Product Listing

DFI LANParty UT X48-T2R (Intel X48)

By Vincent Chang - 31 May 2008

Conclusion

Conclusion

With the mainstream '4-series' P45 motherboards expected to open with a bang at Computex, the X48 chipset looks to be overshadowed, especially since the performance of these new boards look to be the equal or better than the current Intel chipsets available at the moment. Additionally, it too has FSB support for 1600MHz and CrossFireX support, making it effectively equal to the enthusiast variant.

Almost all the features that you have seen on this DFI LANParty UT X48-T2R boards can be found in older DFI models. However, that's not to say that they are no longer useful. In the end though, the performance and overclocking we experienced was decent but hardly fantastic.

DFI has mostly reproduced its X38 based LT X38-T2R for this new LANParty UT X48-T2R, with a similar feature list. This is unsurprising given the almost negligible differences between the two. One of the changes has been the inclusion of a different cooling system for the chipset, with Thermalright's Flame-Freezer extended heatpipe based heatsink outside the chassis, which was quite easily installed.

Other than that, features like the Bernstein audio module, EZ Clear and CMOS Reloaded, are all found on this board and they are undoubtedly useful. The use of digital PWM from Volterra, which DFI seems to be pushing for its products are also present. Throw in the other standard features that one finds on the X48 chipset and you'll have a motherboard that's ready for the latest hardware, as should be the case for an enthusiast level product.

Performance wise however, the DFI X48-T2R was decent without really being outstanding in any aspect. Compared to the other X48 board that we saw from Gigabyte, the DFI's performance ranged from equal to slightly behind. Overclocking, the big draw of any DFI board, is aided by numerous settings, some more obscure than others and most of which requires a more in-depth guide than the miserly descriptions in the manual. However, those who are familiar with DFI motherboards will probably find it a welcome return. With all its bells and whistles however, this DFI is quite the premium motherboard, with online retailers listing it for around US$340. Unless you are keen to overclock your CPU, we would suggest waiting for the newer mainstream and presumably more affordable P45 boards to hit retail before putting down your dollar.

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