MSI X79-GD45 Plus Motherboard Review (inc. CPU Gaming Performance Comparison)

To test the MSI X79A-GD45 Plus, we teamed it with an Intel Core i7 4960X processor and 16GB of 2133MHz CL9 memory from G.Skill. We will be outlining the MSI X79A-GD45 Plus motherboard's performance with the Core i7 4960X CPU at its stock frequency of 3.6GHz (4.0GHz due to forced turbo). Overclocked performance will be outlined later in the review.

Unfortunately, we don't have performance figures (using identical components) from any other X79 motherboards to compare against the MSI X79A-GD45 Plus. As we build up our X79 motherboard performance database using the Core i7 4960X processor, we will include comparison figures to outline performance differences.

By default, the MSI X79A-GD45 Plus motherboard forces the 4960X to a constant 4.0GHz when XMP is enabled. This will be displayed as the ‘stock’ setting (and outlined in the charts' brackets after the non-turbo stock speed is displayed).

Gigabyte kindly extended our loan of the company's excellent GTX 780 WindForce OC graphics card which we reviewed here. Later in the review, we will be combining the ultra fast card with a 2560 x 1600 monitor and focusing on the gaming performance offered by some of today's most common CPUs, using the MSI X79A-GD45 Plus as the foundation for our LGA 2011 testing.

G.Skill sent over a 16GB quad-channel set of its 2133MHz CL9 RipjawsX memory to use with our X79 test system. We will use the fast quad-channel memory kit in our future X79 motherboard reviews to ensure that results are consistent and directly comparable.

X79 Motherboard Test System:

• Processor: Intel Core i7 4960X 3.60GHz (4.00GHz forced turbo).
• Memory: 16GB (4x 4GB) G.Skill RipjawsX (F3-2133C9Q-16GXL) 2133MHz 9-11-11-31.
• Graphics Card: Gigabyte GTX 780 WindForce OC 3GB.
• System Drive: 256GB SanDisk Ultra Plus.
• CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i.
• Case: NZXT Phantom 630.
• Power Supply: Seasonic Platinum 1000W.
• Operating System: Windows 7 Professional with SP1 64-bit.

Settings:

• MSI X79A-GD45 Plus BIOS 7760 V15.
• GeForce 326.80 VGA drivers.

Software Suite:

• 3DMark
• 3DMark 11
• PCMark 8
• Unigine Heaven Benchmark 4.0
• SiSoft Sandra 2013 SP4
• Cinebench R11.5 64 bit
• Cinebench R15 64 bit
• Super Pi
• WinRAR
• VLC Media Player 2.0.7
• CyberLink Media Espresso 6.7
• HandBrake 0.9.9
• ATTO
• Battlefield 3
• Bioshock Infinite
• DIRT Showdown
• Hitman Absolution
• Metro 2033
• Metro: Last Light
• Sleeping Dogs
• Tomb Raider

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