Asus PQ5-EM...Great Board In The Making?

[Twitch22]

Hello all!

Just wanted to chime in and let those interested know about my initial impressions with Asus' newest mATX board. I had switched to a desktop LAN-box as my main PC ever since March now. Initially, I had been using EVGA's 630i/7150 mATX board with an E6600 Conroe quite happily. But, after going out and buying a Q9450, I found out that the 600-series chipsets from nVidia do not support the Yorkfield family processors. Doh!! So, in searching for a mATX board that can run my un-used CPU, I came back to Asus (my old favorite!) and their newest board, the PQ5-EM.

First off, this is one great little board spec-wise: Four DDR2-800 slots (supports up to 16 Gigs in dual-channel operation, which the nVidia based solutions did not), newest 45-series Intel chip set (45nm CPU and up to 1600 MHz bus support), full powered PCIe 2.0 slot, on-board HDMI and HD-Audio (really very good, no need for a seperate GPU-card in a HTPC configuration) yadda, yadda, yadda. The build-quality is typical for Asus' top notch boards, a highlight being Japanese solid-state caps all-around! Set up is straight forward, thanks to a great layout and the best driver/utility installation DVD I've ever used. As a side note, Asus throws a ton of software-based "features" in with this board, but most will not be needed (nor are desired) by many enthusiast users. For a mATX board with integrated graphics, the feel, build and pack-ins of this board make you think that Asus fully intends this to be a real alternative to a full-sized ATX enthusiast board.

In keeping with the enthusiast-class feel, the BIOS settings are very full-featured for a mATX board. But, here's the rub: it's not a very easy board to OC. As an example, I tried for a very simple OC on my Q9450. I set the Ai Tuner to manual and manally set in a FSB number of 375, which, with the stock multiplier of 8, would give me a nice even 3.0 GHz. Well, my rig would POST and get to Windows just fine, but immerdiately after log-on, the system would flash a BSOD, then immediately re-boot. After the re-boot, the standard defaults would load automatically and everything would be just fine.

I even tried to OC from Windows using the Asus AI Suite utility. Again, I entered a 375 FSB, restarted and got the BSOD immediately after logging on. I tried bumping up my CPU voltage slightly, tweaking my memory settings, etc. Still, same behavior.

For now, I have to be happy with the stock performance (See my full system specs below my sig). The system is very stable at stock speeds and settings (several hours of continuous stressing completed now, using Memtest & Prime 95) and it is faster than what my E6600-based system was. However, I am disappointed by the inability to get to a simple 3.0 GHz out of my Q9450. In researching this board further on the net, it seems many are having problems OC'ing the P5Q-EM. Flasing to the newest BIOS revision, 1406, did not improve my (or others) success rates. I know Anandtech were able to get their review sample to a 455 FSB with their Q9300...perhaps it was a "special" version?

So, for right now, Asus' PQ5-EM is a very good board in stock form and speeds. It certainly has all the bells and whistles and has the make-up to be an enthusiast-class board...in mATX form! But, right now, it just won't OC for me at all. Hopefully, as the BIOS matures, this will change. However, if you're used to getting "something for nothing" out of your hardware, your money would be best spent on something else.

Cheers,

Twitch

 

[MrStryker]

I would probably recommend the DFI Lanparty Jr. P45 mATX motherboard if you wanted to overclock. And one of my friends has the older ASUS P5E-VM HDMI, he's got his Q6600 at 3.2GHz on it.

 

[wwswimming]

i've been waiting for a micro-ATX board to pop up and stand out.
sort of the way the MSI 6150 "FID" board did for dual Opteron
users.

yeah, the P5Q-EM sounds like a good match for a quad core.
i hope.

 

[badrox]

Hi Twitch,

I am in the process of setting up my P5Q-EM as well. I am using the on-board video currently but will cut over to a graphics card later. Did you have any issues getting your 8800 GTS to work? I had heard of the G45 chipset not playing nice with discrete graphic cards.

Thanks,

Badrox

 

[runawayprisoner]

From what I have tried, overclocking potential is not as high as P5E-VM HDMI. P5E-VM HDMI could take any Q9450 to 4GHz and boot just fine, whereas this board struggles a lot with only 3.4GHz. I hope it's just a BIOS issue.

 

[Twitch22]

Originally posted by: badrox
Hi Twitch,

I am in the process of setting up my P5Q-EM as well. I am using the on-board video currently but will cut over to a graphics card later. Did you have any issues getting your 8800 GTS to work? I had heard of the G45 chipset not playing nice with discrete graphic cards.

Thanks,

Badrox

Hello Badrox and welcome to the Forum!

To answer your question, nope, didn't have any problems what-so-ever with my 8800 GTS and this board. I built her up and installed everything with my 8800 mounted from the start. I hear you, though...I've read everything from users not being able to get their stand-alone GPU cards to work at all, to users reporting that the PCIe 2.0 slot wasn't really a PCIe 2.0 slot, artifacts, errors, etc.

I have no idea, because it seems like these problems are a small (though vocal) minority. IMHO, if you're using this board in any configuration other than a portable gaming box, the on-board video is really very, very good! There are several HTPC sites that are praising this board, especially since it seems that early Blue-Ray playback issues have been fixed with the newest BIOS updates (I have no experience with this personally.)

But, if you're going to game with any seriousness at all, I would suspect that you won't have any problems with running any of the newest video cards, especially if you're keeping up-to-date with the BIOS revisions. Me? My next move is to get a HD 4870 or GTX 280 in my box! :thumbsup:

Now, if I could just run my CPU at 3.0 GHz... "Something for nothing..." you know?

Cheers,

Twitch

 

[Twitch22]

Originally posted by: wwswimming
i've been waiting for a micro-ATX board to pop up and stand out.
sort of the way the MSI 6150 "FID" board did for dual Opteron
users.

yeah, the P5Q-EM sounds like a good match for a quad core.
i hope.

This is my hope as well. I mean, spec-wise, this thing ROCKS!! And it really works very, very well. It's not like I'm saying it's broken or anything. On the contrary, it's been on for more than 48 hours straight now with no hiccups or problems, even through stressing and benchmarking. It's very fast and super stable.

I just find it very odd as to why a board that has the hardware it does and provides the user so much adjutability in the BIOS will not (currently) provide such a simple OC as to get a 2.66GHz Quad to 3.0GHz?

Oh well, hopefully Asus/Intel will keep the development up...it is a very new board after all.

Cheers,

Twitch

 

[badrox]

Twitch,

I'm glad to hear a positive experience. I was/am still a bit worried when I actually do get a discrete card and what my experience will be...I hope subsequent bios updates will continue to make it a better board.

Thanks,

Badrox

 

[runawayprisoner]

In case you wonder, it has no problem with a HD4870 or HD4850. It plays nice with such cards.

 

[Twitch22]

Originally posted by: runawayprisoner
In case you wonder, it has no problem with a HD4870 or HD4850. It plays nice with such cards.

Thanks runaway...MMMmmmm, 4870 1Gig!

 

[Synomenon]

Haven't tried overclocking and don't really plan to. The board works very well. So far I've used a 8800GTS, 9600GT, 9800GX2, GTX280 and HD4870 on this board without any problems.

 

[Twitch22]

Okay, here's an update on this board:

Initially, I had lamented about the inability for me to overclock my Q9450 on this board. Well, thanks to Geokilla on this forum, I finally found out why! I forgot during the initial set-up to disable all the Power Saving features in the BIOS!! DOH!!

In stock form, the BIOS has Speedstep and C1E enabled. This effectively "sets" the CPU multiplier at 6, throttling it up to 8 only when loaded. Well that was causing my PC to crash whenever I tried to get it above 360 on the FSB.

After Speedstep and C1E were disabled, punching 375 on the FSB brought me straight to 3.0 GHz...no fuss, no muss! Multiplier is now fixed at 8 with no throttling back and forth. I just moved onto Vista Ultimate 64-bit last night, adding a Seagate 1TB hd and an EVGA GTX 260 in the process! I've been stressing and benchmarking all morning and the rig in running GREAT...so fast and so stable!

I moved onto Vista really for DX10 and games. But, I have to admit, it's one heck of an OS! The interface is super slick, it's remarkably stable and I haven't found it hard to use at all once I understood the "layout" of things. I can see that it is a memory hog, though...but this is the Ultimate version; maybe the more "regular" versions run leaner.

Anyway, back to the Asus P5Q-EM: From a componant, stability and feature standpoint, it's top-notch. It's super flexible...you can make a HTPC, DVR, LAN Box, a full-on gamer...whatever you want out of it. It has enough USB ports and headers, Firewire and eSATA on board so you (shouldn't) need to worry about adding add-on cards. It has PCI-E 2.0 support and has worked with both my 8800 GTS and GTX 260 with no issues. The on-board HD Audio is very good as well.

However, there is a very big issue with the way Asus placed the six on-board SATA ports. If you put in a video card longer than 9", the card will be directly over these ports. Because of this, 90-degree SATA cables will be required. And while Asus throws in two SATA cables in the box, only one of them has a 90-degree connector. Also, because of the tight fit and need to use 90-degree connectors, you're effectively limiting yourself to 4 available SATA ports. Overall, Asus did a good job laying out this board considering all it has, but the SATA location is just poor. And while Asus probably assumes the majority of people that buy these boards will use the on-board GPU, I have to think that they should've thought differently about this board, especially since it seems like it was engineered with the enthusiast in mind.

In the end, this is one GREAT board!! If your a gamer/enthusiast and are looking to go "small", going with this board is a great way to get there!

Arvin

My Computer Desk

LAN Box Left Side1

LAN Box Left Side2

LAN Box Right Side

 

[Zap]

Pretty sweet setup, and a nice start to overclocking. You should aim for higher!

My own X-Qpack2 setup has an Asus P5K-VM. It only has four SATA ports but none of them will get covered up by any video card. Now if only Asus made them in something besides puke yellow PCB...

I'm only running a dual core (Xeon 3110). I just got a new video card to replace my 8800 GTS... a GTX 260 Maxcore (216 cores). Maybe I'll install it today?

 

[Twitch22]

Originally posted by: Zap
Pretty sweet setup, and a nice start to overclocking. You should aim for higher!

My own X-Qpack2 setup has an Asus P5K-VM. It only has four SATA ports but none of them will get covered up by any video card. Now if only Asus made them in something besides puke yellow PCB...

I'm only running a dual core (Xeon 3110). I just got a new video card to replace my 8800 GTS... a GTX 260 Maxcore (216 cores). Maybe I'll install it today?

Thanks for the compliment. I want to go higher, but I'm using the stock Intel cooler ATM...have to figure out which Low Profile cooler I want to use. It's so hard to find out exactly what'll fit in a mATX case, you know?

Do it!! Throw it in there...I thought the move from 8800 to 260 was going to be a marginal improvement, but it was almost a 40% increase in performance acording to 3DMark Advantage! :thumbsup:

My 8800 GTS was only the 320MB version, though, so the improvemtn can't be too hard to explain. But the visual/game feel difference is plain to see.

I hear you about the puke-yellow PCBs...fortunately for me, the PQ5-EM features a dar, DARK purple board. Looks black until you shine some light on it, then you see the violet hues coming in.

Good luck with your GTX 260!

Arvin

 

[Synomenon]

Originally posted by: Twitch22
However, there is a very big issue with the way Asus placed the six on-board SATA ports. If you put in a video card longer than 9", the card will be directly over these ports. Because of this, 90-degree SATA cables will be required. And while Asus throws in two SATA cables in the box, only one of them has a 90-degree connector. Also, because of the tight fit and need to use 90-degree connectors, you're effectively limiting yourself to 4 available SATA ports. Overall, Asus did a good job laying out this board considering all it has, but the SATA location is just poor.

Grats on the setup. I've been running my P5Q-EM for a couple of months now w/o issue. The GTX260 works very well in it.

I have use of four of the SATA ports thanks to left angle (270 degree) SATA cables I picked up at Performance-PCs AND my EVGA GTX260-216's physical design. The GTX260-216's cooler, near the end with the power connectors, slopes inwards so that it just barely exposes the bottom two SATA ports.

I have two left angle SATA cables on the top two ports, a right angle cable on the bottom SATA port closest to the front of my case and a regular, straight, 180 degree cable on the other bottom SATA port.

 

[TheBeagle]

Good Evening Everyone.

I've built two PCs utilizing the P5Q-EM board, and they both run just great. The latest BIOS revision, Ver. 1406, is indeed a much better BIOS for overclocking. Presently, the one board which has a Q9650 and 8GB of G.Skill PC2-8800 memory, is running very stable at 3.85GB on air (Zalman 9500) with Vista 64 Ultimate and a HD4870 card. I might just push that PC a bit more to see if it will get to 4.0GHz and still be stable, but 3.85GHz is not too bad, and coupled with a WD VelociRaptor 300, it runs like a raped ape. The new Adobe CS4 suite of apps likewise really makes use of those overclocked cores, memory, and hard disk speed. All in all, I can recommend that board to anyone who is looking to build a very fast and stable mATX PC.

Best regards to everyone. TheBeagle :beer:

 

[Twitch22]

Originally posted by: IsLNdbOi
Grats on the setup. I've been running my P5Q-EM for a couple of months now w/o issue. The GTX260 works very well in it.

I have use of four of the SATA ports thanks to left angle (270 degree) SATA cables I picked up at Performance-PCs AND my EVGA GTX260-216's physical design. The GTX260-216's cooler, near the end with the power connectors, slopes inwards so that it just barely exposes the bottom two SATA ports.

I have two left angle SATA cables on the top two ports, a right angle cable on the bottom SATA port closest to the front of my case and a regular, straight, 180 degree cable on the other bottom SATA port.

Wow...270 Degree SATA Cables!?!?!? That's something that would definately be useful, and not just in this build either! :thumbsup:

I'll be looking out for them, that's for sure! Currently, my DVD-Drive is running on IDE, but I want to move to an LG Universal drive (Blu-Ray, HD-DVD, etc.) and they only come in the SATA flavor.

BTW, I noticed that you're running fully-loaded on your RAM there...16Gigs! :shocked:

What kind of real-world performance are you seeing with it and did you have any problems getting the board to run with all that memory?

With DDR2 prices so low right now, more memory is the cheapest, real upgrade you can make!

Cheers,

Arvin

 

[Twitch22]

Hello all. Another update on my overclocking experiences with the P5Q-EM board:

Last night, I started experiencing some in-stability while surfing the web, watching videos and playing Company of Heroes. Nothing major, but Explorer shut down on me twice and CoH locked up during one of the movie sequences.

I had my Q9450 o/c'ed to 3.0, with the FSB set at 375. In BIOS, I had the memory frequency set to Auto, with the FSB Strap set to Auto as well. In doing my research, it was generally accepted that among Asus' P5-series motherboards, the FSB Strap was best left in Auto unless you were really pushing the FSB for an overclock. Becuase the strap was tied in to my FSB settings, it was actually oc'ing my memory, too. My memory frequency was actually 901.

I went to Mushkin's forums (GREAT site for support and information, BTW!) and read in a sticky from one of their Moderators that memory faults are the leading cause of system instablitiy (their opinion) and that the timings and frequency speeds that they rate their memory for are incredibly tight. So, I started to think that maybe it was my memory that was causing the issues.

I went into BIOS and checked the RAM frequency settings. I knew I did not want to set the Strap manually, since it seemed like no one achieved good stability with it manually set. With the Strap set to auto, my given RAM speed choices were 740, 901, 1080, 1130. So I satrted playing with the FSB settings in effort to get a RAM setting of 800. I set the FSB to 400 and , Viola! I had the RAM frequency at 801. Currently, my Q9450 is running at 3.2 MHz.

Well, it's been on at these setting now for 30 hours and is rock solid again, even thru 5 rounds of 3D-Mark Advantage, Prime and Memtest. My only concern at this point is that I'm still running the stock Intel cooler! My temps are still good, though I will be buying at better cooler this weekend.

I'm still looking for a good, layman's explination for what the FSB Strap actually does. Also, I haven't played around with any volatges at all, but am thinking that I'm not pushing things too far ATM to warrant it.

Thanks for reading...any thoughts or suggestions would be great!

Arvin

 

[Throckmorton]

I bought one of these and it doesn't work. Seems like the odds are low that it came that way, being an ASUS. It turns on but I get no video-- well I did once, but never before and never again. Sometimes, the video card (EVGA 8800gt) fan spins up, and never spins down like usual.


BTW, if you have a full length video card, it will block most of the sata ports. The ones that it doesn't block are still touched by the video card, so I don't know how well it works out long term. They include a 90 degree cable, but if you put it in the lower left sata port, it will block the switch/led/etc jumpers.

Shame on ASUS for not being like everyone else and putting the ports at the bottom of the board!