use the program Badaboom 2.0 to provide Intel Quick Sync Video block work. To use the capabilities of Quick Sync Video, you need to check the “Graphics Acceleration” item in the program settings.

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    Even with the naked eye, you can notice the difference between decoding the movie by the processor cores and the Intel Quick Sync Video block.

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    We will display the test results in graph format. For clarity, we add the results with the Core i7-2600K processor overclocked to 4.7 GHz, as well as with the integrated GPU GMA HD 3000 overclocked to the core from 1350 MHz to 1550 MHz.

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    Enabling Intel Quick Sync Video Technology delivers an extra 45% performance. In other words, the Core i7-2600K processor managed to convert the video to iPad format in 105 seconds, and with the acceleration turned on in just 72 seconds. Overclocking the Core i7-2600K chip had a positive effect on the transcoding speed, but it still failed to reach the result of the Quick Sync Video block. The media content acceleration unit began to work slightly faster when overclocking the GMA HD 3000.

    Intel RST SSD Caching Intelligent Caching

    The mechanics are not able to keep up with electronics in matters of speed. This statement is extremely true for magnetic disk drives and solid state drives. Hard drives, with their huge volume and relative affordability, lose in performance in terms of less capacious and more expensive SSDs. Want to quickly load the operating system and a number of resource-intensive programs, buy a "solid-state", but lose in volume. If you want volume, lose speed or empty your wallet. To some extent, Intel RST SSD Caching (Rapid Storage Technology) is capable of combining the positive aspects of HDD and SSD. This Intel initiative can teach the SSD to become an intelligent assistant for the hard drive.

    In order to assemble the PC disk subsystem correctly within the framework of RST SSD Caching technology, it is necessary to withstand a number of requirements:
    • Of course, only the LGA 1155 platform based on Intel Z68;
    • Only Core i3, Core i5 or Core i7 processors performed by LGA 1155;
    • SATA mode must be set as SATA RAID;
    • Installed operating system Windows Vista or Windows 7 in SATA RAID mode;
    • Only one SSD drive with a capacity of at least 20 GB;
    • The presence of the latest driver Intel Rapid Storage Technology;
    • The result of Intel Rapid Storage Technology is noticeable at least after the repeated loading of an application.


    To see how Intel RST SSD Caching works in business, we use Seagate Barracuda LP (ST31500541AS) and OCZ Vertex 2 (OCZSSD2-2VTXE60G) drives.

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    So, the user connects the new 1.5TB Seagate Barracuda LP hard drive to the motherboard MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3), launches the HD Tune utility and gets the following result.

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    Not a bad result, but nothing more. In order to improve it, the user collects a disk subsystem within the framework of Intel RST SSD Caching technology.

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    Go ahead, show this user how to properly configure Intel Rapid Storage Technology.

    Here is the working window of the Intel Rapid Storage Technology hard drive management utility. In the “Storage System View” field, you can find a mention of the drives installed in the system.

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    Go to the “Acclerate” tab and select “Enable Accleration”.

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    In the window that appears, click “Ok” and wait ...

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    ... after about a minute (52 seconds on the system under consideration)
    we will receive a system notification.

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    Everything is done correctly and the OCZ Vertex 2 drive is now used as a cache for the Seagate Barracuda LP hard drive. We pass to testing.

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    The result of all the fuss with the setting should be one - the result. Three programs will help us see the performance of Intel Rapid Storage Technology in numbers - HD Tune, the benchmark HDD from PCMark 2005 and the benchmark HDD from PCMark 7. I would like to remind you that you need to run tests two or three times.

    HD Tune

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    Already after the restart, it is possible to get almost a twofold increase in the performance of the PC disk subsystem.

    PCMark 2005

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    Without excessive modesty, we can say about a threefold increase in “parrots” in the HDD test of PCMark 2005. In practice, it is enough to restart the application so that the data is processed by the Intel Rapid Storage echnology driver and placed on the open spaces of the OCZ Vertex 2.

    PCMark 7

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    Under zero launch you should understand testing without activating Intel Rapid Storage Technology. The PCMark 7 benchmark runs the HDD tests three times before delivering the final result, which means that it is enough to run it once. Again, I want to note the performance increase of the disk subsystem by more than 100%.

    Conclusion

    First of all, about getting to know LucidLogix Virtu and Intel RST SSD
    Caching.

    LucidLogix Virtu is an advantage of the Intel Quick Sync Video hardware unit and the computing power of a discrete graphics adapter in one bottle. LucidLogix technology should be neglected only last. Thanks to the virtual Lucid Multi GPU driver, the entire stage of switching between integrated and discrete graphics remains completely transparent for the user. The only thing a user will pay attention to when starting a game or benchmark is the cooling system of a discrete video card: it will be heard. In addition, do not forget about energy saving, because in the 2D mode of operation, discrete graphics will work at minimum frequencies.

    The Intel RST SSD Caching solution is also interesting. Engineers and programmers from the processor giant have created a very useful tool for speeding up the PC disk subsystem. Once you configure everything and the applications that the user launches each time will load much faster. RST SSD Caching technology is also useful for gamers who quite often use Save / Load commands.

    The motherboard MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3) pleased with a certain cohesion of everything that MSI engineers put into it. When communicating with her, there is a feeling of a certain integrity. I am pleased with the package, design of the printed circuit board, overclocking capabilities, the presence of a graphical UEFI Setup interface for managing BIOS settings. The level of pleasure in owning the Z68A-GD80 (B3) is enhanced after becoming acquainted with all its technologies, and especially with LucidLogix Virtu and Intel RST SSD Caching. The motherboard in question fits almost perfectly with the idea of ​​the majority of users about what is important in a motherboard based on Intel Z68 Express and what is not. The motherboard MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3) can not disappoint, it simply does not have the prerequisites for this.

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