Intel P965: Mid-Range Performance Sector Roundup

Biostar TForce P965 Deluxe: Feature Set

Biostar TForce 965 Deluxe
Market Segment:	Mid-Range Performance
CPU Interface:	Socket T (Socket 775)
CPU Support:	LGA775-based Pentium 4, Celeron D, Pentium D, Pentium EE, Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Extreme
Chipset:	Intel P965 + ICH8R
Bus Speeds:	200 to 500 in 1MHz Increments
Memory Speeds:	Auto, 533, 667, 800
PCIe Speeds:	Auto, CPU, Fixed at 100MHz, 100MHz~200MHz
PCI:	Fixed at 33.33MHz
Core Voltage:	Startup, 1.10000V to 1.80000V in 0.00625V increments
CPU Clock Multiplier:	Auto, 6x-11x in 1X increments for Core 2 Duo
DRAM Voltage:	1.8V, 2.0V, 2.1V, 2.2V
DRAM Timing Control:	SPD, 8 DRAM Timing Options
NB Voltage:	Auto,1.5V, 1.6V, 1.7V, 1.8V
Memory Slots:	Four 240-pin DDR2 DIMM Slots Dual-Channel Configuration Regular Unbuffered Memory to 8GB Total
Expansion Slots:	1 - PCIe X16 1 - PCIe X4 1 - PCIe X1 3 - PCI Slot 2.3
Onboard SATA/RAID:	6 SATA 3Gbps Ports - Intel ICH8R (RAID 0,1,5, 1+0,JBOD)
Onboard IDE:	1 Standard ATA133/100/66/33 Port (2 drives) - VIA VT6410
Onboard USB 2.0/IEEE-1394:	10 USB 2.0 Ports - 4 I/O Panel - 6 via Headers No Firewire Support
Onboard LAN:	Gigabit Ethernet Controller - PCI Express Interface Realtek RTL 8110SC
Onboard Audio:	Realtek ALC883 HD-Audio 8-channel CODEC
Power Connectors:	ATX 24-pin, 4-pin EATX 12V
I/O Panel:	1 x PS/2 Keyboard 1 x PS/2 Mouse 1 x Serial 1 x Audio Panel 1 x RJ45 6 x USB 2.0/1.1
BIOS Revision:	AWARD ip96a803

We really liked the Biostar TForce P965 Deluxe motherboard when we reviewed it in our Conroe Buying Guide as we thought it had the best blend of performance and price at the time. One omission in this motherboard is the lack of Firewire support that we found in both the Asus and Abit boards. Considering this motherboard is in the $150 price range we find this to be perplexing. Also, the memory voltage only goes to 2.2V but this did not hinder its overclocking capabilities during testing.

The only real change in the motherboard since its release has been a significant upgrade to the BIOS that cleared any remaining memory compatibility issues along with an increase in overclocking capability to 500FSB. The motherboard is the only one in our roundup to use the VIA VT6410 IDE chipset instead of the now standard JMicron JMB363. While it does not offer additional SATA ports like the JMicron, the IDE performance and compatibility was better in our testing. Our original feelings about the performance and compatibility of this board have not changed but we have noticed the board to be in very short supply. Biostar assures us this supply issue will be solved by early November.



Biostar includes several software utilities with the board: an Overclock Program, Hardware Monitoring application, Smart Fan Utility, and an online BIOS update applet. The overclock utility allows for changes to the FSB and basic system voltages. The smart fan utility allows control of the CPU and main system fan header within Windows. The Hardware monitoring utility allows for real time monitoring of CPU temperature, CPU fan speeds, and basic system voltages. Biostar includes an automatic overclocking utility in their BIOS that offers three different settings named V6, V8, and V12.

We naturally selected the V12 setting in the BIOS and after a reboot were greeted with Ford Pinto performance. Okay, it was not that bad but the final results were a blistering 2009MHz CPU speed via a 7x287FSB with the memory speed at DDR2-715. However, the system was smart enough unlike our other boards to actually set the memory timings at something other than an ultra safe 5-5-5-15 setting with actual timings at 4-4-4-10. This is unusual as the BIOS will default to DDR2-667 (4:5) settings with timings at 5-5-5-15 when left on auto settings. Overall, the automatic overclocking worked without any issues and provided a small increase in speed just as Biostar intended it to work.